The initiatives will come as a result of a Community Investment and Innovation Fund recently established by trustees, the township announced Monday.
The fund will be fueled by $1 million to $5 million, much of that coming from the 2021 American Rescue Plan Act and an Ohio Senate bill earmarking money for Miami Twp., Morris said.
Morris said he estimated the fund is “going to somewhere definitely north of $1 million, probably less than $5 (million). So if we’ve got $3 to $5 million at our disposal, that doesn’t mean we’re limited to that.”
Morris said “it doesn’t mean that this money is the only source for dollars. We’re going to be very creative and it’s going to be a great impact.”
Possibly using general fund money and partnering with the county, the state and other resources will also be options, he added.
Corporate sponsorship for events will also be sought, Morris said.
The township’s new fund “will have an economic impact far greater than the raw dollars that get deposited into the account,” Morris said.
The next steps will be for the trustees and administration to identify available funding and potential uses, according to the township.
Morris said he and Trustee Terry Posey have a neighborhood meeting scheduled for next month.
“Through the creation of this fund,” Posey stated in the announcement, “we look forward to engaging neighborhood, business and nonprofit stakeholders on this rare opportunity to drive township improvement without raising taxes.”
The township’s ARPA funding, Morris said, is “already well-defined. So we are exploring options on how to spend those dollars.”
In 2020, Senate Bill 4 was passed, allowing local governments to redirect restricted funds for investment into other areas, township officials said.
Preliminary reports from the township administration indicate the SB 4 money to be about $750,000 to $1.25 million, Morris said.
“This money is going to be impacting our community in a lot of different ways,” he said.
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