In honor of Veterans Day, the Middleton VFW (William 'Sonny' Simon Post 8216) has lined major roads in the city with flags, as seen here on Century Avenue.
City budget: ARPA, not IRA, for NOAH after all
At a special budget meeting with public hearing on Thursday, November 10, the Middleton City Council reversed course on a decision made by the Finance Committee the week before, namely to cut $150,000 in ARPA (American Rescue Plan Act) funds earmarked to be spent in 2024 on an energy efficiency/solar energy project in 'naturally occurring affordable housing' (NOAH), specifically, to upgrade the energy infrastructure and appliances in an older apartment building on Maywood Avenue. The NOAH project has been allocated a total of $450,000 in federal ARPA funds to be spent over three years (2022 to 2024). The $150,000 would have been used to reduce capital borrowing in the 2023 budget to $4.6 million from $4.75, and eventually been restored through federal IRA (Inflation Reduction Act) funds that the City is supposed to receive sometime next year, probably. (See Middleton e-View 239 for details.) The $150,000 switch from ARPA to capital borrowing fund was made unanimously by the Finance Committee at the behest of Kathy Olson (District 1) after a long discussion (the other members of the Finance Committee are chair Lisa Janairo - District 6, Emily Kuhn - District 4, and Dan Ramsey - District 7).