Westchester County, New York

Recovery Plan Performance Report

State and Local Fiscal Recovery 

Funds

2021 Report
Westchester County, New York 2021 Recovery Plan Performance Report 1

Westchester County, New York

2021 Recovery Plan Performance Report

Table of Contents

Executive Summary ..............................................................................................................2

Uses of Funds........................................................................................................................8

Promoting Equitable Outcomes .........................................................................................16

Community Engagement ....................................................................................................18

Labor Practices ...................................................................................................................18

Use of Evidence...................................................................................................................18

Table of Expenses by Expenditure Category ....................................................................20

Project Inventory .................................................................................................................22

Ineligible Activities: Tax Offset Provision .........................................................................22
Westchester County, New York 2021 Recovery Plan Performance Report 2

Executive Summary

The American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) was signed into Law on March 1, 2021. On May 10th, 

the U.S. Department of Treasury issued the Interim Final Rule (IFR) along with FAQs and a fact 

sheet which provides guidance on the $363 billion Coronavirus State and Local Fiscal Recover 

fund (Recovery Fund). Westchester County was allocated $187,926,698 under this fund and 

received one half of that amount or $93,963,349 on May 19, 2021. It is anticipated that the 

County will receive the remaining 50% one year from this date. These funds are accounted for 

on the balance sheet as deferred revenue and will be recognized as revenue as eligible 

expenditures are made by the County. The County has until December 31, 2024 to obligate the 

funds and until December 31, 2026 to expend the funds with all work performed and completed.

There are five primary categories that governments may invest the funds in (1) support the public 

health response, (2) address negative economic impacts, (3) replace public sector revenue loss, 

(4) premium pay for essential workers and (5) water, sewer, and broadband infrastructure.

Funds may cover costs from March 3, 2021, through December 31, 2024. 

There is broad flexibility to help those disproportionately impacted by the COVID-19 Pandemic. 

The County must demonstrate that the investment of funds supports the public health response or 

that the recipients of the funds have experienced economic harm from the pandemic. 

Additionally, there is greater flexibility for Qualified Census Tracts (QCTs) and other 

communities, households and businesses disproportionately impacted by the pandemic.

While the County has continued COVID mitigation and response efforts into the covered period, 

the County has not yet recognized recovery fund revenues as of the close of the period covered 

by this report. The County is awaiting the completion of the community input process before 

making final allocations to programs and recognizing the associated recovery fund revenues. As 

such, this report focuses on the planned uses of the funds awarded rather than expenditures to 

date. 

Over the next three years, subject to a transparent public planning process, Westchester County 

preliminarily plans to allocate funds in the following areas:

 Affordable housing development and eviction prevention;

 Public health;

 Small business and non-profit assistance;

 Infrastructure upgrades, and parks in qualified census tracks (QCT); and

 Grants to build stronger communities.

In considering ARPA investment, Westchester County sees a once in a generation opportunity to 

transform key county programs and services, build capacity of critical service providers in the 

county, and address structural challenges that have led to disparities in public health, access to 

quality housing, education attainment, and economic opportunity. 
Westchester County, New York 2021 Recovery Plan Performance Report 3

Westchester County Profile

Westchester County is an area in the Hudson Valley north of New York City with cultural, 

economic, social, and geographic diversity. The County contains densely populated urban 

centers, suburban development catering to commuters, and rural farmland, creating a unique 

sense of place. As one of the most affluent counties in the United States, Westchester County’s 

economic diversity is often overlooked as there are low socioeconomic status neighborhoods 

across the county. A summary profile of Westchester County follows:

FIGURE 1: WESTCHESTER COUNTY, NY
Westchester County, New York 2021 Recovery Plan Performance Report 4

TABLE 1: WESTCHESTER COUNTY, NY - DEMOGRAPHIC CHARACTERISTICS1

Westchester County United States

Total Population (2020) 1,004,457 328,239,523

Race/Hispanic Origin (2020)

White 49.5% 76.3%

Black 13.0% 13.4%

Asian 6.5% 5.9%

American Indian/Native 

Alaskan

0.1% 1.3%

Native Hawaiian/Pacific 

Islander

<0.1% 0.2%

Some other race alone 0.9% 0.0%

Two or more races 3.2% 3.0%

Hispanic/Latino 26.8% 18.5%

Foreign-born 25.5% 13.5%

Age

 18 21.7% 22.3%

 65 17.4% 16.5%

Housing

Housing units (July 1, 2019) 377,297 139,684,244

Owner-occupied housing unit 

rate

61.4% 64.0%

Median value of owneroccupied housing units$540,600 $217,500

Median gross rent $1,537 $1,062

Building permits (2020) 2,834 1,471,141

Homeless Individuals, 20192 1,812 N/A

Computer/Internet Use

Households with a computer 92.0% 90.3%

Households with a broadband 

Internet subscription

86.2% 82.7%

Education

High School graduate or 

higher, percent of persons 

age 25 years+

88.1% 88.0%

Bachelor's degree or higher, 

percent of persons age 25 

years+

48.9% 32.1%

Health

With a disability, under age 65 

years

5.7% 8.6%

Persons without health 

insurance, under age 65 

years

5.7% 9.5%

Economy

In civilian labor force, total, 

percent of population age 16 

years+

65.3% 63.0%

 

1 Source: U.S. Census, 2015-2019, except as noted

2 Source: Westchester County Continuum of Care Partnership to End Homelessness, Point-in-time Count Data, 2019
Westchester County, New York 2021 Recovery Plan Performance Report 5

Westchester County United States

Total accommodation and 

food services sales, 2012 

($1,000)

2,020,014 708,138,598

Total health care and social 

assistance receipts/revenue, 

2012 ($1,000)

9,638,221 2,040,441,203

Total manufacturers’ 

shipments, 2012 ($1,000)

4,492,932 5,696,729,632

Total retail sales, 2012 

($1,000)

14,514,240 4,219,821,871

Total retail sales per capita, 

2012

$15,093 $13,443

Income/Poverty

Median Household Income $96,610 $62,843

Per capita income past 12 

months

$57,049 $34,103

 100% Federal Poverty Level 

(FPL)

8.4% 10.5%

Westchester County, New York has a land area of 430.50 square miles. Its estimated population 

is 1,004,457 (U.S. Census, 2020). The racial mix of the population is more diverse than the U.S.

