YOUNGSTOWN — City council agreed to spend $1.98 million in American Rescue Plan dollars and redirect another $2.1 million from the federal program for different projects, including up to $1.8 million to purchase a new fire truck.

Council approved several ARP ordinances Wednesday, less than two weeks before the federal deadline of Dec. 31 to have all of the funding allocated or lose what it did not allocate.

Youngstown received $82,775,370 in ARP funds and with the legislation passed, it will have allocated all of the dollars, said Mayor Jamael Tito Brown.

ARP funds have to be obligated by the end of this month and expended by the end of 2026 under federal law.

The most expensive legislation had council remove $1.8 million from a fund for land acquisition for community and economic development projects. Up to $1.8 million will go toward the purchase of a new 100-foot ladder truck for the fire department’s downtown station.

Finance Director Kyle Miasek said he didn’t know how much ARP money would go toward the truck, but it could be the full $1.8 million amount. It largely depends on how much ARP money is unspent by the city, he said.

The fire truck, which will be in service next year, costs $2.19 million.

The city also agreed Wednesday to pay $200,000 in ARP funds to the Intentional Development Group to provide start-up costs, planning and expansion for the Cornerstone Food Co-op at 2649 Glenwood Ave., the long-closed Bottom Dollar grocery store.

The project aims to address food insecurities while encouraging economic growth, job creation and improving the community through an agricultural incubator program, a community kitchen and a marketplace co-op, according to a city document.

The $200,000 is being redirected from a $1.5 million ARP allocation, approved Oct. 2 by city council, to redevelop the former 18,285-square-foot grocery store building.

The board of control today is expected to approve a $1,028,900 contract with Brock Builders of North Lima for that work — which is under the $1.5 million allocation.

The Village of Healing, an infant mortality clinic, will be the building’s main tenant, using 6,063 square feet with the food co-op using 4,194 square feet. A third group tenant, not yet determined, would use 5,141 square feet and there is 2,887 for a common area under the city’s proposal.

Also, council agreed Wednesday to use $100,000 of the money left from the $1.5 million initially set aside for the Bottom Dollar project to give to Ohio Urban Renaissance Center at 421 North Ave. to upgrade its facilities.

Ohio Urban Renaissance’s ARP allocation was increased Nov. 18 by city council from $150,000 to $389,000 to help at-risk youths from funding from the $2 million given to Councilwoman Samantha Turner, D-3rd Ward. The city is adding another $100,000 in ARP funding to the organization with the increase to be finalized today by the board of control. In about a month, the project’s funding from ARP dollars is going from $150,000 to $489,000.

Other ARP allocations approved Wednesday were $50,000 more for a residential roof replacement project and $200,000 for the Youngstown Neighborhood Development Corp. to serve as fiscal agent for the Youngstown Restorative and Opportunity Center (YoROC). The latter is being developed to help younger city residents who are unemployed or underemployed with focuses on training in health care and the culinary arts.

Several of the ARP allocations approved Wednesday came from the $2 million council gave each of its seven members in April 2023 – for a total of $14 million – for projects in their wards.

That included $705,000 sponsored by Councilman Mike Ray, D-4th Ward.

Of that amount, $400,000 is for a program to educate property property owners about zoning and code violations and provide resources and recommendations for repairs and compliance; $100,000 each for improvements to a lot at the northwest corner of Steel Street and Mahoning Avenue for the police department’s community policing headquarters, and to upgrade and improve building access to the Stephanie Jenkins Resource Center, 2214 Mahoning Ave.; $80,000 for sidewalk improvements in the ward; and $25,000 for additional rehabilitation work at the Roy Street Park-West End Field.

Councilman Jimmy Hughes, D-2nd Ward, sponsored an ordinance to spend $667,500 for the YNDC to manage various 2nd Ward revitalization projects.

Turner sponsored ordinances to spend $261,301.

The funding is $125,000 to the Mahoning County Land Bank for a program that educates people about property rights, legal processes and strategies to prevent disputes and other property issues; $86,301 for United Returning Citizens to provide workforce development services; $25,000 each for the Boys and Girls Club of Youngstown to renovate and expand its gymnasium and activity center; and $25,000 for Animal Charities of Ohio for its trap, neuter and release feral cat program in the 3rd and 7th Wards.

Ray and Councilman Julius Oliver, D-1st Ward, questioned the viability of the feral cat program, but joined all other members in supporting it.

OTHER BUSINESS

City council chose to refer a request to spend $267,002 in revenue from its speed camera program in school zones to its safety committee for further discussion.

The proposal would have purchased three vehicles – 2025 Ford Police Interceptor Utility SUVs — at a total cost of $211,251 and three metal detectors at a cost of $55,751.

The vehicles would be used by the school district’s resource officers, said Detective Sgt. Seann Carfolo, the police department’s fiscal officer.

Miasek had previously said the vehicles would be used by city police to patrol around schools between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m. on school days. But Carfolo said Wednesday the funding is actually going to the school district for use by resource officers.

The city law department is reviewing the requests to make sure they are proper, Carfolo said.

Under state law that restricts the use of speed cameras, Youngstown can use its share of the speed citation collection revenue for school safety efforts.

The city collected $596,878 from the use of the cameras in school zones from late February to early June 2023.

A dispute between the city administration and court system kept the cameras shut off until this past Sept. 18.

The city hasn’t received a payment to date from when the cameras were turned back on from Blue Line Solutions, the Chattanooga, Tennessee, company that operates the school zone cameras and keeps 35% of the citation collections.

Council voted Wednesday to grant a 75%, 10-year property tax abatement to Penguin City Brewing Co., 460 E. Federal St., which is undergoing a $700,000 expansion.

The business plans to hire three new full-time and three part-time workers with the expansion.

It will save $134,137 in taxes and pay $44,712 in taxes over the 10-year period.