Page 11 - BusinessWest January 10, 2022

Mayor John Vieau says public safety and public health have been priorities of his first term.
pany that lent assistance when Chicopee ambu- lances were busy. The success of the pilot pro- gram will result in Chicopee adding a new ambu- lance along with the new fire pumper trucks that had been ordered.
“Just like with the police, we want to make sure our Fire Department has the tools they need to keep themselves and our city safe,” Vieau said.
Part of public safety includes fighting the
spread of COVID-19. Chi- copee received 15,000 rapid test kits from the state and has been distributing them to residents in low-income areas and at the senior center.
“Our message remains the same — we believe everyone should get vacci- nated,” Vieau said.
Supporting Businesses
Keeping Chicopee busi- nesses healthy also remains a priority. Through the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act, more than 70 business- es received support. Julie Copoulos, executive director of the Chicopee Chamber of Commerce, said her orga-
nization helped small-business owners receive more than a half-million dollars in grant money during the pandemic.
“For us, it meant coming back to our core mission of supporting businesses and enhancing the economic climate,” Copoulos said. “Many of the small-business grants went to minority- and women-owned businesses.”
The city will also receive $38 million through the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA). Vieau has formed a committee to determine how to use that money in a way that will have a long-term
impact for taxpayers in Chicopee.
“I have a smart group of people who are look-
ing into the best way to use the ARPA funds,” he said. “We’ve also surveyed residents for their ideas on how to spend the money.”
Vieau wants to proceed with caution on how to use these one-time funds because it would be easy to spend it all in one place.
“For us, it meant coming back to our core mission of supporting businesses and enhancing the economic climate.”
“I could target one infrastructure project
and use all that money and more,” he said. “For example, the wastewater treatment plant needs upgrades to keep up with current pollution stan- dards, and that project alone will cost around $50 million.”
For bigger projects like this, Vieau is hopeful about Chicopee’s prospects for funding through the recently passed federal infrastructure deal. “I’m going to fight for as much of that infrastruc- ture money as we can get,” he said.
In the meantime, the mayor shared with BusinessWest an important development regard- ing the former Uniroyal site. After more than a decade of investing millions of dollars in hazard- ous-waste cleanup at the site, by this spring, the city will begin looking for potential new owners
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