Sidewalks for schoolkids, lighting and drainage: Stanislaus leaders could OK projects
Stanislaus County leaders could approve recommendations Tuesday for spending $50 million in American Rescue Plan Act funds on improvements to “county islands.”
County staff members are recommending $10 million for improvements in the Bret Harte area of south Modesto and $6.87 million in the Parklawn neighborhood off Hatch Road.
Bret Harte and Parklawn are disadvantaged areas that have been improved with sewer hookups but have other needs including storm drainage, sidewalks, curbs and gutters and streetlights.
It’s estimated that Bret Harte and Parklawn need $58 million and $25.8 million in improvements, respectively, to meet standards for annexation to Modesto.
County Supervisor Channce Condit plans to work with county staff to hold community meetings to discuss what specific improvements should be made in the two areas with the $16.87 million in ARPA funds.
The money falls short of what’s needed to annex the two neighborhoods to the city, but it can pay for some immediate needs such as sidewalks and street lighting, Condit said.
“All of those will be great improvements for the community,” Condit said Monday. “It will make walking to school more accessible for the schoolkids, and sidewalks will make it more accessible for the elderly and disabled. It is a good start and something that allows us to continue to work in making things more equitable in District 5 compared to other areas of the county.”
Condit and the four other county supervisors expect to have $3 million each to spend on needed infrastructure in their respective districts through the county’s newly created “building community” program.
Condit said he will dedicate his district’s $3 million to a stormwater main in the unincorporated town of Empire. The county will need to find an additional $2 million to cover costs of the Empire storm drain.
If the ARPA-funded improvements are approved Tuesday evening, county Public Works will begin the environmental review process and scheduling for the projects.
In 2021, county supervisors came out with a spending plan for $90 million in ARPA federal relief funds, allocating $50 million for upgrades to county islands that don’t have basic urban improvements, $30 million for economic development and job creation to help communities recover from the COVID pandemic, $5 million to create a nonprofit community development corporation to help revitalize struggling communities and $5 million in navigation assistance to help people access safety-net services.
Allocations based on need
In August, supervisors chose to allocate the largest portion of the $50 million, earmarked for county islands, to Channce Condit’s District 5, based on the unmet needs in that district.
Beside the $16.87 million for Channce Condit’s district, the board allocated $12.2 million to Supervisor Mani Grewal’s District 4 in Modesto, $10.6 million to board chairman Terry Withrow’s District 3 in west Modesto, $5.6 million to Buck Condit’s District 1 including Riverbank and Oakdale, and $4.7 million to Vito Chiesa’s District 2 in Turlock.
County staff is recommending $10 million for improvements in the Colorado-Rouse neighborhood of Modesto and $2.2 million for upgrades in the Herndon Road area in Ceres, south of the Tuolumne River. The two areas were chosen because of opportunities to use ARPA funds as leverage to secure money from other sources.
The Colorado-Rouse area is already part of a wastewater improvement project in west Modesto supported by community development funds.
The neighborhood could be brought up to standards for annexation to Modesto by using the $10 million in ARPA funds, along with a potential $8 million from the State Water Board to finish the wastewater project and $5 million in state funds anticipated from Modesto, a county staff report says.
A proposal to annex the Colorado-Rouse area to Modesto would trigger a protest vote.
According to the staff report, Grewal is supportive of dedicating funds from his district’s “building community” account, along with the $2.2 million in ARPA funds, for improvements in the Herndon Road area of Ceres.
Upgrades for Riverdale and Riverbank
The Board of Supervisors will also consider a recommendation of $10.6 million for improvements in Riverdale Park Tract in board chairman Terry Withrow’s district.
Riverdale Park, a future candidate for annexation to Modesto, has a need for wastewater improvements, sidewalks, drainage and lighting. The $10.6 million in ARPA funds isn’t enough to cover the $13.7 million in costs for Riverdale Park improvements, but county staff and Withrow will work on identifying other sources of funding.
Another recommendation is $5.6 million in ARPA funds for upgrades to the Topeka Street and Santa Fe area of Riverbank. The costs for improvements are estimated at $8.15 million. County staff could talk with the city of Riverbank about more refined cost estimates and the level of improvements required for annexation.
In Turlock, the recommended project is $4.7 million for upgrading the Starr and Kenwood avenue neighborhood, a county pocket that needs wastewater service, curb and gutter and storm drainage. County officials will talk about finding an additional $550,000 to cover the total costs of improvements.
Turlock has expressed an interest in annexation of the Starr-Kenwood area.
The Stanislaus County Board of Supervisors meets at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday in the meeting chambers at Tenth Street Place, at 1010 10th St., Modesto.
This story was originally published September 20, 2022 at 9:02 AM.
