Mayor Katjana Ballantyne is announcing new City funding support for area nonprofits, leveraging funds from the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA). The online program portal opens on December 5, 2022, and will accept applications until February 17.

 “Somerville’s nonprofit organizations provide invaluable services and supports to the residents of our city but both the pandemic and ongoing need has increasingly stretched their resources. This needed funding will help local providers to both continue and expand their programming,” said Mayor Katjana Ballantyne. “I am so happy to share that ARPA funding is proving another avenue of growth for our nonprofit community.”

The first round of funding will provide $10M in project support for 501(c)3 nonprofits serving the Somerville community. Only applications supporting specific projects or programs, and requesting $50,000 or more, will be accepted for funding consideration. Applications will be reviewed after the portal closes on February 17, 2023, and recipients are expected to receive notice of funding in spring 2023.

Interested nonprofits can review the ARPA website for more information, including an ARPA application package to plan their projects: www.somervillema.gov/arpa.

The City of Somerville has been allocated $77,504,170 from the federal American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) to aid in local pandemic recovery efforts. Informed by input from nearly 2,000 survey responses, dozens of focus groups, two public forums, and a 14-member advisory committee, the city has been designating ARPA funds for a wide range of recovery purposes. To date, $47,600,000 of ARPA funding has been allocated to pandemic recovery efforts ranging from direct aid for households to critical infrastructure investments. Of those allocations, over $6,800,000 has been granted to Somerville nonprofits to administer emergency pandemic-related relief programs.

 In line with the recommendations of the mayor’s ARPA Advisory Committee, ARPA applicants must detail how their projects meet core values and funding priorities as noted in the applicant package. To learn more about the city’s current ARPA projects and funding parameters, visit www.somervillema.gov/arpa.