Sumner Allocates $1M Of First Round Of ARPA Funding

SUMNER, WA — Sumner City Council has approved a proposal to spend $1,062,000 in American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funding to support its community through the remainder of the COVID-19 pandemic.

APRA regulations mean the city can only use the money to:

• Support the public health response, by funding COVID-19 mitigation efforts, medical expenses, behavioral health care, mental health and substance misuse treatment, and certain public health and safety personnel.
• Address the economic fallout caused by the public health emergency, including by rehiring public workers, providing aid to those in need of food, housing or other financial aid, offering small business assistance, and extending support for industries hardest hit by the crisis.
• Invest in water, sewer and broadband infrastructure, improving access to clean drinking water, supporting vital wastewater and stormwater infrastructure, and expanding access to broadband internet.

To help the public understand how the ARPA funds are being used, the city has helpfully divided the spending into the three categories above. Here's how that spending breaks down:

• $635,000 for the direct public health response, including:
  • $40,000 for costs associated with the response.
  • $10,000 for air filtering improvements.
  • $85,000 for facility improvements.
  • $200,000 for hybrid meeting technology.
  • $300,000 for an HR Generalist.
• $325,000 for the economic response, including:
  • $35,000 to improve Community Food Bank access to services.
  • $40,000 for Wayfinding signs.
  • $250,000 for the Kincaid/Cherry Design, part of Sumner's Main Street Vision.
• $102,000 for infrastructure investments, like:
  
  • $20,000 for a fiber broadband study.
  • $62,000 to improve cybersecurity.
  • $20,000 to improve the Heath Sports Complex restrooms.

Through the American Rescue Plan Act, the City of Sumner will receive a total of $2.9 million to mitigate the damage caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. How the city will spend the remaining $1,848,676 in funding has yet to be decided, though city leaders are taking public feedback on the issue through the city's website.