ORDINANCE NO. 241012
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Sponsor: City Manager's Office
Accepting and approving a $5,000,000.00 grant award from the Missouri Department of Natural Resources, passed through from the federal Treasury Department as part of the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021, to fund riparian restoration along the Blue River; estimating revenue and appropriating funds; and recognizing this ordinance as having an accelerated effective date.
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WHEREAS, Congress passed the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021, a $1.9 trillion economic stimulus bill designed to speed up the American economic recovery after the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic and the co-occurring recession, of which Missouri received approximately $2.7 billion in State Fiscal Recovery Funds for a variety of approved grant programs; and
WHEREAS, the Missouri Department of Natural Resources is administering a variety of said grant programs for initiatives such as support for public health expenditures, addressing negative economic impacts caused by COVID-19, replacing lost public sector revenue, and investing in water, sewer, and broadband infrastructure; and
WHEREAS, the proposed project will restore 200 - 250 acres of riparian zone along the Blue River, adding to green infrastructure previously implemented by the Smart Sewer Program in the Blue River Basin, improving channel stability, reducing peak velocities during storm events, providing water quality benefits for nonpoint source pollution, and benefiting surrounding communities by reducing the impacts of flooding during storm events; and
WHEREAS, the proposed project aligns with all the strategies laid out in the Natural Systems section of the City's 2022 Climate Protection & Resiliency Plan, including expanding the network of trees and natural areas, promoting regenerative, ecologically healthy soils and landscapes, promoting sustainable water supply and use, and using natural systems to manage stormwater runoff and will therefo...
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