Mississippi County Awards $200,000 to City of Gosnell through Infrastructure Grant Program

pictured, from left: Justice Michael White, Justice Neil Burge, Gosnell Mayor Jason Taylor and Mississippi County Judge John Alan Nelson

On June 21, 2023, the Government of Mississippi County, Arkansas, announced it has awarded $200,000 to the City of Gosnell, Arkansas, through its Mississippi County Infrastructure Grant Program. With the growth experienced by the city due to the construction of the Diamond Pointe Subdivision, the funding will be used on various infrastructure projects that will assist in the current and future growth of the city, including the creation of new streets and/or the repair of some existing streets.

“Growth comes with a price tag, and we are proud to be able to offset some of that cost by assisting the City of Gosnell in upgrading their infrastructure to accommodate the new homes and population growth,” said. County Judge John Alan Nelson.

“I want to thank the County for blessing our city with this grant to help us with this new subdivision. It is a very exciting time for our city. It has been years since we have seen this type of growth,” said Mayor Jason Taylor.

On March 11, 2021, the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) was signed into law. Among many other provisions, ARPA provides direct funding to each county in the United States through what is called the Coronavirus Local Fiscal Relief Fund (CLFRF). Mississippi County, Arkansas received $7,895,980 and has designated $2 million to fund the “Mississippi County Infrastructure Grant Program.”

The Mississippi County Infrastructure Grant Program will fund innovative, effective infrastructure projects designed to address the County's infrastructure needs. Each grant will provide up to $200,000 for cities/towns within Mississippi County and can only be used for infrastructure projects pursuant to Arkansas Constitution, Article 12, Section 5 as incorporated into Article 12 by Amendment 97. These grants will fund up to 75% of project costs, with 25% cost matched by the applicant municipality.

Only Mississippi County towns/cities were eligible for the grant and the funding allocated by Mississippi County for this grant program may be used to assist with Infrastructure project planning or implementation with a priority for projects that address areas of greatest need and serve those most at-risk. The following are types of projects eligible under this program: land acquisition, site preparation, rail spur construction, water service, wastewater treatment, employee training and equipment, environmental mitigation and training, and research facilities and the necessary equipment.

An informative workshop was held on Friday, April 7 where the cities were invited to learn about the grant and ask questions. Applications were received from eight cities and were “scored” by iParametrics, the county’s ARPA consultant based on application metrics. 

For more information, visit the County website at http://www.mississippicounty.ar.org/.