When the City Council called for citizen participation during 2022, the place to submit funding proposals was named the portal. And so, two summers later, viewers on July 8 may have felt  like they had been misdirected to a municipal session in Portland.

A sum in the range of $5 million remains. Fund-seekers may be described in three ways:

• Those who “went through the portal,” already received dollars and then asked for more.
• Those omitted in 2022 but still seeking funds.
• Those who came along after the portal closed.

Michael Flores, Monique Lamar Silvia and Michael Balls support $740,000 for a project to combat mass incarceration, Come Out Stay Out, under Bishop Timothy “T.J.” Holden Jail Ministries, that is new to the discussion. Balls took part in the advocacy even though he said he will not vote because he is an employee, creating a conflict of interest.

Others, led by Mayor Brenda Moore and Pro-Tem Annie  Boensch — supported July 8 by Reggie Williams II and George Copeland — are more protective of the portal. This means Bill Ostash and Priscilla Garcia may stand in  the middle when the council next meets on July 22.

“Programming” also is a sticking point with Moore and Boensch because they perceive that annual operations are more expensive for federal audit oversight than one-time building projects that could incur more monitoring costs than the $850,000 already paid to the Guidehouse  consultants.

Bricks-and-mortar already are ARPA top priority, starting with the City Hall overhaul and the home repair grants for heaters, roofs and windows. Women of Colors and the Mexican American Council have received added monies for buildings, and First Ward Community Center is making a pitch. The latest add-on is $100,000 for the Emmaus House, a women’s jail transition shelter in the former Holy Rosary Catholic rectory.

None of the members expressed opposition to Come Out Say Out. In fact, Williams strongly aired the view that Flores sometimes showboats on issues to show  up fellow members, speaking  of efforts “to pull on heart strings” without being “accountable” for details.

Flores also had his proposal for Come Out Stay Out delayed by tabling the past two sessions, both with  Williams absent. He continually  has recited the names of 2024 homicide victims at recent meetings, and says he simply is looking for some sort of plan to counteract violence in all age groups.

Silvia said the project would lead to “collaboration” among various programs that address justice and incarceration. Boensch countered by noting that in the category 13 proposals from the portal were not funded at all, and many applicants never were contacted.

Williams closed by doubling down with a challenge: Would all of the 13 portal applicants agree to collaborate with Come Out Stay Out as fiduciary of the funds?

About $1 million remains from the original $52 million, while another $4 million is interest on unspent monies like with the Medical Diamond, along with accounts that naturally have moved more slowly, like work at City Hall, Hoyt Park, Ojibway Island and the cemeteries, or for that matter, home repair projects.

The council in January 2003 wrapped up about 90 percent of the package. Since then, the remaining unresolved 10 percent of the aid money has gained 90 percent of the council’s attention.

To view the discussion, click here.

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• Focus on building projects, a.k.a. capital or infrastructure, that are the most basic and simple to achieve?
• Continue supporting agencies that offer staffing to address human needs, from health care to community centers, which can be more difficult to oversee and maintain because they require annual operating budgets and more accounting?

Council members are sticking with programs along with buildings. In favor of keeping the approach are Michael Balls, Bill Ostash, Michael Flores, Monique Lamar Silvia and Priscilla Garcia. On the opposite side, supporting infrastructure for the closeout, are Mayor Brenda Moore and Pro-Tem Annie Boensch.  Absent again this week were Reggie Williams II and George Copeland, both for the second time for the three latest revived sessions regarding ARPA, the federal American Rescue Plan Act, aimed to assist communities in COVID-19-related economic and social recovery.

But whether bricks for buildings or bodies for services, the council has come no closer, after three years, to making final decisions in either category for the record-setting ARPA grant of $52 million, which is Saginaw’s share of $1.9 trillion allocated in 2021, covid’s peak, back when the new Biden Administration had Democrats in control of both the House and the Senate.

The deadline for spending decisions is the end of this year, with disbursements by December 2026, but elected leaders are discovering that they must act prior to Dec. 31 so that all the paperwork and accounting can be ready. Flores said the goal should be for final votes within the next several meetings. There’s a three-week break until the next session Monday, July 8. Past councils conducted business weekly.

