American Rescue Plan Act Advisory Committee — Charleston, WV
Date: 2022-01-26
Time: 17:00

CITY OF CHARLESTON
 West Virginia


 AMERICAN RESCUE PLAN ACT ADVISORY COMMITTEE
 January 26, 2022 5:00 PM
 THIS MEETING WILL TAKE PLACE IN PERSON

 Charleston Coliseum and Convention Center
 ROOM 215
 200 Civic Center Dr, Charleston, WV 25301

 Agenda

WELCOME
APPROVAL OF PREVIOUS MINUTES
 1. 9-29-2021

ITEMS
 1. Presentation: ARPA Application Recommendations

 2. ARPA Budget Outline

 3. Presentation: State Auditor’s Office

 4. Resolution No. 570-21 - A resolution to adopt free transparency tools and public website access
 to
 financial information provisioned by the West Virginia State Auditor’s Office in response to the
 ARP
 funding allocation.




ADJOURN




 City Council | 501 Virginia Street, East | Post Office Box 2749 | Charleston, West Virginia 25330
 www.charlestonwv.gov | 304.348.8179 | 304.348.8038 fax
 Page 1 of 1

CITY OF CHARLESTON
 West Virginia


 AMERICAN RESCUE PLAN ACT ADVISORY COMMITTEE
 January 26, 2022 5:00 PM
 THIS MEETING WILL TAKE PLACE IN PERSON

 Charleston Coliseum and Convention Center
 ROOM 215
 200 Civic Center Dr, Charleston, WV 25301

 Agenda

WELCOME
APPROVAL OF PREVIOUS MINUTES
 1. 9-29-2021

ITEMS
 1. Presentation: ARPA Application Recommendations

 2. ARPA Budget Outline

 3. Presentation: State Auditor’s Office

 4. Resolution No. 570-21 - A resolution to adopt free transparency tools and public website access
 to
 financial information provisioned by the West Virginia State Auditor’s Office in response to the
 ARP
 funding allocation.




ADJOURN




 City Council | 501 Virginia Street, East | Post Office Box 2749 | Charleston, West Virginia 25330
 www.charlestonwv.gov | 304.348.8179 | 304.348.8038 fax
 Page 1 of 1

 Page | 1 of
 MINUTES
 AMERICAN RESCUE PLAN ACT ADVISORY COMMITTEE MEETING
 AV ROOM #301, CITY HALL

 5:30 P. M., SEPTEMBER 29, 2021

Mayor Amy Goodwin, Chairperson, called the meeting of the Charleston City American
Rescue Plan Act Advisory Committee to order at 5:30p.m., September 29, 2021.

Committee Members Present:
Mayor Amy Goodwin, Chair
Becky Ceperley, Vice Chair
Ben Adams
Brent Burton
Mary Beth Hoover
Joe Jenkins
Bobby Reishman (left at 6:15)
Chad Robinson

Members Absent:
Caitlin Cook

Councilmembers Also Present:
None


A roll call was taken, and it was determined that a quorum was present.




 September 29, 2021

 Page | 2 of
 1. Approval of Previous Minutes –

Councilmember Reishman motioned to approve the minutes for the previous meeting
held on 5-26-2021. Councilmember Hoover seconded. With no objections, the previous
minutes were approved.

 2. Discussion of ARPA Application Review and Approval –

Mayor Goodwin stated that the reason the American Rescue Plan was created is to
spur economic growth and development. The buckets and needs being discussed have
come from feedback from Councilmembers and the public. Mayor Goodwin added that
people will be able to submit the application in different ways. It was created after
researching dozens of other cities’ applications. It is comprehensive and user friendly.

