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Winchester town officials earlier this week approved more than $200,000 in ARPA funds for local organizations and another $1.3 million for the high school gym floor replacement project.
“We need to release these funds,” Chair Michelle Prior said before the discussion began on Sept. 23.
The Select Board had set aside $300,000 of ARPA funding specifically for Community Needs grants.
The American Rescue Plan Act, or ARPA, is federal funding aimed at helping communities recover from the economic blow dealt by COVID-19. Local nonprofits were invited to apply for funding.
The list of organizations to receive grants are as follows:
• Griffin Museum of Photography: $60,000 to buy windows
• WinCam: $49,575 for upgrades in the High School auditorium
• Arts Winchester: $33,600 for the downtown Culture Zone Sculpture Park
• En Ka Society: $30,334 for repairs to the society’s front steps
• Winchester ABC: $14,2000 for air conditioning
• Conservation Commission’s Permanent Street Committee: $9,900 for canopy analysis
• Historical Society: $7,251 for lighting at Sanborn House
• Network for Social Justice: $4,075
• Winchester Farmers Market’s Anna’s Fund: up to $4,000 for food vouchers at the Farmers Market
• Winchester Farmers Market: $1,650 for a solar electric fence
• Meals on Wheels: $2,500 for 100 meals for four weeks and training volunteers.
Meals on Wheels original request of $3,000 was downgraded because $500 was intended for marketing and publicity, which the Select Board was not comfortable with.
Turned down, put on hold
A request from the Winchester Community Music School for $20,000 was rejected on the grounds it charges tuition for services, even though it is a non-profit organization.
Select Board member Michael Bettencourt argued the school is “a great asset to the community.”
However, Prior disagreed about the ARPA funds for the school.
“There are no other tuition-based applicants,” she said. “None charge for access.”
Bettencourt pointed out the Wright-Locke Farm charges for its services, but Prior countered they bring goods to the Farmers Market for anyone to buy.
A $50,000 request from Wright-Locke for a van was put on hold until it is determined whether it is for passengers or cargo.
A request for various funds from Friends of Winchester Recreation was also put on hold on the grounds many of their proposed projects could and should be undertaken by the Department of Public Works.
Bettencourt said the requests were part of a “plan to solve problems we’ve neglected,” but acknowledged “everything in their application is something the DPW could do and has funds for,” referring to repaving parking areas and repairs to fencing or railings.
“If we determine regrading a parking lot should be regarded as something we should direct to the DPW to do, we should not give money to an outside entity,” Select Board member Anthea Brady said.
Comptroller Stacie Ward and DPW Director Bob LaBossiere were brought into the discussion.
“I don’t want to give a third party money for things that should be taken on by the town,” Ward said. “[We should] write a check to our own vendors and do an APRP project within that.”
“Let’s do it through the town and control the process,” Prior agreed. “We should come up with a plan for that to knock out all these things.”
LaBossiere said his department could take care of the projects and added he would contact the Friends and the Recreation Department’s Director Nick Cacciolfi.
Town Manager Beth Rudolph said purchase of a play apparatus might fall outside of town funding because existing funds are designated for repair or replacement in-kind.
Flawed process?
Member Bill McGonigle seemed upset by the process, which could give some applicants an unfair advantage over others due to being absent from the meeting.
“I’m hesitant to give certain applicants the ability to amend their application while others are not because they’re not here,” he said.
Despite further disagreement between McGonigle and Bettencourt regarding the amendment of applications, Prior ended the discussion.
“Not everyone was able to amend after the fact,” Prior said.
The Select Board tabled the requests for further discussion at another meeting.
NOTE: This article has been updated and corrected to better reflect discussion at the Select Board.
