Funds For New YWCA Of Greenwich Program Left Out Of American Rescue Plan Budget

GREENWICH, CT — Funds for a new sexual assault services program at the YWCA of Greenwich were left out of the proposed spending plan for American Rescue Plan money this week.

Greenwich is expected to receive $31.4 million, and Greenwich Public Schools are scheduled to receive $9.6 million as part of the funding.

The funds are being dispersed in two tranches. The first increment was received in June 2021, and the second increment will be received in a few months.

The funds are to be used and allocated throughout the community to revitalize and support programs, initiatives and organizations that have been impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.

An advisory committee was formed to ensure the funds fall within the U.S. Treasury guidelines and to develop priorities and recommendations to the Greenwich Board of Estimate and Taxation and the Representative Town Meeting for the use of funds.

The YWCA requested $156,055 for a new sexual assault services program, and $130,000 was reccomended. Ultimately, when crafting final recommendations for the nonprofit organizations, the money was deleted.

A hybrid virtual/in-person public hearing on the ARP funding was held on Monday at Town Hall.

YWCA of Greenwich President and CEO Mary Lee Kiernan urged First Selectman Fred Camillo to restore the funds for the program.

"It is hard to understand why you have cut the proposed ARP funding to launch sexual assault services," Kiernan said. "There is certainly enough funding available."

Kiernan pointed out that Camilo added approximately $333,000 to the pot of ARP funding for the nonprofit sector last week, and another $10 million is going to the town's general fund "for unspecified purposes."

"Elimination of the sexual assault services funding runs counter to the criteria of ARP funding, which seeks to strengthen every community's response to crises like the pandemic. This cut ignores a critical gap in human services that are not available locally," Kiernan added.

Camillo defended his decision to leave the funding out.

"The town has been a partner with the YWCA for a long time, and has given the YWCA a lot of money over the years and continues to do so," he said. "This, combined with the $175,000 you're already getting [in the municipal budget], was getting close to a quarter of a million dollars. That stuck out to me, that stuck out to a lot of people who did the grading here."

Camillo said the allocation to nonprofits was "both fair and representative of what the town's needs are."

"We can get $100 million, and still not be where we want to be. I made the decision to go where I think it was balanced and fair to everybody," he said.

Several other speakers from the YWCA spoke in favor of restoring the funds.

Rosie Enyart, violence prevention coordinator for the YWCA of Greenwich's Domestic Abuse Services, said the funding would allow the organization to build a service that's not currently available to victims of sexual violence in Greenwich.

"With this seed funding, the YWCA can build local and easily accessible long-term clinical counseling services for victims of sexual violence in Greenwich, particulalry children and young adults," she said.

On Tuesday, the Board of Estimate and Taxation Budget Committee reviewed the ARP budget.

A motion to restore $150,000 to fund the program was put forward by committee member and Democratic caucus leader Leslie Moriarty, but it was voted down by a vote of 2-2.

Camillo reiterated his comments from Monday.

"If it was up to me, I would've spent more on sewers, because you're talking about things that are impacting people the most. What's impacted people the most over the past two years? People have been devastated by flooding," he said. "None of us got everything we wanted."

Moriarty and fellow committee member Laura Erickson voted yes on the motion, and committee chair Leslie Tarkington and member Nisha Arora voted no.

Moriarty said the new program would benefit residents.

"I've talked about how we can use this money for transformational change, and that particular program would really add a new service and address an area that cannot be provided currently in the town," she said.

Erickson agreed.

"I do think this $150,000 could be directed to a very critical program that's not met by our partner agency in Stamford," she said.

The regular BET is now set to discuss the full slate of allocations during their regularly scheduled meeting on Thursday at 6:30 p.m. BET Chair Dan Ozizmir said Tuesday the board would reconvene to discuss more and take action on the entire spending plan during a special meeting on March 29 at 9 a.m.

The funding would then go to the Representative Town Meeting for final approval.

During the public hearing earlier this week, several leaders of nonprofits thanked Camillo and the ARRP advisory committee for their support.

David Rabin, President and CEO of the Greenwich United Way, thanked Camillo for appropriating $100,000 to help with adolescent and youth mental illness, a problem exacerbated by the pandemic.

"The funding for this intensive outpatient program is something that doens't exist right now, and it certainly will go a long way in addressing the need for youth and adolescent mental health," he said.

Donna Spellman, executive director for River House Adult Day Center in Greenwich, also praised Camillo for including $100,000 to help with general operating expenses. She said it was a "vote of confidence" in the services River House provides.

"In truth, during the pandemic, we were at about a $300,000 loss in income," she said. " I'm elated... we have been rebuilding, and doing everything we can to meet the needs of our frail seniors in the town of Greenwich."

For more information on ARP funding for Greenwich, go to the town's website.