Montville holds first meeting to discuss $1.8 million COVID-19 relief funds
Montville — The Town Council has created a committee to manage the $1.8 million COVID-19 relief funds from the American Rescue Plan Act and held its first Ad Hoc COVID-19 Impact Study Committee meeting Tuesday evening.
The committee members consist of Councilors Billy Caron, Kathleen Pollard and Joe Jaskiewicz. They will assist the mayor and examine the needs of the town, discussing where the money should be allocated.
Caron said he approached his fellow councilors with the idea to create a committee as the best way to assure the money is spent to benefit the town, and the others agreed.
"We're going to get the best bang for our buck," Jaskiewicz said Tuesday.
The Connecticut Conference of Municipalities provided its members with a toolkit on how to use the funds, and the committee members said they will use it as a guideline in their discussions, as well as share their decisions with the Town Council and U.S. Rep. Joe Courtney's office.
Caron said he had already spoken to essential workers and organizations in town, such as social services, volunteer fire departments and public works, about their needs, and he hopes to see them in meetings with their pitches.
The committee will hold a special meeting Tuesday, July 20, at 5 p.m. in the Council Chambers to determine the chairperson of the committee.
The councilors approved the dates for the upcoming meetings, also at 5 p.m. in Town Hall: Aug. 10, Sept. 14, Oct. 12, Nov. 9 and Dec. 14. All are open to the public.
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