Mayor Sarno Announces $5.5 million in 10th Round of ARPA Funding Awards Including over 3,000 Households totaling over $4 million in Direct Cash Assistance

$1,368,298 is being awarded to 45 small businesses and $1,180,220 is awarded to 12 nonprofits.  Additionally, $2.95 million will be transferred to five (5) nonprofits that support various eligible community-based activities and services for low- to moderate-income population, including mental health services.  Mayor Sarno also provided an update on the direct cash assistance for Springfield households with over 3,000 household applications being approved totaling over $4.23 million.  

This announcement is the culmination of over 18 months of hard work and dedication from the Sarno Administration, which started with Mayor Sarno and city officials conducting a citywide listening tour session, meeting with over 35 organizations and neighborhood councils to help develop this all-encompassing and comprehensive approach to provide immediate relief and assistance to Springfield residents, businesses and nonprofits, especially for our minority and historically under-served populations.

Mayor Sarno states, “This announcement of our 10^th round of ARPA awards is the culmination of my administration’s efforts to get this much-needed relief and assistance out to our residents, business community and nonprofits ASAP.  I am proud of my administration’s efforts in getting this funding out into our community to those in need.  This is all about supporting that good four-letter word, JOBS!  No other community in the Commonwealth or the nation has been as proactive and deliberate in getting this relief out to our residents, businesses, nonprofits and neighborhoods in need that have been adversely impacted by the pandemic.  I am proud of the fact that 90% of total awards for small business has been awarded to minority and/or women owned businesses.”

“My administration has awarded millions directly to our community, especially to our neighborhood small businesses which includes many of our local mom-and-pop stores that are the backbone of our neighborhoods and provide economic viability for our city,” said Mayor Sarno. 

Those small businesses and nonprofits receiving funding include:

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Furthermore, consistent with the provisions of ARPA and the Supplemental Information that accompanies the Final Rule, Mayor Sarno announced the transfers of funding to the following nonprofits, to assist the city in carrying out eligible activities and services.  

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Additionally, Mayor Sarno provided an update on the direct cash assistance for Springfield households.  To date, 3,024 house applications have been approved with a total of over $4,233,600 being directly awarded to Springfield residents/households. 

“It was important for my administration to award as much of our local allocation of federal ARPA funding to our residents, businesses and nonprofits,” Mayor Sarno continued.  “Unfortunately, this funding is coming to an end and we must now start looking at our local citywide municipal projects that will benefit all in our community.  I want to thank everyone for their understanding and patience.  We waited till the end to award as many qualifying applications as possible.” 

“Due to the tremendous volume of request for direct assistance and in order to expedite and facilitate the process so that we can get our Springfield families in need their assistance ASAP, I have put out an RFP for third party assistance, much like what was done through WayFinders during the height of the pandemic, providing relief funding that assisted our residents with their mortgage, rent and utility bills.”

“It is clear from the heavy volume of request for assistance that there is still a need for assistance from the positive and successful programs and initiatives that my administration has implemented throughout this process.  To try and continue to keep these programs and initiatives going strong, so that they can continue to provide much-needed relief and assistance for our residents and businesses, I will request from our local Springfield state delegation if they can secure and bring home some of the states ARPA funding to the city of Springfield to support and continue funding our existing programs.”

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Chief Administrative and Financial Officer (CAFO) TJ Plante stated, “For over 18 months, our dedicated ARPA team has thoroughly reviewed the nearly twenty thousand applications received and has awarded a total of approximately $100 million to many households, businesses, nonprofits and neighborhood councils.  This tenth round of announcements is the culmination of a lot of hard work and we are pleased to announce that roughly 90% of total awards to small businesses has been awarded to minority and/or women owned businesses.  We are hopeful that the state can help and support the many programs and initiatives Mayor Sarno has created and implemented so that we can continue to provide relief and assistance to our community.”

Chief Development Officer (CDO) Tim Sheehan added, “As we conclude over one year of ARPA awards, it is amazing to see the breadth of the awards announced to date, the potential impact they will have on our local economy both today and going forward into the future and the overt attention paid to ensuring that the vast majority of the City’s ARPA resources were invested in the neighborhoods, people and businesses that were disproportionally impacted by COVID. “     

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To date, this 10^th round of ARPA funding brings the total amount that has been awarded and/or allocated to approximately $100 million.  The remaining balance of the city’s allocation of local ARPA funding will be utilized to award the remaining pending applications that qualify and for the various citywide projects that will benefit all residents.   

Mayor Sarno remains proud of the fact that he is the only mayor in the state and one of the few in the nation to put forth such a comprehensive and all-encompassing initiative to get local federal ARPA funding directly into the community. 

“My dedicated finance and economic development team have been very thorough, doing their due diligence throughout this process.  Together, we have met with almost all of our local neighborhood councils, as part of my administrations citywide listening tour, to hear directly from them what their needs are to help enhance the quality of life and aesthetics of our neighborhoods – much like what was done with many of the post-2011 tornado economic and neighborhood development projects and initiatives.  It is important to mention that most of these projects will take time to get underway, designed and implemented.  We must remain cognizant of the fact that we still need to complete these projects and initiatives within a certain timeframe to meet all of the federal requirements for committing and allocating our local ARPA funding,” said Mayor Sarno.

It is important to note that the city of Springfield remains on target to meet the federal requirements to have all ARPA funding committed by 2024 and allocated by 2026. 

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In closing, Mayor Sarno stated, “Once again, I thank our residents, businesses and nonprofits for their continued patience and understanding.  The volume of requests and needs has been enormous.  Again, I would like to thank Congressman Richard Neal, who once a mayor always the heart of a mayor, President Biden and Congress for their efforts to bring this much-needed direct relief to the city of Springfield.”    

The City of Springfield received $123.8 million in ARPA funding as part of the $350 billion federal American Rescue Plan Act designated for direct aid to state, local and tribal governments.  After meeting with over 30 neighborhood councils and other organizations as part of Mayor Sarno’s citywide listening sessions to hear directly from our residents and the business community, Mayor Sarno identified seven categories in which RFP’s will be utilized to enhance projects, programs and initiatives across the city for the betterment of our residents and businesses.  They include:  Nonprofit Assistance, New Business Assistance, Small Business Assistance, Senior Citizen Assistance, Neighborhood/Household Assistance, Capital Projects/Public Space Improvements, and Job Creation/Economic Development