The City of Lakeland will set aside $17,800,000 of the $22,700,000 in funding, granted to the city via federal funding through the American Rescue Plan Act.
What will 80% of the money go towards, you ask? An overdue infrastructure project, relating to the city’s sewage and wastewater.
According to the city’s director of water utilities, a 2.7-mile long sewer line on the southwest side of town (from Lake Hunter to Beacon Hill), is in desperate need of attention + replacement. This pipeline alone will cost $20 million with a 3-year end date and will utilize the $2,200,000 that the city originally budgeted.
With the biggest chunk of the change going towards that line, the rest will be divvied up according to the following amounts:
- $1,000,000 for affordable housing
- $500,000 to the Chamber of Commerce for BIPOC, women, and veteran small businesses, plus an additional $500,000 for any other measures needed as it relates to these businesses.
- $640,000 towards the improvement of the city’s walkability
- $250,000 for the arts + nonprofits
- $100,000 for neighborhood programming or community involvement in neighborhoods without an HOA
- $60,000 for software for emergency operations management
This leaves the city with roughly $1,850,000, which must have a designated purpose by 2024.