Skating rink rehab and ergonomic chairs: How will Woonsocket council spend the ARPA money?

Providence Journal - 11/15/2021

The Woonsocket City Council is proposing to spend hundreds of thousands of dollars of American Rescue Plan Act funding on a skating rink with synthetic ice, ornamental streetlights, and ergonomic chairs for the council chambers.

That plan is drawing outrage in a city with one of the highest poverty rates in Rhode Island, where residents had indicated that their biggest priority was affordable housing.

The City Council will vote on the proposal tonight at 7 o'clock. Woonsocket is slated to receive a total of $36.4 million in ARPA funds, and the vote Monday night will determine how the first $14.1 million is allocated.

The ordinance proposed by City Council President Daniel M. Gendron at the request of the city's administration also includes less controversial items like repaving streets and repairing sidewalks, for an estimated total of $3.5 million.

The city surveyed residents earlier this year to find out how they thought the millions should be spent. The results showed that the largest share of residents pointed to assistance for people "facing housing insecurities that were exacerbated by the COVID-19 crisis" as a top priority, with road improvements and "green" infrastructure projects coming in second.

Mental health services and domestic violence prevention were a close third.

But the proposed plans for the first $14.1 million don't include a single dollar for housing or social services.

Where are COVID-19 rescue funds going?: The place with pervasive, 'urgent' need: Housing

Instead, the council is budgeting an estimated $250,000 for an ice skating rink with synthetic ice (meaning that it's made of plastic) and $70,000 for ornamental streetlight replacement.

Ergonomic desk seats for the council chamber and refurbishment of the second-floor conference room in City Hall are estimated at $53,000.

Also on the agenda: Hiring an ARPA administrator at $86,400 and spending $1,271 for a subscription to SurveyMonkey, an online polling tool.

The city intends to spent $1,350,000 on "blight removal," which includes tearing down a derelict former mill on River Street. The ordinance doesn't specify how the other funds for blight removal marked as "general" would be spent.

Additional proposed expenses include $541,000 to repaint and remove lead from fire hydrants, $665,183 for LED streetlights, $250,000 for a "retrofit" of the animal shelter, $90,000 for backup generators, $77,000 for electronic street signage, and $25,000 for counterfeit bill detectors and other IT equipment for the city treasurer.

The city proposes paying bonuses of $750 and $1,000 to 670 eligible employees who have been deemed essential workers during the pandemic, for a combined total of $134,553. Additionally, $4 million is budgeted for water meter replacement, and $3 million is going toward the dismantling of the city's old water treatment plant.

The proposal began drawing attention over the weekend after Alex Kithes, a former Woonsocket City Council member who is now running for a seat in the state legislature, posted screenshots to Twitter.

"I'm [expletive] disgusted," Kithes wrote.

"Woonsocket is in a opioid crisis, housing crisis, food access crisis, etc. but we're spending money on repainting fire hydrants?" youth activist Zainabou Thiam chimed in. "We're sitting on money that can take hundreds out of poverty, but we're repainting fire hydrants."

Paul Luba, who was selected earlier this year as Woonsocket's ARPA administrator, told The Providence Journal that the plan for the first installment of the funds was developed after meetings with city department heads and a work session with the city council.

"It's still early," he said. "We're still pretty young in the game in terms of determining projects and priorities. These were the initial ones that were suggested."

This story will be updated.