The City of Soldotna adopted a plan to spend over $7.3 million in Federal CARES Act funding during their City Council meeting on Wednesday. The vote was unanimous by a 5 – 0 vote.
On May 27, Soldotna City Council adopted Resolution 2020-026, authorizing the City Manager to accept $7,376,315.80 in grant funds from the State of Alaska, Department of Commerce, Community, and Economic Development for necessary expenditures due to the COVID-19 public health emergency.
City Manager Stephanie Queen is proud of the CARES Act spending: “I am happy with the approach we’ve presented. It puts roughly two-thirds of our funding back directly into the community rather than into projects that the city would undertake for our own expenses. I think that’s a really good approach for the City of Soldotna, our business owners, and residents.”
She presented the City Council with a spending plan, which designates CARES Act funds into several different expense categories, including funds to be offered as grants to Soldotna businesses and area non-profits that have suffered financially due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Mayor Pete Sprague questioned the City Manager about whether more money could go towards Soldotna’s residents: “Have there been discussions at the administrative level of other programs that are available, or might be available to help our residents? Outside of the business and non-profits? Such as housing relief?”
Queen said that there are some areas where the spending could have aimed low: “I will tell you that one of the categories we had earmarked for direct support to residents – originally we put in $275,000 for that. Based on the level of need from Soldotna residents that participated in AHFC’s mortgage relief program, that’s probably an area where we shot too low. If we, the city, want to replicate a program like that moving forward, it may be that it’s a category that needs to get bigger, in terms of direct need.”
Council member Jordan Chilsom proposed a working group be established to look at how to fund individuals in Soldotna: “I do think that we have some responsibility to disperse some of this ourselves directly. I think there’s some opportunity there and I’d like to have some ideas come forward from a work group.”
Soldotna Cares grant awards will be from the COVID-19 CARES Act Relief Special Revenue Fund. Up to $750,000 may be awarded to eligible non-profit organizations. Up to $2,000,000 may be awarded to eligible local businesses. The city plans to open up applications on July 17 for a two-week application window.
