CITY NEWS
CITY OF PHOENIX PLANS FOR FEDERAL COVID-19 RELIEF SPENDING
By Councilwoman Thelda Williams
THE CITY OF PHOENIX RECEIVED $293 MILLION FROM THE CORONAVIRUS RELIEF FUND, WHICH IS PART OF THE $2.1 TRILLION CARES ACT PASSED BY CONGRESS. The city can only use the funds for expenses directly related to COVID-19 and the funds must be spent before the end of the calendar year or it must be returned to the federal government. COVID-19 impacts are likely to be felt for some time so the council voted to take about half of the allocated relief funds to hold for potential future expenses through the year. In early May, the City Council adopted the Phoenix Coronavirus Relief Fund (CRF) Strategic Plan; providing clear guidance to staff on the city’s use of CRF funds. The council broke the funds into three major categories: Community Investment, $75 million; City Expenses, $75 million; and Reserve to Preserve City Services, $143 million.
The list below includes the council’s addition for small business assistance, individual utility and rent/mortgage assistance, as well as refugee assistance and domestic violence in the vulnerable population category. Business and Employee Assistance: $15.7 million • Small business assistance (with Phoenix IDA): $5 million • Small business guidance: $100,000 • Restaurant restart program: $1 million • Airport small business assistance: $1 million • Microenterprise: $6 million • Arts and culture: $2.6 million Utility and Rent/Mortgage Assistance: $30 million • City water, sewer and trash, electric and natural gas utility (3 months) and rent/mortgage assistance (1 month) for individuals (up to 10,000 customers) affected: $24 million • City water and sewer assistance (3 months) for businesses affected: $6 million
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Work Related Injuries Construction Site Injuries Auto Accidents Personal Injury Claims Estate Planning
Distance Learning and Wi-Fi Access: $1 million • Broader Wi-Fi access for students’ online learning • Public Housing Wi-Fi • Community access to online city services and remote meeting access Mitigation and Care for Vulnerable Populations: $10 million • City homelessness and affordable housing strategy (approved April 21) • Domestic violence impacts • Refugee/asylum seeker assistance Food Delivery: $5 million • Seniors, schools and food banks
Better Health Outcomes and Community Testing: $5 million • Ensure broad testing, especially in underserved communities • Assist Maricopa County Public Health with contact tracing Unallocated: $8.3 million City of Phoenix staff are working to set up procedures, procurement bidding
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The $75 million for city expenses is broken down into areas such as: personal protection equipment and cleaning/sanitizing; medical and public safety measures; public facility retrofit for COVID; and more. For a complete breakdown of how the $75 million for city expenses will be allocated, visit phoenix.gov. If you have any questions or comments, contact my office at council.district.1@phoenix.gov or call 602-262-7444. Councilwoman Thelda Williams serves as the District 1 representative, which encompasses north west Phoenix from Northern Avenue to New River Road; and the Interstate 17 to 67th Avenue.
ADDITIONAL FUNDING WILL HELP TARGET
STREET RACING ON VALLEY FREEWAYS ON APRIL 3, 2020, AZDPS TROOPERS OBSERVED TWO DRIVERS ATTEMPTING TO RACE AT SPEEDS NEAR 90 MPH ON I-17 SOUTHBOUND NEAR INDIAN SCHOOL ROAD. Both drivers were stopped and taken into custody, and the vehicles were towed. Unfortunately, racing incidents like this one are an ongoing issue on Valley streets and freeways. Now, with the help of a $30,000 funding increase from the Governor’s Office of Highway Safety (GOHS), Arizona state troopers can boost street racing enforcement on highways in the metro Phoenix area. The new funding is an add-on to the $244,280 grant awarded to AZDPS in December 2019 for the Selective Traffic Enforcement Program & Materials (STEP). This increase will provide the Highway Patrol Division with more personnel for special enforcement details targeting street racing.
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processes and applications for small businesses, residents and nonprofits. What would normally take several months is being expedited to disburse the funds as quickly as possible. I encourage residents to check phoenix.gov often for updates on how to apply for the various funding opportunities.
Street racing on highways is dangerous for everyone on the road, including both racers and the motoring public. The high speeds often associated with racing increase the risk of serious injury or death in a collision. As you may recall, on February 18, 2020, an
18-year-old Buckeye man was killed on State Route 51 as a result of a suspected street racing incident. The two cars were racing when one car reportedly flipped over and collided with a median wall near the Shea Boulevard overpass. While the case remains under investigation, the hope is that with this additional enforcement, we can minimize the chance of these tragedies occurring. north32ndnews.com
