In one of our budget work sessions regarding FY23's budgetary plan, Council responded to the management teams request on the use of ARPA funds to provide an additional in house engineer to assist in project management and preliminary engineering requirements to ensure that we can meet the federal guidelines of encumbering our projected $8 million of water capital improvements prior to the close of federal fiscal year FY24. As was pointed out in that work session, the additional federal monies will likely double the workload for the Engineering Department for the next four to six years.

In response to these statements, the Council suggested that the management team hire an outside consultant to evaluate staffing levels across all departments, and in particular, relative to the additional ARPA work load which will be placed on the Engineering Department. To that end, my office has been in discussions with John Anzivino toward a comprehensive scope for this project. 

As we are working towards refining the final scope, additional investigation needs to be made relative to the question of budget allocation and procurement. Relative to the three issues, my office will be in a better position to fully report at our February 8 Council meeting.