By MARK SARDELLA

WAKEFIELD — All funds received by the town as part of the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) must be spent or committed by Dec. 31, 2024, and with that date in mind, Town Administrator Stephen P. Maio provided the Town Council with a status update this week.

The town initially received $8,083,935 in the federal COVID relief funds.

Much of the initial spending was directly related to combatting the pandemic, including test kits, contact tracing, vaccination clinics, etc. Maio highlighted some of the ARPA spending since then.

Just over $1 million was earmarked for sidewalk expansion. A sum of $55,000 was spent to purchase an MWRA water truck for town events. Another $75,000 went to upgrade meeting rooms in town buildings to enable Zoom/hybrid meetings. The evaluation of the Soldiers and Sailors (Civil War) monument on Veterans Memorial Common accounted for $10,000. The board approved $150,000 from the ARPA fund to assist the Boys & Girls Club with the renovations and upgrades for Inspire Cafe.

Other ARPA funds were appropriated for an Energy Assistance Fund ($400,000), Lake pathways ($100,000), improvements at Veterans Field, including a new restroom facility ($800,000) and Senior Center renovations ($400,000).

Maio provided an update on the ongoing Senior Center renovations. He also informed the board that the Vets Field improvements, originally expected to happen last spring, were delayed because the town was not satisfied with the bids it received for the work, but Maio plans to solicit new bids.

He noted that portions of other ARPA funds that were allocated have not been spent, including just over $200,000 from the Energy Assistance Fund, $150,000 for Lake Quannapowitt pedestrian access, $3,750 for title searches, $25,000 for the assessment of historic structures along with several smaller amounts.

Maio told the board that the plans to spend ARPA funds to create a pedestrian pathway right along the lakeshore on the western side of Lake Quannapowitt may not be possible due to the presence of two privately owned cemeteries as well as environmental considerations.

He said the $25,000 allocated to assess historic structures may not be necessary as the cost of an assessment would likely be covered by any company bidding on restoration work.

Town Council Chairman Michael McLane said that he would like to see $150,000 of the unspent ARPA funds used toward putting solar panels on the Galvin Middle School.

Maio reiterated that ARPA funds must be spent or obligated by Dec. 31, 2024. He said that the Department of the Treasury issued an update in May 2024 clarifying what is required for ARPA funds to be considered obligated or committed.

According to that update, in addition to signed contracts, interagency agreements finalized by Dec. 31, 2024 are satisfactory to show a commitment to spend ARPA funds by a government agency in 2025 and 2026. Such “interagency agreements” Maio said, can include memorandums of understanding (MOUs) between town departments.

An interagency agreement finalized by Dec. 31, 2024 can be used to obligate funds that a government agency will expend in 2025 and 2026, as long as it:

1) Imposes conditions on the use of funds by recipient agency, department or part of government.

2) Has specific requirements (scope).

3) Is signed by the parties.

4) Does not disclaim binding effect or state that it doesn’t create rights or obligations.

5) Use of Funds is reported (quarterly).

6) Funds are expended by December 31, 2026.