Baker-Polito Administration Announces
$5.3 million in MassWorks Infrastructure Awards to Five Rural Towns
Grant will support road and culvert work in Western Massachusetts towns of Cummington, Hinsdale, Middlefield, New Marlborough and Williamsburg
WILLIAMSBURG –The Baker-Polito Administration announced MassWorks Infrastructure Program grants totaling $5.3 million to five Western Massachusetts towns. Assistant Secretary for Communities and Programs Juan Vega joined Senator Adam Hinds, Representative Smitty Pignatelli, Representative Natalie Blais, Williamsburg Town Administrator Charlene Nardi, Cummington Selectboard Chair Bill Adams, Hinsdale Select Board Chairwoman Vivian Mason, Middlefield Selectboard Chair David DiNicola, New Marlborough SelectBoard Member Richard Long, Sandisfield Board of Selectmen Chair Mark Newman, and other local officials at the Williamsburg Town Offices to present the awards that will assist Cummington, Hinsdale, Middlefield, New Marlborough and Williamsburg with road and culvert projects.
“MassWorks is a valuable program that maximizes return on investment for capital funding, delivering vital infrastructure repairs that improve public safety while stimulating local and private development, job growth and housing production,” said Governor Charlie Baker. “We will continue to collaborate closely with local leaders to identify opportunities and target public resources toward the growth and wellbeing of communities across the Commonwealth.”
“As former municipal leaders, Governor Baker and I know firsthand the value of flexible grant programs like MassWorks, which help communities make targeted enhancements and provide opportunities for economic development,” said Lt. Governor Karyn Polito. “Today’s awards to Cummington, Hinsdale, Middlefield, New Marlborough and Williamsburg will accelerate much needed roadwork and culvert repairs, making these Western Massachusetts towns safer for residents and visitors, and enhancing response times for local first responders.”
“This administration recognizes the importance of reliable, modern infrastructure to the safety and success of communities of all sizes,” said Housing and Economic Development Secretary Mike Kennealy. “MassWorks is intentionally designed to be flexible to the varying challenges and opportunities faced by the Commonwealth’s diverse cities and towns, and this set aside for our smaller communities gives them the resources to make critical roadway upgrades.”
“I’m thrilled the state money is going towards these important infrastructure projects, including the upgrades to the Rte. 57 Transportation Corridor, repairs to Old Dalton Road in Hinsdale used not only by commuters, but emergency vehicles, reconstruction of road on Rte. 112 to address safety issues related to flooding, needed repairs along the Skyline Trail in Middlefield, and funds to replace a collapsing culvert in Williamsburg,” said Senator Adam Hinds. “These repairs are much needed and will improve the safety and accessibility of roads that connects many of the towns in my district to important services.”
- The Town of Williamsburgreceived a $350,000 MassWorks award to replace a five-foot culvert on Depot Road. The project will alleviate flooding and related structural decay and meet the Commonwealth’s river and stream crossing standards. Work will include the realignment of Depot Road, which is the primary access for first responders in the northeast section of Williamsburg. The existing culvert has collapsed, forming a 3-foot by 10-foot sink hole in the roadway. Flooding occurs in this area regularly during heavy precipitation as a result of the culvert’s collapse.
“These significant infrastructure investments will go a long way in these 1st Franklin District communities,” said Representative Natalie Blais. “I am grateful to the Baker Administration for recognizing the need and the Commonwealth for providing this assistance.”
“The award of the Massworks (STRAP) grant to the Town of Williamsburg is so welcome. We have an undersized culvert which is deteriorating and causing the road to collapse. This grant will allow us to address the problem; and to keep Depot Road, an important emergency access route, connector route, and detour road open. The Massworks grant program and other awards are vital to small towns, and make a big difference in our ability to address infrastructure,” said Williamsburg Select Board Chairwoman Denise Banister.
- TheTown of Cummington will reconstruct a 1.5-mile stretch of Route 112 made possible through a $1 million MassWorks award. The project will divert water off Route 112 and into engineered catch basins. The route is prone to flooding, which impedes traffic and causes unsafe conditions. Storms often force emergency response teams to detour up to three miles when traveling to Hilltown Health Center in Worthington as well as medical facilities in both Pittsfield and Northampton. Cummington will also leverage $400,000 in Chapter 90 funds to complete the project.
“Cummington is most appreciative of the Office of Housing and Economic Development’s support for the restoration and much needed resurfacing of 1.5 miles of Rte. 112 from the historic Bryant Homestead to the iconic Creamery at the intersection of Rte. 9,” said Cummington Select Board Chairman Bill Adams. “Once completed, this project will greatly improve overall traffic flow and access by emergency services to safely attend to residents of not only Cummington, but our neighbors in and around the hilltowns as well. This is clearly an exciting project that would not have happened if it were not for this timely grant.”
- The Town of Hinsdalewill use its first MassWorks award, a grant of $1 million, to repair a 1.6-mile stretch of Old Dalton Road between Routes 8 and 143. The town will also open the tree canopy, replace a collapsing culvert to mitigate potential flooding, install guardrails, and improve safety signage. The road is a major route used by emergency personnel, students, senior citizens and commuters. The failing roadway has been identified as a high crash corridor after 20 crashes in the last five years. This project leverages $250,000 in funds from Hinsdale’s Road Reserve Fund.