Moore and Boensch have become frustrated with snags involving third-party agencies, for example the newly-formed YEARN, Youth Employment And Recreation Network, an effort to revive de-funded summer jobs, led by clergy Hurley Coleman Jr. and Larry Camel, because the city general fund, according to Guidehouse, may have to reimburse the feds for $400,000 deemed unaccounted in summer job salaries for young workers. 

The $850,000 contract for oversight by Guidehouse consultants, employed by communities across the nation for ARPA expertise, expires this summer. The mayor and the pro-tem say infrastructure is the most cost-effective way to wrap up the budget without incurring higher Guidehouse fees.

Silvia and Balls said it would be “not fair” to exclude outreach agencies and operations staffing, because the original request for proposals in 2022 did not state buildings-only.

Flores and Balls support $740,000 for “Come Out, Stay Out,” a project to combat prison recidivism, although Balls notes he cannot vote because he is an employee. This led to Moore taking her turn with a “not fair” stand, because the proposal was not among initial submissions two summers ago. This led to back-and-forth debate on allowing new ideas beyond the so-called original “portal,” with Flores asserting that exclusion of new agency projects would “handcuff” the council’s options.

However, a recent unanimous decision involved a new program, the Saginaw African Cultural Festival’s three summer Freedom Schools. SACF was in the portal but Freedom Schools — named for both legendary educator Charles McNair and for Mississippi’s 1964 summer in civil rights — were not. The amount is $50,000, an example of the council being more decisive on some comparatively smaller sums that “simply made sense,” regardless of capital versus program or of portal versus new. 

One group among original portal applicants that never received a response is the PartnerShift Network, formerly Saginaw Business and Education Network, represented by five speakers who pursued redress of the overlook. The Mission in the City Park at Sixth and Janes raised a similar concern last year. In spite of their differences otherwise, council members generally agree that not all applicants were given full consideration from the start.

Balls and Flores joined Silvia’s past criticism of $5 million for the $100 million downtown Medical Diamond facility, aimed for the old farmer’s market site at Millard and Washington, saying they fail to see action. However, June 17 was the same meeting as the council invested the first $1.372 million for site preparation, as health care continues to supplant manufacturing as Saginaw’s top employer.

About $1 million remains from the original $52 million, while another $4 million is interest on unspent monies like with the Medical Diamond, along with accounts that naturally have moved more slowly, like work at City Hall, Hoyt Park, Ojibway Island and the cemeteries, or for that matter, home repair projects

As for buildings versus programming, two grantees — Women of Colors and the Mexican American Council — won ARPA funds for both, but then received approval to switch operations to capital when facility needs became top priority. WOC received $275,000 for a structure at 3057 Davenport, and founder Evelyn McGovern reported that another $150,000 is requested for fixups, mainly a leaky roof.

As for maybe cutting Guidehouse ties, Ostash said he understands the displeasure but asked, “Who are we going to hire in the middle of the program?”

Debate peaked at the close of the half-hour discussion when raised voices between Balls and Moore led to “point of order” calls from other members. Also, Moore said statements from Flores indicated he has not read the 400-page proposal book issued in 2022, which he vehemently denied. Silvia claimed Moore and Boensch want to “claw back” monies already approved for program operations, which neither has proposed.

To view the discourse, click here.

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Monique Lamar Silvia says the Guidehouse consultants should be scored with a “report card,” in the same spirit that the American Rescue Plan specialists have graded various block-grant type programs that received third-party contracts, and she cited rapid staff turnover with three managers since David Sernick stepped down in 2022 to become a top City of Detroit administrator.

Furthermore, Silvia asserts that she sees that “nothing has happened” with the council’s $5 million allocation toward the $100 million downtown “medical diamond” project, featuring the Central Michigan University College of Medicine as the anchor tenant. The County Board also has put forward $5 million and the state another $30.3 million, with another $3.3 million from the feds.

City Manager Tim Morales responds that organizing for the facility is on target, with a $100 million match approved late last year by the CMU Board of Trustees toward a 2030 target, with hopes of creating at least 1,000 jobs. He also reported satisfaction with Guidehouse, which received an $850,000  city contract off the top from ARPA, while also assisting Saginaw County and the City of Detroit among hundreds of communities across the nation with new rules in the $1.9 trillion allocation, aimed to help communities bounce back from COVID-19’s damage.