City Manager, Jonathan Storage gave a presentation of the Administration’s
recommendations. Highlights of Storage’s presentation:
  The three major buckets are: Economic Recovery ($8,000,000), Health & Safe
 Communities $14,801,358) and Investing in Our City’s Future ($13,000,000).
  Economic Recovery/Businesses – include grants, new business incentives,
 façade grants and co-op kitchen.
  Economic Recovery/Tourism – include CVB Contribution, events, etc and
 incentives.
  Healthy and Safe Communities/Responding to Covid Pandemic – include
 overtime for essential workers, vaccination and testing supplies, etc.
  Healthy and Safe Communities/Housing – include rent aid/eviction relief, CLRA,
 demolitions and shelters.
  Healthy and Safe Communities/Mental Health and Substance Use Programs –
 include CARE Office, counseling and treatment programs.
  Healthy and Safe Communities/Food/Water – include food security, snap stretch
 and lunch programs.
  Healthy and Safe Communities/Youth Activities – include summer youth job
 programs and after-school programs.
  Healthy and Safe Communities/City Cleanliness – include temporary workers for
 Refuse, Parks & Rec and Spring Hill Cemetery and materials and supplies.
  Investing in Our City’s Future/Parks – include turfing fields, pool upgrades and
 splash pad upgrades.
  Investing in Our City’s Future/Public Safety – include feasibility study for a new
 public safety center and police and fire sign-on bonuses.
  Investing in Our City’s Future/Road Infrastructure – include street and sidewalk
 repair.
  Investing in Our City’s Future/Broadband – include expansion projects with public
 private partnerships.
  Administrative Costs – include law and accounting firms, grants coordinator and
 non-profit partnerships.




 September 29, 2021

 Page | 3 of
Councilmember Ceperley asked if grant money could be given to businesses owned by
women and minorities. Storage replied that they would be able to give money to a non-
profit in order to administer such a grant program.

Councilmember Jenkins expressed concern that they would spend money on design
plans for a public safety center, but never actually build it. He asked if money would be
set aside for the construction. Councilmember Reishman agreed. Councilmember
Ceperley added that she was told that a design/build contract was more expensive.
Councilmember Hoover added that sometimes it is best to get a design ready first so
that you know how much money will be needed to raise money for it, adding that some
grants require that a design be in place first. Storage added that the feasibility portion of
the study would also help them decide where the structure would go. Councilmember
Hoover added that it would be a good idea to put money aside in the event that they
receive a match grant.

Councilmember Jenkins asked if amounts had been assigned to the sub-categories.
Mayor Goodwin replied that they would prefer to see all of the proposals and
applications first.

Councilmember Ceperley confirmed that City groups like the CLRA would not
necessarily need to apply, but they would need to at least provide an outline/plan.

Councilmember Jenkins expressed concerns that the money will be “nickel
and dimed” instead a having big, impactful project(s). Mayor Goodwin added that they
are looking for requests that do have a big impact on the City. Additionally, they are
looking for proposals that help multiple groups of people. Chief of Staff, Matt Sutton
added that there are more pieces to the puzzle in that they are also looking to see if
these proposals can be funded through other means (grants, etc.). Also, they are seeing
ideas and projects that they would not have necessarily thought of.

Councilmembers Burton and Ceperley asked if all of the requests would go through the
Advisory Committee. Storage replied that an option would be to have the Administration
receive the requests, determine what qualifies, and send them to the Advisory
Committee. Kanawha County Commission is doing something very similar.
Councilmember Ceperley added that they are also publishing ever application received
online. Councilmember Robinson added that it would be appropriate for the responses
to be filtered through the Advisory Committee, regardless of if they have final approval.

Storage added that the deadline is December 15, 2021. The Committee would meet
again in January/February 2022 to consider the applications, although they will be
previewed beforehand.



Councilmember Robinson motioned to adjourn the meeting.
Meeting adjourned.



