The Vermilion County Board Finance and Personnel Committee is still very much in the early stages of figuring out how to allocate the final $10.7 million if its $14 million in ARPA (American Rescue Plan Act) COVID relief money.
The general consensus of the committee continues to be “put county projects and necessities at the top of the priority list before awarding anything to other government entities throughout the county.” But the question remains, with all the different help requests the county has received from cities and villages, “Is the county required to allocate $1 million for non-county projects?” As Committee Chairman Steve Miller explains, they still don’t know for sure.
AUDIO: Well, we have two people who have looked at the guidelines, and they have both drawn different conclusions. It’s sort of like if you look at the Internal Revenue Code, “What do we have to do;” you can get multiple interpretations, perhaps. But apparently, and I’m new to this, but the government keeps revising what the requirements are also.
But whether or not the county needs to spend a million in ARPA funds outside county needs first, there’s a good bet the majority is going to county interests, and one person at Monday’s meeting with a suggestion that’s been heard before is Central Illinois Land Bank Authority Chairman, as well as former County Board and Finance and Personnel Committee member, Dr. Wes Bieritz.
Dr. Wes Bieritz states his case for ARPA funding for a Land Bank project, the Old County Annex Building (right, second picture) will be torn down with Bresee Tower, costing the county money; the future Joseph G Cannon Building will need updates in order to host Vermilion County offices for years to come.
Several months ago, Land Bank Executive Director Mike Davis addressed the County Board about using ARPA money to fix up homes needing specific external repairs, especially the roofs; which would allow current residents to stay in those homes and continue paying county property taxes. Dr. Bieritz says a $500,000 investment with COVID money could save 50 homes, and keep the residents in place and tax revenues coming in for years to come. Because homes with, as he calls, blue roofs, such as with a temporary blue canvas, are very salvageable.
AUDIO: Eventually the roof is going to get deteriorated to the point where a blue canvas, or a brown canvas, won’t satisfy it. Yep, the roofs are the most important thing on the house. And so our investment in the roof is probably the key to the whole keeping of the house.
Then, there are other current county concerns that perhaps the COVID money should be used for now, rather than just assuming that they’ll still have a strong general fund to handle the expenses down the road. As just two examples, the County Administration Building, being renamed the Joseph G Cannon Building with plans to use it for years go come, needs a new elevator and HVAC system. Then, the county will need to pay for its share of the tear down of the old County Annex Building, when the city tears it down simultaneously with Bresee Tower. County Board Chairman Larry Baughn, who’s a Land Bank member as well, says he sees some county projects paid with ARPA money being approved soon, maybe on a month by month basis.
AUDIO: Those repairs are going to have to be done someday, right? So what better day than today to start that process. And if we can do it from ARPA, than great; and not forget about some of these communities that may need help. I think that’s something I think we’ll probably entertain down the road too. But we’ve said from day one ‘we need to take care of the county first.’
Baughn says a resolution was passed last year stating that the Finance and Personnel Committee can make the final decisions on APRA funding allocations, but they will most likely to go the full County Board as a courtesy.