Discussion took place June 3 and could resume at the next meeting, 6:30 p.m. Monday, June 17, even if ARPA is not included in the pre-meeting posted agenda. Council members have made their recent ARPA decisions through last-minute “miscellaneous business” when it may appear their meetings already are finished.

Other members have raised questions through the three years with the Rescue Plan Act. George Copeland said the council should have used a scoring system to rate the proposals, Michael Flores opposed bailing out past general fund budgets, and even Mayor Brenda Moore has reflected that the most effective program has been home-repair grant because of low overhead costs.

However, Silvia’s blandishments are the strongest so far. “Medical diamond” is a term coined by Dr. Sam Shaheen with downtown at the geographic top, the central parks and Old Town forming the bottom point, and the sides being Covenant and Ascension St. Mary’s

To view Silvia’s remarks, click here.

The post Councilwoman breaks from pack on ARPA and Medical Diamond appeared first on Saginaw Daily.

Two years ago, Michael Flores was isolated on the City Council, voted down 8-1 over and over again on his motions to allow extra time for public speakers. Other members even changed the rules after frequent clashes.

Things sure have changed.

With support from Reggie Williams, one of his most severe past detractors, Flores exercised influence to begin the long-delayed wrapup of final ARPA doles from the record-setting $52 million in 2021. They passed proposals on May 6 to boost support for Women of Colors to $275,000, up from $200,000, and for the Mexican American Council to $330,000, up from $270,000.

Mayor Brenda Moore and Mayor Pro-Tem Annie Boensch, along with City Manager Tim Morales, for the first time fell short of keeping the process on a more deliberate, cautious track. Morales earlier has promised an ARPA update either May 20 or June 4 with the Guidehouse consultants, and Moore and Boensch called for a delay until then because other agencies seeking funds deserve a fair chance. But Flores, Williams, Monique Lamar Silvia, Michael Balls, Bill Ostash and Priscilla Garcia were ready to act immediately.

Williams and Ostash both said the five-figure increases, $75,000 and $60,000, respectively, are small to resolve challenges faced by Women of Colors in relocating to a new headquarters at 3057 Davenport, and the MAC Center in renovating the historic 150-year-old former Catholic bishop’s residence at 1537 South Washington.

Other ARPA monies have gone for general fund budget balancing, for City Hall improvements, for Ojibway Island and Hoyt Park, for home repair grants, for the Medical Diamond project, and for various other purposes.

American Rescue Plan decisions with the current City Council have taken place in the closing minutes of meetings, not listed on the advance agenda. The May 6 session was the same. To view the actions that Flores initiated, click here.

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The City will be accepting applications for Phase III-Windows on Saturday, April 6 from 9 am to  3 pm in Council Chambers, 1315 S. Washington Room 205. To complete an application, City of Saginaw residents must attend the Open Application Event. Residents needing special accommodations can also schedule an appointment with city staff starting Monday, April 8 through April 12 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. To schedule an appointment or for more information, please contact 989-577-0184 or email ARPASERVICE@saginaw-mi.com.

Criteria for the Saginaw Home Rehabilitation Program are as follows: 

• Must be a City of Saginaw resident 
• Must prove they are the owner and resident for at least one year of a single-family dwelling – identification and copy of Consumers Energy bill are required. 
• Must fall below ARPA Household Income Limit – Documentation of income for each adult in the home is required 
• Must be current on all property taxes and water fees or have a completed Michigan Homeowner Assistance Fund (MIHAF) application number 
• Residents who have received a roof or furnace through the ARPA Home Rehabilitation Program do  NOT qualify. 
• Due to limited funds, selection will be based on lowest income and/or need 

The ARPA Home Rehabilitation Program utilizes ARPA funds to provide home rehabilitation  assistance on owner-occupied dwellings in the City of Saginaw. City Council has approved $7.8 million in ARPA funding for this program, which has been rolled out in various phases to include improvements to  furnaces, roofs, and now windows to qualified applicants. 

The program is managed by the Office of Management and Budget/Community Services— Community Development Block Grant Division along with Neighborhood Services and Inspections. Collectively,  these departments operate the city’s Basic Needs Program.  

