Mississippi County Awards $41,250 to Town of Etowah through the Infrastructure Grant Program
(left to right): Etowah Mayor Charles “Bo” McCollum and Mississippi County Judge John Alan Nelson
On June 6, 2023, the Government of Mississippi County, Arkansas, announced it has awarded $41,250 to the Town of Etowah, Arkansas, through the Mississippi County Infrastructure Grant Program. The funding will be used on the town's Wastewater Treatment Facility Standby Generator Replacement Project, which provides sanitary sewer service to 150 residential customers and seven commercial customers. The standby generator provides backup power to the discharge pump station which allows the treatment facility to operate during a power outage. Currently, the town's standby generator is non-operational and non-repairable. The replacement of the generator will ensure continued operations of the wastewater treatment facility during a power outage and ensure compliance with all Arkansas Department of Environmental Quality (ADEQ) regulations.
"Today's award is yet another example of how the County and the various cities and towns of Mississippi County work together to improve the quality of life for its citizens,” County Judge John Alan Nelson said. “We are extremely proud to be able to partner with and invest in the Town of Etowah for this much-needed infrastructure improvement.”
“The Town of Etowah is so grateful to the Mississippi County Quorum Court and Judge Nelson for the grant for the generator for our wastewater treatment facility,” Etowah Mayor Charles McCollum said. “It is great to work together to make life in Mississippi County better for our citizens.”
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, 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 https://www.mississippicountyar.org/
