Town to apply for two infrastructure grants

Aug 19, 2020

The town will be applying for two MassWorks infrastructure grants this year to improve the roads and utilities in the industrial parks and to add a sewer line beneath Glen Charlie Road.

MassWorks is a competitive grant program run by the state that funds infrastructure projects with the goal of supporting new housing or business development. MassWorks grants cover about 95 percent of the proposed projects’ costs, leaving the rest to the town. 

Town Administrator Derek Sullivan said at Tuesday night’s Board of Selectmen meeting that the state has received fewer applications than usual this year, meaning the town’s chances of success are higher.

The first project would improve the roads and utilities in the town’s industrial parks, located on Patterson Brook Road, Kendrick Road, Little Brook Road, and Thacher Road, and would hopefully make the industrial parks a more appealing location for businesses.

That grant request is for just over $3.5 million, with the remaining $120,000 to be paid by the town if the grant is received. 

The second project for which the town is requesting funding would add a sewer line under Glen Charlie Road and improve the drainage and quality of the road itself. The project would stretch from the Exit 2 off-ramp to Douglas Road, a distance of about 2.4 miles.

The sewer line would not initially be connected to the town’s treatment plant or to any homes or businesses, but is instead meant to a first step towards supporting future development. That development could be the proposed Wareham Park racetrack and casino or some other development. 

“It’s just laying groundwork for future development,” said Town Administrator Derek Sullivan.

That project would cost roughly $2.5 to $3 million dollars in total.