When the American Rescue Plan Act was passed in 2021, much focus was around its issue of a new round of stimulus checks, creation of a national vaccination program and grants to small businesses. Included in the legislation was also billions of dollars to support city, town and county governments as they continue adjusting in the wake of the coronavirus’ economic effects.
Since then, the money was allocated to states, which then allocated it to counties. Now, the local governments have their final amounts and spending guidelines – and earlier this month, Carrboro officially finalized their entire allocation of money.
Carrboro Mayor Damon Seils described the American Rescue Plan Act, or ARPA, funds as a great opportunity for the town and its residents.
“We approved a spending plan on [October 11] that I’m very excited about,” he said to 97.9 The Hill, “that focuses on priorities that we’ve had as a community in Carrboro for some time, but that became even more acutely important during the pandemic.”
While there are specific categories ARPA funding must be spent in, their reach in local communities can be broad. Supporting public health, addressing negative economic impacts, and making infrastructure investments are just some of the categories outlined by the federal government.
For Carrboro, its town council approved the available $6.75 million across a variety of areas – with the largest portion going to affordable housing. $1 million is dedicated to construction of more affordable housing units, while another $1 million is going toward emergency housing assistance and home energy efficiency renovations for low- and moderate-income residents.
Economic development initiatives also drew the second largest percentage of funding, with small business grants and a disparity study among the items to be supported. Council Member Randee Haven-O’Donnell also pointed out that while other development projects were once potential funding recipients, a staff document shared reasons why they were left out.
“I appreciated seeing explanations for projects that were considered by not included,” said Haven-O’Donnell. “Several of the economic development and entrepreneurial conversations we’ve had – the reason they’re not included is because [they] are under consideration in other ways.”
Two items drew out the most involved discussion about allocations during the town council meeting, the first of which was funding for Carrboro’s Bicycle Plan. The plan adopted in 2021 lays out a vision for Carrboro to be more bicycle accessible and safe for riders of all ages. After Council Member Danny Nowell suggested dropping $30,000 of allocation for an additional bike repair station, Seils followed up with the suggestion of pairing it with the remaining $170,000 unassigned funds. He said he believed it could be critical funding to help with projects already identified as priorities for bike and pedestrian safety.
“To me,” Seils said, “let’s just get the Bike Plan implemented, let’s do it. If there’s a way to allocate those remaining funds, including the $30,000 Danny [Nowell] identified, to implementing the already-adopted Bicycle Plan, then I think we should make the effort to do if possible.”
Later, a project in the Recreation, Parks & Cultural section of funding earned attention: $114,000 for horseshoe pit renovations. Town staff said the eight courts in Anderson Park, which were built in the 1980s and are not up to state sanctioned standards to hold events, had been identified as a future capital investment project. The area regularly draws annual tournaments and activity despite being out of date.
While many council members questioned the allocation, they eventually approved the amount with a specific endorsement from Council Member Barbara Foushee.
“This has been identified by the Parks and [Recreation department leadership and [despite] we don’t see much in it, there’s value for other members in the community. So, I do support moving ahead with using this money.”
Community members can find links to the full allocation details of federal funding by visiting the Town of Carrboro website.
Chapel Hill, meanwhile, is likely close to finalizing its own plans for ARPA funding. The town government is set to receive more than $10 million, some of which has already been bookmarked and approved for projects. $3.8 million has been set aside for things like the ReVive Business Impact initiative, replacement of HVAC systems at Homestead Aquatic Center and artificial turf replacement at Cedar Falls Park.
The Chapel Hill Town Council reviewed remaining funding and project options during a work session on October 3 and is expected to revisit the topic of ARPA plans in November.
Photo via the Town of Carrboro.
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