Chico-The City of Chico provided $150,000 in funding for local organizations that cater to youth in the US Rescue Plan Act. Four local organizations were selected and confirmed on Tuesday night.
Seven groups applied for funding, including providing the city with plans on how to use it and how much funding is needed.
Chico’s deputy city manager, Jennifer McCarthy, said the process of selecting an organization includes a scoring system to help determine how far the funds can go.
The Boys and Girls Club received $75,000, which is the highest amount distributed.Followed by the Salvation Army, which received $50,000.Girls on the Run received US$17,201 and the North State Composite Mountain Bike Team received US$7,799.
McCarthy said: “I can say that these four organizations have done a great job meeting the needs of the youth in our community and really helping to address the impact of COVID-19 on them.”
Kelly Haight, the team leader of the North State Compound Mountain Bike Team, expressed gratitude for the funding.
“This grant is very well organized,” Haite said.”(The city) was very helpful, and the title was great. I want to thank the council and the people on the scoring standards, and thank the council for approving this grant for the four of us. We did it for the children on the road Good thing, I cannot express my gratitude.”
“The process is very simplified and effective,” Boyd said.”It has a very simple interface.”
Most of the public’s comments on this matter are positive and support the grant.Resident Nicole Nava praised the grant, but also expressed some concerns about the dollar amount and added that she thought that more money could have been invested in these projects than the bicycles planned by the city Road upgrades and other projects.
“I must say that I do prefer local entities that are not outside the area because they have other sources of income,” Nava said.
Reynolds said: “Thanks to the staff for doing a good job in this area and bringing it back to us and maintaining flexibility. The government has not always been able to do a good job.”
ARPA funds are issued by the federal government with a series of rules and regulations on how to use it.Similar to the community development block grant, funds from ARPA can be used to help the underserved public, but are related to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Although ARPA funds flow to cities and counties, it is not considered part of the city’s ordinary funds because it is locked and can only be used in certain circumstances.
Those who are streaming the meeting or watching the meeting through Channel 7 may have noticed some technical issues such as freezes, delays, and some screen crashes.
At one point, the staff informed the city council that there was a national problem with Zoom, the city’s application for non-face-to-face meetings.
Chico City Council mostly meets at 421 Main Street at 6 pm on the first and third Tuesday of each month.The meeting is free and open to the public.Due to California’s mask regulations, the committee chose the Zoom meeting.
Post time: Jan-07-2022