The Iowa City City Council will vote on allocating nearly $1 million from the city’s American Rescue Plan Act funds to CommUnity Crisis Services and Food Bank on Tuesday evening.

Iowa City will be using some of the $18 million from The Coronavirus State and Local Fiscal Recovery Fund that was awarded to the city to expand the CommUnity Crisis Services’ Mobile Crisis Outreach Program.

“The City Council signaled their support for several initiatives, including expansion of our local mobile crisis service to improve response time and consistency in service,” Rachel Kilburg, Iowa City’s Assistant City manager wrote in a report included in the council’s agenda for the Feb. 15 meeting.

The $939,082 will go toward three Mobile Crisis Outreach counselors, eight vehicles, and a remodel of the food bank.

“We have already seen the benefits of mobile crisis outreach in Iowa City, and this expansion will help more people, adults and youth, more quickly,” Iowa City Councilor Laura Bergus wrote in an email to The Daily Iowan.

The council’s decision to fund CommUnity Crisis Services and Food Bank may come after a public hearing of staff expenditure recommendations on Sept. 7, 2021.

“MCO [Mobile Crisis Outreach] responds to and provides services for any youth or adult experiencing a mental health crisis presenting in need of emotional support in Iowa City and throughout Johnson and Iowa Counties,” Kilburg wrote. “70 percent of all MCO responses occur within Iowa City limits.”