“The MassWorks program is an important tool that is available for our small towns to obtain much needed support for important but difficult to fund projects like this one. Congratulations to the people of Hinsdale on being awarded this $1 million MassWorks Grant and thank you to Secretary Kennealy and the administration for their collaborative partnership,” said Representative Paul Mark. “As a regular traveler on Old Dalton Road I know firsthand that these repairs are much needed and that this road is extremely important to our community.”
“This MassWorks Grant is a huge boost for Hinsdale! This grant makes it possible for us to reconstruct one of our Town’s most highly traveled roads — used not only by Hinsdale residents but by many of our Hilltown neighbors,” said Hinsdale Select Board Chairwoman Vivian Mason.
- The Town of Middlefield, also receiving the town’s first MassWorks award, will utilize a $1 million grant to repair Skyline Trail, which is considered the town’s major access route. Skyline Trail is the primary roadway for mutual aid and emergency response for five neighboring towns, and is heavily used by commuters and students accessing regional schools. The project will include repairs from the Chester to Peru town lines, and includes the repair of four catch basins, the cleaning of 15 catch basins, the reclamation of 1.5 inches of asphalt from the road surface, repainting of recessed traffic lines and the replacement of missing or damaged traffic signs.
“With a population of 500, Middlefield would never be able to undertake the reclamation and resurfacing of Skyline Trail with town funds. We would like to thank the Baker Administration and the Office of Housing & Economic Development for their support to make this project a reality,” said Middlefield Select Board Chairman Dave DiNicola
- Finally, the Town of New Marlboroughwill put a $2 million MassWorks grant, in coordination with the Town of Sandisfield, towards much needed improvements to Route 57. The failing roadway is a vital connection between the two towns as well as Tolland, Granville and Great Barrington to the west, Springfield to the east, and Bradley International Airport to the south. Roadwork includes 4.7 miles of deteriorated surface at the intersection of Route 183 in New Marlborough to the intersection of New Hartford Road in Sandisfield. The work will be equally divided between the two towns. The project includes major rehabilitation and safety improvements, drainage system repairs including cross pipes and structures, reestablishing existing drainage swales, and pavement markings and signs.
“Route 57’s deteriorating culverts have been an issue in the towns of New Marlborough and Sandisfield for a number of years now. I am thrilled to see this MassWorks Grant funding be approved for repairs to this major rural roadway, bridging New Marlborough, Sandisfield, Tolland and Granville to Great Barrington and Springfield,” said Representative Smitty Pignatelli. “These $2 million will be a great boost for the area’s local tourism and will go a long way in ensuring the safe and proper transportation for school buses and emergency vehicles. I’m grateful to Secretary Kennealy and the entire Baker-Polito Administration for supporting this work and MassWorks Grants in general. These grants have truly proven themselves to be a lifeblood for the smaller, rural communities of the west that I represent.”
“State Route 57 is a key east-west route running through southern Berkshire and Hampden counties. It is vitally important for emergency response, commercial and tourist traffic and local, inter-town transit,” said New Marlborough Selectman Richard Long. “Thanks to a $2 million award from the Commonwealth’s Massworks Infrastructure Program, the Berkshire towns of New Marlborough and Sandisfield will jointly be able to do a full-depth rehabilitation of approximately 4.7 miles of critically-deteriorated roadway, thus preserving safety and economic activity in the area.”
“This MassWorks Grant is the first step in bringing Transformative Development to our small community through rebuilding our infrastructure,” said Mark Newman, Chairman, Sandisfield Board of Selectmen. “Sandisfield looks forward to a collaborative effort along with Senator Hinds, Representative Pignatelli, and the Baker-Polito Administration in rebuilding the entire length of route 57 through our town in the very near future.”
The MassWorks Infrastructure Program awards grants to municipalities for public infrastructure projects that generate additional private sector investment. Each year, the MassWorks program allocates 10 percent of awarded funds to assist municipalities with populations of 7,000 or less in completing roadway safety projects. In addition today’s awards, grants were announced earlier this month to Hopedale, Gosnold, and West Newbury.
Today’s announcement marks the final grant awards of the 2019 MassWorks round, which saw the Baker-Polito Administration award more than $72 million in MassWorks awards to a diverse mix of 36 projects in 35 communities across the Commonwealth, including nine Gateway Cities and eight communities receiving MassWorks funding for the first time. The awards will unlock a total of $2.3 billion in private investment and more than 4,600 new full-time jobs, along with more than 3,100 new housing units, more than a third of which are affordable, building on the Administration’s efforts to tackle the ongoing housing shortage through complementary programs like historic funding for affordable housing and the proposed Housing Choice legislation. The transformative projects funded by the 2019 awards were selected from 92 applications, totaling $223 million in requests.
Since 2015, the Baker-Polito Administration has awarded more than $456 million in MassWorks grants to support 219 shovel-ready projects in 141 communities. MassWorks funding has leveraged over $9.2B in private investments and made possible the creation of more than 14,000 new housing units and tens of thousands of construction and permanent jobs.
Governor Baker signed economic development legislation in August 2018 that included substantial new funding for municipalities, including another $250 million for MassWorks awards. The legislation built on the Baker-Polito Administration’s work to partner with communities to catalyze economic development and create new opportunities for residents across the Commonwealth, including the 2016 Job Creation and Workforce Development act, which authorized $1 billion to support economic development efforts across the state, including a $500 million authorization for the MassWorks Infrastructure Program, enhanced tools and the introduction of new strategies for job-readiness efforts.
Learn more about MassWorks here.