MANSFIELD — Mayor Jodie Perry on Tuesday will lay out plans how she believes the city should spend $2.2 million of the city’s remaining American Rescue Plan Act funds.
The projects cross a wide range, including $1.2 million sought for improvements related to the city’s parks, according to proposed legislation.
The projects outlined are:
— $575,000 for sidewalk projects at King Street Park and Johns Park.
— $135,000 for sandstone restorations at Liberty and South parks.
— $375,000 for various projects in city parks for recreation, security, lighting and maintenance.
— $200,000 for a pedestrian bridge on the south side of Middle Park.
— $750,000 to design an industrial waterline loop and sanitary system to aid in potential economic development at Mansfield Lahm Regional Airport.
— $160,000 for four tornado sirens in the city.
— $75,000 toward a new command vehicle for the Mansfield Police Department.
Perry said she is asking council to vote on the sandstone restorations and the recreation, security, lighting and maintenance in the parks proposals. The remaining issues are scheduled for a vote on Oct. 15.
Under ARPA guidelines, all funds must be appropriated by the end of 2024 and work completed by the end of 2026.
“We need to get contracts in place and signed by the end of the year. We are actually hoping to get to some of the parks projects done this year while the weather is still good,” Perry said Monday.
The city administration has also proposed the following changes in previously approved ARPA spending:
— unappropriate $900,000 from water line design.
— unappropriate $1.5 million from a planned north end community center.
— unappropriate $66,613 from the central dispatch Next Gen PSCC system.
— unappropriate $482 from furniture from the police training facility.
City Council on Tuesday is also scheduled to:
— vote on a proposal to update the city’s agreement with Ardane Miller to provide campground and boat dock management services at Clearfork Reservoir.
— vote on the vacation of a portion of Aylesbury Street and a portion of an unnamed alley between Longview and Crestline avenues.
— discuss a proposal to allow the city to seek bids for information technology managed services for the city. Perry said the idea was not to replace the city’s IT department. “We will continue to have our own IT department for day-to-day operations with boots on the ground.”
— vote on the acceptance of a $100,000 grant from the Ohio Office of Criminal Justice Services for METRICH operations.
— vote on a proposal to allow the city to apply for state grant funds for a 2024 traffic signal replacement program.
— vote on a new agreement with the Ohio Department of Transportation to provide snowplowing and ice control work on highways in and around the City of Mansfield, including U.S. 30 within city limits.
There are three committee meetings scheduled Tuesday: utilities at 6:30 p.m., streets at 6:40 and claims at 6:50. Council caucus is scheduled to begin at 7 p.m. with the legislative session immediately thereafter.
(Below is a PDF with the legislation scheduled for Mansfield City Council consideration on Tuesday evening.)
