The Ann Arbor City Council has agreed to reallocate federal funding that has been earmarked for an Unarmed Response Program to other projects, including repairs to the Barton Dam.
The federal funding is coming from the American Rescue Plan. One of the original recommendations for the funding was an Unarmed Response Program that would address mental health situations instead of the police. But City Administrator Milton Dohoney Jr. says that program will not be ready before the funding expires.
“ARPA funding must be decided and committed by December 31st. And that means a lot more than simply a verbal declaration of what we intend to do with the money.”
Of the $3.5 million that was originally earmarked for the response program, $2 million is now going to the Barton Dam Embankment Project. Dohoney says it too is an urgent infrastructure need for Ann Arbor. It has been assessed by federal authorities of being in poor condition and at risk of failure.
He says they are still committed to developing an Unarmed Response Program, but the funding will have to come from another source.
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