Norwich — Proposals to correct chronic flooding, complete the Uncas Leap heritage park, continue human services coronavirus recovery aid and money to help balance the 2022-23 city budget are listed in the city manager’s plan for the second-year, $14.1 million American Rescue Plan grant.

City Manager John Salomone presented his recommendations last week to the City Council for $10.8 million of the total funds the city will receive in this year, leaving nearly $3.3 million for future allocation.

Recommended spending includes $2 million to continue the citywide economic development program headed by Norwich Community Development Corp.; $1.5 million to fund at least nine city staff positions; $1.4 million for the second half of the Uncas Leap heritage park construction and $1.1 million to alleviate flooding in the areas of Bliss Place, Sachem Terrace, Washington Street and Backus Hospital.

At the lower spending level, Salomone recommended $20,000 for the Thames Valley Council for Community Action, a nonprofit that assists families in need, to rebuild its commissary facility and replace equipment, and $2,000 to the Sexual Assault Crisis Center of Eastern Connecticut for victims' assistance services.

Residents can comment on the ARP grant spending during the city budget public hearing at 7:30 p.m. Thursday. But Alderman Derell Wilson insisted that city officials hold public forums outside City Hall to hear residents’ ideas for using the one-time grants. He offered to help with public outreach, as he did last fall with the first-year ARP grant.

Salomone’s plan includes two projects to address a problem that residents of lower Harland Road, Bliss Place and Sachem Terrace have complained about for years: flash flooding that inundates the neighborhoods during torrential rain. The area, including the Backus Hospital parking lot, flooded Sept. 2, when Hurricane Ida caused extensive flooding throughout the city.

“We’re attacking drainage very aggressively," Salomone told the City Council on Monday.

His ARP plan budgeted $600,000 for design and construction of drainage improvements to the Bliss Place, Backus Hospital drainage area, possibly including a water detention area uphill from the neighborhood. In the second part of the project, Salomone allocated $500,000 for the Ox Hill Brook watershed uphill from Washington Street, Bliss Place, Sachem Terrace and other residential streets.

Public Works Director Patrick McLaughlin said the ARP money would be used for a hydrology study to determine peak intensity of storms and water flow and to start construction on improvements. One plan is to use city-owned land uphill behind Kelly Middle School on Mahan Drive to create a water detention area, which would collect stormwater during major storms and release it slowly afterward.

If there is enough funding, McLaughlin said the city would look at improvements on the opposite side of the hill, where Hunters Brook caused residential flooding last summer.

Although ARP grants are one-time federal COVID-19 relief dollars, Salomone proposed using more than $2 million next fiscal year, including $1.54 million to fund the nine city positions and another $500,000 “to offset a portion of 2022-2023 budget increase.” Positions to be funded are three police officers, a records clerk in the city clerk’s office, a grant writer, a grant project manager, an assistant zoning enforcement officer, a public works auto equipment mechanic and a human services manager.

In addition, all four divisions of the Norwich Human Services Department would receive ARP funds to continue serving residents hard-hit by the pandemic, including eviction prevention, youth mental health services, job training and basic needs services. Part of the more than $1.5 million would fund positions ranging from case workers to recreation facilities maintenance workers and per diem senior center van drivers.

But during the council’s initial budget discussion, Council President Pro Tempore Joseph DeLucia said he was disappointed that even after use of ARP dollars for budget expenses, Salomone’s proposed city budget includes a proposed citywide tax increase of 0.89 mill and a paid fire district tax increase of 0.42 mill.

DeLucia said the city has come out of the pandemic with good revenues and in “pretty good fiscal shape,” but still with a proposed tax increase. He said ARP funds can be used to pay for costs that otherwise would require taxpayer money. Without yet offering specifics, he hinted at council changes to come in the city manager’s proposed spending plan.

“This council has some work to do, because I’m not in love with anything I see on that chart,” DeLucia said.

c.bessette@theday.com