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Levelland council reviews remaining $896,000 in ARPA funds, seeks priorities for generators, zoning and broadband
Summary
City staff told the council Levelland received about $3.3 million in ARPA funds and has roughly $896,000 available; councilors discussed using the remainder for generators, security upgrades, a zoning rewrite, compensation planning, studies and broadband projects and asked staff to return with an allocation plan.
City staff told the Levelland City Council on Nov. 1 that the city originally received approximately $3,300,000 in federal ARPA funds and has about $896,000 remaining to allocate. The presentation framed the remaining balance as time-sensitive: staff said the city must either expend or formally allocate the funds by year-end to comply with program guidance.
The City Manager summarized candidate uses for the balance and asked the council for direction. Staff listed high-cost items including standby generators, building security upgrades, a comprehensive zoning ordinance rewrite and a compensation plan for city employees; lower-cost options included studies (a swimming-pool feasibility study and an animal-shelter services study), broadband and communication-tower support, and several budgeted capital items that could be shifted to ARPA. "We have approximately $896,000 in that fund at this time," staff said, noting some projects discussed during the recent budget and some that arose from storm-related needs.
Council members asked about cost ranges for specific items and practical constraints such as power capacity for large generators and potential Federal reporting requirements. One councilor raised a communications-tower proposal as a long-running need; staff cautioned that siting and aviation/flight-plan constraints could complicate that option. Staff also recommended using categorical allocations (for example, a "park improvements" bucket) rather than listing single projects with exact dollar amounts to avoid losing unspent funds if estimates come in lower than budgeted.
The discussion emphasized balancing immediate disaster-related needs and longer-term investments. Staff said ARPA funds could also be used to support previously budgeted items where insurance or other sources fell short and recommended returning to council with a proposed resolution showing specific categories and items for allocation before the Dec. 16 meeting. The council did not adopt a resolution at the Nov. 1 meeting but asked staff to prepare recommended allocations and additional cost estimates for review in December or January.
The next procedural step is for staff to draft an allocation/resolution and return to the council with cost estimates and proposed categories; any final commitments will be subject to council approval and federal program rules.
