When the occupants of the approximately 200 homes in Bennington who are on town water and sewer get their bills, those costs should be more accurate, thanks to new digital water and sewer meters.

According to Town Administrator Deb Davidson, the new meters, which included software for automatic billing, enable the town’s meter readers to read meters and collect data without leaving their vehicles. Funds for upgrading the outdated meters made up most of the spending from Bennington’s allocation of $158,710 under the American Rescue Plan Act.

“It needed to be done, and it was a good opportunity to do it,” Davidson said. “It met the criteria.”

Furthermore, the costs weren’t put on the backs of Bennington residents.

“We didn’t have to tax,” Davidson said.

Across the state, the window is closing for towns to allocate ARPA funds, approved by the federal government to help towns navigate additional expenses and boost the local economy following the coronavirus pandemic.

In New Hampshire, ARPA provided $994.56 million in Coronavirus State Fiscal Recovery Funds funds, Coronavirus Local Fiscal Recovery Funds, $264.11 million for New Hampshire’s 10 counties and $198.2 million for the state’s cities and towns. Of that amount, local towns received $5,523,355.49.

While an initial wave of funding was specifically for responding to the pandemic, later installments were more flexible, allowing many uses for towns. Funds received through CSFRF and CLFRF must be obligated by the end of this year, and spent by the end of 2026, or returned to the federal government.

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As of the end of March 2024, the state reported that $327.2 million, or one-third of the original $994.56 million that New Hampshire received in payments during 2021 and 2022, had not yet been obligated or spent.

The remainder of Bennington’s ARPA funds were spent on protective equipment and medical supplies for the Fire Department and the EMS rescue squad.

“We were very proactive in receiving funds from the state, and we used some of those funds early in the pandemic for PPE, protective equipment and an ID maker, enabling us to print our own identification. On the rescue side, they used funds to purchase EMS protective gear including tactical pants and EMS jackets. We also bought some medical supplies, sanitizer, gowns and COVID tests,” said Bennington Fire Chief Keith Nason.

Other ARPA-funded projects in the region include the following:

Antrim

Antrim has allocated $281,615 for improvements in the water and sewer infrastructure. According to Water and Sewer Director Matt Miller, the funds will go toward the completion of a new town well, a new well house and a 2,400-foot transmission line. The project is scheduled to be completed in July.

In September 2023, Antrim also applied for a state grant to fund the repair of a dam on Gregg Lake. According to Select Board chair Michael Ott, the total cost of the dam is projected at  $1.15 million.

“We were awarded 92% of that cost from ARPA funds from the state, which totaled $918,625,” Ott stated. 

The total of $1,272,615 is the most of any local town.

Dublin

Dublin received $245,744.86, all of which has been spent. According to Town Administrator Kate Fuller, the focus of the spending was largely on safety improvements. The town purchased body and squad cameras for its police officers, and upgraded the cameras at the Dublin Police Department.

“These have made a huge improvement in documenting interactions to ensure the safety of our officers,” Fuller said.

Additionally, the town purchased upgrades for the Fire Department’s radios for about $78,000. The old radios were “coming to the end of their usefulness,” according to Fuller, and were repurposed for the Highway Department.

About $10,000 in ARPA funds were spent on upgrades to the town hall’s basement, including adding projection and streaming capabilities. An air-exchange system was added to mitigate air quality issues in the space, which cost about $7,675.

Using about $32,700 in ARPA funding, the town purchased a 12-lead heart monitor for the Fire Department to replace a unit no longer supported by the manufacturer. The Fire Department website was rebuilt using about $1,302 in ARPA money.

Francestown 

As of early June, Francestown had spent about 25% of the town’s allotted $165,723.70. The funds have been distributed between police and fire departments, town buildings and waste management. According to Town Administrator Jamie Pike, $1,500 was used for planning expenses in making the town offices accessible under the Americans With Disabilities Act.

Expenditures of the funds to date include Department of Labor Safety Compliance, $2,058; Town Hall blinds, $6,799; new Fire Department radios, $5,000; tactical vests for the Police Department, $1,379; solar radar speed signs, $6,499; and a standby generator for the Police Department, $11,750. The town also sponsored a household hazardous waste collection event at the cost of $4,370. 

Greenfield

Greenfield used its $196,000 in ARPA funds to renovate its police station. (See story on Page 11.)

In December 2023, the Greenfield Police Department moved out of its quarters in the basement of the town offices (formerly the historic Greenfield Elementary School) and across the common to the building known as the Old Town Office Building. The building is now completely dedicated to the Police Department, with offices and storage rooms on the ground floor and a conference room on the second floor.

