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

On June 5, 2023, the Government of Mississippi County, Arkansas, announced that it has awarded $200,000 to the City of Keiser, Arkansas, through their Mississippi County Infrastructure Grant Program. The funding is to be used on Keiser’s Highway 181 Lift Station Rehabilitation project, which includes the rehabilitation of an existing wastewater lift station, located in the southern part of the city. Failing due to age, the wastewater collection system experiences large fluctuations in flow during rainfall events, which overloads the existing sewer lift stations.

“We are very excited to be able to help improve the quality of life for the citizens of Keiser as we partner and invest in much-needed infrastructure improvements there,” County Judge John Alan Nelson said.

“We appreciate all the work Mississippi County – and Judge Nelson – are doing for us,” Keiser Mayor Rick Creecy said. “This has been a problem for a long time. The system is 50 years old, and this lift station is underground, so when it rains, it’s the last lift station before it goes to the lagoon, and it shuts down the whole system. We have other issues too, but we are taking care of them one at a time.”

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 $7,895,980.00 and has designated $2,000,000 to fund the “Mississippi County Infrastructure Grant Program.”

The Mississippi County Infrastructure Grant Program will fund innovative, and effective infrastructure projects designed to address the infrastructure needs of the County. 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 which may include equipment for such purpose, 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 https://www.mississippicountyar.org/.

(left to right): Justice Tobye McClanahan, County Judge John Alan Nelson, Mayor Rick Creecy, Treasurer Peggy Meatte and Justice Molly Jackson