Baltimore City Jobs Get More ARRA Funding

Another round of federal funding is helping to create more Baltimore city jobs. Visit http://baltimore.jobing.com to learn more.

The Baltimore City Council's Board of Estimates recently approved $11.8 million in funding from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. That money is slated to go toward projects and community groups throughout the city that have been most impacted by the current economic recession.

Specifically, the funding will help create jobs, improve infrastructure and enhance the quality of services provided throughout Baltimore communities.

"The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act is helping people throughout Baltimore with much needed resources in this difficult economic time," Mayor Sheila Dixon said. "I am grateful for the efforts of the Baltimore Economic Recovery Team for organizing, managing and facilitating the process of identifying and acquiring these funds."

The $11.8 million will be split up as follows:
$6.5 million will be used to reconstruct the Argonne Drive Bridge over Herring Run.
$2.5 million will go toward water conservation projects in city buildings.
$1.4 million will cover federally mandated Head Start program improvements, including employee wage increases.

Another $874,360 will go toward Community Service Block Grant contracts, which serve people with incomes at or below 200 percent of the federal poverty level. That funding will include:
$45,000 for the Women’s Housing Coalition to provide seven of its clients with training through the Red Cross CNA certification program. The organization also will provide five of its clients with training through the Civic Works B'More Program.

$54,360 for Action in Maturity, Inc. to provide transportation services to low-income senior citizens living in public senior housing buildings and HUD-financed private senior apartments in Baltimore.

$120,000 for Harbor City Services Inc. to establish the Business Growth and Equipment Upgrade to increase employment and training of their target workforce. Services will include training in furniture repair to five new hires and 15 existing employees.

$125,000 for the Coalition to End Childhood Lead Poisoning to provide resident education and environmental assessments of properties for 75 clients.

$120,000 for the Job Opportunities Task Force to provide on-the-job training to JumpStart pre-apprenticeship trainees in the complete renovation of the Rose Street Community Center.

$120,000 for the Caroline Center to provide occupational skills to approximately 100 unemployed women working as pharmacy technicians, Certified Nursing Assistants or in culinary arts and food services.

$290,000 for People Encouraging People to deploy one outreach worker from its Outreach Services Program for each of the six community action centers to provide services to make the centers more accessible, available, appropriate and effective in meeting the needs of the low-income families for self-determination, self-sufficiency and housing opportunities.