MEDWAY — Today, Lt. Governor Karyn Polito and Undersecretary of Community Development Ashley Stolba were joined by state and local official to announce a $300,000 MassWorks Infrastructure Program grant to the Town of Medway. This is Medway's first MassWorks grant and together with a $250,000 Housing Choice award, it will support the construction of 2,400 feet of sidewalk that will connect a housing development on West Street with Main Street and ultimately Medway Center. The housing development, known as Glen Brook Way, is a six-acre, $31 million project that will provide 92 new unit of housing at full buildout. The development will consist of apartments that range from one to three bedrooms; all units will be available to individuals who earn up to 60 percent of the Area Median Income. Construction of Glen Brook Way is being led by Metro West Collaborative and is supported by Medway’s commitment of $2 million in funding from the Community Preservation Act.   In addition to sidewalks, Medway’s MassWorks grant will support the widening of West Street to accommodate sidewalk construction, relocation of utility poles, guardrail replacement, and curbing. The project will also realign the intersection of West Street and Beech Street. The sidewalk design is based on the engineering, survey, and design work that was funded through a $40,000 Housing Choice Capital grant awarded to Medway last year.   “The results of Medway’s application to the One Stop is proof of the new program’s success for communities seeking to capitalize on opportunities to support locally driven plans for economic development,” said Governor Charlie Baker. “Through the MassWorks program, Medway can continue supporting a range of initiatives ranging from concept to construction and we look forward to seeing their progress.”   "Congratulations to Medway on receiving their first MassWorks award and for taking full advantage of the One Stop’s offerings,” said Lt. Governor Karyn Polito. “Through infrastructure investments like this, we can improve safety, enhance connectivity, and strengthen the connection between Medway’s downtown and major housing developments like Glen Brook Way.”   The MassWorks award was made through the Community One Stop for Growth platform, a single application portal and collaborative review process of grant programs launched in January 2021 that make targeted investments based on a development continuum.   Including Medway’s $300,000 MassWorks grant, the Town’s application to the One Stop program resulted in awards from five programs totaling $710,000 for projects that span that continuum.   As noted, Medway is receiving a $250,000 Housing Choice grant that will also support the West Street sidewalk construction.   In addition, Medway is using a $20,000 Predevelopment Grant, a first-year program, to survey and design a future replacement of a substandard sidewalk along the north side of Main Street (Route 109) from Richard Road to Lee Lane. The future project, which will result in safer pedestrian access to the 39 Main Street affordable housing development, will also complete the sidewalk connection from Medway’s Central Business District, town parks, Medway’s Council on Aging, and the Town of Millis.   Medway is also the recipient of a $100,000 Site Readiness Grant to fund components of the Oak Grove Urban Renewal Area project including: title work, appraisals, and surveying, which are required to move forward with the acquisition of additional land parcels in support of Medway’s Urban Renewal Plan.   For its fifth award from this year’s One Stop, Medway will use a $40,000 Urban Agenda Grant to produce a Business Resource Guide that will assist entrepreneurs in establishing new businesses, support existing businesses seeking to grow and expand.   “We created the One Stop to offer access to a wide variety of programs through a single, streamlined process that ensures that valuable funds can be directed more effectively, to more communities, in less time,” said Housing and Economic Development Secretary Mike Kennealy.  “The One Stop gives communities the opportunity to work collaboratively with us, to pursue multiple projects simultaneously and to meet their economic development goals.  Medway has demonstrated how communities can be creative with grant funding to maximize the impact of their investments in public infrastructure.  While the first year of the One Stop has shown tremendous promise, the demand for our programs demonstrates that we can do more.”   “As designed, the One Stop enhances access to important resources and programs, which in turn allows communities to better overcome traditional barriers to economic and community development initiatives,” said Undersecretary of Community Development Ashley Stolba. “I want to congratulate Medway on their awards, and look forward to many more communities replicating their success in the future.”   “Walkable sidewalks are tremendously important in planning for towns that are integrated, environmentally-sustainable and prosperous communities - the kinds of places where we want to live,” said Massachusetts Senate President Karen E. Spilka. “These MassWorks grants will result in new infrastructure that, once finished, will quickly and easily connect residents of affordable housing with businesses and neighbors in surrounding areas. I applaud the town of Medway for its continued work in advancing this vision during a period of growth.”   “The town of Medway should be commended for working with the state to leverage resources to create a pedestrian-friendly part of the community that will connect directly to the center of Medway,” said Representative Brian Murray. “This not only enhances the living experience for residents, but serves to reduce traffic in the town and increase economic development at the same time.”

"Helping to fill a critical need for affordable housing in the Town of Medway, the Glen Brook Way housing development offers 92 affordable housing units. Thanks to Metro West Collaborative Development, the Commonwealth, and the Town, the units in Phase 1 are now rentable.  In addition, the Town is thrilled to have received a MassWorks grant, which is adding two new amenities for our residents: the construction of a much-needed sidewalk and road improvements providing safer pedestrian access and walkability to Glen Brook Way," said Maryjane White, Medway Select Board chair.  "The MassWorks funding is critical to delivering this infrastructure to support the Glen Brook Way development.  Lastly, the Town is highly appreciative of the support from the Governor and Lt. Governor in helping to make this project a reality." 

In One Stop’s inaugural round, the Executive Office of Housing and Economic Development received 267 Expressions of Interest from 178 communities through the new, simplified process. For this year’s awards, 196 grant applications received a total of $88.7 million for projects in 122 communities. Of the 196 projects awarded, nearly one-third were located in a rural or small town, half were located in a Housing Choice Community; and one-third were located in a Gateway City.   Learn more about the programs that are part of the Community One Stop for Growth application process.   MassWorks, a competitive program that offers cities and towns flexible capital funding to support and accelerate housing production and job growth, is the largest program among the One Stop portfolio. This year, the administration is awarding 56 grants from the infrastructure program – the largest number of awards in a single year in six years – totaling $66.5 million to 50 communities. Among this year’s MassWorks’ projects, 29 are reactivating underutilized sites, 27 are supporting transit-oriented developments, 29 have a mixed-use component. Additionally, 14 communities are receiving their first ever MassWorks award.   Including this year’s round, the Baker-Polito Administration has awarded 326 MassWorks grants to 181 communities, investing over $608 million in public infrastructure projects throughout the state. These grants have directly supported the creation of 21,000 new housing units, tens of thousands of construction and new permanent jobs, while also leveraging over $13 billion in private investment.   The full list of this year’s MassWorks grant recipients can be found here.

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