The position will be through the Clark County Ohio State University Extension Office.
“We have not had someone to lead that effort,” County Commissioner Melanie Flax Wilt said. “That’s what we’ve been missing — someone to keep it moving.”
The Clark County Local Foods Council meets monthly to discuss issues such as food access, marketing, entrepreneurship and education, according to the extension office.
The position will also focus on maintaining community gardens around the county through organizing volunteer efforts.
At one point pre-pandemic, Clark County’s extension office helped maintain nearly 40 community gardens, Flax Wilt said. That’s now down to roughly 10.
ARPA dollars can pay for resources that assist people facing negative economic impacts during the COVID-19 public health emergency, including food insecurity.
The money authorized to cover the expenses is part of the $26 million allocated to Clark County from the $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan Act that President Joe Biden signed into law in March 2021. A total of $350 billion was allocated to help local governments across the country reeling from the pandemic.
Clark County commissioners have allocated millions in ARPA funds for various projects, such as reimbursement to the general fund for pandemic-related losses in revenue, employee paid administrative leave and technology for the county’s dispatch center, expected to open this year.
Commissioners also approved ARPA spending for a stormwater improvement project for Enon-Xenia Road to alleviate flooding in the area and for a fiber optic project to service county-owned buildings, as well as a safety improvement project for Spangler Road.
In November 2021, the commission also authorized $800,000 of spending toward a project to extend the waterline that runs near Park Layne. Another $220,000 was allocated in January to assist Clark County veterans seeking aid through the county veterans office.
Last month, up to $2.5 million in the federal relief dollars was allocated to reimburse the county for a portion of dispatch center costs, as well an additional $300,000 to cover the costs of programming and personnel expenses for reentry services for people preparing to leave incarceration in Clark County.
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