(see Table 1). The portion of the population under 18 and over 65 is similar to the U.S. (21.7% as 

compared to 22.3% and 17.4% as compared to 16.5% respectively). The percentage of 

Hispanic/Latino residents is markedly higher than the U.S. (26.8% as compared to 18.5%). The 

percentage of foreign-born residents in Westchester County is also markedly higher (25.5% as 

compared to 13.5%).

As of July 1, 2019, there were 377,297 housing units in Westchester County of which 61.4% 

were owner-occupied (similar to the U.S. rate of 64%). The median value of owner-occupied 

housing units was $540,600, more than double the U.S. value of $217,500. Median gross rent in 

Westchester County is $1,537, higher than the U.S. figure of $1,062. In a County-wide survey, 

residents (26.5%) selected “affordable housing” as the second most important action to improve 

community health (after “mental health services”)3. Eighteen hundred and twelve (1,812) 

individuals were homeless on January 24, 2019, less than 1% of the total County population.

Households with a computer (92.0%) and with broadband internet subscription (90.3%) in 

Westchester County are slightly higher than the U.S. (86.2% and 82.7%, respectively), however 

there are census tracts where broadband affordability is an issue.

The percentage of Westchester County residents who are high school graduates or higher is very 

similar to the U.S. rate (88.0% and 88.1% respectively) though the percentage of residents with a 

bachelor’s degree or higher is notably higher (48.9% and 32.1% respectively).

 

3 Westchester County Community Health Assessment 2019-2021.
Westchester County, New York 2021 Recovery Plan Performance Report 6

Rates of disability and persons under the age of 65 lacking health insurance are lower in 

Westchester County than the U.S. (5.7% and 8.6%, and 5.7% and 9.5% respectively).

A higher percentage of Westchester County residents are in the civilian labor force than the U.S. 

(65.3% as compared to 63.0% respectively). Total retail sales per capita are higher than the U.S. 

($15,093 as compared to $13,443).

Median household income and per capita income in Westchester County ($96,610 and $57,049 

respectively) are higher than the U.S. ($62,843 and $34,103 respectively). About 8.4% of County 

residents are at or below 100% of the Federal Poverty Level, lower than the U.S. rate (10.5%).

Although Westchester County is affluent overall, there are pockets of poverty. Qualified Census 

Tracts (QCT) “are those in which 50% or more of the households are income eligible and the 

population of all census tracts that satisfy this criterion does not exceed 20% of the total 

population of the respective area,” (Department of Housing and Urban Development, no date). 

The QCT in Westchester County that are targeted for ARPA funding include substantial portions 

of the municipalities of Yonkers and Mount Vernon, as well as areas in New Rochelle, Port 

Chester, White Plains, Sleepy Hollow, and Peekskill.

TABLE 2: WESTCHESTER COUNTY QCT (CENSUS, 2020)

QCT Total Population Median 

Household 

Income

% at or below 

100% Federal 

Poverty Level 

(FPL)

% Renters

Yonkers 69,453 $37,290 28.9% 86.5%

Mount Vernon 8,684 $33,627 20.9% 82%

New Rochelle 5,428 $48,208 17.5% 71%

Port Chester 5,217 $53,750 24.3% 86%

White Plains 2,968 $31,775 30.8% 73%

Sleepy Hollow 6,779 $47,242 19.4% 83%

Peekskill 3,984 $34,794 25.1% 88%

COVID-19 Impacts Summary

Over the past 18 months, the Westchester County’s COVID-19 response has been robust, 

mobilizing critical resources and leveraging strategic partnerships with the private and nonprofit 

sectors in the county to address public health, economic, and social impacts of the pandemic. 

The County has been on the front lines of COVID mitigation and response since the very onset 

of the pandemic in early 2020. “An attorney who lives in Westchester County and works in 

midtown Manhattan is New York state's second confirmed coronavirus case — and the first 

apparent instance of community spread” (4 New York, March 3, 2020). As of August 2, 2021, a 

total of 3,170,566 COVID-19 tests have been administered, with 131,857 positive tests (4.2%). 

Total deaths are 2,484. 

