Federal ARPA grants go to more local nonprofits after outcry 

After a plan to funnel $3 million in American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds to a handful of nonprofits drew backlash from dozens of empty-handed applicants, San Luis Obispo County supervisors approved a revised set of allocations on July 12 that includes 35 organizations.

Nonprofits that serve local homeless, children, families, and seniors and provide shelter, food, education, arts, health care, and more all received at least $25,000 in the new round of county-administered ARPA grants.

An initial recommendation, rejected by county supervisors in May after public outcry, sent hundreds of thousands of dollars to just seven groups focused on homelessness.

"I'm grateful we had a second chance ... and were able to share more with the nonprofits, which was the original intent," 3rd District Supervisor Dawn Ortiz-Legg said.

Jenny Luciano, CEO of Big Brothers Big Sisters of SLO County, who spoke out against the narrow list of recipients in May, praised the county's new approach at the July 12 meeting. Her organization received $25,000 of the allocation to support its youth mentoring programs.

"I think it's important, especially when we're vocal in the media, to show up and acknowledge the work that's been done and say, thank you," Luciano said. "The funding for us this year is super important. We're serving more kids than we ever have. ... This funding will go a long way for us."

The $3 million nonprofit ARPA allocation is just one slice of the $55 million the county received as part of the federal COVID-19 recovery package. Another $6 million went to housing and homelessness efforts and $3 million went to child care organizations. The rest went to the areas of water, sewer, and broadband; public health emergency response; restoration of government services; and small business grants/workforce development.

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• GRAPHIC BY LENI LITONJUA
• DIVVY UP SLO County significantly increased the number of nonprofits that would receive ARPA grants after community backlash.

The top nonprofit grants awarded on July 14 still focused on homelessness: $430,000 to the El Camino Homeless Organization (ECHO) for the continued operation of its Paso Robles transitional shelter; $350,000 to the Community Action Partnership of SLO (CAPSLO) for homeless outreach and engagement at safe parking sites; and $275,000 to the 5 Cities Homeless Coalition for an emergency shelter in South County.

Other high-dollar grants included $200,000 to the SLO Food Bank; $150,000 to the South County Youth Coalition for mental health programs; and a pair of $150,000 grants to the Boys and Girls Club for its youth programs. Δ