Greetings,

These have been challenging times for all of us, and I greatly appreciate our City residents — and city staff – for having so much fortitude, showing so much resiliency during this crisis.

The COVID-19 pandemic has taken its toll, but better days are undoubtedly ahead.

I’m here to talk about the American Rescue Plan, which will aid the City on its road to recovery.

The City will be receiving approximately $20 million in total — $10 million this year and $10 million next year – to compensate for the losses we are experiencing during this time.

Keep in mind that the City already had a significant financial shortfall before the pandemic hit. But our administration has work diligently to get us on the right course, and we have made those strides.

In addition to covering some of the financial losses we have incurred, the city has the chance to make once-in-a-lifetime investments, and we pledge not to squander that opportunity.

We will be putting more money and resources into our parks, youth services and environmentally friendly infrastructure improvements — all for the betterment of our City.

It’s important for you to know that all ARP awards are guided by a rules set by U.S. Treasury Department that include stringent reporting and compliance requirements.

To help guide us, the City has created a ARP Task Force which includes key city administration personnel, members of the Common Council and others.

We also want to hear your views, so please take a close look at this ARP webpage and and send your comments to Dr. Brian Martinez,  City Commissioner of Finance (BMartinez@cityofpoughkeepsie.com).

Sincerly,

Robert G. Rolison, Mayor