Bangor approves COVID-19 aid funding for two organizations
Bangor permitted giving $77,000 in pandemic aid funding to 2 native organizations — although metropolis councilors mentioned six requests — within the metropolis’s second wave of federal COVID-19 aid awards.
Bangor Space Homeless Shelter requested $10,000 to assist the group’s diversion program, which helps individuals liable to homelessness discover safe, protected housing. This system started in the course of the pandemic when the shelter had occupancy limits, and has efficiently diverted 99 individuals, in line with the group’s software.
Councilors additionally granted Jap Space Company on Growing older $67,000 to assist the group’s diet applications for older adults, caregivers and disabled adults for one 12 months. These applications vary from meal supply to the company’s “furry meals financial institution” that provides pet meals to low-income older adults.
Tuesday’s choices are the most recent step in Bangor’s delayed efforts to allocate the remaining $16 million in American Rescue Plan Act funding town acquired from the federal authorities starting in Could 2021. That cash needs to be earmarked by 2024 and spent by 2027.
Bangor Space Homeless Shelter additionally requested one other $10,000 to function the nonprofit’s winter warming heart, which retains individuals protected from harmful winter climate from December to March.
Councilors agreed to assist the shelter’s program with a Group Improvement Block Grant, somewhat than pandemic aid funding, as town has completed for the previous two years.
The selections got here the evening after the council agreed to allocate $150,000 in pandemic aid funding to rent a grant author and supervisor for town. The town believes a grant author will assist it earn grants to cowl municipal bills, which would cut back the burden on taxpayers, in line with council agenda paperwork.
The federal funding can pay for the place for a 12 months and half. The town hopes the place will change into self-sustaining.
Although councilors agreed to designate funding to assist the proposals, the council can’t formally approve the award till their subsequent assembly later this month.
The picks have been made in the course of the second weekly ARPA workshops the council is holding to contemplate funding purposes. Councilors are reviewing the 25 top-ranked requests as determined by a volunteer evaluation panel overseen by Coronary heart of Maine United Method. These high purposes have been divided by their “space of emphasis,” which means what difficulty the proposals search to fight.
Whereas councilors agreed to meet two organizations’ requests for pandemic aid cash, the group hesitated to determine on three different purposes, two of which exceeded $1 million, with out extra info.
“I feel a seven-figure ask requires extra scrutiny and a spotlight,” Councilor Gretchen Schafer stated. “It’s not that I don’t assist it, I simply don’t assist it but.”
Penobscot Group Well being Middle requested town for almost $2.8 million to fund renovating the group’s Hope Home Well being & Residing Middle. The mission would develop the shelter’s footprint from 9,187 sq. toes to 13,319 sq. toes.
The added house would supply room for kitchen amenities, group assembly house, enhance hygiene and private storage areas, and improve open idea house to enhance the road of sight for workers, amongst different enhancements, software paperwork stated.
The shelter’s 66-bed capability wouldn’t change with the growth, however 4 “flex beds” that present quarantine house, extra warming heart capability or future recuperative care beds, can be added, in line with the appliance.
One other software councilors opted to attend on was a $1.3 million ask from Wabanaki Public Well being and Wellness to develop two cultural facilities in Bangor — the Wabanaki Youth and Cultural Middle on Central Avenue and the Group Connection Middle for Studying and Lodging on Kenduskeag Avenue.
The proposed youth heart would supply “culturally targeted and supportive programming for all youth,” in line with software paperwork.
The neighborhood connection heart would have areas for group studying, celebrations and occasions in addition to lodging, an out of doors walkway, a kitchen and house for Wabanaki artwork, cultural actions and ceremonies.
Whereas councilors appreciated the concept, particularly the youth heart, they requested for extra info on the proposal earlier than making a funding determination.
Lastly, the Maine Multicultural Middle requested $70,700 to fund a full time program supervisor for one 12 months who would recruit, prepare, and handle volunteers and function a case supervisor. That worker and the volunteers they bring about aboard would assist guarantee immigrants safe transitional housing and companies that assist them settle within the better Bangor space.
Once more, councilors appreciated the concept, however elected to ask for info on this system’s sustainability plan earlier than deciding on the funding request.
