Pembroke Park shifts ARPA money, amends budget and restores 20th Street pump station to project

Mayor Mohammed and the Town Commission on April 20 approved changes to the town's ARPA allocation and a related budget amendment intended to ensure a planned pump station on Southwest 20th Street is completed as originally permitted.

The commission voted to move $100,000 from a community-center line into the contribution for the 20th Street pump station, increasing the ARPA allocation for that item to $600,000 and reducing a separate line for the community center. The commission then approved Resolution 2025-014, the town's fiscal-year budget amendment as amended to reflect the ARPA change; staff said the revenue line that had read $1,026,213 will now read $926,213 and the ARPA line will read $600,000.

The change followed a sustained discussion among commissioners and public works staff about drainage needs on the town's east side and the risk of federal clawbacks if allocated ARPA funds are not committed and spent. "The point is get the dang money out the door as soon as humanly possible before forces out of our control," the town manager said during the debate. Commissioner Jacobs repeatedly urged prioritizing stormwater work and argued the town should not draw down enterprise reserves when federal ARPA funds can be used.

Deputy Director of Public Services Manny Larzewald told the commission the pump station and other public-works equipment are critical to preventing sewer spills and repeated emergency costs. He described how an on-site jetter/vac truck would allow the town to schedule regular drainage maintenance and respond faster to sewer breaks; he estimated renting such services can cost about $2,000 per incident. "That's one of the vital tools that the town would use simply for drainage maintenance," Larzewald said.

As part of the package, the commission also voted to amend its earlier construction award for the Southwest 20th Street stormwater improvement project to restore the original scope of work. Staff confirmed the amendment returns the project to the bid package and design that were originally permitted, including the lift station and associated gravity drainage components, so the phase-1 work is no longer missing items that had been cut earlier.

Town staff and outside consultants told commissioners they will coordinate with Broward County and other grant administrators to verify schedule and funding requirements so the work remains eligible for previously awarded gas-tax or MPO funds. Planning staff said phase 2 of the overall 20th Street project remains necessary to achieve the full level of service intended by the permit and that additional grant work is under way to secure funds for that phase.

Votes at a glance - ARPA allocation amendment (7.2): Adopted as amended; roll call affirmative from Mayor Mohammed, Vice Mayor Morissette, Commissioner Jacobs, Commissioner Hodgkins and Acting Clerk Commissioner Kashem. - Resolution 2025-014, budget amendment (6.1): Approved as amended; roll call affirmative. - Amendment to previously awarded construction agreement for Southwest 20th Street stormwater project (7.1): Motion to amend prior commission action approved; roll call affirmative.

Clarifying details and context - Amount reallocated: $100,000 moved from a community center line to the 20th Street pump-station contribution, raising that contribution to $600,000. - Budget worksheet change: a revenue total shown on the amended page moves from $1,026,213 to $926,213; the ARPA line increases from $500,000 to $600,000. - Staff noted ARPA use deadlines include an April 30 milestone and an extended deadline of April 30, 2026 for some amendments; the manager said the town has approximately two-and-a-half years since receipt of funds and has spent about $500,000 to date from ARPA proceeds. - Project scope: Phase 1 (as amended) will include the lift station and gravity system components permitted in the original RFP; phase 2 remains necessary to achieve full design level-of-service and staff are seeking additional grants (including DOT/MPO funding) to cover that work.

Speakers (excerpt) - Mayor Mohammed, Mayor (Town of Pembroke Park) - Commissioner Jacobs, Commissioner (Town of Pembroke Park) - Vice Mayor Morissette, Vice Mayor (Town of Pembroke Park) - Commissioner Hodgkins, Commissioner (Town of Pembroke Park) - Acting Clerk Commissioner Kashem, Acting Clerk/Commissioner (Town of Pembroke Park) - Town Manager (title used in meeting) - Manny Larzewald, Deputy Director of Public Services (town staff) - Dee Harper (county liaison mentioned by staff) - Todd Larson, consultant (Craig A. Smith and Associates)

Actions - kind:budget_amendment; identifiers:{resolution_number:"2025-014"}; motion:"Approve Resolution 2025-014 as amended to reflect ARPA allocation changes and updated Exhibit A"; mover:"not specified"; second:"not specified"; vote_record:[{"member":"Mayor Mohammed","vote":"yes"},{"member":"Vice Mayor Morissette","vote":"yes"},{"member":"Commissioner Jacobs","vote":"yes"},{"member":"Commissioner Hodgkins","vote":"yes"},{"member":"Acting Clerk Commissioner Kashem","vote":"yes"}]; tally:{yes:5,no:0,abstain:0}; outcome:"approved"; notes:"Amendment updates ARPA line to $600,000 and decreases another revenue line to $926,213." - kind:other; identifiers:{project_slug:"southwest-20th-stormwater"}; motion:"Amend prior commission action to restore original scope for Southwest 20th Street stormwater improvement project including lift station"; mover:"not specified"; second:"not specified"; vote_record:[{"member":"Mayor Mohammed","vote":"yes"},{"member":"Vice Mayor Morissette","vote":"yes"},{"member":"Commissioner Jacobs","vote":"yes"},{"member":"Commissioner Hodgkins","vote":"yes"},{"member":"Acting Clerk Commissioner Kashem","vote":"yes"}]; tally:{yes:5,no:0,abstain:0}; outcome:"approved"; notes:"Scope restored to original RFP/design as permitted; staff to coordinate with county/MPO for timings and reimbursements."

Authorities - {"type":"resolution","name":"Resolution 2025-014 (budget amendment)","referenced_by":["budget_amendment"]}

Proper names [{"name":"Town of Pembroke Park","type":"agency"},{"name":"Blue Line Solutions","type":"business"},{"name":"Hallandale Beach","type":"location"},{"name":"Florida Department of Transportation","type":"agency"},{"name":"Broward County Clerk's Office","type":"agency"},{"name":"Craig A. Smith and Associates","type":"organization"},{"name":"Dee Harper","type":"person"},{"name":"Mike Flores","type":"person"},{"name":"Home Depot","type":"business"},{"name":"Hazard Mitigation Grant Program","type":"program"},{"name":"Keith and Associates","type":"organization"}]

clarifying_details [{"category":"arpa_reallocation","detail":"$100,000 moved from community center line to 20th Street pump-station contribution","value":100000,"units":"USD","approximate":false,"source_speaker":"Town Manager"},{"category":"budget_revenue_total","detail":"Revenue total on amended sheet reduced from $1,026,213 to $926,213","value":926213,"units":"USD","approximate":false,"source_speaker":"Town Clerk/Manager"},{"category":"arpa_allocation","detail":"ARPA line updated to $600,000","value":600000,"units":"USD","approximate":false,"source_speaker":"Town Clerk/Manager"},{"category":"project_scope","detail":"Phase 1 restored to include lift station and gravity drainage; phase 2 remains needed to deliver full level-of-service","source_speaker":"Manny Larzewald"}]

provenance:{"transcript_segments":[{"block_id":"b815.135","local_start":0,"local_end":50,"evidence_excerpt":"6.1 consideration and approval for resolution regarding the budget amendment to the fiscal year 2020...","reason_code":"topicintro"},{"block_id":"b6202.15","local_start":0,"local_end":40,"evidence_excerpt":"Commissioner Jacobs? Yes. Motion carries.","reason_code":"topicfinish"}]}