Yolanda M. Bland, Director of the Office of Management and Budget/Community Services, commented on  the Home Rehabilitation program, “The Saginaw Home Rehabilitation Program is an awesome program that is  helping a lot of people. This program provides Saginaw residents with the opportunity to stay in their homes, as well  as preserve the viability of these homes in the future. The Home Rehabilitation Team has a wide range of experience  working with residents and administering basic needs assistance programs. We look forward to meeting with citizens  and walking them through the application process for Phase III-Windows. I encourage those City of Saginaw  residents who may qualify to attend this event on Saturday, April 6.”

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Even Mayor Brenda Moore reflected the ups-and-down Monday night, at one point asserting, “I can read,” and at another point asking, “Who’s doing it (making the motions)? I don’t know.” 

Making the motions was Councilwoman Monique Lamar Sylvia, designated by Moore to a “bucket” committee with Reggie Williams II and Priscilla Garcia to make proposals on funding shares for community-based, block grant-type programs.

The 2021 American Rescue Plan Act, ARPA, has been like a super block grant, with a one-time pot of $52 million, roughly the same sum as two combined decades of CDBG. These are anti-poverty funds, not for basics like public safety and street cleaning. Saginaw’s share is from $1.9 trillion nationally, aimed to combat COVID-19’s damage to local economies and services.

Council members have taken periodic ARPA actions during the past two years, by and large with scant public discussion. These have been unposted on pre-meet agendas for the public to review, much less be made aware that voting will occur on what their leaders have described as a “transformational” sum of federal aid.

They have agreed upon almost all the money, $48.5 million, for an array of projects that mostly are capital with some operations mixed in. These range from fixing City Hall, to upgrading the parks and cemeteries, to home repairs for poor people in need, to familiar agencies like First Ward and Neighborhood House and Mexican American Council, for example.

For the public services portion, $2.49 million has remained. 

Mayor Moore, from the start, asked council members to choose roles that interested them. Sylvia focused on the public services bucket in large part rooted in her own family’s experience with a block grant agency, New Alternatives Youth Center, that was based at Wolverine Baptist. Still, council majorities have rejected her line items for more than a year, saying in part she had failed to include Williams and Garcia. Postponements and delays now lead to a longer-term deadline because all decisions must be final by the close of 2024.

The council finally got started on the remaining $2.49 million Monday with a $745,000 package, leaving $1.75 million for “a few (more) programs we have on hold,” Silvia said, pending specific details that Guidehouse consultants are nailing down. She again did not offer details, similar to when her most recent plan was tabled at the council’s annual January planning session. Neither Williams nor Garcia spoke during the series of votes.

Programs that received approval are:

• $228,000, Saginaw African Cultural Festival, for ownership of building and grounds set-up materials, starting with canvas tents and shade coverings. This eliminates a need for annual rental fees, allowing those monies instead to support artists and activities.
• $192,000, Saginaw Fire Department, child education through an updated version of the old Fire Safety House trailer, now named “Smoke House.” 
• $150,000, Major Chords for Minors, music education.
• $100,000 for the Youth Protection Council facilities.
• $100,000 as seed money for a multi-million addition to the Hunger Solutions Center, home to Hidden Harvest and the East Side Soup Kitchen.
• $75,000 to the Lawn Chair Film Festival equipment and screen. (Attendees still must bring their own seating.)

A notable omission remains Mission in the City, which seeks $250,000 for repairs to basketball courts at Sixth and Janes, and construction of a neighborhood splash pad mini-water park. Monday’s outline also does not include AMusBE, a Museum of Black Experiences.

A subsidized grocery named Food Club, and Women of Colors, both received funds in the initial round but so far not received support for more dollars.

To view Monday’s discussion and decisions, click here.

Overall, council members have used the ARPA infusion for infrastructure, including City Hall, for home repairs, for the Medical Diamond project and an array of purposes. To see a listing, click here.

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No, President Biden and Democrats have not regained the power they wielded with passage of the 2021 American Rescue Plan Act. This money is accrued interest while much of the original $52 million sits in the bank, allocated but unspent to date.

This scenario is reflected in communities across the nation that reaped record revenue-sharing grants through ARPA’s $1.9 trillion, to combat hardship caused by the covid pandemic.

Furthermore, as City Manager Tim Morales explained two weeks ago, the interest revenue is not governed by the block-grant type ARPA rules that prevent spending the big money for basics like police and fire. With the “extra” $3 million from interest, in contrast, council members only must follow State of Michigan guidelines with basic standards, which means the entire general fund is eligible.

