MassDevelopment describes Brownfields Redevelopment Fund, Rolling Round grants and OneTop awards

David Braftoft, senior vice president for community investment at MassDevelopment, explained the agency's two main funding buckets to help communities assess and remediate brownfields: OneTop for Growth (competitive, municipal-focused) and Rolling Round (grants for nonprofits, CDCs and municipalities with near-shovel-ready projects).

Braftoft said the Rolling Round program received $20 million in 2024; roughly $7.6 million has been awarded and about $11.3 million remained available at the time of presentation. He described OneTop parameters (site assessment up to $100,000 and up to $400,000 for remediation in that program year) and Rolling Round parameters (site assessment up to $250,000 and remediation up to $750,000 per site), and emphasized that applicants must have site control and an LSP to propose a scope of services.

Use cases and restrictions: MassDevelopment noted funds are intended for projects that advance public benefit (tax base, affordable housing, jobs) and that some activities are ineligible through the brownfields program (e.g., demolition except through site readiness, new municipal facilities like schools or police stations, routine geotechnical surveys). Braftoft said funds are typically awarded when other financing is in place and projects are near-shovel-ready.

Next steps: Braftoft encouraged municipalities and nonprofit developers to monitor OneTop announcement timelines and to contact MassDevelopment for application advice; he said OneTop recommendations were being finalized and announcements were expected later in September or early October.