Even prior to any State or Federal assistance becoming available, the County utilized its own 

resources to quarantine infected individuals, setup testing sites, and promote awareness about the 

dangers of the virus. Once Federal assistance became available through the Families First and 

CARES Acts, the County was able to continue and greatly enhance its COVID mitigation and 
Westchester County, New York 2021 Recovery Plan Performance Report 7

response activities. The County dedicated $225.5 million in federal resources, including 100 

percent of it Coronavirus Relief Fund allocation, to COVID mitigation and response activities 

during 2020. This much needed assistance stabilized the County from both a public health and 

economic perspective. With this aid, the County was able to provide a litany of programs, aid, 

and virus mitigation measures including;

 Grants to small businesses struggling with revenue losses

 Remote learning centers for school-aged children without high-speed internet access at 

home and whose parents are essential workers

 Conduct of safe elections

 Transition a portion of County workforce to teleworking to mitigate virus transmission 

while ensuring continued service delivery

 Food insecurity assistance and distribution

 Rental assistance

 Provision of PPE to both County employees and the public at-large

 Quarantining infected individuals

 Partnering with the State to provide drive-thru testing sites 

 Enhanced mental health outreach services

 Redesign and enhanced cleaning of County facilities to improve virus mitigation and 

protect the public who enter

 Open Parks and other outdoor recreation facilities by ensuring social distancing 

protocols

 Continued employment of mass and air transportation workers for the County bus 

system and airport

Once vaccines became available in early 2021, the County transitioned its primary pandemic 

response from containment and mitigation to vaccine distribution. The County provided and 

staffed the County Center facility to be a NYS DOH regional mass vaccination site for the 

Hudson Valley, and the County opened its own vaccination site at the Westchester Community 

College Field House for County residents and workers. Additionally, the County purchased deep 

freezers to accommodate vaccine storage for eventual distribution to pharmacies and other 

healthcare providers for their use and engaged in a public awareness campaign promoting the 

benefits of vaccination. These efforts have resulted in 616,712 completed vaccinations in the 

County as of August 23, 2021. 

The community impacts of COVID-19 are significant but difficult to comprehensively quantify. 

An April 2020 survey of Westchester County businesses (N=700) “clearly showed that the 

Westchester business community is struggling...” according to Westchester County Executive 

George Latimer. Key findings were:

 “58% said that they will lose 75-100% of their revenue because of COVID. However, 

56% said they have not let anyone go as of the date of the survey.

 More than half of the businesses in the survey were from retail, personal services, 

administrative and professional services. 60% are either solo Entrepreneurs or businesses 

with less than five employees.
Westchester County, New York 2021 Recovery Plan Performance Report 8

 85% need financial assistance with 64% applying for SBA loans. 39% need help with the 

application process.

 29% of respondents report annual gross revenue over $1,000,000 and 25% under 

$100,000. Small businesses have a broad spectrum.

 65% have been in business for more than 10 years so they are part of the fabric of 

Westchester.

 70% need help addressing or changing business model or marketing to help keep 

customers/clients. They are concerned with immediate situation with regards to cash 

flow, rent, paying employees, and trying to figure out if and how to continue after.”

Hotel accommodation taxes declined from $6,502,899 in 2019 to $3,340,139 in 2020. Unlike 

County sales tax receipts, these do not appear to be rebounding. A report from the Westchester 

County Association Post Pandemic Working Group (September 2020) stated “COVID-19 poses 

an unprecedented challenge to the stability of Westchester’s regional economy. Our businesses 

have been shuttered, our healthcare system is strained, our nonprofits and educational institutions 

are stressed, and our public budgets are stretched thin.” The Association proposed a “multisector approach to economic recovery” with four foundational pillars: (1) Healthcare and 

Bioscience, (2) Real Estate and Housing, (3) Digital Connectivity, and (4) Energy and 

Sustainability.

Uses of Funds

In designing Westchester County’s ARPA investment strategy, County leadership emphasized 

the transformative nature of these funds, targeting investment to advance equity, breaking down 

barriers that have resulted in disparities in public health, access to quality, affordable housing, 

education attainment, and economic opportunity. The intention behind Westchester County’s 

ARPA investment is to:

 Strengthen the role of public health

 Reimagine economic opportunity 

 Build capacity of nonprofit organizations that serve the county’s most vulnerable 

Overarching Goal – Over a five-year period, Westchester County, through targeted investment of 

ARPA funds, will decrease disparities experienced in health, access to quality, affordable 

housing, education attainment, and economic opportunity by addressing market and structural 

challenges experienced by diverse populations across the county.

Subject to the completion of a transparent and community-wide planning process, Westchester 

County preliminarily plans to allocate ARPA funds as follows:

Public Health (EC 1)

The broad sub-categories under this heading are (1) treatment and medical health services, (2) 

enhance behavioral and mental health services, (3) support local health and safety workforce, (4) 

improving the design and execution of health and public health programs and (5) address 

disparities in public health outcomes. For addressing disparities in public health, the County

recognizes that low-income communities have had a disproportionate impact from COVID-19. 
Westchester County, New York 2021 Recovery Plan Performance Report 9

Therefore, Treasury will presume that certain types of services are eligible uses when provided 

in Qualified Census Tract (QCT), to families and populations living in a QCT, or other 

households, businesses or populations disproportionately impacted by COIVD-19. 

These services include:

 Community health workers who help residents access health services and resources that 

address the social determinants of health;

 Mental health teams working with our public safety personnel

 Housing services that support healthy living environments and neighborhoods that are 

conducive to mental and physical wellness; and

 Evidence-based community violence intervention programs that will prevent violence 

and mitigate the increase of violence during the pandemic.

Westchester County plans to enhance behavioral health/mental health services. The County has 

identified police-mental health collaboration, in the form of Mobile Crisis Response Teams 

(MCRT) (also known as mobile crisis teams), as a priority mental health intervention to be one 

aspect of its ARPA funded public health response.

In January 2021, the Westchester County Police Reform and Reimagining Task Force released 

51 recommendations that represent a blueprint for new policing strategies within Westchester 

County. These recommendations were created in response to a reform mandate from the County 

Executive and the Governor of New York State under Executive Order 203: New York State 

Police Reform and Reinvention Collaborative.

