Chairman McGovern has submitted funding requests for important community projects in Massachusetts' Second District to the House Appropriations Committee.
Under guidelines issued by the Appropriations Committee, each Representative may request funding for up to 10 projects in their community for fiscal year 2022 – although only a handful may actually be funded. Projects are restricted to a limited number of federal funding streams, and only state and local governments and eligible non-profit entities are permitted to receive funding. Additional information on the reforms governing Community Project Funding is available here.
All requests submitted by Chairman McGovern to the House Appropriations Committee are posted below. In compliance with House Rules and Committee requirements, Chairman McGovern has certified that he, his spouse, and his immediate family have no financial interest in any of the projects he has requested.
Amount of Request: $1,000,000
Intended Recipient and Full Address: University of Massachusetts Amherst, 181 President’s Drive, Amherst, MA 01003
Explanation of Request: UMass Amherst’s College of Information and Computer Science (CICS) will expand its robotics program. Robotics is a key growth area in computer science, both in Massachusetts and across the country, and CICS is committed to increasing access for all students, including growing female enrollment from 27% in 2019 to at least 40% by 2024. As the Commonwealth of Massachusetts’ flagship public university, UMass Amherst is the leading source of new higher education graduates in the Massachusetts workforce and this investment will help meet public and private workforce needs in this growing sector.
Click here for a signed letter certifying that stating Chairman McGovern has no financial interest in the project.
Project Name: Worcester State University Early College Central Massachusetts Expansion
Amount of Request: $985,401
Intended Recipient and Full Address: Worcester State University, 486 Chandler Street, Worcester, MA 01602-2597
Explanation of Request: Early College Central Massachusetts (EC-CMass) will expand the benefits of early college to low-income high school students in the entire Central Massachusetts region from the current focal point in the City of Worcester. Participating students receive dual enrollment classes, student support services, and summer residential learning opportunities. In all, some 1,000 students will earn 3,000 college credits on their way to full enrollment. Students taking part in early college programs are enrolling in college at a rate 53% higher than their peers and they are persisting in college at higher rates as well, a strong indicator that they will complete their degrees on time. This project increases access, affordability and success for under-represented students at the college level. Click here for a signed letter certifying that Chairman McGovern has no financial interest in the project.
Project Name: Quinsigamond Community College Increasing Access to Post-Secondary Education and Workforce Training through the HyFlex Technology System
Amount of Request: $978,293.59
Intended Recipient and Full Address: Quinsigamond Community College, 670 W. Boylston Street, Worcester, MA 01606
Explanation of Request: Quinsigamond Community College (QCC) will increase access to post-secondary education and workforce training on behalf of residents of the City of Worcester, particularly underrepresented minorities and underserved populations who have been most affected by Covid-19 and its economic impacts. QCC will purchase HyFlex technology that will allow each class session to be offered in-person, synchronously online and asynchronously to improve student engagement, persistence and completion. HyFlex technology will also add dual enrollment, early college, and targeted workforce training in Worcester and other underserved neighboring towns. QCC students are typically first-generation and/or first-time freshman and come from racially diverse backgrounds who have been disproportionately affected by all aspects of the Covid-19 pandemic. This project expands QCC’s ability to support more students access, persist and complete their college educations to prepare them for the workforce. Click here for a signed letter certifying that Chairman McGovern has no financial interest in the project.
Project Name: CENTRO - Improving Health Equity and Outcomes in Worcester’s Communities of Color
Amount of Request: $975,000
Intended Recipient and Full Address: Centro Las Americas, Inc. (CENTRO), 11 Sycamore Street, Worcester, MA 01608
Explanation of Request: CENTRO is a long-standing, community-based, non-profit health and human services provider that delivers comprehensive culturally and linguistically appropriate health care services in the community or home setting to Worcester’s low-income, disadvantaged communities of color. With this funding, CENTRO will, for the first time, operate a state-of-the-art electronic health record platform that will provide CENTRO health professionals real-time connectivity to collaborate with acute-care providers and to allow for home-based monitoring of patients. This project expands the use of telehealth and health information technology to improve health care access and outcomes; control health care costs; and promote health equity among communities of color in Worcester. Click here for a signed letter certifying that Chairman McGovern has no financial interest in the project.
Project Name: Veterans Inc. Substance Use Disorder Treatment Prioritizing Veterans and Military Service Members
Amount of Request: $430,250
Intended Recipient and Full Address: Veterans Inc., 69 Grove Street, Worcester, MA 01605
Explanation of Request: Veterans Inc. is the largest provider of supportive services to veterans and their families in New England and the only licensed veteran-focused provider of substance addiction services. Veterans Inc. will establish a Level 4 Medically Managed Intensive Inpatient Services facility at its Independence Hall Treatment Center in Shrewsbury, Massachusetts. This site will provide access to a supervised detoxification service that will provide care when veterans and their families require it so they will not be placed on a deferred care waiting list. Research has shown that every dollar invested in a substance abuse center saves $4 in healthcare costs and $7 in law enforcement and criminal justice costs. Click here for a signed letter certifying that Chairman McGovern has no financial interest in the project.
