VALDOSTA – Valdosta City Council approved the city’s preliminary proposals for $16.2 million in American Rescue Plan Act projects and allocation amounts, though city leaders said the current budget for each project is not “set in stone.”

The Coronavirus State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds, a part of the American Rescue Plan, delivered $350 billion to state, local and tribal governments across the country to support their response to and recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic.

Valdosta’s total allocation is $16,254,682 with half of that allocation being received in June 2021. The City of Valdosta has already spent $3,214,584.73 in 2021 as premium/retainage pay to some hourly paid employees.

Allocation for each project was discussed during the last day of the City Council’s Strategic Summit back in March.

Griffin Avenue Housing Project: $3,300,000.

City of Valdosta (Facilities, Technology, etc.):  1,300,000.

AARPA Project Manager: $250,000.

Land Bank Funding (four years for executive director): $120,000.

Land Bank Authority Seed Funding: $250,000.

Purchase of Properties on South Patterson & Surrounding Parcels: $1,300,000.

Small Business Development: $1,000,000.

Valdosta On-Demand: $500,000.

Neighborhood Rehabs – Housing Rehab (paint, weatherization, etc.): $300,000

Mildred Hunter Center (lighting & court replacement): $245,000.

Nonprofit Allocation: $955,000.

Premium Pay to Employees: $3,214,584.

Savannah Avenue Train Project: $3,500,000.

The Savannah Avenue Train Project became a point of contention for Councilmember Sandra Tooley, who disputes the proposed funding.

Savannah Train plan would revitalize an abandoned corridor of the titular avenue by adding a dinner train excursion attraction with a multi-purpose walking trail guided by CaterParrott Railnet. Mayor Scott James Matheson said if the project were to come through, it would be an excellent source of revenue for the city.

“CaterParrott, the same group running freight on the Florida-Georgia line for the last dozen years, is operating out of Nashville and it has had $1 million of economic impact to them,” he said.

“We don’t operate the model, we just lay down the track. It’s $3 million economic impact for us every single year for as long as we operate. VSU did that study for us, and they even went further and said ‘If you market it to Wild Adventures, it can have as much as a $6 million economic impact.’”

The allocation would be $3.5 million and Tooley said she in a City Council meeting earlier this month she feels as though the amount is “exorbitant” and wants each item to be reviewed and approved individually to ensure each project would be properly funded.

Councilmember Tim Carroll told Tooley that her request wouldn’t be possible due to talks at the council’s summit.

“Doing that would violate the spirit of our last summit. The one that all of the council was present for and that collectively agreed to the allocation amounts,” he said.

Tooley clarified her position and stated she voiced her concerns for the Savannah Avenue funding from the beginning.

“You must have gone out to cough or sneeze and didn’t hear me when I said what I said but I did oppose that amount for Savannah Train. When we were talking about it, I said ‘Put a question mark on it’ so we could discuss it another time. That’s exactly what I said,” Tooley said.

Tooley added during the meeting earlier this month that she has no issues with the Savannah Avenue Project itself but it is her understanding that the ARA funds would be used to help residents and the economy immediately, and that more funds should be available to other projects such as small business development, neighborhood rehabilitation and nonprofits.

“I’m not trying to be argumentative but I have said from the beginning that I object to the amount because it was excessive. We did not agree as a collective,” she said.

City Manager L. Mark Barber reminded City Council that budget approvals at the meeting didn’t have to be set in stone.

“This vote is not concrete. We have until 2024 to commit to these projects. All I’m trying to do is get some guidance on what was talked about at the summit, move forward and take some preliminary action,” he said.

“So again, just because you approve it tonight, doesn’t mean it has to stay like that. The project or the allocation. Once you guys give me some type of formal approval for some of these projects, I have to prioritize them and move forward.”

The discussion ended with an approval from the council, but Tooley made it clear that her questions and advocacy for reallocation will be addressed at a later time.

“We’re going to have funding that helps with the city’s infrastructure later on. I still have questions and we’re going to reconvene and discuss how we can make sure all of our projects have adequate funds,” she said.