In an apparent misunderstanding of funding rules, Total Action Against Poverty has been told it will not receive $250,000 in federal grants to reimburse a portion of its $4.1 million renovation of the historic Dumas Hotel.

But in an effort to keep the federal Transportation Enhancement Program money in Roanoke, the city council will hear a proposal Monday to ask the Virginia Department of Transportation to reallocate that money to the city's greenways.

When first contacted about that plan Friday, TAP President Ted Edlich said he had not heard about it, and was surprised the city had not notified him.

"Any reallocation of that money to any other source would be very premature," he said.

Edlich insisted that TAP is continuing to negotiate with VDOT and the Federal Highway Administration to distribute the funds -- some of which were approved as far back as 2006 -- to his organization.

After talking to City Manager Darlene Burcham, he said, "we obviously do not want the city of Roanoke to lose these resources. ... We're not being recalcitrant."

The Transportation Enhancement Program provides funds for projects such as sidewalks, bike lanes and converting railroad corridors to trails. It also may be used in broader economic development projects, such as restoring eligible historic buildings.

But in a Dec. 2 letter to Edlich in regard to the $250,000, VDOT said the project -- which created the Dumas Center for Artistic & Cultural Development -- "is ineligible for reimbursement ... because the work was initiated without prior authorization, and without public advertisement for bids."

Both are required under the program's rules.

The letter also said the project was ineligible for an exemption to those provisions under what is known as the "Common Rule."

Edlich said Friday that "some of those difficulties were presented after the fact, and when the project was well under way." He said his agency "will address those [concerns] in a last round of responses by the end of the month."

VDOT's Salem District spokeswoman, Heidi Underwood, said Friday, however, that the federal agency's rejection "is the final word" on using the funds for the Dumas project.

But the city can request that the Commonwealth Transportation Board reallocate that money to other eligible projects, she said.

That is exactly what the city council is scheduled to do at Monday's 2 p.m. council meeting at the Noel C. Taylor Municipal Building.

Staff members have proposed reallocating the Dumas money, along with $33,000 that was allocated but unneeded for the Lick Run Greenway, to build a pedestrian bridge over Tinker Creek linking to the Roanoke River Greenway.

Burcham is scheduled to seek authorization from council to ask VDOT for the transfer.

Edlich said he also will be attending the meeting to plead the case for TAP's project.

If the nonprofit does not get the funds, "it's going to take a big bite out of the reserves we have," he said. "We were just surprised by the whole thing."