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89 | The Assistant City Manager stated that he has heard from four Councilmembers to focus on housing and the Marina Village Inn project; staff needs to work on the schedule and analysis of true costs; public health came up in a number of different contexts; staff can provide additional options related to public health and the investment in a mental health clinic or other local support for public health; business assistance did not come up more than once; it would be great to hear Council direction related to the General Fund and revenue loss; ARPA funding would come back and become part of a broader ability to fund different priorities; the funding is flexible in some ways; staff can continue to refine the process; the deadline to fully program the funds is the end of 2024; the funding can be looked at in future budget cycles. Mayor Ezzy Ashcraft expressed support for the approach of a broader spending ability; stated ARPA is wonderful; however, the City is limited to the regulations put forth by the federal government; if the money goes into the General Fund, the City has much more flexibility for other projects. Councilmember Knox White stated that he is supportive of the funding being placed in the General Fund; he would like to ensure the City has some kind of spending guidelines; expressed concern about a grab bag approach; the flexibility in spending should go towards meeting goals; Council is still honing versus selecting projects; the Assistant City Manager has outlined the matter well; the goals should be: housing, mental health and public health related programs which cannot be reimbursable under the program. Vice Mayor Vella stated Council can outline the revenue loss portion; expressed concern about impacts to services relative to priorities and revenue loss; businesses are also included in impacts to loss of services; Council has done a number of things for the business districts, including outreach and services; Council has provided many grants with City funds; the City can leverage funds to provide over-arching services that meet a number of different needs. Councilmember Herrera Spencer stated that she has not heard additional support for the Smart City Master Plan and hotspots; inquired whether there are other planned funding options. Mayor Ezzy Ashcraft stated that she supports the Smart City Master Plan and hotspots; requested clarification about the categories. The Assistant City Manager stated the focus in the staff report focused on four categories based on input from Council in May; staff attempted to focus where Council desires to place funding; there is a possibility of adding to the program as it progresses; the current planning stage of the Smart City Master Plan has funding; however, funding for build-out has not yet been identified; if other funding sources become available for housing and Marina Village Inn, staff can reallocate excess funding on a rolling basis; staff would prefer to have ample time to properly address projects. Regular Meeting Alameda City Council July 20, 2021 17 |