One of the recommendations from the Task Force is a focus on responding to the needs of 

residents with behavioral health challenges. “Principles and values” were established to drive all 

interventions and services in addressing the needs of individuals who may be experiencing a 

behavioral health crisis. They include interventions and services that are (1) responsive, (2) 

responders who are skilled and well trained, (3) supportive “warm hand-off” to services after the 

initial crisis intervention; (4) trauma-informed services and practices; (5) a response that would 

be characterized by empathy, compassion, and respect.

On the police side, Crisis Intervention Teams (CIT) are being implemented. Westchester County 

provides 40 hours of basic CIT training to all law enforcement recruits at the Police Academy as 

well as more in-depth in-service training. CIT prepares officers to better manage crises 

involving people with mental illness. Overarching training goals are (1) to improve officer and 

consumer safety and (2) to help persons with mental disorders and/or substance use issues access 

mental health and/or substance use treatment rather than place them in the criminal justice 

system due to illness related behaviors.

Results from the Westchester County Community Health Assessment 2019-2021, a survey of 

County residents (N=2,716), reported “overall, mental health was 39% of respondents’ first area 

of health priority.” Respondents also selected “mental health services” (27.9%) as the top action 

that would “best improve the health of their communities.”
Westchester County, New York 2021 Recovery Plan Performance Report 10

The U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Justice Programs defines the mobile crisis team as “a 

group of mental health professionals who are available to respond to calls for service at the 

request of law enforcement officers. The mobile crisis team's goal is to divert individuals from 

unnecessary jail bookings and/or emergency rooms.” Mobile crisis teams are a best practice for 

Behavioral Health Crisis Care (Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, 

2020).

The team is charged with addressing a wide range of mental health related crisis including 

conflict resolution, suicide threats, wellness checks, substance misuse, and more, relying on a 

trauma-informed de-escalation and harm reduction techniques. The primary role of MCRT is to 

support law enforcement in addressing mental health crisis by rapid engagement, assessment of 

needs, and providing short-term support and linkage to necessary services.

MCRT is responsible for warm handoffs for individuals in need of services. Such services can 

include crisis prevention and response team, crisis stabilization services, treatment programs, 

County Single Point of Access (SPOA), peer supports, care management, respite, and social 

services.

Benefits and expected outcomes of MCRT include (1) rapid response; (2) increased access to 

services; (3) strengthened connections to community resources; (4) effective Engagement of 

individuals experiencing a mental health crisis; (5) access to immediate assessment of mental 

health needs and services; (6) prevention of unnecessary law enforcement response; (7) 

prevention unnecessary arrest; and (8) trauma-informed response.

The MCRT model consists of Westchester County Department of Community Mental Health 

(DCMH) coordination and support in collaboration with contracted behavioral health agencies. 

This includes DCMH providing leadership in working with other County departments, local law 

enforcement, and local human and social services agencies. DCMH will provide planning 

oversight and coordination with county departments, law enforcement, and behavioral health 

agency teams.

BHAs will be selected through a Request for Proposal (RFP) process. Providers must have 

ability to bill public and private insurance providers and be a provider of licensed New York 

State behavioral health crisis services. 

MCRT teams will utilize a case record system to track individuals served and provide data that 

will be used for strategic planning purposes. Initiative will include evaluation component to 

assess effectiveness of model.

The County plans, through its Department of Mental Health, to issue and RFP for the program in 

Fall 2021. 

Negative Economic Impacts (EC 2)

Funds may be used to assist households or populations, preferably those most disproportionately 

impacted, by the negative economic impacts of the COVID-19 public health emergency. Specific 

categories of potential use include:
Westchester County, New York 2021 Recovery Plan Performance Report 11

 Assistance to households

 Small business and non-profit support

 Aid to impacted industries

 Assistance to unemployed workers

 Expenses to improve efficacy of economic relief programs, and

 Services for QCT and other disproportionately impacted communities.

As previously discussed, COVID has had an impact on small business and non-profits 

throughout Westchester County (see Executive Summary). ARPA funds will be allocated to 

address negative economic impacts in these sectors. To strengthen the climate in which small 

business operates in Westchester County, a highly targeted, small business development and 

recovery program is being designed using ARPA funds that supports small businesses 

throughout the County. 

In addition, a general small business development, nonprofit, and religious organization recovery 

fund will be established to support businesses/organizations that experienced negative economic 

impact because of COVID and fall outside of the targeted sectors. 

COVID also exposed food insecurity, particularly in low socioeconomic status neighborhoods 

that are often classified as food deserts. 

The entertainment, hospitality, and tourism sectors were hard hit by COVID and have been slow 

to recover. For more than a year people were reluctant to travel, live entertainment was put on 

hold and has yet to resume at a noticeable scale, and hospitality, particularly business travel, may 

have experienced a structural shift that reduces midweek occupancy. As of May 2021, hotel 

occupancy tax was off 50% compared to 2019 figures. Opportunity for the County to allocate 

ARPA funds to strengthen the entertainment and tourism sectors through product development 

that will have a positive impact on hospitality. 

Downtown retail centers across Westchester County have experienced increased vacancy, 

primarily restaurants and niche boutique retail. To restore vibrancy to Westchester County’s 

villages and downtown centers, ARPA funds will be allocated to provide incentives to small 

business, support marketing efforts, and design strategic events to attract visitors.

Recognizing COVID impacted a wide range of small business, nonprofit organizations and 

religious institutions, Westchester County will extend ARPA funds to these organizations that 

demonstrate continued impact, can document need, and advance the ARPA goals of equity 

and/or targeted investment in QCT.

