Finance committee approves $197,850 planning grant to study city intersections

The Holyoke Finance Committee on Sept. 8 voted to accept a revised FY2023 Safe Streets and Roads for All planning grant worth $197,850 that will fund a citywide study of intersections, committee members and staff said. Councilor Gibner, sitting in for Chair Councilor Devine, put the item before the committee and members voted to send it to the full City Council for final approval.

City staff said the grant is strictly for planning work and does not include funds to build or implement changes. Aaron Vega, a staff member, said, “this is a planning grant. So this would look at all the different intersections throughout the city, and come up with recommendations. Obviously, there's no implementation funds for this, so this is just the planning grant.”

The study will let an engineering firm inventory intersections across the city, analyze crash and other data, and conduct community outreach to identify short-term, low-cost safety fixes and longer-term projects, Vega said. He said the city will advertise an RFP through the purchasing office to hire the consultant after council approval.

The total grant award and matching breakdown presented to the committee was $197,850, with local funds of $24,570 and an in-kind match of $15,000; staff time will serve as the in-kind portion, Vega said. Vega said part of the cash match will come from a remaining Smart Growth fund balance; he estimated about $82,000 remained in that account but said he would confirm the exact balance in writing.

Councilors asked how the study would relate to large state projects. Councilor Jardine raised the West Franklin and Beach Street rotary proposal and whether the new plan could reprioritize funds. Mira (last name not provided), a city staff member, said the planning effort will produce a prioritized list with estimated costs so local priorities are clear. Councilor Gibner told residents that some large intersection projects are selected and funded by MassDOT and not always driven by local requests.

The committee heard that the city’s planning and engineering staff will support the consultant, including GIS mapping and stakeholder interviews. The grant carries reporting requirements that a detailed report be submitted to the City Clerk within 60 days after a grant’s conclusion, per the language read by the committee.

The committee approved taking the item off the table and voted “Aye” to send the grant acceptance and related accounting setup to the full City Council.

The grant was originally tabled Aug. 11, 2025; the engineering department and the mayor’s office will coordinate procurement and reporting if the full council approves the acceptance.