 September 29, 2021

 Page | 4 of
 1 Resolution No. 570-21
 2
 3 Introduced in Council: Adopted by Council:
 4
 5 December 6, 2021
 6
 7 Introduced by: Referred to:
 8
 9 Courtney Persinger, Adam Knauff and ARPA Advisory Committee and
10 Shannon Snodgrass Finance Committee
11
12 Resolution No. 570-21 – Resolution to adopt free Transparency tools and public website access
13 to financial information provisioned by the West Virginia State Auditor’s Office in response to
14 the ARP Funding Allocation.
15
16 Be it Resolved by the Council of the City of Charleston, West Virginia:
17
18 That Councilmembers and the Finance Director are hereby authorized and directed to engage
19 the West Virginia State Auditor’s Office in formulation of the City’s transparency website that
20 allows public view of city finances and allows for stakeholders to better manage and
21 administrate ARPA funding from the United States Treasury.
22
23 WHEREAS, effective immediately the City of Charleston City Council and all financial
24 stakeholders will begin deliberation and initiate formal communications with the State
25 Auditor’s Office (“SAO”) to understand website creation and data transfer process; and
26
27 WHEREAS, the SAO is authorized to engage the City of Charleston Finance Director and team to
28 demonstrate project outcomes, and explore Chart of Account and transaction level data
29 transfer possibilities; and
30
31 WHEREAS, the City’s Finance Director will aid the SAO in building and validating the platform
32 and website for internal and public use once extraction and data transfer occur; and
33
34 WHEREAS, the City’s Finance Director will engage the City’s Information Technology
35 Department to explore a real-time integration with the City’s accounting system; and
36
37 WHEREAS, the SAO is authorized to engage the City of Charleston City Council and all other
38 stake holders in trainings to demonstrate finished projects, and aid City Council in utilizing full-
39 use of the platform;
40 And
41
42 WHEREAS, the SAO may conduct and demonstrate public trainings to aid citizens in
43 understanding the platform to monitor ARPA expenses, and once completed will demonstrate
44 project outcomes to this Council; and




 Page | 5 of
1 WHEREAS, the City of Charleston joins other large Cities in the State such as: Morgantown,
2 Wheeling, Fairmont, Parkersburg, Charles Town, Clarksburg and others in adopting this
3 software to better manage City finances, and to ensure accountability in Government for the
4 citizens of this City; therefore be it
5
6 RESOLVED, the City of Charleston will work collaboratively with the SAO to ensure a timely and
7 accurate product that allows the citizens of Charleston to view city finances and allows full-time
8 transparent monitoring of ARPA fund expenses, with a proposed project deliverable date of
9 02/01/22.




 Page | 6 of

MINUTES
 AMERICAN RESCUE PLAN ACT ADVISORY COMMITTEE MEETING
 CHARLESTON COLISEUM AND CONVENTION CENTER #215,

 5:00 P. M., JANUARY 26, 2022

Mayor Amy Goodwin, Chairperson, called the meeting of the Charleston City American
Rescue Plan Act Advisory Committee to order at 5:00p.m., January 26, 2022.

Committee Members Present:
Mayor Amy Goodwin, Chair
Becky Ceperley, Vice Chair
Ben Adams
Brent Burton
Caitlin Cook
Mary Beth Hoover
Joe Jenkins
Chad Robinson

Members Absent:
Bobby Reishman




A roll call was taken, and it was determined that a quorum was present.




 January 26, 2022
 1. Presentation: State Auditor’s Office –

Mayor Goodwin introduced the State Auditor, John B. McCuskey. He explained that one
of the responsibilities of the Auditor’s Office is to ensure that cities have the resources
they need. They have created a system that streamlines income tracking for
municipalities and counties who have received various Covid fundings. The system will
also create the report required by the Federal government, allows for transparency and
makes audits easier.

Representatives of the State Auditor’s Office (who will be referred to as “They” for the
purposes of the minutes), added that the software will be able to input financial data,
and will also be able to attach a narrative, giving context and insight to the raw data.
They showed the Committee an example of what that might look like for the City,
including customized dashboards. McCuskey added that the program gives the ability
for the City to collaborate with its constituents, the State Auditor’s Office and internally.

Councilmember Cook stated that this was a great tool. She clarified with McCuskey that
the reporting for ARPA funding is for two purposes: to help cities who were having
problems with managing larger amounts of money as well as their spending and
reporting.

Councilmember Ceperley asked who would be entering the data. McCuskey replied that
the data is already in the ERP system, so OpenGov will download all of those reports,
put them in the correct order and create a report at whatever interval the City chooses,
either automatically or manually. McCuskey added that the program also creates a
cloud-based backup of all of the financial data.

Councilmember Cook confirmed with McCuskey that there were no capacity limitations.




 January 26, 2022
 2. Resolution No. 570-21 – A resolution to adopt free transparency tools and public
 website access to financial information provisioned by the West Virginia State
 Auditor’s Office in response to the ARP funding allocation.


