Small businesses, courthouse benefit from COVID spending

Webster County received $6.9 million

When the brunt of the coronavirus pandemic hit the U.S. in spring 2020 and beyond, federal lawmakers enacted bills with plump programs to direct money to a host of entities to keep schools, colleges and businesses functioning as best as possible.

That resulted in a host of money going to government entities to determine in pinpointed fashion where the funds would do the most good.

In the Fort Dodge area, that meant the Webster County Board of Supervisors chose to channel money to the big needs in public health and mom and pop businesses.

Looking back to assess how things went with the federal influx of $6.9 million, Supervisor Mark Campbell, who was chairman of the Board of Supervisors during the worst of the pandemic, said he feels very good about the processes that resulted in the money going to more than 60 projects.

"The Board of Supervisors worked incredibly well with the public," he said. "We were incredibly transparent. We aggressively went after aiding private businesses and public health."

Webster County Auditor Doreen Pliner provided a recap of the finances related to the federal money that came from the American Rescue Plan Act. Pliner agreed with Campbell that a lot of deserving businesses used the process put in place to get grants ranging from a few thousand dollars on up, with many at $10,000 each.

Businesses in every town in Webster County received money from the grants, such as Hummingbird Confections in Callender, Ole Town Road Pub & Eatery in Gowrie, and a few places in Dayton, including the popular annual rodeo.

Campbell said a key rationale was to try, where possible, to continue to have public events such as the Dayton Labor Day Rodeo, with money directed to ways to introduce social distancing. The rodeo received $100,000 for seating changes.

"We still wanted to hold outdoor events and get people spaced out," Campbell said.

Several entities in Fort Dodge received money. In addition to several businesses, the Webster County Courthouse received funds for what Campbell said is a much-needed heating and air conditioning modernization.

That courthouse HVAC project will get the biggest spending portion of the $6.9 million, including chunks so far of $414,000 and $910,000.

Additionally, Campbell and Pliner said the county supervisors have decided that the last of the remaining unspent money, roughly $2.5 million, will go to the HVAC project in the courthouse. Altogether, nearly $4 million will be spent on the courthouse HVAC project.