What is ARPA?

ARPA is the American Rescue Plan Act passed into law in March 2021 to help towns and cities recover from the pandemic. The Town of Chapel Hill received a total of $10,668,497. For details on how money can be used, click here.

How are ARPA dollars being spent in Chapel Hill?

• Affordable housing: $2.5M
• Bike, pedestrian and greenways: $1M
• Community-based budgeting projects: $500K (includes Electric Leaf Blowers and Mowers, Tanyard Branch Connector, ADA sidewalk repairs and ADA van)
• Community Partner funding (see graphic below): $1M
• Digital access: $300K
• Downtown: $1M
• Parks and Recreation facilities: $2.5M
• ReVive Chapel Hill: $650K
• Town facilities maintenance needs: $1.2M

Specific projects are listed below:

The Town set aside about $1,000,000 for community organizations to serve people especially affected by the Covid-19 pandemic. Those projects are included below:

Click here for a snapshot of Farmer Foodshare's 2023 program, funded by ARPA!

What was important to the Town in spending ARPA funds?

The Chapel Hill Town Council agreed on the following themes for spending of ARPA funds based on input from the community sought in early 2022 through Let's Talk Town:

• Transformational projects
• Helping those most negatively affected by COVID
• Affordable housing
• Projects that are not just business as usual
• Things organizations have wanted to do for a long time but did not have money for
• Bringing new energy to Chapel Hill

Town Council directed Town department spending of ARPA funds be prioritized for:

• Parks and recreation facilities
• Affordable housing
• Downtown
• Deferred maintenance needs

How important is diversity, equity and inclusion?

ARPA funds are meant to help those most affected by the pandemic and to help towns and cities address infrastructure needs that may have been delayed to balance budgets and continue providing core services. Projects or programs that serve community members in Qualified Census Tracts (QCTs), low-income neighborhoods, minority groups, and others most affected by the pandemic will be considered first in funding decisions.

The Town staff ARPA team employed multiple equity tools to ensure that the public input, including the REAL tool applied to public outreach and the Equity Scorecard applied to the community partner projects submitted. Town staff continue to consult with the Town's Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion on results-based accountability, key performance indicators, and ensuring that ARPA funds are going to those most in need in Chapel Hill.

How did the Town select projects to fund?

The Town asked the community both in January/February 2022 and April/May 2023 how they would like to spend ARPA funding. This was done through Let's Talk Town events, online surveys, and emailed input. All input was shared with Town Council to inform their decision making around projects. The April/May 2023 input allowed community members to vote on a list of 21 Town department projects and the top four voted projects were approved by Council. 

Community Partner funding was opened in summer 2022 and winning programs were selected from 34 applications. Applications were reviewed by Town staff and 18 community members, each assigning a score categories like equity and feasibility. Top scoring projects were presented to Town Council who made the final approval in November 2022.

Relevant Council Meetings

Town Council discussed the use of ARPA funds multiple times from 2021 to 2023. Here are some key meeting agenda links with materials used in decision making:

• February 2, 2022 Work Session
• May 11, 2022 Work Session
• June 8, 2022 Meeting
• September 19, 2022 Work Session
• October 3, 2022 Work Session
• November 2, 2022 Meeting
• November 16, 2022 Meeting
• March 1, 2023 Work Session
• March 22, 2023 Meeting
• April 19, 2023 Meeting
• May 10, 2023 Meeting

Email or call Sarah Poulton at 919-969-5009 or arpa@townofchapelhill.org

Frequently Asked Questions:

• How much did Chapel Hill receive in ARPA funds? $10,668,497 total. 
• Can money be given directly to residents? APRA funds cannot be given directly to residents, but the Town will make sure that the funding goes to those most in need through approved channels and prioritizing those most affected by COVID-19. 
• Did the Town experience budget shortfalls because of COVID-19? Certain revenue sources such as parking operations, occupancy taxes, and parks & recreation fees did see far less revenue than in past years due to COVID-19. More detailed information about budget challenges due to COVID-19 and plans for recovery can be found in the May 5, 2021 budget message here.

How to connect:

Email or phone: Sarah Poulton, 919-969-5009 or arpa@townofchapelhill.org