Councilmember Jenkins added that when the resolution appears before the Finance
Committee, they will be amending the resolution to a more feasible timeline.

Councilmember Jenkins motioned to approve the resolution. Councilmember Ceperley
seconded. With those being present having voted unanimously in the affirmative, the
Chair declared Resolution No. 570-21 approved and so moved to the Finance
Committee.




 January 26, 2022
 3. Presentation: ARPA Application Recommendations and ARPA Budget Outline –

Mayor Goodwin added that the timeline has been extended to February 9, 2022 to allow
Councilmembers to review the applications. 52 applications were received. The
Committee has received all applications any follow-up questions if applicable. 34
applications will be reviewed with the Committee along with the Administration’s
recommendations. Councilmember Cook confirmed with the Mayor that their meeting on
February 9 will be a review of the applications with a question-and-answer session with
the applicants. At their meeting on February 16, the Committee with review all
recommendations.

Mayor Goodwin added that in March 2021, the City of Charleston was granted $37
Million dollars from the American Rescue Plan Act. The first 50% of the allocation was
received on May 24, 2021 ($18.4 Million), and the City can request the 2nd allocation
after May 10, 2022. If all of the recommended applications were fully funded, the cost
would be approximately $15.2 million.

Finance Director, Andy Wood, added that there have been some updates to the
regulations. The funds must be spent in response to the pandemic: public health, health
emergency, negative economic impact, eligible infrastructure projects and city lost
revenue efforts. Additionally, ARPA funds can now be used for certain grant fund
matching.

  Alzheimer's Association, WV Chapter - Financial aid for the Alzheimer's Association's free care
 & support services, 24/7 Helpline, and support efforts.
 Amount Recommended: $20,000

  WV Health Right Inc. - $1,000,000 for Expansion of Health Right’s main clinic on East End,
 $500,000 for West Side Construction.
 Amount Recommended: $1,500,000

  Kanawha-Charleston Health Department - 50% of the loss of revenue cause by the COVID-19
 Pandemic. The County has covered the other 50%.
 Amount Recommended: $639,431

  Kanawha County Public Library - Purchase laptops, 3D printers, and Cricut cutting machines for
 public use.
 Amount Recommended: $49,040

  Charleston Convention & Visitors Bureau - Marketing Charleston as a gateway to West
 Virginia's outdoor recreation. Development a new strategic sports sales plan. Recruit new
 business to the city.
 Amount Recommended: $880,500

  Black Woman Business Owners of West Virginia - Secure business location
  Fund Annual Expo; Marketing Media/Ads; Employment; Educational Program Development.
 Amount Recommended: $150,000

  Partnership of African American Churches - Establish a permanent Comprehensive Community
 Health Center on Charleston's West-side.
 Amount Recommended: $440,000


 January 26, 2022
 Religious Coalition for Community Renewal #1 (RCCR) - Transitional Low Barrier Shelter
 Establish the program with staffing for four (4) years.
 Amount Recommended: $3,556,624.59

 Religious Coalition for Community Renewal #2 (RCCR) - Renovate the Hubbard building to
 accommodate a service center; Staffing; HOME ARPA potential other funding.
 Amount Recommended: $500,000

 Capitol Market – Additional funding/partners.
 Amount Recommended: $600,000

 Manna Meal #1 - Purchase a food truck & operating costs.
 Amount Recommended: $970,456

 Manna Meal #2 - With stipulation the money be used for food supplies for the truck to supply
 shelters (outreach meals)
 Amount Recommended: $230,000

 WV Symphony Orchestra - Support of its 2022-2023 season; 6 symphonic and 4 pops concerts;
 Maintain its existing programs & will schedule special outreach ensemble performances serving
 the West Side.
 Amount Recommended: $200,000

 Impact Me, Inc. - Decrease the number of youth incarceration. Employment, training materials,
 and general supplies.
 Amount Recommended: $6,000

 Pollen8 - Contingent upon locating property in City of Charleston (options do exist) + w/review
 process and on a payment process.
 Amount Recommended: $625,000

