What would getting to a population of 50,000 mean for Salina?

Salina is in a unique place of growth, with employers finding it a great location to bring new industry, with new employees buying and renting houses to a point where the city is in a housing crisis.

The population of this city has been close to the 50,000 mark for a while, with many people expecting Salina to reach that mark in the next few years.

"For a long time, there's been community discussion as if 50,000 is the threshold for certain retail and restaurants," said Salina City Manager Mike Schrage.

Schrage said while that perception is somewhat true, there are other factors that businesses look at, and Salina, as a trade center for the region, can still bring in some of those businesses.

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Other than the potential to bring in more retail and restaurants, reaching the 50,000-population mark also opens up the city to other opportunities, most notably with federal funding.

"What's referred to the most is becoming an 'entitlement' city, through the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) program," Schrage said.

This program, under the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), provides annual grants to "entitled" communities to be used to provide "decent housing and a suitable living environment, and by expanding economic opportunities, principally for low- and moderate-income persons" according to the HUD website.

While Salina has used CDBG funding in the past, becoming an entitled city means that Salina wouldn't have to make competitive applications for the programs.

"You get some direct funding allocations, provided you use it according to the priorities and programs," Schrage said.

There are several types of programs that Salina could use this funding for. Shawn Henessee, assistant city manager, said one of the biggest needs that could be addressed with CDBG funding could be low to moderate-income housing.

'It's never free money'

While opening doors and options for more funding is a good thing, it would come with some added work on the part of the city.

"It's never free money," said Lauren Driscoll, director of community and development services. "You become responsible for programs that you've never had to run before, and you have to have somebody to run them."

While many of these programs come with administration costs included in them, Driscoll and Henessee, who have both worked previously in entitlement communities, said funding for administrative costs is never enough.

"You've got to adhere to the formula (and) have to file annual reports under the entitlement program," Henessee said. "There's a lot of other administrative costs."

While Henessee said CDBG is one facet Salina can use to address the housing crisis, it's not necessarily the one thing that can fix all the problems.

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Reaching 50,000 mark is on the minds of Salina leaders

With the continuing expansion of industry in the community and the understanding that the population is most likely going to grow along with it, this 50,000-population mark, and the benefits of being an entitlement city, is being looked at seriously within the city government.

"Having an annual allocation certainly helps you plan," Schrage said. "You can stand up a program, stand up an initiative and know you have some ongoing funding (available for it)."

Driscoll said another benefit of having the 50,000 mark is when it comes to emergency funding. One example is COVID relief, as cities in Kansas that were above that threshold were able to receive direct funding.

"Sometimes, if there's a known measurement or known classification, during emergencies monies, it's easier to hand out," Driscoll said. "They'll take known programs (like CDBG) and use those things."

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Getting to 50,000 shows the growth Salina has seen

Even apart from the funding opportunities that open up, having Salina reach this 50,000-population threshold is also a morale boost to the city and an indication of its growth.

"To me the biggest advantage is...it would be a manifestation of the growth of the city, especially on the private-sector side," Henessee said. "(Businesses) would be looking at and saying 'wow, the city has been growing consistently, (and it's) meeting our minimum population thresholds.'"

Having seen both sides of the issue, Henessee said it's good to see this growth as opposed to a shrinking population.

"When I was in Wisconsin, I was in a county that was steadily losing population," Henessee said. "Yes, there are costs associated with growth, but I'd much rather have that than a losing population. That is infinitely worse."

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Schrage said people seeing growth can also hasten that growth, especially in terms of the housing situation.

"You get that perception (of growth) going and then housing interests increases," Schrage said.

This situation is an evolving one, and the City of Salina knows that reaching the 50,000 mark in population isn't just going to happen overnight or be the solution to every issue Salina is facing. As that mark gets closer, however, the people in the City-County Building and the other citizens and residents of Salina look forward to the opportunities it may bring.

This article originally appeared on Salina Journal: Salina officials prepare as population inches close to 50,000