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Grant County Commissioners approve $1.285 million in ARPA MOUs for trails, blight removal and animal services
Summary
The Grant County Board of Commissioners approved five ARPA memorandums of understanding covering trail connections, downtown blight removal, animal shelter renovation and prepaid animal-control services, and a downtown demolition grant for Jonesboro.
Grant County commissioners voted unanimously to approve five memorandums of understanding funded with American Rescue Plan Act dollars, authorizing county contributions to local projects aimed at improving trails, addressing blight and funding animal-control services.
At the meeting, ARPA coordinator Connor Sullivan summarized the five agreements and their compliance timelines tied to U.S. Treasury guidance, stressing that the county’s contributions are capped and that subrecipients must meet federal reporting requirements. "We put in here that either Jonesboro or Marion need to spend it by December 2025," Sullivan said, noting the county included language to limit its procurement and liability exposure.
The approved MOUs and county contributions are:
- Cardinal Greenways: $100,000 for last-mile trail connections and path improvements; county funds are capped at $100,000. "This is their project; your liability is cut off at the dollar amount set forth," Sullivan said.
- City of Marion (downtown blight initiative): $500,000 to support removal and related downtown improvements; commissioners will have input on which structures or areas are prioritized.
- City of Marion (animal-control facility renovation): $250,000 toward renovations of the animal-control structure.
- City of Marion (animal-control services for unincorporated areas): $360,000 prepaid to support operational costs for 2–3 years in exchange for the city providing animal-control services to unincorporated Grant County for up to 10 years.
- Jonesboro (demolition): $75,000 for demolition of the building at 1201 S. Water St. (the former JC Knight School), capped at the stated amount.
Each motion to enter the MOUs was made, seconded and approved by voice vote. Commissioner Wright moved the Cardinal Greenways MOU; motions concerning the Marion agreements and Jonesboro demolition likewise passed without recorded dissent.
Sullivan said the county preferred ARPA dollars be used first on projects that have other funding sources, so the county’s reporting obligations can end sooner. He also recommended approving the MOUs individually so each entity’s required signature body (for example, a city council or board of public works) can be identified and recorded for Treasury compliance.
The approvals allow the named projects to proceed to their next steps with county funding in place. The MOUs include reporting and compliance language to keep the county and its subrecipients aligned with federal ARPA rules.
