The opening statement for The American Rescue Plan Fact Sheet called the American Rescue Plan and Black Communities states:
The COVID-19 pandemic and the corresponding economic crisis are devastating Black communities. While Black Americans are 13 percent of the U.S. population, they represent nearly 24 percent of age-adjusted COVID-19 deaths. Black families also face higher than average unemployment rates and other economic challenges associated with the pandemic. Black Americans are facing one of the highest unemployment rates in the country. In January, nine percent of Black workers – 1.8 million people – were unemployed. Approximately 1 in 5 Black households also struggle with food insufficiency, and more than 1 in 3 Black renters have fallen behind on payments.
It goes on to say: The American Rescue Plan will change the course of the pandemic, deliver immediate relief for hard-hit Black families and small businesses, build a bridge toward economic recovery, and reduce poverty in Black communities by 34 percent. Moreover, the bill is one of the most progressive pieces of legislation in history, with more than two-thirds of its tax cuts and direct payments going to families making less than $90,000 per year.
However, in the City of Springfield, Massachusetts, which received $123.8 million, Black business owners and elected officials say differently. Recently, City Councilors Tracye Whitfield and Justin Hurst held a press conference attended by several Black business owners and their supporters.
Many in attendance stated they were frustrated by the process and believed that Mayor Sarno and his team intentionally left many of their businesses to fail. A few cited the Mayor’s support of the Boston Road project years ago, which left many companies with limited to no parking, causing a substantial percentage of the businesses to close permanently.
One owner who asked to remain anonymous said the Mayor only shows his face in the Black community during election seasons. He doesn’t come into or support our businesses; he doesn’t care to understand our struggles or our commitment to better our neighborhoods. If he did, many of us would have received the funds made available by the ARPA Funds.
Whitfield told the Metro Record that although, to the dismay of many elected officials, she continues to address the ARPA Funds because I want folks to know what’s happening. I also like the public to know who they should contact.
Whitfield said applications became available in November 2021 and that people began submitting applications. She says there was a mix of household, senior, economic development, business, and new business applications.
Whitfield says she met many residents and business owners who have not received any information regarding their submitted ARPA Fund applications. She stated, “I have a listing of 30 plus people I will send over to the Finance Department.” Whitfield says she has spoken to many of them but not all. Hence, she created a google form for residents to place their information which Whitfield will forward to the city’s finance team.
Domenic J. Sarno issued a response to the concerns raised by Councilors Whitfield and Hurst.
“As dictated by federal ARPA guidelines, there has to be a review and formalized verification process to make sure the relief monies are going to those truly in need,” Sarno stated. “Our ARPA team is reviewing the numerous requests and continue to move on as quickly as possible. As you know, my administration has already done five rounds of ARPA funding announcements of over $50 million in funding. I look forward to announcing a sixth round in the near future.”
Sarno also made sure to deflect responsibility onto the state legislature, urging the legislature to begin distribution of the $5.8 billion they have in hand to residents, businesses, and nonprofits.
Whitfield said, “there were applications that were approved that I know personally were based on relationships with the Mayor and the administration, and that’s the reason that they got quickly, and I’m just going to be truthful. That’s my opinion, which is based on credible individuals who are familiar with the funded and their relationship to the Mayor.”
Whitfield said, “I went LIVE on Facebook to let residents know that if they had submitted an ARPA application and hadn’t heard anything or a response since November of 2021, to please complete the google form.The responses from people of color who have not received a single response were overwhelming. So, I began digging into why people weren’t getting a response; unfortunately, the administration said they didn’t have the staff.”
William Chapman, former owner of Chapman’s House of Pain, Chapman stated that the process has been painfully long and exasperating. He says he is a struggling business owner and was forced to close while watching wealthy non-residents receive millions of dollars. Chapman says he received no communication from the Mayor’s administration. Chapman said he applied because he assumed the funds were for relief from the effects of the Covid 19 pandemic. Chapman says he has been open since 2019. However, he worked haplessly as his studio went from capacity to no students. Chapman says he received communication, albeit very inconsistent, that he was forced to speak with different administration members each time, requesting documents that he had already submitted. The process has been frustrating and disheartening for Chapman.
Whitfield says she is perplexed in attempting to understand why the administration would refuse to respond promptly and appropriately. She says in this technological age, you can automate an email to inform residents that we received your application. It is so sad speaking with business owners who watched hopelessly as their life’s work slowly disappeared while Big Y received over a million dollars. Witnessing the developers from 31 Elm receive over six million is a travesty.”
Whitfield continued. To make matters worse, the Mayor’s administration cut off all communication with applicants. So at this time, you can neither email nor call them to check on your application status. Whitfield has attempted on numerous occasions to convince the Mayor to resume communication but to no avail. She states all I’m trying to do is be transparent.
City Councilor Justin Hurst stated, “I want to highlight that we’re not here to criticize. We recognize that as elected officials that it’s easy to be extremely critical, especially as you’re doling out $123 million. But what I think is also important is to recognize, reiterate and highlight that we’ve been offering solutions for a long time. Finally, there is a solution to what we are witnessing, which is why we are disappointed with the Mayor’s process or lack thereof.” I want to offer a few of those solutions; note that I want to work cooperatively with the Mayor and his administration to ensure that these solutions are instituted to benefit the residents.”
Hurst stated, first of all, the process has not been transparent! We know anytime you are dealing with the government, and you’re dealing with large amounts of money, one of the most important things that residents want to see and expect is transparency. Otherwise, they will start to distrust the government. So we are asking the Mayor to place the applications on the city’s website so that everyone knows who has applied. It’s easy to say you’ve issued out this number of awards. Still, the hard part is to ensure that everybody knows exactly what individuals have applied, how much they’ve applied for, and who has been awarded these awards. If they have not received award letters, we are asking that you highlight what stage in the process these individual applicants are at.
It is challenging, especially when we shut off all lines of communication, for folks to know where their applications are in the process. And So what ultimately happens is that they continue to ask the counselors who are most involved and active, which eventually results in a ton of work for counselors like Councilor Whitfield. So, we’re asking that the process be a lot more transparent.
We’re also calling on them to take the selection process out of the hands of his cabinet and the City Council president so that we can eliminate the perception that when people receive an award, it is out of patronage as opposed to these businesses being deserving of the money. If there’s nothing to hide, let’s make sure that it’s public and make sure that we have independent individuals on the committee. We also are asking the Mayor to hire an independent third-party consultant to issue these awards. And if that cannot happen, we’re asking him to include community members as part of the selection team.
Hurst said that, sadly, people go behind closed doors to discuss the outcomes, and what happens behind closed doors stays behind closed doors. The result ends up in big-time developers receiving money before struggling residents; the perception from the residents that I hear is that there are backdoor dealings. And so, whether there are backdoor dealings or there aren’t, we need to make sure that a third party is analyzing these applications to eliminate the idea that this is even a possibility. But, he closed, “I think it’s something that the mayor ought to welcome.”