Morales suggested using shares of this money to pay Guidehouse consulting fees that may exceed the first ARPA-funded $850,000 contract, and also to cover any money that federal authorities may deem spent in violation. The outlook on any repay orders, possibly including a teen employment project through a local clergy group, is uncertain because ARPA is new with a different bureaucracy, while CDBG block grants go back to the 1960s War on Poverty.

At the Feb. 19 meeting, the manager spoke to prevent ARPA from harming the general fund budget, but did not mention the option of boosting the annual operating blueprint. This issue, ARPA interest for general fund (police/fire), possibly may emerge as soon as Monday’s meet, or linger into the fall election campaign for six open seats on the nine-member council. To view the Morales two-minute response to Councilman Michael Flores, click here.

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And public speaker podium pitches are coming not only from programs and services that missed out the first time, but also from some non-profits that already have cashed in and now are seeking more.

Monday night’s trio included:

Leader Tina Swanton of Food Club, which already has received $1 million for a subsidized market across from the YMCA, asked for some or all of the remaining $1 million for the general purpose of bringing affordable quality food to the city. She said the fifth-year FACTS, Food Access Collaboration Team of Saginaw, has raised $3.9 million toward a $5 million goal, but board members “will not allow” construction to begin this spring at the former Big Brothers site unless the full amount is in hand. For an artist’s rendering, click here.

Women of Colors Founder Evelyn McGovern, asked not only for increased monies but also for repurposing last winter’s initial $200,000 grant to capital needs instead of for programming. She noted that WOC this summer is required to vacate Success Academy in the former OIC at 1000 Tuscola, and is seeking a vacant 20th century doctor’s office, 925 North Michigan at Holland. The combined request is for another $449,000 for a 9,500-square-foot structure, 108 years old, with a sales value in the $450,000 range, based on recent city tax assessments, previously owned briefly by Covenant Health Care and now in the hands of an out-of-state owner. For a building view, click here.

Kevin Jones, founder of A Museum of Black Experiences, AMusBE, at 1243 South Jefferson, renewed a $269,000 request that was not funded last winter. He purchased the 5,000-square-foot, 167-year-old historic home out of his own pocket for $130,000, according to city records, and has opened his 7,000-item collection on special occasions, while aiming for regular hours this summer after the Juneteenth holiday. For a look at the property, click here.

Another major proposal has come from STARS, which was zeroed out in a request for $500,000 or more, linked to fleet upgrades and a long-term move to the Potter Street Railroad Depot, which was built 143 years ago. Mission in the City, through New Birth Baptist Church at 1401 Janes, earlier pitched its original $400,000 proposal but since has given up any more appeals. The Saginaw African Cultural Festival is pursuing at least $200,000.

Early in 2002, the City Council voted to use the first $26 million from the American Rescue Plan Act to avoid any covid-caused fiscal deficit in the general fund budget. The City Hall-centric approach, questioned at the time only by Councilman Michael Flores, is rooted in a first things-first outlook. ARPA rules blocked bringing back basics like more police or firefighters, or that would have been on the agenda as well.

At the start of 2023, most of the second $26 million half of ARPA was made final for infrastructure like fixing City Hall, upgrading Ojibway Island and Hoyt Park, and cleaning up the fairgrounds. A main job-creating project, the downtown Medical Diamond, reaped the most publicized share of $5 million, and various established community centers received support.

At the start of 2004, after two six-month delays in rejecting proposals from Councilwoman Monique Lamar Silvia, the council was aiming to cleanup an unspent remainder now pegged at $2.49 million. That’s the twice-tabled pot of funds now pursued by Women of Colors, AMusBE, STARS, Mission in the City and the African Fest. Two January meetings have reaped no action, leaving Mayor Brenda Moore to repeat that the ARPA cash has produced some negative side effects, lamenting Monday, “Money is the root of all evil.”

Food Club is asking for an add-on piece of a separate $1 million that remains for “food access,” or bringing quality grocery sources to the city. If the FACTS board is unable to raise the $5 million to get started this year, the question now is what would happen to their original million dollars from ARPA, which involves federal deadlines. And the food access category is not without competition, because the Hunger Solutions Center at 940 East Genesee, home to Hidden Harvest and the East Side Soup Kitchen, is seeking up to $1 million to expand. Swanton told the council, “Please do not be the reason to delay this much-needed project for the community.”

