Fairborn narrowing scope for spending $ 6.8M in ARPA funds, business, jobs, economy, real estate, COVID, Biden
“We are in the process of developing application eligibility requirements for funds and should have those available before the money is allocated,” Anderson said.
Talks have included up to $ 1 million for stormwater projects, and around $ 500,000 each for non-profits and small businesses, Keller said.
“We have some flood zones in Fairborn and we’re looking at some stormwater projects,” he said.
Keller added that funding priorities will be guided by the city’s stormwater master plan “and it will just be a matter of trying to look at which ones have the most immediate effect.”
The downtown area is expected to be a focal point for ARPA funding, he added.
“The downtown area is huge,” Keller said. “And there’ll probably be some additional funding for economic development for our downtown in addition to the small business set-aside.”
Earlier this year the city held a series of town halls and posted on an online survey about ways to use the money.
More than 55% of the nearly 750 survey respondents by early March expressed support for spending Fairborn ARPA money on infrastructure and community support services, results showed.
The ARPA funds must be spent on addressing issues impacted by COVID-19, state guidelines. They can be used in a variety of ways, including grants to local businesses or workers in essential jobs.
Fairborn’s portion is part of a $ 130 billion relief plan for local governments signed last year by President Joe Biden.
The deadline to spend it is Dec. 31, 2024, officials said. It can also be encumbered by that date if it is spent by the end of 2026, they added.