Thurston commission approves plan to fund non-profit grants for pandemic recovery
Thurston County is moving forward with plans to fund various non-profit and business grants with its latest round of federal COVID-19 relief funding.
The county received $28.2 million in American Rescue Act funding on May 19 and a similar amount is expect about a year from that day. Since then, the county has decided to allocate a total of $10.5 million to proposals drafted by two local organizations.
On Thursday, the board approved a $1.5 million proposal from the United Way of Thurston County that would benefit various support programs. On June 29, the board approved plans to fund $9 million of a $10 million proposal from Thurston Strong that would support the local business community.
Chris Wells, executive director at United Way, told The Olympian she’s grateful for the board’s support as it will help meet the needs of people still struggling with the effects of the pandemic.
“There’s this feeling that we’re putting this pandemic behind us … but not everyone is okay yet,” Wells said. “There are still a lot of people who are really struggling and it’s going to take time for the community to recover.”
Michael Cade, executive director of the Economic Development Council, likewise said he appreciated the commission support for Thurston Strong’s proposal.
“I want to thank the county for really taking a leadership role in how they’re addressing use of their funds, ensuring that they’re being pushed out to the community that needs them,” Cade said. “It’s a big deal.”
The United Way proposal
The United Way proposal includes $215,084 for two non-profit grants that would support shelter operations, staff and hotel rooms for families with children. These grants would go to the Thurston County Food Bank’s Other Bank and the Family Support Center, according to a proposal document.
The proposal also included $149,358 for two non-profit grants that would fund senior nutrition and support programs at Senior Services for South Sound.
Additionally, the plan includes $476,150 for three non-profit grants that would support congregate feeding programs, a county-wide food bank and a basic needs program. These grants support Rochester Organization of Families (ROOF), Catholic Community Services and the Thurston County Food Bank.
Youth support programs and parent child support programs for homeless families would receive funding via four grants totaling $539,408, according to the proposal. These grants would benefit the Family Support Center, ROOF, the South Sound YMCA and the Boys and Girls Clubs of Thurston County.
Lastly, there is $120,000 earmarked for general grant support pending guidance from the U.S. Department of Treasury.
Wells said United Way chose to include these non-profits in its proposal after soliciting applications and identifying gaps in basic needs throughout the community.
“In some cases, because of the pandemic, funding sources have been lost and they need shoring up,” Wells said. “They need assistance to be able to provide services at the level that they are seeing the need.”
She added she is unsure of when these funds will reach the non-profits in the proposal because her organization still needs to finalize a contract with the county.
The Thurston Strong proposal
To draft its $10 million proposal, Thurston Strong staff used data-driven economic analysis and input from various local partner organizations, Cade said.
“It really is a data-driven discussion that you need to have, but you also need to have a human touch to it,” Cade said. “You really have to have an understanding of where businesses are hurting. These are not statistics, these are individuals with jobs, with families.”
The Thurston Strong proposal includes $1.3 million for a workers jobs program and $2.2 million for 200 business grants, $900,000 for about 80 non-profit grants, $100,000 for entertainment venue promotions and $100,000 for vaccine incentives.
The vaccine incentives program may allow for the county to host more mobile clinics where people could get gift cards or goods from local businesses as a reward for getting vaccinated.
Commissioner Gary Edwards said he did not feel inclined to support vaccine incentives because he thinks it would be unfair to those who have already been vaccinated.
Additionally, the Thurston Strong allocation includes $3.3 million for a so-called “minority enterprise investment” that would fund grants for minority-owned businesses, create a new minority business advisory council, and help launch a community cultural center.
The advisory council would recommend policies that would help minority-owned businesses to compete and grow in the local and national economy, said Jennica Machado, economic development manager at Thurston County.
Cade clarified to The Olympian that this council would be part of Thurston Strong rather than a separate organization. He said he hopes this council will help ensure resources are directed where they are needed.
“We are making every attempt to … make sure that as we go into economic recovery, those businesses that have historically been left out of recovery dollars have every access to those in Thurston County,” Cade said.
Although the proposal has well-meaning intent, Commissioner Carolina Mejia said she is concerned about the impact of such a council.
“When I hear the minority advisory council, they usually make me nervous because I’ve had experience with things where they mean well but it just ends up being a foothold and not really something that makes an impact,” Mejia said.
She said she hopes this council will be staffed with minorities who are actually heard.
Thurston Strong’s proposal also includes $2.1 million for agriculture market grants and labor shortage solutions.
Though the commissioners supported most of the grants, they held off on allocating about $1 million to address agriculture labor shortages, citing a desire for more information on the program.
The next step for the county will be to set up compliance guidelines and draft contracts for the grants, which will follow a reimbursement model, Machado said in an emailed statement. She indicated this process will apply to both the United Way and Thurston Strong proposals.
The remaining funds from the American Rescue Plan Act have not been allocated yet, according to Machado. The commissioners will vote on additional proposals at a later date, she wrote.
This story was originally published July 20, 2021 at 5:00 AM.
