Grant announced for Burns Community Center
Congressman Jerry Moran has announced that the city of Burns has received $100,000 federal funding to repair and renovate the former Burns Post Office into a multi-purpose community center.
The funding, which comes as a $50,000 grant and $50,000 loan, was issued through the U.S. Department of Agriculture Rural Development Offices.
"The renovation of this building will be a tremendous benefit to the people of Burns," Moran said. "In addition to providing more modern offices for city personnel, the expanded library will feature a learning center and technology similar to what is found in larger cities."
The Rural Development funds will allow the post office building to undergo necessary repairs and renovations to accommodate offices for the city, police, fire department, and community library. The renovated building will feature a meeting room for public gatherings.
"This building will be all about community service," City Clerk Carolyn Koehn said. "This building is one of the few original buildings left in Burns, and the outside will be restored to look much like it did when it was built 105 years ago. We have three new computers and high-speed Internet access that will allow us to provide local citizens with the ability to take college classes. Our library will quadruple in size when we move to the renovated building," she said.
