(La Porte, IN) - The City of La Porte has now lost just over $1 million in federal grant money after the dollars were approved then later taken back during a time of ongoing cost cutting in the nation’s capital.

 

The latest grant withdrawn was for $400,000, said La Porte Assistant Police Chief Jim Ferguson during a presentation at the city’s Board of Public Works & Safety meeting on Tuesday.

 

Ferguson said the grant was for things like updating and purchasing new technology such as lap top and desk top computers at the police department.

 

He said the cancellation of the grant comes at a time when some of the lap top and desk top computers at the department are failing.

 

“We were going to use that to upgrade those or just get new ones.  It’s crippling that, that was pulled,” he said.

 

“We’re disappointed in that,” said Mayor Tom Dermody.

 

The other federal dollars cancelled recently involved a $1 million grant awarded to the city last year to remove as many as 900 old and unhealthy trees from tree lawns over the next several years.

 

About $750,000 was left from the grant after a portion of the money funded some of the work in 2024.

 

Last week, Dermody said he hoped the use of the word “diversity” in the city’s grant application wasn’t a factor in the decision to cancel the tree grant.

 

The word was chosen to outline the intent of the funds was to create a diverse urban forest since new trees of different species were going to replace the mostly maples being removed.

 

He said the word “climate” was used in the city’s grant application for the police department grant.

 

Currently, Dermody said the city is working with Congressman Rudy Yakym’s office and others to try and recover the lost tree grant monies.

 

He said the city’s only option for recovering the police department grant, though, was is to reapply for those dollars next year.