Small Business, Nonprofit, and Religious Institution Grants – ARPA funding will be 

allocated to make grants to eligible businesses and organizations as part of the County’s 

rebuilding effort. The ARPA COVID Relief Task Force will establish program guidelines for 

funding and market this opportunity through county and municipal governments, area chambers 

of commerce, and community groups. Westchester County provided grants to small businesses, 

nonprofit organizations, and religious institutions early during the pandemic to keep small 

business viable, and has established the appropriate capacity and organization systems to 

continue making these investments. 
Westchester County, New York 2021 Recovery Plan Performance Report 12

Technical Assistance and Success Coaching – To support small business recovery, 

Westchester County will provide a wide range of technical assistance and success coaching to 

small businesses and nonprofit organizations throughout the county, with focused attention on 

businesses located in downtowns and village centers hardest hit, as well as businesses and 

nonprofit organizations that serve residents of QCT.

Tourism Product Development – Investment in tourism has a multiplier effect that supports 

small business, nonprofit organizations, and municipal services. Enhancing Westchester 

County’s tourism product mix will result in increased sales in multiple sectors. 

Tourism Promotion – To attract visitors back to Westchester County, a tourism promotion 

campaign will be designed showcasing the county’s great assets and emphasizing its diverse 

culture, thriving downtowns, quaint village centers, and incredible natural landscape. The 

campaign will seek to drive overnight stays and increase visitor spending.

Workforce Development – Attracting highly skilled talent is critical to the long-term recovery 

from COVID. The pandemic continues to effect small business’ ability to secure the necessary 

workforce to reemerge from COVID and to grow over the next five years. Westchester County 

is dedicated to supporting workforce development efforts across the county. ARPA funds will 

be used to strengthen workforce development in key economic sectors and target investment for 

residents living in qualified census tracts.

Performance measures associated with negative economic impact consider both short-term 

recovery and long-term rebuilding. Below outlines key performance measures:

 Jobs Created

 Jobs Retained

 Capital Investment

 Workforce Development Program Enrollment and Completion

 Workforce Development Placement

 Business Starts

 Occupancy Rate – Hotel Tax

 Commercial Vacancy Rate – Downtowns and Designated Districts

Services to Disproportionately Impacted Communities (EC 3)

In addition to specific services to address health disparities, previously described, the IFR 

outlines certain services that are eligible when provided in a QCT to families and individuals 

living in the QCTs or to other households, businesses or populations disproportionately impacted 

by the pandemic. These services include:

 Investments in housing and neighborhoods to address homelessness, affordable housing 

development, housing vouchers, residential counseling, or housing navigations 

assistance;

 Addressing educational disparities; and

 Promoting healthy childhood environments.
Westchester County, New York 2021 Recovery Plan Performance Report 13

Housing Disparities

Westchester County plans to allocate ARPA funds to develop housing and prevent evictions for 

its most vulnerable residents. The investment will be targeted for QCTs and other 

disproportionately impacted communities to be determined. 

A Westchester County Housing Needs Assessment was conducted in November 2019. Among 

the key conclusions:

 “There are 345,885 housing units in Westchester...The need for affordable housing in 

Westchester County totals 82,451 units; however, the greatest portion of these units are 

not substandard, so addressing the affordability of some portion of these units could be 

through rental assistance programs like the federal Housing Choice Voucher (Section 8) 

program. The total number of new affordable housing units needed is 11,703. This 

represents the total number of Westchester households that are severely overcrowded or 

Homeless, as well as the non-Westchester Homeseeker registrants...

 141,570 households (41.4% of the total number in the county) are living in homes and 

apartments that are paying more than 30% of their income toward their housing costs... 

 There is a shortage of housing for extremely low-income renters, people with 

disabilities, seniors, large families and the homeless; In particular, families and 

individuals who face intellectual and developmental disabilities, who need specialized 

housing with services, are not being adequately served...

 The affordable housing needed to address the current number of homeless households is 

an additional 846 units...

 The gap in rental affordability is as significant as home purchasing...

 There is no municipality where the market rate rent for a 2-BR unit is affordable to 

households earning the local hourly renter wage...”

Twelve recommendations emerged from the Housing Needs Assessment:

“1: Affordable Housing Education Workshop Series: Contract with an organization with a 

focus on housing policy, education, technical assistance and municipal engagement to establish a 

series of workshops to facilitate educational sessions regarding affordable housing. 

2: Increase the Community Based Organization Capacity: Establish an annual funding 

allocation to cover the tuition associated with professional certification programs in housing and 

community development through NeighborWorks America®. 

3: Housing Inventory & Tracking System: Conduct a bi-annual update of the existing 

affordable housing inventory - utilizing the existing housing inventory database. Establish a 

permanent tracking and monitoring system of all housing developments over 10 units. Share with 

economic development entities and Industrial Development Agencies to ensure housing and 

wages are in alignment. 

4: Community Land Trust: Create a countywide community land trust and focus on capturing 

housing headed into foreclosure as an eviction prevention strategy but maintain flexibility to 

address a multitude of development concerns. 
Westchester County, New York 2021 Recovery Plan Performance Report 14

5: Municipal Ordinances: Design a formal program to provide technical assistance to 

municipalities to draft model ordinances for example, Accessory Dwelling Units, specifically 

targeted for affordable housing. 

6: Adaptive Reuse of Under-Utilized Property: Design a property disposition program for the 

adaptive re-use of land and buildings, including older office park campuses, for the purpose of 

developing new affordable housing. 

7: Housing Compact between County and Municipalities: Gather support from the local 

businesses, municipalities, and community-based organizations to work together to meet the 

needs of affordable housing in the County. 

8: Neighborhood Revitalization Opportunities: Utilize the Affordable Housing Needs 

Assessment data in addition to existing web-based systems to explore the specific needs of 

individual neighborhoods and establish a data rich system to analyze community conditions. 

