Tompkins County Legislature awards $6.5 Million in COVID-19 relief funds

 

On Dec. 20 the Tompkins County Legislature approved $6.5 Million in funding to community organizations as part of its Community Recovery Fund, it said in a release.

The grants were made to address the financial impact the COVID-19 pandemic has had on local organizations and businesses.

The awards ranged from $1.5 Million to The Cayuga Medical Center to $6,000 to the Ithaca Media Arts Center. One project that still needs to be approved a project proposed by Second Wind Cottages in Newfield, based on the completion of a State Environmental Quality Review. The project has requested $510,000.

The Cayuga Medical Center project was approved for a project to fund The Intensive Crisis Stabilization Center of Tompkins County.

The grant process began in September, with $32 Million being considered by a Tompkins County Legislature committee by 200 local organizations.

Fifty Four organizations were approved for grants. Six received more than $250,000, which were Foodnet Meals on Wheels ($328,725), Sustainable Finger Lakes ($532,127), St. John’s Community Services ($252,223), Coddington Community Center ($400,000), Cayuga Medical Center ($1.5 Million) and Greater Ithaca Activities Center ($500,000).

Those projects were approved for $4,197,340. There were 24 other projects that were approved for $1,982, 037 for $25,001-$25,000. An additional 22 projects for less than $25,000, totaling $355,967.

Tompkins County Legislature chairwoman Shandra Black said in a statement that she is happy for the projects that got approved, but wished that every project could have received funding.

She also said she’s excited to see the projects that were approved flourish with the funding they receive.

“I was in awe of the ideas and projects that came forward in the applications for this program. While I’m sorry that we will not be able to fund every applicant, I believe that the outcomes that we’ll see from the recipient projects will exceed our expectations,” she said. “While our community has shown remarkable resilience throughout the pandemic, it’s clear that support is needed to aid in recovery – this program is making investments to help us achieve that.”

The release featured a statement about the kinds of organizations that were considered and approved for the grant money.

“Projects being funded through the program are aligned with the program priorities of addressing the immediate and continuing impacts of COVID-19; building long term capacity, sustainability, and resilience of our local communities, non-profits, and businesses; and addressing critical unmet community needs,” it said.

The grants were made through the American Rescue Plan Act, as part of the United States’ federal government’s plan to aid with COVID-19 relief. In addition, $19.8 Million was distributed to the county for improvements to infrastructure, language access programming, Reimagining Public Safety initiatives, community investments and increasing the county’s organizational capacity.

Legislator Dan Klein was the chair of the Community Recover Grant committee said in a statement that the committee focused on the industries and organizations that were most impacted by the pandemic.

“This grant fund will invest significant resources in the areas of childcare and education, health and mental health care, housing and addressing homelessness, and workforce development, all of which will make a big impact on our community’s resilience and recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic,” he said. “I also want to thank my colleagues on the Legislature for contributing to this process. We had a transparent and thorough review of applicants and made what I believe to be solid recommendations for funding.

“It’s very difficult to say no to organizations doing good work, but I want to also thank everyone who applied – this was an important process for your Legislature to go through, helping us to further understand ongoing community needs ripe for investment.”

The next Tompkins County Legislature public meeting will be the Legislative Chambers on Tuesday Jan. 10 from 2-4 p.m. which will feature the Ethics Committee.

Geoff Preston is the interim managing editor for Tompkins Weekly. He can be reached at editorial@VizellaMedia.com