Youngstown Law Director, Jeff Limbian has sent a letter to Youngstown Third Ward Councilwoman, Samantha Turner along with Youngstown CityScape Executive Director, Sharon Letson on Tuesday accusing them of "disturbingly inappropriate expenditures" of ARP funds.

The letter alleges that between January and March of 2023, ARP funds were used to pay for a trip to Washington to lobby Congress members; a violation of the Byrd Anti-Lobbying Amendment.

"The meetings with Congressional representatives and staffers was inappropriate and not keeping with the city's goals of correct ARP expenditures," the letter reads.

Additionally, Limbian accuses the two of using a total of $425.44 in ARP funds to pay for dinners at local restaurants with some of which including alcohol purchases.

Limbian went on to state that ARP funds have allegedly been used for grant writing to secure even more money.

"All such expenditures are not allowable and must be repaid by your organization and not with ARP funds," Limbian said.

Limbian went on to reference companies involved in the recently-discussed Belmont Corridor project, which Turner and Letson are both involved in as well.

"Councilwoman Turner's involvement in Youngstown CityScape's review and selection of requests for qualification and the selection of Milestone Consultants ... and City Architecture is not a legislative function and crosses the line of administrative functioning of the city and must be discouraged," the letter reads.

Limbian tells 21 News this alleged inappropriate spending was brought to light when the Law Department received a quarterly report of funds spent between January 1, 2023 and March 31, 2023. 21 News has obtained a copy of this report.

The quarterly report from Youngstown CityScape shows invoices for multiple restaurants including a $290.61 bill for Prima Cucina and a $134.83 bill for Avalon Downtown.

It also shows a $313 bill for the Airbnb in Washington and $67.96 for "various vendors" in Washington with a description of "travel and meals."

Additionally, three consulting bills appear including two for KO Consulting LLC for $260 and $4,555 respectively and one for Milestone Partners & Associates for $11,295.06.

The report confirms that the consulting bills were all connected to the Belmont Corridor improvement project and the trip to Washington was done in order to promote the project for federal earmark funding.

The full quarterly report can be read below.

For now, both Turner and Letson have been ordered not to spend any more ARP funds until a complete review is done, with Limbian stating that it appears federal laws have been violated.

"The Airbnb in Washington, the consulting firms, various vendors in Washington and the excessive CityScape administrative fees are all suspect and must be analyzed more in depth and will require more review," the letter reads.

The Law Department will be handling the investigation, but Limbian says it's too early to determine if any other outside organizations will be involved in the investigation process as well.

Limbian's letter can be read in its entirety below.

In response to the accusation, Sharon Letson released an official statement that reads: 

"This is in response to the letter I received today, August 1, 2023 at 12:06 p.m. via email from Jeff Limbian, Director of Law, City of Youngstown. 

Cityscape did not knowingly use any funds improperly. ARP funding guideline are new and untested, and we will take all necessary steps to calrify the process. 

It is significant to note that no one from the City of Youngstown has ever reached out to me or our staff to attempt to clarify or resolve any issues. 

For 26 years we have been a loyal partner to the city, and have worked tirelessly to improve and revitalize our community. We are preparing to respond to the letter and resolve any outstanding questions. For 26 years, our reputation has been impeccable, and we intend to ensure it remains so."

Samantha Turner released a statement that reads:

The American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) has been a once-in-a-lifetime influx of funds into the City of Youngstown. As such, I have worked tirelessly as a Member of the Council and repeatedly asked for guidelines and instructions for ARPA spending from the Administration. I was a no vote on the $2 million councilmember allocations for this reason; without policies andrules from the law department, non-profit organizations would be left with the burden of
interpreting a 700-plus page law.

Youngstown Cityscape has been utterly transparent throughout this entire process. I met with the City of Youngstown Chief of Staff, Nikki Posterli, before presenting the information to the ARPA committee on June 28, 2023. Furthermore, this quarterly report was voluntary as the administration has issued no guidelines requesting such an action.

Since the day of the ARPA committee meeting, there has yet to be any correspondence from the administration to CityScape or myself stating issues with their use of funds. Moreover, the administration and the ARPA committee have had all 3rd Ward ARPA requests, and I offered the proposed expenditures, process, budget, and reporting guidelines. Upon reviewing that information, legislation was passed, and the administration made the first payment to CityScape.

Regarding the first quarter of ARPA spending, I am confident CityScape would work with the administration to make corrections if the administration had any perceived issues. The letter dated July 17th, received today, took all involved by surprise because we have all been transparently working for the betterment of the community.

If something were misspent, I would have hoped the Administration would bring it to the organization’s attention and ask for clarification rather than send what appears to be a politically motivated letter. However, I will work with the United States Treasury to ensure that we meet the required laws, and I look forward to providing additional information in the future.