 YWCA of Charleston Resolve Family Abuse Program - Cover the cost associated with a
 Licensed Therapist to work on-site with shelter residents. Expansion of the State of West
 Virginia Supreme Court Remote Participation Program.
 Amount Recommended: $451,797

 Charmco Lofts Limited Partnership - Ensure workforce house for families in a quality, safe, and
 desirable neighborhood.
 Amount Recommended: $600,000

 Midian Leadership Project - Bring on three additional trauma-informed mentor-coaches to our
 program. Equip an educational space, kitchen, and exercise room.
 Amount Recommended: $60,000

 Kanawha Valley Collective - Access sustainable permanent housing. Direct mental health
 and/or substance abuse treatment. Case management designed to improve access to and
 retention in services. Enroll in mainstream benefits they qualify for. Other funding available.
 Amount Recommended: $450,000

 Hope for Appalachia - Funding for program.
 Amount Recommended: $45,000

 Hearts United Sister Talk – Staffing; Supplies; A 12-week interactive program for adolescents;
 Full funding pending nonprofit status/ fiscal agent.



 January 26, 2022
 Amount Recommended: $127,840

 West Virginia Child Advocacy Network - Help build organizational capacity within our Network.
 Support to locally-based child advocacy centers including CAMC Women & Children’s Hospital
 Children’s Advocacy Center
 Amount Recommended: $24,000

 WV Food and Farm Coalition - Address food security in different neighborhoods throughout
 Charleston’s; Specifically, Charleston's Westside.
 Amount Recommended: $989,675.92

 The Greater Kanawha Valley Foundation - $250 for programming for 5 years;
 $100,000 earmarked for artist and business seed investments (mini-grant program) and grants
 to colleges and universities to organize “student nights” in downtown Charleston.
 Amount Recommended: $350,000

 WV Music Hall of Fame Inc. - Respond to and recover from the impact of the pandemic by being
 able to meet staffing costs.
 Amount Recommended: $32,000

 East End Resource Center - 100k to fund senior programming; 50k for snack pack costs.
 Amount Recommended: $150,000

 Bright Futures Now - Complete the renovations for the second floor; provided services that will
 be offered once renovations are completed. Food Distribution: dealing with food insecurity on a
 monthly basis for residents in the Kanawha County.
 Amount Recommended: $350,000

 HOPE Community Development Corporation - Funding for programming and to renovate the
 1039 Central Avenue Building. Additional funding from Congressional Direct Spending- 500k.
 Amount Recommended: $500,000

 The Salvation Army – Charleston WV Area Command - Supply Food Pantry; Emergency Social
 Services program; Supplemental income to meet the salary needs of our Social Services
 director and other Social Services staff and case workers.
 Amount Recommended: $275,568.50

 Charleston Area Alliance (CAA) - 100k for the Women and Minority Small Business Program;
 100k for the Roots Program (Talent and Attraction initiative).
 Amount Recommended: $200,000

 Girl Scouts - A new program that develops older girl programming that will allow girls to explore
 a variety of different career paths.
 Amount Recommended: $50,000

 Festiv-ALL - For an expansion of the annual programming; investing in cultural activities and
 arts.
 Amount Recommended: $150,000

 Fund for the Arts - Provide marketing support for the 2022 Wine and Jazz Music Festival;
 Replace revenue lost in 2020 and 2021 by the cancellation of the Wine and Jazz Music Festival.
 Amount Recommended: $112,000




 January 26, 2022
Mayor Goodwin asked that Members to let the Administration know which applicants
they would like to have at the next meeting in order to ask further questions. The Mayor
added that the applications presented fit the immediate needs of the community. Other
allocation sources with be discussed during future meetings.

Councilmember Cook confirmed that it would be best to give the applicants 4-5 days of
notice to be able to appear at the next meeting.

Councilmember Robison added that he would like to see a proposed budget of the
presented 34 projects if funded in full. He confirmed with Mayor Goodwin that
discussions about additional projects are planned for the February 16 meeting.
Councilmember Robinson asked for a map of the locations of all of the applicants that
are being considered.




Councilmember Ceperley motioned to adjourn the meeting.
Meeting adjourned.



 January 26, 2022