Food survey facts

Public Policy Associates, a research consultant. worked with Mayor Pro-Tem Annie Boensch and Councilman George Copeland late last year on a poll, available by computer or on paper, that drew 751 responses.

The survey was not scientific, and so representation in numeric counts is not totally balanced. Nearly two-thirds of answers, for example, came from the city’s West Side. Nonetheless, organizers are finding guidance in the results, which show that one in six Saginaw city households lack a motor vehicle, and three-quarters have incomes below the modern-day quoted “200 percent of federal poverty level,” which this year would be $30,000 for an individual and roughly $10,000 for each person added in a household — for example, $62,000 for a family of four. 

(Food Club supporters say their franchise would reach up into the 200 percent standard, serving far more households than “low-income” may imply.)

Upward of 80 percent of respondents said, as expected, they would be more likely to support a food source on their own side of town. The Food Club’s parks system site is an attempt to find a balance in this regard. At present, most city food stamps are spent at neighborhood stores that offer liquor but not fresh lettuce, for overpriced groceries like soup, juice, crackers, cereal and other shelf-fillers.

The No. 1 survey preference, and also the top skepticism, was for luring a megastore like Wal-Mart or Meijer. At this point, Councilman Michael Balls asked if it would be possible instead to tax-subsidize improvements at the city’s two remaining medium-sized markets — Great Giant in Sheridan Park and Save A Lot near the courthouse. Copeland said partner options will be included in ongoing “market analysis” for involving the private sector.

Mayor Moore asked whether 751 responses was enough to gauge public opinion, and asked, “What’s next? Are there plans for open forums, or a town hall talk?” Copeland, Boensch and City Manager Tim Morales responded that info sessions last fall were part of the survey, and it’s time to put the study results to use, although more neighborhood meetings no doubt will be part of the process.

Morales said, “If you don’t think there was enough citizen input, they were out there trying.”

For a City Hall review of ARPA spending so far, click here.

Meanwhile, the delay in making final the entire ARPA budget, and to avoid sending unallocated funds back to Washington, continues. The council next meets on Monday, Feb. 5.

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Closeout action on ARPA, the American Rescue Plan Act, again was delayed last Friday to begin the new year, after 2023 was consumed by a pair of six-month tabling motions on a final sum of more than $2.49 million. The latest postponement came during the council’s annual long-range planning session, where such matters normally are addressed more in-depth.

Councilwoman Monique Lamar Silvia attempted to propose line items for the remaining dollars, but the other eight members — including Reggie Williams II and Priscilla Garcia, who were supposed to join her on a review committee — indicated they were not familiar with the proposal and need time for consideration. To view that portion, click here.

A tabling motion stopped Silvia in her tracks after she began with a motion to provide nearly $200,000 to the Saginaw African Cultural Festival. We asked her the obvious question, which was what other agencies did she intend to support? She responded she would share such a list afterward, but it has not been received.

The next meeting, back to regular agendas, is Monday, Jan. 22. Also delayed until then is a report on investing ARPA funds for a major urban food co-op or supermarket, but this was because of Friday’s oncoming storm, not due to lack of communication.

Overall discussion closed in early afternoon, three hours prior to the snowfall, even after Mayor Brenda Moore repeatedly asked at the end whether members wished to continue any other planning concerns.

ARPA was approved nationally for $1.9 trillion as a first big move after President Biden’s inauguration in 2021, with Democrats still controlling all of Congress, intended as stimulus to help communities cope with COVID-19’s damage.

Saginaw’s big first-year decision was to balance the cash-strapped general budget, although Fed rules did not allow adding money for more police and other basics. The regulations are mainly a result of Democrats in D.C. insisting on more control than earlier times, when general revenue sharing was the main source of federal monies, with far fewer rules and restrictions.

Thus arrived the earmarked ARPA in 2021, while overall no-strings revenue sharing was not offered, which leads to the council still seeking a 7.5-mill public safety property tax renewal in the Feb. 27 election. Absentee ballot applications arrived this past week in city mailboxes.

To patch local spending with no more layoffs took roughly half of the $52 million. During the second year, the pace became slower, which city leaders believe was for good reasons. One was creation of a citizens’ advisory panel, and then a portal for proposals and suggestions. Council members generally set aside their own ARPA involvement during these months.

