Affordable housing and homelessness remain Phoenix City Council’s top priority as the city refines its plans to spend it final payment of federal coronavirus relief spending, which the city will receive next month.
In January, city staff laid out a comprehensive wish list to council of items that could be spent with the city’s $198 million American Rescue Plan Act payment coming in May. The wish list was intentionally overambitious, accounting for about $80 million more than the city would have available. Based on council’s direction in that meeting, staff cut the planned spending total down to $212.2 million, but still has $14.2 million more to cut.
The city received the first half of its ARPA funding, another $198 million, last spring. The funds are meant to combat the pandemic as well as any negative impacts it has had, which includes a broad range of possible spending options.
