Fresno rolls out $171 million ARPA plan. Critics say the city council didn’t listen
The Fresno City Council approved on Thursday how millions of dollars from the mid-year budget surplus and first allocation of the American Rescue Plan Act will be spent.
Throughout the process, many community advocates criticized the city’s outreach efforts – saying that not enough community members, specifically those the ARPA dollars were meant to help, were made aware of the funding and process to share their input. Meanwhile, council members defended how they determined what the funds would go toward.
“A majority of the things listed here are because we’ve heard loud and clear from our residents what they want,” Councilmember Esmeralda Soria said Thursday. “Can we fund everything? Absolutely not. The $171 million is not a panacea to solve all of the issues in the city of Fresno.”
How will the money be spent?
Councilmember Miguel Arias said that between the mid-year budget surplus and ARPA funds, the city is dedicating around $40 million to neighborhood improvements and more than $10 million to parks. Around $10 million will go toward revenue replacement of city jobs.
While the money has been set aside for general categories , funding for specific projects and programs has not yet been set, according to Council President Nelson Esparza.
Here is how the ARPA funds were appropriated:
Here is thow the mid-year budget is set to be spent:
Did the city engage with community members enough?
Advocates with Faith in the Valley, Leadership Counsel for Justice and Accountability and other local community groups have been vocal from the beginning that there was a need for deeper engagement with the community regarding how ARPA dollars should be allocated.
“(The city) got $171 million dollars and essentially didn’t tell the rest of Fresno,” Grecia Elenes, with Leadership Counsel, told The Fresno Bee. “And ARPA is meant for the economic recovery of those most affected by COVID.”
The city provided a 24-hour notice for a special hearing Thursday regarding both the mid-year budget plans and the first allocation, nearly $80 million, of ARPA funds.
In early December, the city put out a survey and over the course of nearly two months gathered responses from roughly 868 individuals in the city of Fresno. Of the survey respondents who reported which district they were from, only around 5% resided in east-central Fresno.
Elenes said that for a city of half a million people, responses in the hundreds were not adequate to determine how the funds would be spent.
Roughly 46% of survey respondents selected homeless services and public safety as their first and second priority.
The city also held virtual Zoom workshops about the funds, however there was reportedly low participation, ranging from six people to a few dozen in attendance.
“This process, the allocation of this first $80 million has been frustrating, it’s been demoralizing and it communicates to us that you do not value community input, you do not value the lived experiences,” said Marisa Moraza, a campaign strategist with Power California.
Several council members, however, defended the process used to determine how the money would be spent. Councilmember Luis Chavez said at the previous ARPA workshop on Feb. 10 there was more than three hours worth of public comment and each council member held community meetings over the past year and a half to better understand how the funds could be spent.
“I understand it’s their job to advocate and push,” Chavez said of those who criticized the council. “But I don’t think it is ever going to be enough, and I just want to make sure the public in general understands that we have done all the outreach and we have done a lot of legwork.”
Councilmember Miguel Arias also said he believes “the budget recommendations reflect what we’ve heard in the community.”
Esparza said he feels most council members are engaged with their constituents and have a good pulse of their districts.
Are residents’ voices being heard?
Besides the process, advocates and residents also expressed frustration that their involvement in their local government might be futile.
The frustrations weren’t just about ARPA funding. They included other issues, such as an amendment to a city abatement ordinance that would limit advocates’ access when homeless camps were cleaned up.
For three consecutive council meetings, advocates and residents spoke for hours during public comment expressing opposition to the abatement ordinance amendments. The council passed the amendments unanimously anyway.
Unlike other governing bodies in Fresno County, such as school boards or the Board of Supervisors, it’s common for Fresno City Councilmembers and city staff to leave the council chambers or dais during the council meeting, particularly when it’s time to hear public comment. Council members often engage in side conversations as well.
During the Feb. 10 meeting, Lethal Garcia asked where the elected officials were during her turn to speak during public comment.
“I’m kind of curious what Chavez, Bredefeld, Karbassi and Mayor Dyer are doing because you guys aren’t listening,” she said. “I have some points that I would like for you guys to hear, and you’re over talking to people or you’re out doing whatever. I would like to continue to speak. I don’t know where Karbassi and Dyer are, though. I want them to hear what I have to say.”
Robert McCloskey, an organizer with the Fresno Homeless Union, said he notices many of the elected officials leave the chamber when commenters speak about housing and homelessness.
“It’s like they don’t feel they’re accountable to the public, I guess,” he said. “You have to get their attention. You know, you have to be quite vocal about your position.”
Another well known homeless advocate, Dez Martinez, echoed those sentiments.
“Yes, I have a strong voice. Some of you say I’m too passionate, but I’m sorry — that’s me. That’s how I am,” she said during public comment on Feb.10. “I’m used to nobody listening to me. So I have to shout, and when I shout and I act ridiculous, you guys finally listened to me. So pay attention to me when I talk nice, and then I don’t have to yell. And then you guys don’t have to be upset about people like Dez interfering.”
McCloskey said it’s evident when the council members aren’t paying attention because they’ll allow commenters to speak past their two-minute time limit.
One commenter on Thursday targeted Esparza, calling him rude, encouraging him to study the Bible and going as far as to refer to him as “ghetto.”
Council members met the criticism with mixed responses. Arias said the criticism was unfair because he makes an effort to hear all public comments. Councilmember Tyler Maxwell, on the other hand, said the criticism was fair.
“Councilmembers have very few defined obligations to their constituents and those are: showing up to council meetings, listening, and casting votes at a minimum,” Maxwell said. “If council members are regularly not meeting those obligations, that’s a problem.”
But, multiple council members pointed out that the meetings often run long, at times longer than a typical eight-hour work day, and council members may step away from the dais to use the bathroom, grab water or a snack or check with colleagues or staff on critical issues.
“At the end of the day, we’re only human,” Maxwell said.
Alexandra Alvarado, a community organizer with Faith in the Valley, said it’s up to residents to make needed changes by coming together.
“These meetings aren’t the only way that we can make sure to transform our city,” she said. “Sometimes, when the city doesn’t feel forced enough in these meetings, then we go above that, then we think more strategically, we think creatively. I don’t know why they’re not hearing us, because this is exactly what these meetings are for, for public input, right?”
This story was originally published February 18, 2022 at 8:56 AM.
