Troy’s ARPA plan includes big (West Main) and small (parks, loans, equipment)

TROY — The city of Troy plans to spent most of its nearly $2.8 million in American Rescue Plan Act funding this year.

Although the city has an outline for using the ARPA money, it does not have a timeline because many of the items depend on other initiatives, partners and other factors, said Patrick Titterington, city service and safety director.

“We expect to spend all of our allocation with no leftover money,” he said, adding that the money should at least be encumbered by year’s end.

In 2022, the city spent $570,093 of the allocation, including nearly $169,000 for police and fire equipment and gear such as police gas masks and fire helmets, shields and rescue tools.

Other spending went to a countywide workforce development program and marketing support for the Troy Development Council workforce business video series ($45,000 each). Other expenses were recreation, including park signage ($45,000), ballfields ($25,000), Treasure Island Gazebo and Learning Area ($30,000), Duke Park Reserve ($30,000) and Miami Shores Golf Course equipment shed and concrete work ($115,000 combined).

Smaller projects were $10,000 for a Public Square Wifi project and $17,000 for Hobart Arena server upgrade.

This year, the city list includes $2,193,860 in ARPA project spending.

“Challenges would be based on whether initiatives are ready for our contributions, such as the infrastructure and utility support at the industrial park, as well as the childcare component,” Titterington said.

The industrial park is located on Experiment Farm Road near Interstate 75. Planned work for 2023 includes infrastructure, sewer and stormwater work at $340,000. The city has set aside another $100,000 for a countywide effort to address childcare needs.

Other higher cost projects on the 2023 list are the continuing West Main Street reconstruction that started in summer 2022 ($1.25 million), residential exterior loans ($150,000), downtown façade program ($150,000) and east downtown revitalization ($150,000).

Funds again are set aside for police and fire capital and equipment ($56,700) and Duke Park maintenance facility ($41,460).

The COVID-19 pandemic “caused all manners of economic havoc on our businesses and made it extremely difficult to attract workers and businesses to move into or expand within Troy,” Titterington said.

During that time, however, outdoor recreational facilities were “very well used” and safety forces used “a lot of equipment and gear,” he said.

“We are concentrating on providing equipment and capital for our safety forces and facilities, improving our readiness as industrial projects come our way and reinvesting in the recreational amenities that were popular during the pandemic,” Titterington said.

Contact this contributing writer at nancykburr@aol.com

Editor’s Note: This story is part of a Dayton Daily News series tracking how dozens of our area’s largest governments are spending hundreds of millions of dollars combined from the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021. Visit our “Billions in COVID aid: Where it’s going” special section on our website to see summaries from other communities.

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