CUMBERLAND — City officials reserved four of 10 openings for a relocation incentive package that attracted well more than 1,000 applicants.
Cumberland officials said the pilot program was created to increase economic opportunity, grow the area’s “talented workforce” and improve housing in the city.
The Choose Cumberland Relocation Program plan offered a limited-time relocation incentive of $10,000 to folks who move to the city and an additional $10,000 “dollar for dollar match” for approved renovations to an existing home or for a downpayment on a newly constructed house.
The committee to review the applications and select finalists includes Cumberland Administrator Jeff Silka, Director of Administrative Services Ken Tressler, Historic Planner and Preservation Coordinator Ruth Davis-Rogers and City Council members Laurie Marchini and Rock Cioni.
“Prior to us officially releasing the program, the Maryland Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services asked if they could use this program as a recruiting tool to attract new employees living outside of Allegany County,” Silka recently said. “We said yes and told them we would reserve four positions for them. Currently they have not submitted any names of new hires to us to take advantage of this program.”
The Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services manages the Western Correctional Institution and North Branch Correctional Institution, both maximum security state prisons in Cresaptown.
To qualify for the relocation program, Silka said candidates must:
• Complete all blanks on the city’s application and have it officially approved.
• Be at least 18 years old and eligible to work in the U.S.
• Relocate from outside Allegany County to live within Cumberland city limits.
• Have full-time remote employment, existing local employment, proof of self-employment or plans to accept a new job in the area.
• Be able to move to Cumberland within six months of being accepted into program.
• Have a prequalification letter from a mortgage lender.
• Not have a current house under contract with a local Realtor.
• Consent to a casual interview with city staff and/or the mayor or members of the City Council.
Silka said qualified candidates are being reviewed in the order in which their applications were received.
“This pilot program has been created to increase economic opportunity, grow our talented workforce and improve our housing within the city of Cumberland,” he said.
Roughly a month ago, Davis-Rogers said applications came from states including California, Oklahoma, Arizona and North Carolina.
“We are receiving, on average, probably 20 to 30 applications per hour, in addition to phone calls … even in the middle of the night,” she said at that time.
“Due to the fact that we received more applications than funding, many applicants will be unable to move on to the next phase of the selection process,” the city’s website stated on Thursday. “We do hope to get additional funding to continue this program in the future.”