MERCEDES — City officials here said Monday that they will use over $3.6 million in American Rescue Plan funding for its police department and to address drainage issues.
(Monitor Photo)
Commissioner Leonel Benavidez, however, said Monday evening that the city initially anticipated nearly half a million more dollars.
“I’m looking for the information because I know we got that information via email as well,” Benavidez said. “We were getting the $4 million, then I saw the check for $3.6 (million), and it didn’t really add up. That was one of the concerns.”
U.S. Rep. Vicente Gonzalez, D-McAllen, presented a check worth over $3.6 million to the city of Mercedes on Monday as part of the American Rescue Plan.
The funding is part of a $1.9 trillion economic stimulus bill that was signed into law on March 11 of last year. Benavidez added that the funding was already budgeted by the city last year.
“It’s creating confusion,” he said. “All the news channels are covering it, so now the residents think that we’re getting money. We already got that money, and we’ve already budgeted for most of it.”
The theme and overall tone of the check presentation remained celebratory, though.
Addressing the Mercedes City Commission and the media inside the legislative chamber, Gonzalez said the funding will help the city address its infrastructure issues, particularly drainage.
He described Mercedes as the heart of drainage issues in the Rio Grande Valley.
“We want to be able to fix and repair the drainage system, and upgrade it and ensure that we don’t have flooding in peoples’ homes and businesses and communities,” Gonzalez said after a brief ceremony. “That’s a major issue for South Texas, and as a congressman, I want to make sure that we get all the federal funding down to this region to address that very important issue.”
Mayor Oscar Montoya said the city is already using the funding to repair the police department, which hasn’t been used in over a year.
“We don’t even have a jail,” Montoya said. “We’re keeping our people in Weslaco right now. This is going to allow us to invest money and bring that building back up to where it needs to be for emergencies and stuff like that.”
He also said that some of the money will be used to address the city’s drainage issues.
“It’s already happening as we speak,” Montoya said. “It takes a while to get it done completely. The (retention) ponds are already like 75% done. We appreciate the congressman coming down, we appreciate this funding, and we just want the citizens to know that we’re going to use this money wisely to try to improve this city — our city — and make it a better place.”
Gonzalez said he hopes communities will utilize the funding to keep citizens healthy through accessible testing and vaccines, and highlighted the need to expand broadband internet access throughout the region.
