GREENFIELD — The Ways and Means Committee voted unanimously to recommend that Mayor Ginny Desorgher restore internet provider GCET’s budget “as close as possible” to its original $1,035,000 in American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds.

The vote followed a lengthy conversation between Desorgher, the Ways and Means Committee and GCET General Manager John Lunt on Tuesday after Desorgher pulled roughly $305,000 from the provider’s ARPA budget last month. Desorgher later said she pulled the funds due to concerns with GCET’s progress, or lack thereof, since former Mayor Roxann Wedegartner first allocated the funds in 2021.

Between fiscal years 2021 and 2023, GCET initially claimed that the ARPA funding could provide coverage to more than 97% of the city, connecting more than 1,500 homes on more than 52 streets in north and south Greenfield as well as downtown. Desorgher also referenced a list of Lunt’s responses to her questions regarding GCET’s progress, in which he wrote that the most recent area served by GCET was Deerfield Street in 2021.

“They said with this $1 million they would be able to do this within 18 to 24 months — it’s been over three years, and not one of those streets is connected yet,” Desorgher said in an Oct. 3 interview. “My job is oversight. I want [GCET] to succeed and I want this to happen, but if I gave somebody $1 million to pave the street in ’21 and now it’s ’24 and the street wasn’t paved, I’d have to ask what happened to the million.”

GCET (Greenfield Community Energy and Technology) is working toward completion of its North Build, a project that aims to bring service to the Bernardston Road, Colrain Road, Meadow Lane and Green River Road areas as well as the area of Leyden and Country Club roads. Lunt said GCET still lacks a significant portion of the funds needed for “make-ready” — the modification or replacement of a utility pole, or of lines or equipment on the utility pole, to accommodate additional facilities — through the North Build.

Speaking before Desorgher and the committee to make GCET’s case for extra bond funding to accommodate for the company’s reduced ARPA budget, Lunt explained that make-ready costs have increased dramatically since 2021, creating an unforeseen challenge. He noted that GCET must pay “legacy,” or previously spent make-ready costs, and without the ARPA funds — which he said had been previously “allocated and encumbered” to GCET — the provider might have to pull the plug on the project.

“Without handling the legacy make-ready, the North Build, in some ways, is moot, because if we have to either pay bills that we can’t pay or we have to get off the poles,” Lunt said. “If we get off the poles in the core, there will be no GCET in the North Build. If we have to get off poles, there just won’t be GCET forever.”

GCET and city officials later discussed the broader financial implications expected from the city’s continued support of the provider. Lunt maintained that the service expansion through the city will make GCET more financially independent as it serves a wider customer pool, noting that the company is searching for alternative streams of revenue. At-Large Councilor John Garrett suggested that the city consider acquiring the poles through eminent domain — an option that he said might save GCET time and money throughout the make-ready process.

Desorgher and Finance Director Stella Chan both questioned Lunt on GCET’s capital and operational spending, expressing hesitation to restore funding to the service provider given the unexpected expenses and lack of progress. Desorgher later said that although the allocation of ARPA funds is solely her responsibility, she wanted the Ways and Means Committee’s input and support.

“We have 17 of the 18 license applications left [for the poles], each of which I think will cost approximately $55,000 apiece,” Desorgher said. “That’s a huge liability for the city. We’re talking about a legacy, and I understand why it’s needed, but we actually have to talk about the facts and what this is going to cost if this is the will of everyone.”

Before the committee voted unanimously to recommend that Desorgher restore the ARPA funds, Chan also requested that GCET provide the city with projected future expenses to the best of their abilities so that city officials can plan ahead in the funding process.

In general discussions over the costs associated with GCET, Precinct 8 City Councilor Lora Wondolowski and At-Large Councilor Michael Terounzo both agreed that although GCET’s mission to bring affordable high-speed internet to the city has cost Greenfield roughly one-fifth of its ARPA funding, it will be a game-changer for residents.

“We have to put ourselves back in the pandemic when this money came and there were a lot of haves and have-nots,” Wondolowski said. “Internet access is vital infrastructure. It’s what’s going to bring business to this town.”

Anthony Cammalleri can be reached at acammalleri@recorder.com or 413-930-4429.