9: Eviction and Foreclosure Prevention Services: Expand existing eviction and foreclosure 

prevention programs. 

10: Employer Assisted Housing Program: Establish an Employer Assisted Housing program 

by creating public-private partnerships with major employers, hospitals, county staff and largescale not-for-profit housing providers and healthcare agencies. 

11: Pre-development and Preservation Options: Create and provide funding for not-for-profit 

housing agencies for pre-development costs associated with the construction and preservation of 

affordable housing. 

12: Funding Opportunities: Offers a couple of examples of options to provide a source of 

funding to undertake the recommendations above and increase the funding stream for the 

County’s affordable housing programs.”

Building Stronger Communities

Further, Westchester County plans to allocate ARPA Funds to building stronger communities.

The nonprofit sector in Westchester County provides a wide range of critical services to 

residents. The pandemic tested the strength of Westchester County’s nonprofit sector, a network 

of more of than 500 non-profit organizations with 35,000 individuals contributing nearly 400,000 

hours since the beginning of COVID (Volunteer NewYork.org, August 2021). To build stronger 

communities, Westchester County must continue to mobilize the volunteer corps. Investment in 

ARPA funds will ensure organization capacity is built and community resiliency is reinforced.

An area of focus for ARPA investment is supporting Westchester County’s youth, particularly 

those living in QCTs and single parent households, who were impacted by COVID-19. To gain 

a sense of this impact, Westchester County Youth Bureau is seeking proposals to conduct a 

countywide Community Needs Assessment to identify existing resources, assess persistent 

needs, emerging trends and challenges due to the COVID-19 pandemic, detect gaps in services, 

and provide results-based recommendations to improve conditions for children, youth, and 
Westchester County, New York 2021 Recovery Plan Performance Report 15

families in the County. Participatory evaluation in a mixed-method research approach will be 

incorporated into the design. Proposals are due September 30, 2021 and the planning will 

commence shortly thereafter. Key initiatives developed as a result of the Youth Bureau’s 

Community Needs Assessment will be positioned for ARPA investment through a Building 

Stronger Communities Grant outlined below.

Building Stronger Communities Grant – Westchester County will dedicate ARPA funds to 

establish a grant program for non-profit organizations and religious institutions. The ARPA 

taskforce will work with key stakeholders from the nonprofit sector to design a grant program 

with targeted investment in the following focus areas:

 Public Health

 Child Development

 Elder Services

 Food Systems/Security

 Workforce Development, Education, and Training

 Nonprofit Capacity Building, Governance, and Volunteerism

To strengthen the nonprofit sector’s capacity and increase the level of accountability associated 

with the ARPA funds, a robust evaluation will be integrated into the grant program design. The 

evaluation will align with the overall performance measures for the ARPA funds, with emphasis 

placed on transformation, capacity building, equity, and accountability.

ARPA Building Stronger Communities grantees will be provided a series of organizational 

development wraparound services and technical assistance. For each grantee, an organization 

development assessment will be conducted, and a capacity building strategy established to 

deliver effective, market-driven, evidence-based programs; ensure organization systems are in 

place to both manage program implementation and measure performance/impact; and support 

organization growth and reliable, sustained change.

Westchester County’s Building Stronger Communities program is designed to strengthen the 

county’s nonprofit sector and improve the services available to individuals and families who 

have been impacted from COVID. Through strategic investment of ARPA funds, coupled with 

wraparound technical assistance and success coaching, greater impact can be realized by: 

 Delivering effective, evidence-based programs that demonstrate

 Achieving greater equity in qualified census tracts and other neighborhoods/communities 

with the high disparities

 Increasing accountability through program evaluation and data analytics; and 

 Building organization capacity that reimagines the nonprofit sector, strengthens 

communities, and transforms lives of individuals and families who face disparities that 

threaten their health, safety, and welfare.

To measure impact of ARPA funding on nonprofit organizations and religious institutions, the 

following key performance indicators will be incorporated.

 Constituents/Patrons Served
Westchester County, New York 2021 Recovery Plan Performance Report 16

 Donor and Donation Growth

 Fundraising Return on Investment/Overhead Costs

In addition to the organization metrics outlined above, two to three additional program-specific 

performance measures will be defined.

Premium Pay (EC 4)

Premium pay may be provided retroactively for work performed at any time since January 27, 

2020. Westchester County does not anticipate allocating ARPA funds for this purpose.

Water, sewer, and broadband infrastructure (EC 5)

The IFR aligns eligible uses in this area to those projects that would be eligible to receive 

financial assistance through the EPA Clean Water State Revolving Fund and Drinking Water 

State Revolving Fund. This does not mean that the project must have been approved for funding 

under these sources, just that the eligible uses are consistent with those allowed under these 

programs. Also, recognizing the importance of universally available high-speed broadband 

coverage, ARPA provides funds to make necessary investments in broadband infrastructure.

Westchester County plans to allocate $28M in ARPA funds in infrastructure investment. 

Identified to date are projects at two wastewater recovery facilities in the County. ARPA 

investment will target the recovery facilities serving QCTs in Port Chester and Peekskill. . 

These two facilities were identified based on the need for upgrades and the financial impact to 

the district if the cost was fully borne by users. Currently, these projects are in the planning 

stages. Other projects may be identified as the County goes through its public engagement 

process.

