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Massachusetts awards roughly $161–162 million in One Stop housing and economic development grants in Worcester
Summary
State leaders gathered in Worcester to announce One Stop and Housing Works grant awards aimed at infrastructure, housing and downtown revitalization; officials said the program will fund about 300+ projects across roughly 171 communities and highlighted a Greendale site remediation project unlocked by $2.8 million in state funding.
State officials on stage in Worcester announced this week that the administration is directing roughly $161–162 million in One Stop/Housing Works grants to support community-led infrastructure, housing and economic development projects across the Commonwealth.
Governor Maura Healey said the awards were designed to back projects “from the community leaders and planners who know their communities best,” and described the grants as investments in fundamentals that enable later growth. “We—re on offense,” she said.
The lieutenant governor, Kim Driscoll, said the program was competitive: “This year, we received 756 applications,” she said, adding that 510 unique municipalities or organizations submitted proposals across 229 communities and that 171 communities would receive funds. Driscoll said 40 of the awardees had not previously received a One Stop grant.
Economic Development Secretary Yvonne Howe framed the awards as part of the administration—s "Team Massachusetts" plan and said the state was investing about $161,000,000 in the current round of awards. Housing and Livable Communities Secretary Ed Augustus noted the housing focus and said Housing Works grants would go to 12 communities to support or preserve housing; the numeric figure spoken in the remarks appears garbled in the transcript and could not be verified from the record.
Local officials and development partners described specific projects the funds will support. Craig Blaze, introduced as president and CEO of the Worcester Business Development Corporation, described the Greendale revitalization: he said a $2.8 million state contribution unlocked $2,800,000 in federal funds and about $51,000,000 in private investment to prepare a 51-acre brownfield site for redevelopment. Blaze highlighted environmental measures, saying crews are using rail cars to remove demolition debris (reducing truck traffic) and that over 90% of materials are being recycled.
City Manager Eric Bautista thanked the administration and the delegation and said the city looks forward to turning the announced awards into groundbreakings and ribbon cuttings.
Officials closed the event by inviting award recipients to join a group photo and by signaling continued local implementation work.
Note on figures: officials quoted slightly different totals during remarks (one speaker said $161,000,000 while another referenced $162,000,000); one spoken housing-unit number in the transcript ("22100 units") appears unclear or garbled and could not be independently verified from the audio/text available in the record.