In January 2023, more millions were designated for infrastructure, shoring up City Hall, Ojibway, Hoyt and the cemeteries. The long-term Medical Diamond project, aiming for 1,000 new jobs by 2029, received its $5 million share.

A sum of $10 million remained for block grant-type programs, many which have received smaller sums, if any, through the years of CDBG and before that, Model Cities, and this is where the current snag emerges, including oversight of more than $8 million already allocated, along with the $1 million-plus on ice.

Silvia was Mayor Brenda Moore’s choice to focus on human services, geared to programs for young people, as her “bucket,” with her experience with the block grant-supported former New Alternatives Youth Services Center in the old YWCA, now Wolverine Baptist. The mayor designated other buckets for other members, based on their areas of interest and experience.

The delay with Silvia’s bucket began a year ago. To view the starting point from a meeting Jan. 23, 2023, click here.

Slow is becoming slower in oversight for the array of third-party grants within the $10 million, while  figuring out what to do with the unspent monies. Silvia first offered a plan last summer, but she was rejected, and Moore named Williams and Garcia to join her “bucket” for further study, which led to the latest six-month delay.

In the third year, the council is back near square one in the community agencies aspect. The latest outlook is that Silvia, Williams and Garcia will aim to meet before Jan. 22 and report back to the full governing body with a plan. (A main purpose of three-member committees is that they can legally meet in private. But still, the full council must approve any action in public.)

On the council, Mayor Pro-Tem Annie Boensch has been a main advocate of priority for capital building projects like the Medical Diamond that hopefully will endure for years, while seeking more traditional sources for agencies that require constant monitoring and funding for staff operations. The third-party arrangements have led to more costs for the Guidehouse consultants, who indicated Friday their fees soon will exceed the original $850,000 approved in 2021 from the top of the ARPA outlay. The main reason is oversight of the $10 million community programming share of the $52 million.

A summary of Friday’s ARPA review is that City Manager Tim Morales recommended consultant experts, as did most municipalities, because the bare-bones city staff lacks capacity alone to properly manage a sudden $52 million influx, even while taking on added duties. And then the consultants have found similar challenges with the third-party contractors that lack fiduciary experts at such a high level in managing money from the federal bureaucracy.

Annual CDBG block grants, in the also-substantial range of $2.5 million per year, do not encounter similar problems. Federal ARPA oversight is coming mainly from the Treasury instead of HUD, which means the process with the feds is new for localities across the nation. The next rule on the radar is to finish allocating by the end of this year, with spending to conclude in 2026.

More on the agenda

Two items — the Medical Diamond for the long haul, and Memorial Cup hockey that will be here and gone by summer — are dominant on the local economic scene. Nothing new was forthcoming on either matter.

However, there was “breaking news” on the housing front in the manner of statistics provided by Cassi Zimmerman, director of planning and economic development. She noted that the city’s housing, built for larger families in past generations, now contains 61,000 bedrooms for 44,000 residents. This stat never before has been presented in regards to housing. New structures always are desired, but that’s a lot of unused space in the existing housing stock, even with thousands of demolitions through the decades. To view her presentation, click here.

In another development, it already has been reported that the abandoned fairgrounds are slated for a cleanup this summer, but new info is that down the road along East Genesee, the former Chevy Manufacturing Plant also is on the schedule. 

Councilman Michael Balls asked about converting vacated but still viable schools for affordable housing, and Councilman Bill Ostash noted that vagrants have taken shelter at Central Middle near his Cathedral District home. A liaison group with delegates from the council and school board, along with the county board, is to meet at 5:30 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 18, at board headquarters on Warren at Millard.

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The discussion topics include an update on Economic Development and the City’s 5-Year Master Plan as well as an update from Anna Colby, Public Policy Associates, on the results of the City’s Food Access Survey. Guidehouse will also provide an update on the expenditure of American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds.

The session will be broadcast on SGTV, Channel 191, and streamed live on the City’s YouTube channel at www.youtube.com/user/CityofSaginawMI.

The meeting is open to the public. To speak at the meeting, citizens must sign up in the City Clerk’s Office, 1315 S. Washington Avenue Room 102, prior to 11:00 a.m. on Thursday, January 11, 2024.

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