Improvements to the wastewater infrastructure, namely the processing plant, will result in greater 

efficiency and lead to reduced operating costs. Below are performance measures associated with 

ARPA investment in wastewater infrastructure:

 Operating and Maintenance Expenses

 Emergency Maintenance Events 

 Volume

 Waste Treatment

Revenue Replacement (EC 6)

Counties may use Recovery funds for the provision of “government services” to the extent of the 

reduction in revenue experience due to the pandemic. Westchester County does not anticipate 

allocating ARPA funds for this purpose at this time.

Promoting Equitable Outcomes

Westchester County is committed to achieving reliable sustained change across the County that 

results in greater equity for the diverse population living and working in the County. The

programs outlined above are designed to advance equitable outcomes and target ARPA 
Westchester County, New York 2021 Recovery Plan Performance Report 17

investment in QCT throughout Westchester County. ARPA funds presents an opportunity to 

address market and structural challenges that have resulted in a range of disparities. The 

following are goals associated with promoting equitable outcomes.

Goal 1 – Over a five-year period, Westchester County, through targeted investment of ARPA 

funds, will decrease disparities experienced in health, home ownership, and economic 

opportunity by addressing market and structural challenges experienced by diverse populations 

across the county.

Goal 2 – Over a five-year period, Westchester County will create affordable, quality rental 

property and home ownership opportunities for hundreds of essential workers and their families 

who have been priced out of the County housing market, leading to increased wealth creation, 

security of tenure, stabilized housing costs, and increased mobility.

Goal 3 – Over a five-year period, Westchester County will transform its response to behavioral 

health crises, integrating Mobile Crisis Response Teams (MCRT) into its public safety protocol 

and collaborating with police Crisis Intervention Teams (CIT) to achieve greater public health 

outcomes associated with mental/behavioral health crisis and reduce the need for forcible 

intervention.

Goal 4 – Over a five-year period, Westchester County will strengthen the regional economy by 

investing ARPA funding in workforce development, extending access to capital for small

business, nonprofit organizations, and religious institutions, facilitating tourism product 

development, promoting Westchester County offerings, and providing technical assistance and 

success coaching to small businesses and nonprofit organizations that result in job creation, new 

business starts, increased occupancy, and capital investment.

Westchester County has designed a broad reaching community engagement strategy to raise 

awareness of the opportunities ARPA funding affords diverse populations, particularly those 

individuals who are essential workers and those living in qualified census tracts. Westchester 

County will partner with a host of community organizations, social service providers, and 

religious institutions to ensure communities who are traditionally marginalized are aware of the 

opportunities and assistance will be provided to support their access to ARPA programs and 

services. 

Westchester County has designed its ARPA programs with equity at the center, highly targeted 

investment, focused outreach to individuals and household living in qualified census tracts 

and/or experienced disparities and structural barriers to personal and professional growth that 

have adversely impacted their quality of life. Westchester County, through its evaluate on 

process and continuous process improvement will track specific performance measures related to 

issues of equity and will allow the county to make the necessary adjustments to ensure reliable, 

sustained change is achieved.

A series of performance measures specific to ensuring equity are incorporated in the ARPA 

evaluation design that will inform the following program outcomes.
Westchester County, New York 2021 Recovery Plan Performance Report 18

 Increased access to economic opportunity for individuals living in qualified census 

tracts;

 Expanded home ownership for essential workers;

 Reduced risk for people with behavior health challenges through integrated crisis 

intervention led by behavioral health professionals and supported by area police when 

needed; and

 Improved wastewater treatment that results in improved service and decreased operating 

costs.

Community Engagement

Westchester County has incorporated and will continue to incorporate substantial community 

engagement into planning for the allocation of ARPA funding. This community engagement 

includes a series of public hearings and targeted community meetings with impacted residents of 

Westchester County. Overall, public hearings will be held no less than annually to report on the 

progress and impact of ARPA funds on Westchester County.

Metrics to be developed will include the following process measures:

 Public hearings held annually associated with the reporting requirements for ARPA 

 Community meetings to inform program development

 Community meetings to report on program impact and evaluation

Labor Practices

Federal and state labor standards will be followed for all ARPA funds including ensuring that

prevailing wages are paid, New York State WICKS Law followed, and Davis Bacon Wage 

standards are adopted. Additional required labor standards will be incorporated into each 

investment area as part of the planning process. Compliance with all required labor standards

will be assured by Westchester County administration staff.

Use of Evidence

Westchester County plans to focus on evidence-based practices (EBT) as appropriate in all 

programs undertaken with these funds. For example, the proposed behavioral health 

intervention, mobile crisis teams, is a best practice for Behavioral Health Crisis Care (Substance 

Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, 2020). A recent meta-analysis of the 

literature on the impact of mobile crisis teams (University of Cincinnati, Center for Police 

Research and Policy, 2020) concluded “research generally suggests mobile crisis teams can 

increase connection to community-based services following a crisis incident, mitigate pressure 

on the mental health system by reducing unnecessary emergency department visits/hospital 

admissions, and promote cost effectiveness.” Similarly, Action Research models are widely used 

in business, healthcare, education, and other arenas. In education alone, Action Research has 

been the focus of almost 17,000 peer reviewed articles in the last 20 years (Institute of Education 

Sciences, 2021).
Westchester County, New York 2021 Recovery Plan Performance Report 19

Evaluation

The following outlines the County’s strategy for performance measurement.

Process and Impact Evaluation – Westchester County will engage in both a process evaluation 

and an impact evaluation. The evaluation will include formative measures that will be the 

foundation for continuous improvement and summative measures that will evaluate outcomes 

and impacts at the end of the ARPA reporting period. Organization systems and a series of 

dashboards will be established to support the evaluation process and provide critical information 

to Westchester County leadership as to progress towards achieving ARPA goals. 