The new department also has a separate interview room, a secure entrance, a secure evidence room and a state-of-the-art communications room. The building received an efficient mini-split heating and cooling system with an energy recovery ventilation system.

The funds also enabled the town clerk’s office to move into the space vacated by the Police Department. The town clerk’s office, which was formerly housed in a corner of the first floor of the town offices, now fills the walk-out lower-level space facing the parking lot.

Greenville

Greenville received $220,895 in ARPA funding, all of which is expected to go toward the town’s wastewater management systems, though not all of the funding has been officially allocated, according to Town Administrator Tara Sousa.

The town has already officially allocated about $118,000 for existing projects, including $100,000 for a chemical feed building at the town’s wastewater plant. The town has long struggled with balancing certain chemicals, including aluminum, copper and phosphorus, and in recent years has been successfully piloting a chemical addition process to keep compliant. The proposed feed facility will make the chemical addition process permanent, while improving its reliability and storage capacity.

The remainder of the funds, Sousa said, have not officially been allocated, but are also planned for the chemical feed building, as construction estimates came in well over the originally estimated cost. Sousa said the town is seeking other funding options before deciding officially to use the remainder of the funds on the building, but acknowledged, “Obviously, we’re getting down to the wire to allocate those funds.”

The town has also approved approximately $18,000 for a mixer at the wastewater facility.

Hancock

Hancock Town Administrator Jonathan Coyne said the town only about $2,000 left of the $173,300 in ARPA funding the town received. The town used the funds to purchase a new tractor and upgrade the radio and communications equipment for the police, fire and public works departments. Additionally, the town library HVAC system was replaced, and the siding on the DPW building was removed and replaced. Finally, the town office roof was replaced.

Coyne said the leftover ARPA funding could be allocated to any projects that might come up in the near future. If there are no appropriate projects to fund, it will likely be used to purchase a new laptop for town employees.

Jaffrey

Jaffrey received $552,447.27 from the treasury, with an additional $66,890.84 from the county and $390,000 from the Department of Environmental Services’ ARPA allocation, which has been split over two projects. The town’s total was $1,009,338.11.

The county and DES funding, and the majority of the funding from the treasury, have already been used for a major sewer line replacement project along Stratton Road, according to Town Manager Jon Frederick. (See story on Page 12.)

Of the $99,914 remaining, it is also anticipated to go to sewer lines, according to Frederick, though it has yet to be officially allocated.

Lyndeborough

According to Town Administrator Russ Boland, Lyndeborough has about $100,000 in ARPA funds left from the $181,322.47 the town received. About $56,000 of which went toward the engineering costs of upgrading and maintaining Glass Factory Road. Additionally, the town spent $25,000 on upgrading its accounting software.

Boland said that the remaining $100,000 could potentially be put toward installing high-speed fiber optic internet in Lyndeborough. However, the town is waiting to hear back from the state about a communications grant it may be able to use toward the project instead. If Lyndeborough receives the grant, Boland said the remainder of the ARPA funds will go toward road improvements.

Mason

Mason was awarded a $50,000 ARPA grant from the state Governor’s Office for Emergency Release and Recovery. Mason used these funds, in addition to $20,000 from the town’s vehicle capital expenditure account, to purchase a 2022 Ford Expedition to help respond to medical calls. Previously Mason’s volunteer emergency responders had to use their own vehicles to reach the site of a medical call. The new vehicle is fully equipped for medical response and can transport multiple first-responders and equipment to a location.

Additionally, the Mason Public Library applied for and received $1,158, which was used to purchase educational items like Positive Useful Participation packs, STEM kits, “Sprout” early learning backpacks and several new non-fiction books. The library hopes the supplies will support parents and their children’s healthy development. (See story on Page 12.)

New Ipswich

New Ipswich has fully allocated its $564,591.27 in ARPA funding, spread out over multiple projects across seven town departments, including new equipment for police, fire and emergency management.

The Fire Department received the largest chunk of funding, mainly for new radios, which cost $155,000. The department also received funding for a new generator for approximately $71,770.

Radios were also on the list for the Police Department, which received four portable radios and four mobile radios for its vehicles, at a total of $31,743. The department also received $44,606 for a generator and $4,941 ballistic plates and carriers.

Emergency Management received updates to the EMD office and communications tower, along with the communications tower on the town building known as Building No. 2, located behind the town offices. The updates totaled $144,269.

The town pool received a new filter and new drains, for a cost of $29,268.

The town allocated $25,000 for the development of the master plan, a comprehensive planning document which lays out the vision for the town’s future development.

About $1,000 was allocated for an electronic poll book, used for voter registration and check-ins.

