Madison County approves $23 million in funding for American Rescue Plan Act projects
Madison County officials approved more than $23 million in American Rescue Plan Act spending for sewer, drinking water, stormwater projects and more.
The County Board passed 25 resolutions Wednesday night, Sept. 21, 2022, including 11 stormwater projects totaling more than $8 million.
Chairman Kurt Prenzler said the majority of the funding would go toward projects that will leave the biggest impact — stormwater and sanitary sewers.
“Often times when government gets money it goes towards streets and roads — the thing that people see,” Prenzler said. “What the board did was what ARPA intended. Now, the county and its local partners can make long-term investments on the ‘invisible’ infrastructure projects.’”
County Board member Chris Guy of Maryville and chair of the Finance Committee said that board members worked hard and came together for the needs of the county and communities, which isn’t always an easy thing to do.
“We maximized the benefits of these dollars for the greatest number of people,” Guy said.
Madison County received $51 million in ARPA funding from the U.S. Department of Treasury. In 2021, it spent $25.5 million on various projects including cyber security, county infrastructure, pandemic response, sanitary sewer and stormwater.
Prenzler said in 2021 the county designated $7.8 million for Long Lake stormwater and $8 million in sewer funding for the Bethalto interceptor. He said on Wednesday night the largest amount approved for a stormwater project was $2.6 million.
“Wood River Drainage and Levee District will use it to rehabilitee the Bethalto interceptor closure gates and to replace the Rand Avenue pump station in Hartford,” he said.
In April, the Federal Emergency Management Agency issued the final letter of accreditation for the Metro East levee system’s 100-year-flood stage. Work continues on the 500-year-level as well as improvements to prevent interior (stormwater) flooding in the American bottom
“The accreditation was a major accomplishment,” Prenzler said. “We are pleased to be able to continue with projects that help the levee system and prevent stormwater flooding.”
Officials also approved $3.37 million in funding for a Starcom radio communications system, which enhances emergency communications between law enforcement and fire departments/districts throughout the county.
The county will also provide $1.5 million in funding to community fire districts for revenue replacement. Fire districts will receive up to $60,000 in costs submitted to the county under eligible ARPA revenue replacement for expenditures from March 3, 2021 to Dec. 21, 2024.
County Board member Erica Conway-Harriss of Glen Carbon said she is confident in the projects the board picked as they followed the ARPA guidelines.
“We used the funding as it was intended and chose smart projects to better protect our communities from disasters and invest in our first responders,” Conway-Harriss said.
| Category | 2022 Project | Cost |
| Facilities | Wood River Facility study | $250,000 |
| Facilities | Generators for Administration Building/Courthouse | $500,000 |
| Stormwater | Wood River Drainage and Levee District | $2.6 million |
| Stormwater | America’s Central Port | $350,000 |
| Stormwater | Collinsville Township | $250,000 |
| Stormwater | Village of Maryville | $718,250 |
| Stormwater | Jarvis Township | $250,000 |
| Stormwater | City of Troy | $235,000 |
| Stormwater | Village of Worden | $475,000 |
| Stormwater | Village of Glen Carbon | $212,500 |
| Stormwater | Village of Godfrey | $2.06 million |
| Stormwater | City of Edwardsville | $823,000 |
| Stormwater | Village of Williamson | $100,000 |
| Sewer | Village of Maryville | $1.36 million |
| Drinking Water | Village of Glen Carbon | $662,500 |
| Drinking Water | Village of Maryville | $840,650 |
| Revenue Replacement | Community Fire Districts | $1.5 million |
| Revenue Replacement | County Highway– Fuel tank replacement | $250,000 |
| Revenue Replacement | Rural economic broadband | $2 million |
| Revenue Replacement | County Clerk –record digitization | $500,000 |
| Revenue Replacement | Circuit Clerk –record digitization | $500,000 |
| Public Health | Starcom Radio system | $3.73 million |
| Medical | Madison County group health plan | $1 million |
| Public Sector Workforce | Circuit Court (Judiciary) backlog | $400,000 |
| Aid to Tourism | Great Rivers & Route sports tourism | $750,000 |
