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Federal stimulus funds to be invested in regional infrastructure

Vital regional infrastructure – from roads and transit to wastewater treatment to housing – will receive a portion of federal funds coming to Minnesota through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) of 2009. Among the projects slated or likely to be to funded at least partially with economic stimulus dollars:

• A variety of highway projects, including the extension of Highway 610 in the northwest suburbs
• Purchase of buses and Metro Mobility vehicles
• Upgrades to wastewater collection and treatment facilities
• Repairs to public housing
• Clean up of polluted land for redevelopment

 

Minnesota officials estimate governments in the state will receive about $4 billion in funds under the Recovery Act, though that amount could increase, as agencies apply for grant programs still being developed. The Metropolitan Council will have a say in the spending of at least $325 million of the state’s total.   

“These are one-time monies that will allow us to accelerate some Council projects, especially in the area of transportation,” said Council Chair Peter Bell. “Timeliness and accountability are key objectives, so we’re making sure these projects are advancing in a way that meets federal timelines and the public has the opportunity to be informed.”

Improving mobility in the region

As the Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) for the Twin Cities area, the Council has the responsibility to allocate a significant portion of both highway and transit funds on their way to Minnesota. About half of the $151 million targeted to counties and cities will be spent in the metropolitan area and allocated by the Transportation Advisory Board (TAB) with approval from the Council. In addition, the Council will allocate about $70 million in stimulus dollars for metro-area transit projects.

An additional $168 million for road and bridge projects in the metro area chosen by the Minnesota Department of Transportation must also go through the TAB and Council for inclusion in the region’s Transportation Improvement Program, which makes them eligible to receive federal funds.

The Council has identified a number of priority investments to take advantage of the transit stimulus funds. The Council will purchase replacement buses for the Metro Transit, Metro Mobility, and commuter service fleets.

In addition, the Council is exploring the use of stimulus funds for eligible preventive maintenance costs that would otherwise be taken out of the transit operating budget. The regional transit operating budget has a projected shortfall of $62 million through the 2011 fiscal year, due primarily to the collapse of state Motor Vehicle Sales Tax receipts, a major source of transit funding.

Upgrading wastewater treatment facilities

Metropolitan Council Environmental Services (MCES) is eligible for about $11 million of the $82 million the State of Minnesota will receive for clean water projects. MCES anticipates receiving grants of $2 million for each of the following projects:

• Improved liquid treatment facilities at the Blue Lake Wastewater Treatment Plant in Shakopee (total project cost: $85 million).
• Additional solids processing facilities at the Blue Lake Plant (total project cost: $55 million).
• Improved wastewater collection facilities with additional capacity in the Victoria-Waconia area (total project cost: $38 million).
• Replacement of an aging regional sewer serving South St. Paul and Inver Grove Heights (total project cost: $29 million).

 

“We accelerated these projects when it became clear that federal economic stimulus funding would become available, and they are on track for awarding of contracts in June,” said Bryce Pickart, MCES’s assistant general manager in charge of the Technical Services Department.

The federal funds will be administered through the Minnesota Public Facilities Authority (PFA), which will also use federal funds to offer additional low-interest loans for infrastructure projects. The interest rate on these loans is discounted from market rates, which helps wastewater agencies like MCES reduce debt-service costs. MCES is eligible to utilize $80 million in PFA loans in 2009 compared with $50 million in previous years. Having more of its loans at below-market interest rates will save MCES approximately $3 million.

In addition, the PFA will set aside 20% of the federal funds for projects that address green infrastructure, energy and water efficiency improvements, or other environmentally innovative activities. MCES is evaluating several projects for eligibility in this funding program.

Improvements to public housing

The Council’s Housing and Redevelopment Authority (Metro HRA) will receive $212,000 in capital improvement funds for the public housing program through the federal Recovery Act.

The Metro HRA will use the funds to perform a range of improvements – including replacing roofs, siding, windows, and concrete sidewalks, in addition to exterior painting – to 30 homes throughout the 11 cities that are part of the Family Affordable Housing Program in Anoka, Hennepin and Ramsey counties. Funding must be used to supplement, and not supplant, existing budget for projects.

The projects were all planned within the next five years, but funding for these improvements would otherwise be difficult to carve out of the program’s $1 million annual budget, said Terri Smith, Metro HRA assistant manager.  

Improvements are similar to initiatives being planned throughout the country, many of which focus on energy efficiency.

“Housing authorities across the country have been under-funded for the past several years,” Smith said. “We haven’t been able to devote funding to these needs. The stimulus funds will help us preserve these important housing resources.”

Cleaning up polluted land

The Council’s Livable Communities Program will be eligible to apply for a portion of approximately $100 million included in the Recovery Act to clean up polluted land for redevelopment (brownfield cleanup). The competitive grant process, administered by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, will likely begin sometime in the spring.