County seeks community input on ARPA spending

Ottawa County, Michigan sent this bulletin at 07/01/2022 10:05 AM EDT

July 1, 2022

County seeks community input on ARPA spending

The American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA), a COVID-19 relief package, was signed into law in March 2021. This Act includes billions in federal funding for state and local governments. This federal aid is intended to address economic impacts of the pandemic and ensure a strong recovery. Determined to utilize these one-time federal resources wisely, Ottawa County formed the American Rescue Plan Act Committee. Appointed by the Board of Commissioners, the committee is comprised of 19 community members representing a cross-section of local public and private organizations. The committee's sole purpose is to guide the Board of Commissioners on how to spend the $57 million that the County has received from ARPA.

Complete the survey

To further inform the funding process, Ottawa County is asking for community feedback. ARPA Committee members have identified needs within their area of expertise and are assisting County officials with drafting funding options and priorities. To ensure projects funded by ARPA dollars benefit all who live and work in Ottawa County, the committee identified categories, or "buckets", of high level priorities. The survey asks the community to rank Affordable Housing; Social and Human Services; Countywide Broadband; and Business Stabilization categories plus welcomes additional ideas. The questionnaire, available in both English and Spanish, takes about 5 to 10 minutes to complete and closes on August 1.

https://ottawacounty.co1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_0AIAy7NUCsE9PFQ

Bucket managers

The Ottawa County Board of Commissioners secured contracts on June 28 with nonprofit partners who will be responsible for soliciting eligible projects for consideration of the County's ARPA funding. Lakeshore Advantage will lead business stabilization efforts, HousingNext will support the identification of affordable housing projects, and a collaboration between the Holland/Zeeland Community Foundation, Grand Haven Area Community Foundation, and the Greater Ottawa County United Way will work under the name Care Ottawa to identify critical social and human service endeavors. These organizations will work in the community to solicit applications for funding, however final project and funding approvals will be funneled through the Ottawa County Board of Commissioners.

Website

A dedicated website – miOttawa.org/arpa – outlines Ottawa County’s ARPA plan. It will be updated regularly. The County, through its bucket managers, will begin accepting project applications for a first round of ARPA funding through the summer of 2022 based on the priority areas.

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Ottawa County is located on Lake Michigan's spectacular freshwater coastline where nature is cherished and protected. More than the lakeshore, you'll find the people of Ottawa County friendly yet driven, working hard to succeed in charming downtown small businesses, at manufacturing hubs with global impact and on acres passed down from generations. We embrace creativity and believe that diversity makes us stronger. We resolve that our public services must be high-quality and cost-effective. We are innovative and never wait for someone to solve our problems for us. We are friendly neighbors chipping in, lending a hand and making sure you know Ottawa County is where you belong.

The Ottawa County Board of Commissioners meets the second and fourth Tuesdays each month at 1:30PM. The public is welcome and encouraged to participate. Meetings are held in the Board Room located at 12220 Fillmore Street, West Olive, Michigan. Contact information and district information for the Ottawa County Board of Commissioners is available at miOttawa.org.

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