Committee reallocates $50,000 in ARPA funds for boardroom renovations

The clerk of the board told the Support Services Committee that $50,000 in ARPA funds originally awarded to the regional planning board for a contract that was not awarded would be reallocated to capital project H437 to update the former committee room. "We are taking $50,000 in ARPA money that was awarded to the regional planning board...that $50,000 was available to us to put against the board renovations," the clerk explained. The committee moved and approved advancing the item to the board.

Supervisors asked whether the money could be used for other county needs (for example, sheriff's office items) and were told ARPA reallocation is limited to existing contracts and obligated projects; Treasurer Christine Norton later explained that under audit guidance projects must have been obligated by Dec. 31, 2024 and all funds must be spent by Dec. 31, 2026. Members discussed using leftover renovation allocation for audio upgrades and repurposing the committee room as conference space for external partners such as the IDA and regional planning board.