The evaluation of ARPA performance measures will primarily rely on existing data sources that 

will be integrated into the action research cycles and disseminated through a series of 

dashboards. Survey research, semi-structured interviews, and focus groups will augment the 

program evaluation design to gain more depth, particularly in assessing ARPA investment in 

public health/MCRT, economic development, and building stronger communities performance 

measures. 
Westchester County, New York 2021 Recovery Plan Performance Report 20

Table of Expenses by Expenditure Category

This section is not applicable, as the County has not recognized ARPA recovery funds as 

revenue prior to the close of the period covered by this report. 

Category Cumulative

expenditures to 

date ($)

Amount spent 

since last 

Recovery Plan

1 Expenditure Category: Public Health

1.1 COVID-19 Vaccination - -

1.2 COVID-19 Testing - -

1.3 COVID-19 Contact Tracing - -

1.4 Prevention in Congregate Settings (Nursing Homes, 

Prisons/Jails, Dense Work Sites, Schools, etc.)

- -

1.5 Personal Protective Equipment - -

1.6 Medical Expenses (including Alternative Care 

Facilities)

- -

1.7 Capital Investments or Physical Plant Changes to 

Public Facilities that respond to the COVID-19 public 

health emergency

- -

1.8 Other COVID-19 Public Health Expenses (including 

Communications, Enforcement, 

Isolation/Quarantine)

- -

1.9 Payroll Costs for Public Health, Safety, and Other 

Public Sector Staff Responding to COVID-19

- -

1.10 Mental Health Services - -

1.11 Substance Use Services - -

1.12 Other Public Health Services - -

2 Expenditure Category: Negative Economic Impacts

2.1 Household Assistance: Food Programs - -

2.2 Household Assistance: Rent, Mortgage, and Utility 

Aid 

- -

2.3 Household Assistance: Cash Transfers - -

2.4 Household Assistance: Internet Access Programs - -

2.5 Household Assistance: Eviction Prevention - -

2.6 Unemployment Benefits or Cash Assistance to 

Unemployed Workers

- -

2.7 Job Training Assistance (e.g., Sectoral job-training, 

Subsidized Employment, Employment Supports or 

Incentives)

- -

2.8 Contributions to UI Trust Funds* - -

2.9 Small Business Economic Assistance (General) - -

2.10 Aid to nonprofit organizations - -

2.11 Aid to Tourism, Travel, or Hospitality - -

2.12 Aid to Other Impacted Industries - -

2.13 Other Economic Support - -
Westchester County, New York 2021 Recovery Plan Performance Report 21

Category Cumulative

expenditures to 

date ($)

Amount spent 

since last 

Recovery Plan

2.14 Rehiring Public Sector Staff - -

3 Expenditure Category: Services to 

Disproportionately Impacted Communities

3.1 Education Assistance: Early Learning - -

3.2 Education Assistance: Aid to High-Poverty Districts - -

3.3 Education Assistance: Academic Services - -

3.4 Education Assistance: Social, Emotional, and Mental 

Health Services 

- -

3.5 Education Assistance: Other - -

3.6 Healthy Childhood Environments: Child Care - -

3.7 Healthy Childhood Environments: Home Visiting - -

3.8 Healthy Childhood Environments: Services to Foster 

Youth or Families Involved in Child Welfare System 

- -

3.9. Healthy Childhood Environments: Other - -

3.10 Housing Support: Affordable Housing - -

3.11 Housing Support: Services for Unhoused persons - -

3.12 Housing Support: Other Housing Assistance - -

3.13 Social Determinants of Health: Other - -

3.14 Social Determinants of Health: Community Health 

Workers or Benefits Navigators 

- -

3.15 Social Determinants of Health: Lead Remediation - -

3.16 Social Determinants of Health: Community Violence 

Interventions 

- -

4 Expenditure Category: Premium Pay

4.1 Public Sector Employees - -

4.2 Private Sector: Grants to other employers - -

5 Expenditure Category: Infrastructure

5.1 Clean Water: Centralized wastewater treatment - -

5.2 Clean Water: Centralized wastewater collection and 

conveyance

- -

5.3 Clean Water: Decentralized wastewater - -

5.4 Clean Water: Combined sewer overflows - -

5.5 Clean Water: Other sewer infrastructure - -

5.6 Clean Water: Stormwater - -

5.7 Clean Water: Energy conservation - -

5.8 Clean Water: Water conservation - -

5.9 Clean Water: Nonpoint source - -

5.10 Drinking water: Treatment - -

5.11 Drinking water: Transmission & distribution - -

5.12 Drinking water: Transmission & distribution: lead

remediation

- -

5.13 Drinking water: Source - -
Westchester County, New York 2021 Recovery Plan Performance Report 22

Category Cumulative

expenditures to 

date ($)

Amount spent 

since last 

Recovery Plan

5.14 Drinking water: Storage - -

5.15 Drinking water: Other water infrastructure - -

5.16 Broadband: “Last Mile” projects - -

5.17 Broadband: Other projects - -

6 Expenditure Category: Revenue Replacement

6.1 Provision of Government Services - -

7 Administrative and Other

7.1 Administrative Expenses - -

7.2 Evaluation and data analysis - -

7.3 Transfers to Other Units of Government - -

7.4 Transfers to Nonentitlement Units 

(States and Territories only)

- -

Project Inventory

This section is not applicable, as the County has not recognized ARPA recovery funds as 

revenue prior to the close of the period covered by this report. Key performance indicators are 

being incorporated into management plans for each investment area.

Ineligible Activities: Tax Offset Provision

This section is not applicable, as this provision of the ARPA fiscal recovery funds applies only to 

States.