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WEST LEBANON – Communities in the Upper Valley are set to receive more than $ 15 million in federal aid intended to help municipalities replace revenue lost due to the coronavirus pandemic or strengthen local infrastructure.
The first payments from the Local Fiscal Recovery Fund reached city bank accounts in Vermont last week, around the same time claims were being finalized in New Hampshire.
City officials say the money – sourced from the US Congress’ $ 1.9 trillion bailout act – will allow them to reverse cost-cutting measures that have become commonplace over the past decade. this year’s municipal meeting season.
Many said on Monday that they plan to use the funds to pay for expensive water and sewerage projects, while others celebrated the ability to replenish the depleted funds from rainy days.
“It will be a huge relief for taxpayers,” predicted Jack Wozmak, Enfield’s interim city manager.
Enfield is expected to receive nearly $ 500,000 in aid over the next two years, which will help the city pay off about $ 3.8 million in sewer and water projects approved by voters in March.
The money, Wozmak said, should help shorten a 30-year bond that Enfield was looking to replace aging wells, water pipes and sewer lines.
Meanwhile, neighboring Canaan also plans to use the bulk of its $ 408,000 in federal aid for infrastructure.
City administrator Mike Samson said approximately $ 360,000 of this allocation will go towards the construction of a new water pipe that would run from Water Street to the village.
Samson said the roughly $ 1 million effort was initially funded with about $ 60,000 in municipal savings and a loan of $ 550,000. With the addition of federal funds, he said, city officials are finally feeling comfortable moving forward with the project.
Canaan and Enfield are both expected to receive more funds than most Upper Valley communities, with grants in the region ranging from around $ 32,000 to $ 1.4 million, based on population estimates of 2019.
Lebanon, the region’s largest community, will receive that higher figure, followed by Claremont ($ 1.3 million), Hanover ($ 1.2 million) and Hartford ($ 1 million).
Those in charge of these communities said they don’t yet know exactly what the money will be used for, but are already soliciting ideas from department heads and elected officials.
Lebanon City Manager Shaun Mulholland said he hopes to spend around $ 165,000 on operations for the city’s pool and summer camp program, both of which closed last year.
An additional $ 46,000 would go to the Upper Valley Business Alliance, which helped Lebanon distribute personal protective equipment, and $ 30,000 could be used to build lockers outside City Hall for those who wish to collect items without having to enter the building.
But, Mulholland said, he’s waiting for more advice before making a suggestion on the majority of Lebanon’s funding. Under US Treasury rules, he said, the city could spend money on trails in western Lebanon or a water project on Miracle Mile.
Existing aid program rules state that municipalities can use the payments to pay for essential workers, make up for lost income, and pay for water, sewer and broadband projects.
Unlike other grant programs, cities do not need to get approval before spending money, but they do have to file reports detailing the spending. Which must be spent by 2026.
Hanover City Manager Julia Griffin said her city’s Selectboard had not made any decisions about payments, but had “a number of options available to us.”
These include depositing the money in Hanover surplus funds, which were taken to cover parking losses and investment income, Griffin said.
Some city residents are also hoping to use the money to expand broadband to more rural areas of Hanover, which are either without high-speed internet or are poorly served by current providers, she said.
“I’m going to urge the board to stay tight because as we get more information from the federal government and the state decides what to do with its (grant) money, it might have a impact our decisions, ”Griffin said. .
City managers in Claremont, Norwich and Hartford also said they were waiting for similar action before making formal recommendations on how to spend their aid.
But for Newport, NH, Town Manager Hunter Rieseberg, the decision to allocate the funds has been sharper. Her community plans to spend its $ 655,000 on a 40-year-old sewer pumping station that has broken down several times.
The pump, he said, carries wastewater from eastern Newport to its sewage treatment plant, supporting most businesses in the city.
“If it were to break down and overflow, it would not only stop providing pumping service on this side of town, but also risk contaminating the Sugar River,” Rieseberg warned.
He added that federal aid will allow construction sooner than the city planned, while saving taxpayers from having to bear a large chunk of the costs.
Tim Camerato can be contacted at [email protected] or 603-727-3223.
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