Council denies transfer of ARPA interest for website update after heated debate over priorities

The Evansville Common Council on Feb. 24 rejected an amended ordinance (F2025-01) that would have moved ARPA interest earnings to the general fund to pay for a redesign of the city’s website and related digital services.

Council members voted 4 to 5, with Councilmen Ben Trotman, Zach Hieronymus, Mary Allen and Paul Green voting yes and Councilwomen Missy Mosby, Tanisha Carruthers, Kayla Lindsay, Jim Brinkmeyer and Courtney Johnson voting no. The ordinance was declared denied.

Council members and residents debated whether earnings on the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds should be used for a website overhaul or redirected to direct relief and infrastructure repairs. Councilwoman Missy Mosby objected that many constituents are struggling with utility bills and battered roads and argued the city should prioritize weatherization, food assistance and street repairs over a website update. “I really oppose spending these funds on this,” Mosby said during the meeting.

Robert Gunter of the controller’s office told the council the ARPA program delivered roughly $64.5 million to the city in 2021 and that ARPA money held in a dedicated account has earned interest since then. He said the city has earned “a little over $4,000,000 total since 2021,” and that nearly $2,000,000 of interest earnings had already been approved for spending. Gunter said the city currently holds about $21,000,000 in the ARPA account, of which approximately $17.5 million is already committed; the remaining balance is interest the city is seeking to appropriate.

Council members and the public questioned the proposed amount and the timing. At the public podium, Anne Yates and Christopher North asked why ARPA funds continue to sit in the account and whether it is ethical to use interest earnings for a website. Both speakers said the city should focus on pandemic-related relief and energy-saving programs. The transcript shows inconsistent references to the requested sum: when the controller presented the amendment he said the city sought permission “to move $475,000 from the ARPA interest to the general fund to be spent on new city app with, update to the city's web page.” Later in that same discussion several council members and public commenters referred repeatedly to $175,000 as the proposed web redesign amount. The council vote proceeded with those conflicting figures on the record.

Joe Atkinson, communications director in the mayor’s office, said the administration is proposing a broad redesign to make city services easier to find and the site more mobile-friendly. Atkinson described changes such as surfacing adoptable animals for the animal-control page, making payment portals easier to reach and improving the site’s organization and appearance to better represent the city to potential residents and businesses.

Mayor (title on the record) defended use of the interest earnings as a flexible funding source distinct from ARPA principal, saying the administration is trying to be “intentional and thoughtful” with the interest and noting that a federal grant writer funded through interest earnings recently secured a $15 million federal grant tied to the city’s river vision work. The mayor stated that about $1,000,000 had been identified for 2025 spending, including allocations for blight removal and demolition.

Several council members said they supported updating the website but not at the expense of pressing needs. Councilwoman Kayla Lindsay expressed concern about timing given potential cuts at the state and federal levels, while Councilwoman Tanisha Carruthers said she would vote no. Councilman Jim Brinkmeyer said he shared concerns about timing and agreed the web site needed work but voted no.

The controller clarified there is until 2026 to spend the ARPA principal and that interest would continue to accrue in the dedicated account; he also said that the city can move a portion of the balance into the general fund in a later budget amendment if council chooses to do so.

With the ordinance denied, no transfer of ARPA interest to the general fund for the website redesign was authorized at this meeting.

Votes at a glance: Ordinance F2025-01 amended (transfer/appropriation from ARPA interest to general fund for website redesign) Motion: Adopt Ordinance F2025-01 amended (transfer and re-appropriation of funds) Result: Denied Roll call: Trotman — Aye; Mosby — No; Hieronymus — Aye; Carruthers — No; Kayla Lindsay — No; Brinkmeyer — No; Allen — Aye; Johnson — No; Green — Aye.

Context and next steps: The administration said the interest earnings are unrestricted and have financed earlier essential services and grant-writing capacity; council members asked for additional information about amounts, vendor bidding, and timing. Council members and staff discussed holding the request for several months to reassess community needs and to await more clarity about state and federal funding changes.