Peterborough

Peterborough’s $700,000 in ARPA funds were designated for the fire station project. At Town Meeting 2024, 90% of voters approved a bond enabling the town to move ahead with construction of the project. 

Residents voted to raise and appropriate a total of $11.7 million for the project, with approximately $10.6 million to be raised through the issuance of bonds. The new station, which will be located on Elm Street, adjacent to the existing community center, will incorporate the existing Motor Pool building.

Rindge

Rindge has used the vast majority of its $724,789 allocation, but has about $89,000 left to allocate before the end of the year.

A small portion of the funding was used to compensate employees and vacation use, but the majority of the funds were used on vehicle and building upgrades. Many of the expenses were under the $10,000 mark, with the town spreading the funding across many smaller projects or expenses.

The most-expensive purchase made in Rindge was a new Department of Public Works truck, for which the town allocated up to $170,905 before ultimately spending $155,405 on a new vehicle.

The only other purchase to exceed $100,000 was purchasing new self-contained breathing apparatus, or SCBA, tanks for the Fire Department, which cost $148,760.

The Fire Department received funding for multiple projects, including a new shelter canopy, a replacement pump for one of the fire trucks, in-vehicle routers, heat for the department building, a barricade, water system repair and repairs to the garage doors.

The Police Department also received funds for multiple projects, including funding to send a cadet to the police academy, new Tasers, replacement mats for the cruisers and uniform replacements.

Funds were allocated for the town office, including new carpets, a major renovation to the town clerk/tax collector’s office, new software, a design for the replacement of the town office’s septic system and a credit card machine.

The town has not yet allocated about $89,000 in funding. During a recent meeting of the Select Board, Chair Karl Pruter indicated that Town Administrator Lori Rautiola should request from department heads a list of potential needs for the departments for the board to review, noting that most of the “wish list” items submitted by departments when the funds were first received have already been allocated.

Sharon

The Town of Sharon received $38,630 in ARPA funds, the least of any local town. The Select Board voted to use the funds to update the town’s emergency management communications equipment and to complete necessary culvert work on town roads. Town Administrator Debra Harling reported in June that the communications equipment has been fully updated and the culvert work is scheduled for later this year.

Temple

Temple received $148,868.00 in funds through ARPA, about $68,000 of which went to upgrading the Town Hall’s audiovisual system. This allows meetings to be streamed and recorded.

An additional $24,600 went to emergency roof repairs at Town Hall, and about $12,300 was spent installing a new well on the town common.

Finally, the town spent about $3,500 and $1,000 on a compressor for the Fire Department and a fireproof cabinet for the town office, respectively.

Until recently, Temple had about $3,000 in ARPA funds remaining. The Select Board allocated the remainder to the installation of omnidirectional microphones in the Town Hall on a recommendation from resident Steve Cullinan, the president of the Temple Drama Club.

Selectman Bill Ezell noted that clear audio and versatility of the microphone would benefit town and board meetings as well.

Wilton

Wilton received $396,669.08 in ARPA funds, $120,000 of which were committed to the extension of a town water main under the Wilton Public and Gregg Free Library, which is necessary to install sprinklers in the library’s basement, thereby bringing the space up to current fire code.

An approved $60,000 project to replace the control panels at the town’s sewer pump stations came in under budget and ended up costing about $39,000. The Select Board also approved $10,500 in ARPA funds to replace the roof at the Intervale Road sewer pump station, and $8,750 to replace a piece of the wet well in the Mill Street pump station. Additional funds were used to replace the sewer manhole covers on Main Street.

Once the funds dedicated to the library water main extension have been spent, Wilton will have about $62,000 left in ARPA money to allocate. The Select Board is in the process of deciding what projects to dedicate the remaining funds to. Potential options include the installation of a new radio repeater to improve communication for the DPW and Fire Department, repairs to the Town Hall roof, Town Hall accessibility upgrades, the development of a new Highway Department building, and the renovation of an information kiosk outside of the police station.

Local ARPA allocations

Antrim: $1,272,615

Jaffrey: $1,009,338.11

Rindge: $724,789     

Peterborough $700,000 

New Ipswich: $564,591.27

Wilton: $396,669.08

Dublin: $245,744.86

Greenville: $220,985

Greenfield: $196,000

Lyndeborough: $181,322.47

Hancock: $173,300

Francestown: $165,723.70

Bennington: $158,710 

Temple: $148,868.00

Mason: $51,158

Sharon: $38,630

Total: $5,523,655.49

Ashley Saari, Jesseca Timmons, Cameron Cashman and Bill Fonda contributed to this report.