On Tuesday, September 17, Beaufort City Council held a special called work session. The topic was $863,260 in remaining 2021 American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds that the city has to commit before December 31, 2024. The city’s Finance Director Alan Eisenman presented a comprehensive and detailed presentation of options to City Council.
Eisenman’s presentation included four potential scenarios for committing the $863,260 left from ARPA distributions intended to help municipalities recover from COVID-19. According to ARPA, the funding has to be contracted by December 31, 2024 and projects have to be completed by December 31, 2026. Eisenman’s presentation did a thorough job of suggesting both large and small expense projects that can fit the ARPA guidelines and benefit the city as a whole as well as individual city departments.
The City Council had a refreshingly open dialogue about Eisenman’s scenarios and decided on a modified version of scenario three which will include:
- $200,000 for Waterfront Park consulting services
- $450,000 for repaving roads in the Battery Shores neighborhood
- The remainder of the money will be spent on smaller ticket projects including:
- Public Works HVAC systems
- New and upgraded equipment for the Police Department and the Fire Department, and
- A storage shed for the Downtown Operations Department
Each council member shared input about how to prioritize the projects and were able to come to decisions collaboratively. Eisenman’s preparation provided answers to all the questions they had and made it possible for the city officials to leave the meeting with a clear path forward to use the ARPA money wisely.
During the public comment section of the meeting, disappointment was expressed about the council not dedicating any of the ARPA money to the Pigeon Point boat landing repairs or the revitalization efforts for homes in the historic district. Council and city officials ensured the concerned citizens that plans were in motion to address their concerns with previous ARPA funds or other funding sources.
