CARES Act Money well spent by BoCo

Funding Spent to County’s Benefit

Botetourt County received approximately $6.8 million dollars in federal Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act, and has managed to spend most of it.

County officials are hoping for an extension for use of funds when the latest CARES Act is passed. That second round of funding, which passed Congress but as of 12/27/2020 was not yet signed by the President, offers an extension of the use of some of the previous CARES Act money.

“We are trying very hard to get some of these projects done by the end of this year,” Dr. Richard Bailey, Fincastle District Representative, told the members of the Board of Supervisors at the December 2020 meeting.

The county’s three towns received $24,714. County administration received approximately $56,000. Another $117,000 was spent on technology upgrades for county computers and related equipment.

Another $81,000 was spent on public health services.

Businesses and farms received $473,011 in all. The county assisted 49 farms. “We may be the only county in Virginia that provided specific farm-based assistance,” Bailey noted.

The school system received almost $1 million, which was spent on school buses, Chrome books, and HVAC upgrades. The HVAC upgrades included filtering to assist with viral, mold, and other health concerns.

The county’s emergency services department received $81,750.

A majority of the funding went to improve the county’s internet accessibility. The county allocated $3.2 million of the CARES Act funding to broadband extensions. Bailey said this money included Rural Broadband funding.

The county now has approximately 80 percent coverage with broadband service, Mac Scothorn, Valley District Supervisor, told the Board. The latest application, costing about $570,000, extended service down Etzler Road to Blacksburg Road, with the intention of tying the system in with the new Craig Botetourt Electric Service that recently went online.

Additionally, the county is working to create a wireless system in the Fincastle area.

                                                            — Anita Firebaugh, Special to the Botetourt Bee