The Baker-Polito Administration awarded Municipal Vulnerability Preparedness Program grants to local communities on Wednesday, Feb. 5 at the New Bedford State Pier. (Photo Courtesy Town of Acton)
FEBRUARY 7, 2020
ACTON -- Town Manager John Mangiaratti is pleased to announce that the Town of Acton was awarded a state grant to support climate change resilience.
The town was awarded a $112,500 grant through the Municipal Vulnerability Preparedness (MVP) Program to subsidize the 53 River Street Dam Removal. The grant will provide the funds necessary to advance the engineering and begin the permitting process for the dam removal and stream restoration.
Funds from the grant will also be used for the abatement and selective demolition of the 1957 cinder block industrial building that was erected following the burning of the old mill buildings in 1951. The Town of Acton acquired the 7.26-acre property at 53 River St. from Lazaro Paving in 2017.
Removing the dam will allow the town space to develop a riverside park which will highlight Acton’s industrial past.
"We look forward to beginning the process of removing the river street dam, which will allow us to move towards our goal of reusing the former industrial site for an open space recreation amenity," said Town Manager Mangiaratti. "We’re grateful to the Baker-Polito Administration for awarding these grant funds in support of our initiative."
The program is an effort by Governor Charlie Baker’s administration to provide communities with funding and technical support to identify climate hazards, develop strategies to improve resilience and implement priority actions to adapt to climate change.
MVP Action Grants fund projects that are focused on proactive strategies to address climate change impacts and may include retrofitting and adapting infrastructure, detailed vulnerability assessments or design and engineering studies, stormwater upgrades, dam retrofits and removals, culvert upgrades, drought mitigation, actions to protect environmental justice communities and improve public health, energy resilience, mosquito control initiatives and implementing nature-based solutions such as wetland restoration and floodplain protection.
Governor Charlie Baker and Lt. Governor Karyn Polito presented the grant to Selectman Dean Charter, Town Manager John Mangiaratti, Land Use and Economic Development Director Matthew Selby and Director of Intergovernmental Affairs Austin Cyganiewicz at a ceremony on Wednesday, Feb. 5 in New Bedford. Acton was one of the 52 communities that received a total of $10,545,996 in grants to integrate hazard mitigation priorities with forward-looking climate change data and solutions.
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