In March, the Family Resource Center at the Marshall Transit Station opened in Shakopee. It's just one of the examples of how county officials have invested its American Rescue Plan Act funds.
The county was awarded Scott County allocation $28.9 million, with an additional $10 million being allocated for revenue recapture funds, with funds being available through Dec. 31, 2024.
Some of the eligible uses include public health response, addressing negative economic impacts, premium pay for essential workers, revenue loss and infrastructure.
Transportation Services Director Lisa Freese, who has led the administration for ARPA projects, said when the initial project requests came in, the total was larger than the $28.9 million given to the county.
“Project selection is intended to keep the implementation within the available funds,” Freese said.
Freese said as the scope of each project was developed, a cost estimate was done to determine the funding need.
“These allocations are being updated as more detailed analysis occurs or during project implementation,” Freese said.
Like most public and private entities, the county faced supply chain and inflation challenges throughout the process.
“Some of the project costs have increased as projects have moved into the design phase,” Freese said. “This is partly due to inflation and the labor market. These impacts are in line with other cost increases seen across the organization.”
Court backlog
During the height of the pandemic, courts were essentially shut down — but crime didn’t stop and charges were continuing to be filed across the county. At one point, the backlog was over 500 cases.
To help address the backlog, about $1.4 million was approved for additional temporary staff within the county attorney’s office.
Some of the positions which were funded for at least three years include a part-time law clerk, an assistant county attorney to help with felonies, an assistant county attorney to work within the civil division, a victim/witness assistant and a legal assistant.
Community Corrections also saw a number of positions added including a community outreach position, pre-sentence investigation writers, a history writer and a probation officer. The jail was granted funds for two jail corrections officers and Children’s Services was given 50% of the funds needed for a case manager.
In total, the commission allocated $2,713,326 for staffing.
Projects completed, funds remain
In addition to the FRC in Shakopee, Freese said ARPA funds also helped to extend access at the Elko New Market Library. Other projects implemented include the Cedar Lake Farms group camp and camper cabins project, with construction expected to begin this spring.
As of the latest update to the county commission in March, about $2.8 million remained unallocated. Freese said there are a number of options still on the table.
“Options on how to utilize the remaining funds are still being explored,” Freese said.
She said some options include the Merriam Junction Regional Trail project, opportunities to address housing issues “and other initiatives that both meet the County Board’s strategies and align with the ARPA requirements.”
No timeline was given for when decisions would be made regarding the remaining funds.
