Trumbull commissioners narrow list of agencies to receive ARP funds
WARREN — Seven out of 31 agencies still seeking a portion of Trumbull County’s remaining $852,168 in American Rescue Plan funds were approved to have at least a portion of their requests moved forward to determine if they meet all of the government’s guidelines to receive the money.
The county over a two-year period has been awarded $38.5 million in ARP pandemic relief funds. Commissioners have approved granting $37.7 million of that to finance 116 projects that include improvements to a variety of county buildings, sewers and road projects; the purchase of numerous ambulances for fire and safety agencies; a variety of parks and recreation projects in villages and townships; several museums; a county health project in association with Community Family Outreach Services; as well as money given to public and private nonprofit agencies.
Organizations that were considered by commissioners during Tuesday’s workshop sought a combined total of $12.6 million in funds.
Commissioners Mauro Cantalamessa and Denny Malloy attended the workshop meeting.
Requests approved to move forward for legal review included:
• $200,000 of $424,000 that Lordstown sought for a water booster on Pritchard Ohltown Road.
• $175,000 that Warren Township requested for a new ambulance.
• $50,000 of $400,000 sought by Community Legal Aid to provide legal services for low-income and indigent defendants.
• $50,000 of $165,000 sought by Bess Purpose, which provides temporary assistance for persons in domestic violence situations.
• $50,000 of the $218,193 requested by Warren Family Mission to help upgrade or replace the heating and ventilation system at one of its buildings.
• $150,000 of $447,000 sought by Weathersfield for a multijurisdictional workforce education center.
• $5,990 for the Warren Amateur Radio Association so it can purchase a field trailer and upgrade its repeater equipment.
A few of the organizations that were on the “maybe” list, but did not receive funds included:
• Fund for Warren’s Future, which sought $2 million for the Peninsula Project in Warren.
• The Trumbull County Sheriff’s Department, which sought a combined $286,478 for the purchase of a convection gas steamer, a Soter body scanner upgrade and new flooring in the jail.
• Fowler General store, which was seeking $150,000 for a wheelchair ramp and a walk-in cooler.
• Youngstown / Warren Urban League, which was seeking $750,000 for the building of a community resource center.
• Inspiring Minds, which was seeking $2 million for expansion, as well as other organizations.
Based on the commissioners’ approvals, the requests will be sent to attorney Tonya Rogers of Baker, Dublikar, Beck, Wiley and Mathews for review to ensure they meet all federal government guidelines to receive the awards. If the projects are qualified to receive the funds by the law firm, resolutions will be written in order for the commissioners to provide the final approvals.
Depending on how much money remains after the requests are awarded, commissioners will see how much may be available to use for ambulance requests from McDonald, $175,000, and Vienna Township, $286,000.
Based on the amounts projected to receive funding, Trumbull County Auditor Martha Yoder said the county may have $171,178 remaining to allocate. That amount may increase if projects already approved by commissioners do not use all of their approved funds or projects being considered for funding are not qualified under federal guidelines.
The county has until the end of the year to award its ARP funds.
Yoder, who has been tracking the awarding of the projects, warned commissioners their already established meeting schedule requires them to have all of the awards approved and out by Dec. 18, since they are not expected to meet during the last full week of December.
During today’s meeting, commissioners are expected to approve the award of $18,000 in ARP funds to AXESS Family Services for the purchase of six AED monitors to be placed at six SCOPE Centers; $62,750 to the Bolindale Christian Church food pantry; and $175,000 to the Bristol Fire Department for the purchase of an ambulance.
Money awarded must be spent by the end of 2025.
Commissioners on multiple occasions during this process have emphasized wanting to spread these funds to every corner of the county.