By Loan-Anh Pham, San Jose Spotlight, August 2, 2022
“San Jose Mayor Sam Liccardo gathered virtually with politicians nationwide on [August 1] to discuss how American Rescue Plan (ARP) funds have been used in their communities. They looked at how data-driven research helped determine funding for housing, employment, and health care needs. The event was hosted by the White House.
“San Jose received a total of $212 million in ARP funds.
“Of this amount, the $134 million spent last year has already been divided between residential relief, small business support, homeless services, and child education programs.
“Liccardo emphasized using ARP funds to generate momentum for the city’s affordable housing projects, and tiny homes. The city aims to have 683 tiny homes under construction this year, Liccardo said.
“Hearing about ARP funding and seeing it in action is another story, homeless advocate Scott Largent told San José Spotlight.
“ ‘There’s so many people out there… . Some people just need a basic bus pass or a place to park their RV,’ Largent said. ‘It seems like they make it more complicated than it needs to be.’
“ARP funds were also utilized in bridging San Jose’s digital divide, with more than $5 million allocated to provide resources like hotspots and free community WiFi.
“View the full Monday panel here.”
Read the full article here. (~3 min.)