Two Harrisburg residents with deep ties to the city but no technical experience in affordable housing helped decide who would get $8 million in federal affordable housing grants.

The recipients of the money from the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) are expected to be announced during an 11 a.m. news conference Wednesday.

The two-person “independent committee,” initially intended to have three members, was handpicked by Mayor Wanda Williams. They selected 13 recipients from 26 applications.

The private and fast selection process has raised questions from experts who say it doesn’t match best practices for spending public money.

Experts say the city’s short, three-week application window significantly limited who could apply.

Also, in most local governments, city council is usually invol

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