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<br /> <br />provided further details on the proposed ARPA spending plan and requested comments or questions from the <br />Council. <br /> <br /> Councilmember Axberg asked if there was an advantage to spending the ARPA dollars sooner rather than <br />later. Massopust explained there was not an urgency to spend the dollars but noted the dollars do have to be <br />allocated by the end of 2024 and spent by the end of 2026. <br /> <br />Councilmember Allen requested further information regarding the price of the drone. Paetznick noted the <br />original estimates were $30,000, but after looking into costs further, it was estimated the drone would cost <br />$50,000. <br /> <br />Councilmember Abdulle asked if the proposed funding for front line workers would be a one time payment. <br />Massopust reported this was the case, noting staff was proposing a one time payment to these workers. <br /> <br />Councilmember Dunsworth questioned how staff would decide what the City would spend the ARPA dollars <br />on first. Foschi noted the City would receive the second half of the ARPA funds one year after the first <br />payment was made. She commented further on the timing on when the funds would be received and discussed <br />how the City could plan for the expending these funds. <br /> <br />Councilmember Axberg reported she was hesitant to add a new position through these funds because it would <br />be tied to a future levy increase or future trade offs. <br /> <br />Mayor Niedfeldt-Thomas commented the Assistant City Manager position was previously within the budget, <br />but in 2020 this position was dropped. She explained to add this position back in, this would require Council <br />approval. <br /> <br />Mayor Niedfeldt-Thomas questioned how the levy would be impacted by using ARPA funds on the Parks <br />Comprehensive Plan. Davitt reported if the internal loan were used the repayment of the loan would have <br />added another $85,600 to the levy. She indicated using ARPA would eliminate this loan repayment amount <br />and was deemed a useable expense. <br /> <br />Councilmember Abdulle believed the Council needed to have more conversations regarding the Assistant City <br />Manager position. In addition, he supported more of the ARPA funding being infused into equity initiatives. <br />He did not believe the $45,000 was enough. He suggested the City consider creating a position that focuses on <br />housing giving the growing needs surrounding affordable housing. <br /> <br />Councilmember Allen stated generally he supported the one-time expenses as proposed by staff. He <br />commented he did not know what the future would hold or where the virus would go. He suggested the City <br />wait on expending ARPA funds for the Parks Comprehensive Plan. He discussed how the City Council had <br />worked to try and right size staffing and agreed the Assistant City Manager position should be discussed <br />further. <br /> <br />Mayor Niedfeldt-Thomas asked how staff was proposing to spend ARPA dollars on equity initiatives. Suggs <br />stated this would be discussed by the Equity Commission and Equity Team. <br /> <br />Mayor Niedfeldt-Thomas noted the Council had set aside $10,000 for translation services in 2022. Massopust <br />reported this was the case. <br /> <br />Councilmember Abdulle supported Councilmember Allen’s comment that the ARPA dollars should not be <br />used for parks because there were dollars already identified for these projects. He suggested other items be