Project Name: 33 Hawley Street
Amount of Request: $2,500,000
Intended Recipient and Full Address: Northampton Community Arts Trust, P.O. Box 366, Northampton, MA 01061
Explanation of Request: This project will complete the sleek and modern renovation of 33 Hawley Street, a previously underused, unattractive building on 1.5 acres in a less-developed eastern section of downtown Northampton, Massachusetts. Renovation is about 70% complete and the finished portions are leased and programmed by three established arts organizations which serves as portals to artists, arts groups, and others who use the affordable spaces. This request will complete the remaining 30% of the renovation, including a 3800 square foot black box theater, which will be the only such community performance venue in the region. Northampton has long been known for its arts and cultural resources. However, over the last decade or so, Northampton lost two of its prominent affordable venues for theater and dance. The Sustainable Northampton Comprehensive Plan 2008-2028 specifically recognizes arts and cultural resources as a vital part of the community, including 33 Hawley. The City of Northampton has already made two allocations of Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funds and has advocated for funding from the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The existing arts space at 33 Hawley has already become a key economic driver of Northampton’s cultural corridor with performances and events attracting visitors to the City and generating consumer spending at many small local businesses as well as enhancing the quality of life for local residents of all ages. Click here for a signed letter certifying that Chairman McGovern has no financial interest in the project.
Project Name: Renovation of the former Ionic Ave Boys’ Club into the Creative Hub Community Arts Center
Amount of Request: $300,000
Intended Recipient and Full Address: Creative Hub Worcester, Inc, 2 Ionic Ave, Worcester, MA 01610
Explanation of Request: This funding will close Creative Hub’s capital campaign so that construction can begin in winter of 2021-22. At completion, Creative Hub will be a multi-purpose arts center that will include artist studios, therapeutic arts classrooms, event space, and 88 new slots for subsidized childcare in Main South, an ethnically diverse neighborhood with one of the highest poverty rates in the City of Worcester. The former Boys’ Club at 2 Ionic Ave was once a vital community asset but has been vacant and deteriorating for 20 years. Its location is at an important crossroads, linking the burgeoning Cultural District of downtown Worcester and the Main South neighborhood. As this area continues to be revitalized, supporting the development of anchor cultural and community spaces that align with the City of Worcester’s Cultural Plan and providing essential services such as affordable childcare will be vital to overall vibrancy and sustainability. Click here for a signed letter certifying that Chairman McGovern has no financial interest in the project.
Project Name: LaunchSpace – Pleasant Street Elementary School Reutilization (Athol)
Amount of Request: $1,047, 542
Intended Recipient and Full Address: LaunchSpace Inc., 131 West Main Street, Suite 342, Orange, MA
Explanation of Request: This project brings a former elementary school building in Athol, Massachusetts to full functionality to support employment training by community colleges, business incubation, affordable childcare, a community kitchen, and self-sufficiency in food production and preparation. It is a vital part of economic development initiatives in the area. Once a bustling manufacturing area, Athol is located in a part of the Commonwealth that has seen large employers either shut down or leave the region. The median household income for Athol is 59.3% lower than similar towns and many workers need to refresh or learn new skills to be competitive in today’s job market. When completed, the site will support 15 new jobs; 30 immediate affordable childcare slots, with capacity for up to 60; and more than 400 students and workers will be able to take part in skills training programs through partnerships with two community colleges. Click here for a signed letter certifying that Chairman McGovern has no financial interest in the project.
Project Name: Worcester Regional Food Hub Union Station Fit-Out
Amount of Request: $2,200,000
Intended Recipient and Full Address: Worcester Area Business Education Foundation, 311 Main Street, Suite 200, Worcester, MA 01608
Explanation of Request: The Worcester Regional Food Hub will locate its permanent headquarters for its shared commercial kitchen and local food aggregation services at Union Station, chosen for its strategic proximity to relevant community landmarks and the region’s largest intermodal transportation hub. The project will build a new six-bay shared commercial kitchen with state-of-the-art equipment, a multipurpose events space, office space, and a walk-in cooler. To date, the Food Hub’s shared commercial kitchen space has served as an important business incubator for more than 86 startup food businesses, providing 24/7 access to professional-grade kitchen equipment as well as business management training and advising. It also plays a vital role in helping small farmers aggregate their products, allowing them to sell at market in the City of Worcester, something they may otherwise not have the resources to do. The “fit-out” at Union Station will exponentially expand the Food Hub’s capacity to incubate food business startups, host community events like pop-up markets, and aggregate healthy food products from local producers bring them to market in the City. Click here for a signed letter certifying that Chairman McGovern has no financial interest in the project.
Project Name: Spanish American Center Food Truck and Refrigerated Van
Amount of Request: $110,000
Intended Recipient and Full Address: Spanish American Center, Inc., 112 Spruce Street, Leominster, MA 01453
Explanation of Request: The Spanish American Center has been providing nutritious, ethnically familiar meals to the Latinx, low-income community of North Central Massachusetts for many years. The region has long experienced a high rate of food insecurity, which has been made worse by the Covid-19 pandemic. Funding will enable the Spanish American Center to purchase a food truck to bring hot meals to food desert areas in the far reaches of the North Central region of Worcester County. The Spanish American Center will also be able to purchase a refrigerated van to deliver cold meals to children participating in summer and afterschool programs in the area. In the fall of 2020, the Spanish American Center received partial funding for the refrigerated van from a grant from the Massachusetts Food Security Infrastructure Program. Click here for a signed letter certifying that Chairman McGovern has no financial interest in the project.
