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Delivers Funding from 12 State Grant Programs, Including $100 Million in MassWorks Grants.
Today, Governor Charlie Baker, Lt. Governor Karyn Polito, Undersecretary of Community Development Ashley Stolba and MassDevelopment President and CEO Dan Rivera were joined by state and local officials in Pittsfield to announce more than $143 million in grant awards to support 337 local economic development projects in 169 communities. The grant awards were made through Community One Stop for Growth, a single application portal that provides a streamlined, collaborative review process of 12 state grant programs that fund economic development projects related to community capacity building, planning and zoning, site preparation, building construction and infrastructure. MassWorks is the largest program in the One Stop portfolio and is awarding $100 million in grant awards this year.
Through this round of the One Stop, the Executive Office of Housing and Economic Development received 523 applications from 207 communities representing every region of the Commonwealth. Of the 337 applications awarded, 31% are located in a rural or small town; 32% are located in a Gateway City; and 43% are located in a Housing Choice Community. This investment is expected to directly support the creation of 6,950 new housing units across the Commonwealth, including 5,068 new market-rate units and 1,882 new affordable units.
“Since taking office, we have been proud to make significant investments in helping our cities, towns and local partners achieve their economic development goals through a range of grant programs and legislation aimed at advancing the diverse needs of municipalities across the state,” said Governor Charlie Baker. “The projects awarded funding today build upon that work and will create jobs, build housing, revitalize spaces and empower communities in every region of the Commonwealth.”
“Our administration has made partnering with cities and towns and fostering relationships with local leaders a priority, and through the One Stop we’ve been able to streamline their process of applying for grant programs while making the Commonwealth an active partner in local economic development strategy,” said Lt. Governor Karyn Polito. “From small towns to Gateway Cities, the programs in One Stop, like MassWorks, are delivering funding to meet the unique needs and priorities of our individual communities.”
FY23 Community One Stop for Growth programs include:
• MassWorks Infrastructure Program – $100 million awarded to 63 projects
• Underutilized Properties Program – $21,683,685 awarded to 49 projects
• Rural and Small Town Development Fund – $4,958,995 awarded to 25 projects
• Housing Choice Community Grants – $3,913,384 awarded to 36 projects
• Site Readiness Program – $2,856,150 awarded to 12 projects
• Urban Agenda – $2,654,370 awarded to 31 projects
• Brownfields Redevelopment Fund – $2,612,740 awarded to 13 projects
• Community Planning Grants – $2,386,800 awarded to 40 projects
• Collaborative Workspace Program – $1,197,000 awarded to 39 projects
• Commonwealth Places – $385,663 awarded to 12 projects
• Massachusetts Downtown Initiative – $350,000 awarded to 14 projects
• Real Estate Services Technical Assistance – $250,000 awarded to 7 projects
For New Bedford:
• Discovery Language Academy Inc: Collaborative Workspace Program, $25,000. The award funds will complement the previously received Collaborative Workspace Grant of $50,000 to complete the HUB128 @ Discovery Economic Development Hub. The funding will enable the completion of the project to support the opening of HUB128 in fall 2022. Specific items will include furniture and finalizing the build-out.
• SouthCoast LGBTQ Network Inc: Collaborative Workspace Program, $100,000. The award funds will be used towards building out a commercial kitchen in a historic building at 60 Eighth Street in downtown New Bedford.
The full list of grants can be found here.
“From project inception to getting shovels in the ground, the One Stop is delivering resources from multiple state programs to support economic development initiatives in our communities at every stage,” said Housing and Economic Development Secretary Mike Kennealy. “I appreciate the hard work of our teams at the Executive Office of Housing and Economic Development, Department of Housing and Community Development, and MassDevelopment, who engaged with communities to identify projects in 169 cities and towns that will have a meaningful impact on local economic growth.”
“The One Stop’s single application portal and collaborative review process helps us ensure we take a wide-angle lens in directing funding to communities of all sizes and across all regions,” said Undersecretary of Community Development Ashley Stolba. “This round we were proud to fund about 60-70% of all applications that were submitted in a region, and every region received more awards and more funding than last year.”
MassWorks, one of the state’s largest competitive grant programs, offers cities and towns flexible capital funding to support and accelerate housing production and job growth. This year, the administration is awarding 63 grants from the infrastructure program – the largest number of awards in a single round since the program’s inception in 2011 – totaling $100 million to 60 communities. Among this year’s MassWorks’ projects, 39 are reactivating underutilized sites, 31 are supporting transit-oriented developments, and 30 have a mixed-use component. Additionally, 17 communities are receiving their first ever MassWorks award.
Including this year’s round, the Baker-Polito Administration has awarded 391 MassWorks grants to 197 communities, investing over $709 million in public infrastructure projects throughout the state. These grants have directly supported the creation of over 26,000 new housing units and tens of thousands of construction and new permanent jobs, while also leveraging approximately $17 billion in private investment.
“Congratulations to all of the cities and towns who have received One-Stop Awards this year, we are thrilled to support a variety of excellent local projects across the Commonwealth to promote new housing development, downtown revitalization, and other important economic development efforts,” said Housing and Community Development Undersecretary Jennifer Maddox. “The One-Stop Application Process provides communities an opportunity to access multiple state resources at once, and we are excited to see cities and towns leverage these high-impact programs to spur new growth and economic activity.”
“The awards announced today represent an investment that will reverberate in communities across Massachusetts for years to come,” said MassDevelopment President and CEO Dan Rivera. “MassDevelopment is grateful to the Baker-Polito Administration for its continued support of these programs, which help communities revitalize vacant sites, build mixed-use facilities, stimulate local and regional economies, and help municipalities plan for the future.”
“MassWorks grants are an important driver for economic development throughout the Commonwealth. I’d like to acknowledge how critical this funding will be for the many worthwhile projects awarded this round and hope that we can fund more in the future to ensure our economic vitality at the local and state level.” said Senate President Karen E. Spilka.
“As Speaker, I’m always proud of the meaningful impact that the Legislature’s economic development appropriations have on the communities that we serve,” said House Speaker Ronald J. Mariano. “It’s our responsibility as elected officials to make investments that will spur the development of new housing and improve critical infrastructure, all while creating jobs in the process. I’m thrilled that Quincy, Weymouth, and Holbrook are receiving state support, and I look forward to seeing these ever-important local projects come to life.”
The announcement was made at the Berkshire Innovation Center in the City of Pittsfield. The Pittsfield community is receiving more than $3.6 million in awards through the One Stop process, including:
• $3 million MassWorks award to the Pittsfield Economic Development Authority to convert 16.5 blighted acres of a former GE transformer property into greenspace, roadways, utility corridors, and stormwater management.
• $525,000 Underutilized Properties Program award to Allegrone Companies to restore the nationally listed Wright Building.
• $55,122 Urban Agenda award to Blackshires Community Empowerment Foundation Corp., a cohort-based leadership program for Black community members in Pittsfield.
• $15,000 Collaborative Workspace Program award to Berkshire Innovation Center to fund a feasibility study to expand the organization’s coworking environment.
• $15,000 Collaborative Workspace Program award to Berkshire Black Economic Council for feasibility work needed to create a collaborative workspace for underserved Black-owned small businesses and entrepreneurs in Berkshire County.
