GREENFIELD — Eight Franklin County towns and Athol in the North Quabbin region have received federal money to help low-to-moderate income residents obtain housing and social services.
The towns received a total of $4,195,667 through the state’s Community Development Block Grant program, which provides competitive funding that allows municipalities to pursue economic development projects, the Baker-Polito administration announced Tuesday.
Greenfield was awarded $825,000 for housing rehabilitation for nine apartments, infrastructure improvements on School Street, support for a local food pantry, and to bolster youth and elder services.
“The primary thing we’ll be doing is infrastructure on School Street in advance of the Senior Center completion” said M.J. Adams, the town’s grant coordinator. “We’ll be fixing major drainage issues and redoing the sidewalks there.”
Adams said the grant will allow the town to provide up to $35,000 in zero-percent interest loans for improvements to owner-occupied housing in the downtown neighborhoods, near Deerfield Street and north up to Silver Street.
It will also continue to support the Center for Self-Reliance, the nutrition outreach program run by the Senior Center, and Community Action’s Youth Employment program.
“We’re really grateful to get it, and we’re lucky we’re a mini-entitlement community, which means we get funding every year for the most part. That lets us do multi-year planning as long as we spend it well,” Adams said.
Montague got $816,825 to rehabilitate four housing units, improve lighting on Avenue A, and to provide youth leadership, family literacy and elder support services.
Walter Ramsey, the town’s planning director, said part of the money will be used to continue funding streetscape improvements in downtown Turners Falls, including the installation of LED streetlight between Fifth and Seventh Streets and in a nearby park.
The money will also support the local Meals on Wheels program, the Montague Catholic Social Ministry’s English as a Second Language program, and The Brick House’s teen programming.
“It’s our fifth year in a row getting the grant, which is a new precedent and huge honor for the town,” Ramsey said. “We’re pleased with the state’s continued devotion to the redevelopment of Turners Falls and Montague in general.”
Shelburne, Buckland and Colrain were awarded $961,382 for improvements to North Main Street in Buckland, to rehabilitate five housing units and to support a local food pantry.
Athol
In Athol, $593,022 will go toward infrastructure improvements on Grove and Main streets and the rehabilitation of five housing units.
Bernardston, Rowe and Gill will share $1 million to rehabilitate 18 units of housing and provide fuel assistance to residents.
Hugh Campbell, Bernardston’s town coordinator, said this is the second three-year block grant awarded to the town. “It’s the second time in a row Bernardston has been the lead on a community grant, and we’re glad to do it,” he said.
Campbell said the grant money will be managed by the town and administered by the Franklin Regional Housing Authority. It’ll be used to fix up properties with failing septic tanks or building code violations.
“This grant is a valuable resource to homeowners within Bernardston, Gill and Rowe to allow them the ability to bring their residences up to code, and it makes it affordable for them to do it,” Campbell said. “It provides the means to do something they otherwise would not be able to.”
“Our assistance to municipalities is most effective when it provides flexibility to directly support their established goals,” said Gov. Charlie Baker in a press release. “Community Development Block Grants provide for investment in wide-ranging improvements that will bring long-term, positive impacts in these communities.”
You can reach Tom Relihan at:
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