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Council adds two $50,000 ARPA items for missions after public comment on Flint food insecurity; reconsideration of St. Mark's ARPA allocation fails
Summary
The council added two last-minute resolutions to direct $50,000 in ARPA funds each to the Franklin Avenue Mission and the Eastside Compassionate Mission Center; public commenters including mission directors urged support. A subsequent motion to reconsider a prior ARPA reallocation for St. Mark's failed.
Early in the March 10 meeting, the Flint City Council added two agenda add-ons asking for $50,000 in American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds for the Franklin Avenue Mission and $50,000 for the Eastside Compassionate Mission Center. The chair announced the two add-ons at the meeting start; council then approved a separate roll-call to place Metro Housing’s presentation on the agenda.
Public comments: multiple speakers urged the council to prioritize food-access funding. Michelle Young, who identified herself as a neighborhood resident, called Flint a food desert and urged council members to use ARPA funds to support churches and missions that provide food. "Please provide this church with $50,000 to problem-solve the food desert that we have," she said. Jeff Rolfe, director of the Flint East Side Mission, described his organization's 30-year history of feeding neighbors, operating a food pantry, clothing resources, showers and assistance obtaining identification; Rolfe said the mission serves "upwards of 1,700 to 1,800 people a month" for hot lunches and prepares 100–110 food baskets per week.
Council action and follow-up: council members approved placing Metro Housing's presentation on the agenda by roll-call vote 7–0 earlier in the meeting, and the consent agenda later passed 7–0. Separately, council took a motion to reconsider a previous resolution to reallocate ARPA funds for St. Mark's (resolution 240,548) but the motion to reconsider failed on a roll-call vote reported as 4 yes, 3 no. The meeting record shows the council considered ARPA reallocations as part of the evening’s business and heard multiple public pleas for support of food and shelter providers.
Why it matters: local missions and food pantries serve thousands of Flint residents and rely heavily on donations and small grants; council action adding ARPA items for missions responds to public testimony that emphasized increasing food costs and rising demand.
