How will Thurston spend $56 million in COVID-19 relief funds? Here are initial ideas
Thurston County expects to receive about $56 million from the federal government for its COVID-19 response over the next year.
President Joe Biden signed the $1.9 trillion American Rescue Act into law on March 11. From the about $65.1 billion allocated for counties, Thurston County is expecting to receive about $56 million, Chavez said. The first half of that sum should arrive in the coming months while the remaining sum should arrive one year after the first half.
County Manager Ramiro Chavez presented a preliminary proposal to the board of county commissioners on Thursday, outlining how the county can spend the first $28 million. The county’s preliminary proposal includes millions for businesses recovery, infrastructure improvements and perhaps even transitional housing.
From the initial $28 million, Chavez said the county could allocate $10 million to Thurston Strong, a community effort that has been helping local business and organizations cope with the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.
He said the $10 million could include about $3 million in grants for minority-owned businesses, $2 million for farmer-owned businesses and $5 million for other business recovery.
For its part, Chavez said Thurston Strong is proposing creating a $2.2 million jobs program that would hire and train about 50 people to support the recovery plan.
“This is important because it’s not just about economic recovery for business, but also making sure we have the workforce behind it to support that recovery,” Chavez said.
Additionally, he said Thurston Strong could use about $2.2 million to fund 200 business grants at $10,000 each. They also proposed $3.3 million for minority business investments, including $10,000 grants, funding for a new minority-owned business council and a community cultural center, he said.
About $5 million could also be set aside to purchase a motel, Chavez said. In the near term, it could provide space for people to isolate and quarantine, but in the long term it could offer transitional housing to people who are homeless.
Another $5 million could be set aside for infrastructure expenditures, including $1 million for a local broadband program and $4 million for water and sewer utilities.
“Tamoshan and Beverly Beach, those are the two utilities that we have, they are in dire need to replace their current infrastructure,” Chavez said.
The remaining $8 million could be used as reimbursement for some 2020 COVID-19 related expenditures.
Commissioner Carolina Mejia said she thinks the initial proposal looks appealing, but she would want the county to audit how Thurston Strong used the funds later on.
Given that the board recently declared racism a crisis in Thurston County, Mejia said she approved of the included support for minority-owned businesses.
“I really like the fact that we are including minority-owned businesses in this,” Mejia said. “It really goes in line with the proclamation that was just passed. I think this a good step and a good direction to be headed in. (It’s) definitely putting action behind those words.”
Commissioner Gary Edwards said the proposal is a good start but cautioned that the county should be aware of how local cities will spend their allocations.
“I don’t think we can make proper decisions on that $10 million to Thurston Strong until we know what the other jurisdictions are getting and at least get some sense if they got something going on,” Edwards said. “I think our obligation is going to be to the unincorporated areas of Thurston County.”
Commissioner Tye Menser said he is comfortable with the proposal as a starting point, but that more community discussions will be needed before making any decisions.
He said the board will have to be mindful of spending the money in a sustainable way.
“I think the challenge with all of this is how to balance these potentially one-time infusions of resources and not get ourselves locked into things that aren’t sustainable over the long term,” Menser said. “That’s going to be tempting to want to do.”
Chavez said the county will revisit the topic closer to when the allocation is expected to arrive and after they receive additional guidance from the U.S. Treasury. All funds will have to be appropriately spent by Dec. 31, 2024.
This story was originally published March 22, 2021 at 5:45 AM.
