Village of Theresa Funding Opportunities

The Village of Theresa’s grant writer, Tammy Hampton, with Kunkel Engineering, presented funding opportunities for the 2027 Hwy 175 (Milwaukee Street) project to the board at its meeting on Monday, April 21.
Hampton discussed three funding sources for village consideration: the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG), the Department of Natural Resources (DNR), and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA).
The first and most highly recommended source of funding Hampton presented was the CDBG.
“The village can apply to that program if we complete an income survey. Fifty-one percent of the population of the village has to be low-to-moderate income. Right now, your percentage, as determined by the American Community Survey, is 42.5%. We have to get your numbers up to at least 51%, and the way to do that is a village-wide survey,” explained Hampton. “I reached out to CDBG and made a case that Milwaukee Street would be a community-wide benefit, but I need their concurrence. They are reviewing that. As soon as I get that concurrence, we can start talking about an income survey.”
Guidelines for the survey would be determined by the CDBG if it finds concurrence. The income survey would be confidential but not anonymous to track response rates and permit follow-up correspondence for incomplete surveys. Completion of the survey is not mandatory, but a response rate set by the CDBG must be met to be considered for funding.

Hampton continued, “That grant is up to $1 million, and it’s a two-to-one match, so $500,000 would have to be matched by the village. That match can be used with other funding sources, like you can use DNR money or you can use USDA money. Sometimes, you can use DOT money, depending on what type of funding DOT has available. We can use match dollars like DNR low-interest loans, and sometimes, if we get principal forgiveness, we can use that as match dollars, too, for the CDBG program... We routinely combine CDBG and DNR funds if we can to help maximize grant dollars compared to loan dollars.”
Hampton then presented information on DNR grant and loan opportunities through the Safe Drinking Water and Clean Water programs.
“That funding source, you always apply for two years in advance. Construction is happening on Milwaukee Street in 2027, so what we do is submit an intent to apply in October... Then, in June of the following year, we submit a Safe Drinking Water application. Then, in September of 2026, we submit a Clean Water Fund application,” stated Hampton. “The village is eligible for 30% principal forgiveness. That’s grant money. If there’s enough money in the DNR program to go around, we will be granted principal forgiveness. If the program runs out of money, as it did on State Highway 28, we don’t get principal forgiveness... With construction starting in the spring of 2027, we would close on those loans in the spring of 2027... Interest rates on that are usually 55% of whatever the market rate is when you close. Somewhere around 2-3%. Those are 20-year loans.”
“It’s challenging,” Hampton added. “The Safe Drinking Water program through the DNR typically runs out of principal forgiveness money. We know that. For Clean Water, this is the first year in 30 years that they have even run out of just loan dollars, much less grant money. It’s competitive.”
The last and least recommended funding source Hampton discussed was the USDA.
“USDA, right now, for a project of that size is an option, but I’m not sure it’s your best option. It’s administratively heavy. The USDA has experienced under this administration a lot of loss of staff. It can be cumbersome to submit reimbursement requests and get those in a timely fashion. While it is an option, I’m not sure that that’s our best option. I would probably lean towards CDBG and DNR. If we can’t meet the income requirement for CDBG, then, definitely, I’d take a look at USDA more closely.”
After presenting all three funding sources, Hampton opened the floor for the board and residents to ask questions.
“Are there any limitations to what the money is used for? Is it just general construction costs, or can it be beautification projects?” asked Trustee Pat Bodden.
“For CDBG, it can be road, sewer, or water, so Milwaukee Street would all be eligible. Sometimes beautification, if it’s related to the street project, we can include in CDBG,” responded Hampton. “Some of the other programs, like the DNR, [over only water and sewer and a small percentage of the street costs, so it’s only related to the utility work. 60% of the street costs they won’t fund. Beautification they usually don’t fund. It just has to be related to sewer and water. It really just depends on the funding source.”
Board Matters:
• The Theresa Lions Club presented a proposal to hang 50th-anniversary signs on existing light pole brackets along Hwy 175 near the village entrances. The club also proposed purchasing two brackets for signs to be installed near Fireman’s Park. The Lions Club would pay for the brackets but requires assistance from the village for the installation. A motion to approve the sign hanging and brackets was made by Trustee Dave Brandenburg and passed unanimously.
• The board discussed approving the subdivision of land located in the Town of Theresa. Due to an agreement between the Village and the Town of Theresa, the village board has to approve the subdivision because the land is located within a set distance of the village borders. Trustee Brandenburg made the motion to approve the land subdivision, which passed unanimously.
• The board also considered approving Resolution 2025-02: Changing the signers on the bank accounts. JR Koenigs was one of the three signers before he retired from the board in April, so a new signer needed to be approved. The resolution authorizes Trustee Shawn Krapfl to be the new signer. A motion to approve Resolution 2025-02 was made by Trustee Joe Haak and passed unanimously.
• The board discussed approving TSB Financial as the official village depository. The motion to approve TSB Financial as the village depository was made by Trustee Haak and passed unanimously.
• Designating official posting locations for the village was also discussed. Trustee Haak made the motion to designate the Village Hall and village website as official posting locations, which passed unanimously.
• The board considered approving attorney Matt Parmentier as the village’s legal counsel and QBS Law Firm as legal counsel for traffic matters. A motion to approve Parmentier and QBS Law Firm as legal counsels was made by Trustee Haak and passed unanimously.
• Additionally, the board discussed designating the Dodge County Pionier as the official village newspaper. The motion to designate the Pionier as the official newspaper was made by Trustee Krapfl and passed unanimously.
• The board considered approving Baker Tilly as the official auditors and preparers of the Annual Report submitted to the Wisconsin Public Service Commission. Trustee Haak made the motion to approve Baker Tilly as the official auditors and prepares, which passed unanimously.