The intersection of Market Plaza and Madison Avenue is pictured on May 23 in Greenwood. Daily Journal File Photo
The Greenwood City Council approved using federal relief funds to cover the cost of two road projects, along with using other city funds for a proposed road impact fee study Monday night.
Council members unanimously voted 9-0 to approve using about $2.5 million in funds from the American Rescue Plan Act to cover the costs of the Market Plaza improvement project and services for the Main Street improvement project. The same ordinance also authorizes an additional appropriation of $187,200 for a road impact fee study, which would collect monies from developers to cover the costs of road improvements.
ARPA
ARPA is a $1.9 trillion COVID-19 stimulus package that delivered direct financial relief to Americans and distributed billions to states to respond to the pandemic and to give to cities, towns and counties. Greenwood received just over $6.6 million in ARPA funds in 2021, with the requirement that it be contracted or committed by the end of this year. By the end of 2026, all of the funds must be spent, City Controller Greg Wright previously said.
For the latest request, officials asked for nearly $1.6 million of ARPA funds to cover the professional services costs of updating Market Plaza. The project includes the full reconstruction of the road from the Pleasant Creek Bridge to Madison Avenue, the addition of sidewalks, a new storm sewer system and new street lights. Adjustments to the placement and number of parking spaces on the south side of the Walker Plaza shopping center are also planned. An exit from Walker Plaza to Market Plaza will be removed as well, plans show.
The construction project for the Market Plaza project would be funded with ARPA funds through a revenue replacement provision. Under the final guidelines for ARPA, communities that received less than $10 million in funds could claim revenue replacement up to that amount. This allows officials to use those funds for any legal purpose of the city, Wright said.
Officials have also asked for $228,445 of the relief funds for right-of-way acquisition services for segments one and two of the Main Street project. Another $636,800 is planned to be used to hire a consultant for the design of segments three and four of the Main Street project, according to city documents.
The Main Street project will improve the Main Street corridor from Meridian Street to east of Interstate 65. The goal is to find ways to reduce congestion, create an attractive gateway and give a better first impression to visitors arriving from Interstate 65, officials said.
The ARPA request involves the section of Main Street from Meridan Street to the Indy South Greenwood Airport. Plans are to widen Main Street, along with updating sidewalks, curbs and stormwater work, Wright said.
With the latest proposals, the city will have just under $500,000 of ARPA funds left to be allocated, he said. ARPA funds have been used for a variety of things over the last three years, including school safety grants, employee premium pay, fire department respiratory fit testers and cybersecurity, radio, security camera and storm siren upgrades.
Impact fee study
The study will determine the feasibility of implementing an impact fee. If implemented, developers would pay into a fund to offset their development’s stresses on roads in the area of the project, Wright previously said.
The study’s cost will be eligible for reimbursement from future road impact fees if the city council were to adopt a fee after the study is completed, Wright said. Money collected from the fee may only be used on agreed-upon projects and may only be used on projects in the impact zone, according to Indiana law.
Developers of all types — whether housing, commercial or industrial — would pay the fee, Wright said.
Greenwood has grown exponentially over the last two decades. This year alone, at least four subdivisions — a total of 914 single-family homes — are set to begin construction. This is on top of three subdivisions with 563 homes and two apartment complexes with 634 units already under constriction, city planning staff said earlier this year.
This growth doesn’t include commercial or industrial developments.
An impact fee for developers is not unheard of in Greenwood, Wright said. The city has charged a park impact fee for individuals and developers seeking home permits since at least 2003 and a fee for people and developers to tap into the city’s sewer system since around 1996-97, according to archive reports in the Daily Journal.
The road impact fee, if it is ultimately passed, would also not be the first for Johnson County.
County officials established a road impact fee in 2021 for developments in the Interstate 69 corridor. The impact zone stretches from Bargersville’s southern point to County Line Road, along State Road 37. It includes all of Bargersville and portions of White River Township, between State Road 37 and State Road 135, as well as other county roads that will lead to I-69, including Stones Crossing, Morgantown, Mullinix and Olive Branch roads. Proceeds from the fee are shared between the county and the town of Bargersville and when enough money is collected, agreed-upon projects will be completed with the funds.
