AUSTINTOWN — The Mahoning County commissioners allocated $3,712,300 of their $42 million in American Rescue Plan funds Monday night when they held their regular weekly business meeting at the Austintown Township Hall.

The allocations are led by the $1.5 million the commissioners announced last week they had allocated to Eastgate Regional Council of Governments, which will issue a broadband request for proposals, select a provider and oversee implementation of the system to expand broadband services to underserved rural areas within the county. Areas to benefit are in Springfield, Goshen, Milton, Jackson and Smith townships.

Eastgate conducted a regional broadband feasibility study in 2021 and has been using the results as the blueprint to improve broadband throughout Mahoning, Trumbull and Ashtabula counties.

The commissioners also voted Monday to allocate $600,000 to the county sanitary engineer’s office for a pump station in Ellsworth Township for centralized wastewater collection and conveyance, according to information provided by county grants writer and office of management and budget specialist Anna DeAscentis. The money will be added to $250,000 the commissioners previously allocated to the project.

They also allocated $500,000 to Youngstown Jubilee Homes for urban development. The organization says Mahoning County has a shortage of quality, affordable housing, and Youngstown Jubilee Urban Development will help address the problem and close the gap by rehabbing homes as well as building new homes within qualified census tracts in Mahoning County, DeAscentis said.

They also allocated ARP money for the following other projects:

• $475,000 to the city of Struthers for a Vactor truck that will help with the upkeep of the city’s sewer mains;

• $348,000 to Austintown Township for stormwater construction and replacement;

• $150,000 to Family and Community Services for a noncongregate shelter for veterans. The county commissioners are contributing a portion of the local match to FCS, which has a U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs award of $600,000;

• $105,000 to Flying High, Inc. for new transitional workforce housing and renovations to existing workforce housing;

• $30,000 to Noah’s Lost Ark Animal Sanctuary in Berlin Center for improved habitat. The facility increases tourism, travel and hospitality industries in the county, DeAscentis said.

• $4,300 to the Berlin Ellsworth Ruritan for food and clothing for elderly and less fortunate people.

County Administrator Audrey Tillis said about $5 million of the county’s $42 million in ARP funds have not yet been allocated, but the county has ideas for where to spend those funds.

Commissioner David Ditzler spoke about his time as Austintown trustee, saying he was first elected in 1993 after experiencing flooding in June 1993 and deciding to continue a vision his father had for improving storm sewers in the township when he ran for township trustee in the 1960s. He said about $8 million was generated to make improvements.

Geno DiFabio, who ran against Commissioner Carol Rimedio Righetti in November’s election, addressed the county commissioners at the start of the meeting, asking them to consider holding more of its meetings at 5 p.m. like Monday’s meetings so that people who work, like him, can attend.