Grants & Projects

MERRIMAC — The Town of Merrimac, Department of Public Works, and Select Board Chair Christopher Manni are pleased to share that Merrimac has been awarded three grants totaling $1,365,000 by the Commonwealth’s Community One Stop Grant Program.

The Community One Stop Grant Program, which was created in 2021 to help cities and towns across the state improve infrastructure and road transit safety, has granted 306 of the state’s 351 municipalities over 1,500 awards totaling more than $750 million.

Merrimac has received at least one grant from the program in each year of its operation. You can find information on grants awarded to the town on its grant page here.

The first of the awards is a $50,000 grant as part of the Real Estate Services Technical Assistance Program to support the Coastal Metals Site Readiness project. Merrimac will use the funding to develop concept plans for affordable housing areas at two locations in town, 2 Littles Court, a former planting facility, and 28 School St., the former location of the Town’s Senior Center. The Town owns both properties and intends to sell them together for affordable housing development.

The second and third grants of $1 million and $350,000 will be used to improve infrastructure around town.

The $1 million grant, awarded as part of the MassWorks program, will be used by the Town to replace the failed Mill Street culvert over Cobblers Brook and reopen the portion of Mill Street to reconnect to the Town’s wastewater treatment facility and light and power department. The Town will construct a new bridge approximately 100 feet north of the existing bridge, while the existing culvert will be removed.

The $315,000 grant, awarded as part of the Rural Development Fund, will be utilized by the Town to replace a six-inch water main at the intersection of Liberty Street and Mechanic Street with a larger eight inch water main. The increase in size will allow for enhanced water flow and better quality for an area of town that is anticipated to have substantial growth and demand for water supply in the coming years.

“The Town of Merrimac will benefit greatly from this funding, which will allow for necessary upgrades to our infrastructure, and will allow us to start the planning process for creating affordable housing opportunities in Merrimac,” said Select Board Chair Manni. “We would like to thank Robert Sinibaldi, DPW Director, Denise McClure, Town Planner and Alyssa Sexton, Administrative Coordinator, as well as the Healey-Driscoll Administration for its support in these projects.”

Georgetown Fire Chief Matt McKay, Groveland Fire Chief Robert Valentine, Merrimac Fire Chief Larry Fisher, and Amesbury Fire Chief James Nolan are pleased to share that the Georgetown, Groveland, Merrimac, and Amesbury Fire Departments received a joint federal assistance grant for equipment. 

The four fire departments received a joint grant of $614,728 from the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) Assistance to Firefighters Grant program.

The funding will be used to purchase equipment such as portable radios and accessories including microphones, batteries, and chargers. The new equipment will replace old or failing radios. The decision was made to purchase the radios based on the needs of the communities. 

The new portable radios will be able to receive and transmit communications on multiple radio bands where older technologies could only operate on one, making interoperability with inter-agency and mutual aid partners more accessible. They also offer the newest technology and security features, which are imperative for critical incidents. The portable radios are vital to firefighting operations and the safety of firefighters and the community at large. 

As part of the grant funding program, each community is responsible for providing a 10 percent match toward their share of the equipment cost. 

The joint grant application was written by Amesbury Deputy Fire Chief Rob Serino and Georgetown Fire Lt. Brian Belfiore. 

About FEMA Assistance to Firefighters Grants

Assistance to Firefighters Grants is allocated to fire departments nationally to fund and aid the firefighting and emergency response needs of fire departments and non-affiliated emergency medical service organizations. These federal grants help firefighters and other first responders obtain critically needed equipment, protective gear, emergency vehicles, training, and other resources necessary for protecting the public and emergency personnel from fire and related hazards. 

For more information about FEMA Assistance to Firefighter Grants, click here.