A growing number of Berwyn residents are questioning the City of Berwyn’s plans for the $31.9M in American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds it received.
According to the Brooking Institution’s ARPA Investment Tracker, the national average being spent on public safety is 2.3%. The City of Berwyn has allocated 10 times that amount to the Berwyn Police and Fire Departments.
A comparison with other Illinois municipalities, most notably nearby Oak Park, which received $38.9M in ARPA funds, revealed that Berwyn involved no community input into their process of determining how to allocate the funds.
Check out the comparison chart above and an overview of Cook County‘s ARPA funds to the right. Then read more below about how the controversy over Berwyn’s ARPA plan unfolded.