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Nueces County faces tough decisions in choosing COVID-19 stimulus winners

$227 million in requests for more than 130 projects have been received by Nueces County -- but only $57 million in American Rescue Plan funds are available.

CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — Nueces County Commissioners continued the process Wednesday of determining where to allocate millions of dollars from the American Rescue Plan Act.

County Commissioners are still trying to figure out how best to use that federal money, also known as the COVID-19 stimulus package.

Back in the fall of 2021, several community forums were held that included not only the general public, but also roundtable meetings with business and non-profit leaders.

Online surveys were also conducted and several key areas were identified that would benefit from the funding. Those included water and drainage, economic development, and public health services.

Commissioners noted Wednesday that more than 130 projects had been submitted by various county entities, totaling more than $227 million -- but just over $57 million is available, meaning there isn't enough to fund it all.

“So we have $57 million remaining, and we have $227 million in requests," Nueces County Commissioner Brent Chesney said. "I think that is a number that hopefully the media will pick up on and understand that this is going to be extremely difficult for us to do, because there’s not a project on here that I don’t think is a valid and legitimate request project.”

In the end, the Court decided to go back and ask each group to prioritize their requests and then resubmit them, noting the ones they believed were most important. If that happens, Commissioners said it will give them a place to begin in determining how the money should be spent.

Those requests are then expected to be considered at a meeting in March.

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