Funds infusion to make itself felt

About $7 million in the first infusion of federal stimulus dollars recently approved by Congress will be making its presence felt in Salt Lake County in the coming weeks — creating a life-ring for residents verging on homelessness and jump-starting transportation and community-enhancement projects.

Utah's most populous county is also awaiting the final state budget decisions — which are still being worked out in the current legislative session — in hopes that some of the apportioned $1.7 billion state stimulus package will provide stop-gaps in critical human services programs.

Ann Ober, Salt Lake County Mayor Peter Corroon's intergovernmental relations officer, said Tuesday the first concrete numbers on stimulus funding are now becoming available.

"The federal government is supposed to start reporting use of funds today," Ober said. "We know what we'll be getting in community development block grant money, emergency housing money and transportation dollars."

What those early reports indicate for Salt Lake County is $1 million to help residents who are at risk of eviction or who have become homeless, $5.4 million for a repaving project, and about $675,000 that will likely build new sidewalks in Magna and Kearns.

Kerry Steadman, Homeless Services coordinator for Salt Lake County, said the mechanisms to utilize the $1 million in Homeless Prevention Funding are in place and would aid residents in precarious housing situations.

"This money ... would provide funding to folks who are at risk of becoming homeless," Steadman said. "Perhaps they've received an eviction notice or have lost their jobs."

For those who may have already lost their residence, assistance will be available in "rapid re-housing" that would help get people back in an apartment and provide 12-18 months of rental assistance.

Steadman also outlined the $675,000 community development block grant that will likely be used on "one or two larger projects" rather than disbursed more widely in mini-project funding. Several communities in unincorporated Salt Lake County that have never had sidewalks installed have outgrown their once-rural neighborhood planning and now, with recent growth, require walkways to maintain public safety. At the top of that list are areas in Magna and Kearns.