Norwich to receive nearly $550,000 grant for COVID-19 costs
Norwich — As Congress finalizes negotiations on a new COVID-19 relief package, Norwich is expected to receive a grant of nearly $550,000 from the CARES Act passed last spring to help reimburse the city for pandemic response costs not covered through other grant programs.
The City Council at its 7:30 p.m. meeting Monday will consider a resolution allowing the expected grant of $545,972 to be used to cover eligible costs incurred by various city departments, with any amount left over to be divided between Norwich Public Utilities and the Uncas Health District. The meeting will be livestreamed on the city website, www.norwichct.org, and aired on Comcast Norwich Channel 97.
The CARES Act grant is being funneled to Norwich through the state Office of Policy and Management and may be used only for costs incurred from March 1 through Dec. 30. City Manager John Salomone said other restrictions will limit how the city will be able to use the funds.
Salomone recommends the city use the money for the approximately $100,000 in costs not covered through a Federal Emergency Management Agency grant the city received earlier, including the purchase and use of cleaning supplies and some overtime for city personnel.
He suggested NPU and the Uncas Health District could do the same, with a stipulation that the 11-town health district use the money specifically for costs incurred serving Norwich residents and businesses.
“NPU had a lot of costs that weren’t eligible (for FEMA reimbursement), and Uncas just has a ton of costs,” Salomone said. “They’re partners with us, and we certainly want to do what we can to help them.”
City Comptroller Josh Pothier said he submitted two sets of pandemic-related costs to FEMA for possible reimbursement. The first covered March through June costs, and FEMA approved reimbursement of $69,821. On Thursday, Pothier submitted a second request for costs from July through September totaling $43,350.
Pothier said the city also had received $27,109.05 from the Coronavirus Relief Fund for the March through June time period.
He estimated about $100,000 in outstanding costs the city hopes to cover with the newly approved $545,972 grant.
NPU spokesman Chris Riley said NPU is reviewing all of its COVID-19-related expenses, including administrative costs, cleaning of facilities, employee screenings and operational costs, for the past 10 months to determine what might be covered by the new grant. NPU will provide all the necessary documentation for any costs it seeks to cover in the grant, he said.
“NPU has reduced its overall expenses by nearly $10 million since the start of the pandemic as we work through the biggest challenge in the 116-year history of our organization,” Riley said. “We appreciate the Council's consideration of this matter.”
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