AMHERST — A construction project that will make it easier for residents to get from the apartment complexes on East Hadley Road to the renovated Groff Park, and the site of the town’s first spray park, could depend on funding from the Community Development Block Grant.
The CDBG Advisory Committee next month will begin reviewing three projects, totaling $712,888, along with $302,766 in requests from eight agencies and nonprofits, that were submitted by Monday’s deadline.
The $825,000 block grant, which allows $123,750 to be used for grant administration, comes to Amherst after the town was again designated a mini-entitlement community by the Massachusetts Department of Housing and Community Development due to its “high statistical indication of need, poverty rate and size.”
The CDBG Advisory Committee meets Jan. 15 to prioritize spending and Jan. 30 to get feedback at a public hearing. All spending recommended has to be submitted to the state department by Feb. 28.
The most money requested is the $480,000 to extend an 8- to 10-foot wide path along Mill Lane to Groff Park by widening the existing sidewalk and paving a new portion of it.
In the proposal, Assistant Town Manager David Ziomek writes that the path will benefit nearly 2,000 moderate- and low-income residents at apartment complexes: “The goal is to have a continuous multi-use path on East Hadley Road and along Mill Lane that brings residents from the East Hadley Road neighborhood to Groff Park and public transit.”
The town sought $225,000 for the project in the last round, but the committee only recommended an identical amount for a similar pedestrian and bicycle project on East Hadley Road.
The Amherst Housing Authority is asking for $200,888 to replace sheathing and fix water infiltration issues at Watson Farms, 693 Main St. That complex received $111,250 earlier this year in the last CDBG round. When the project is complete, it will benefit 45 individuals living in 15 apartments.
Valley Community Development Corp. is seeking $32,000 for its microenterprise assistance program that could benefit 32 Amherst individuals with technical assistance for businesses with five or fewer employees.
ValleyCDC earlier this year got $200,000 related to predevelopment costs for 28 units of affordable housing on Northampton Rad. The microenterprise assistance program has been a project funded in Northampton in the past.
For social services, $56,650 is being sought by the Amherst Survival Center for its pantry and boost program, $50,000 is being requested by both Amherst Community Connections for homeless services and Family Outreach of Amherst for a community housing support program, with $40,000 asked by Big Brothers Big Sisters of Hampshire County for a youth mentorship program it partners with the Amherst Family Center on.
Other requests include $35,000 from the Amherst Boys and Girls Club, $30,000 from The Literacy Project, $30,000 from the Center for New Americans and $11,116 from the English as a Second Language program at Jones Library.
All but the Jones Library put in requests last year and all were funded at varying amounts, except for Amherst Community Connections and the Boys and Girls Club. The committee is limited to providing money to five agencies.
Scott Merzbach can be reached at smerzbach@gazettenet.com.
