All of the neighborhood councils that are being awarded are located within the Qualified Census Tracks (QCT). Those neighborhood councils receiving funding are:
Neighborhood | Amount Awarded | Designation |
Upper Hill Residents Council | $872,100 | Pedestrian Improvements and Tree Planting Upper Hill |
Upper Hill Residents Council | $550,000 | Adams Park Upgrades Upper Hill |
Old Hill Neighborhood Council | $441,743.90 | Pedestrian Improvements and Tree Planting Located within QCT Old Hill |
Hungry Hill Neighborhood Council | $336,730.48 | Pedestrian Enhancements, Tree Planting, Public Internet and Safety for Seniors at Senior Center Hungry Hill / Liberty Heights |
Commonwealth Mural Collaborative | $50,000 | Support New Light Festival Downtown to enhance tourism Located within QCT Metro Center |
Armoury Quadrangle Civic Association | $19,500 | Traffic Study for Pedestrian Improvements at Dwight Street and Frank B. Murray Street outside Union Station Downtown |
Upper Hill Residents Council will receive funding to support improvements to Adams Park which will include playscape, gazebo, walkway and parking upgrades. The Neighborhood Council will also receive funding to enhance pedestrian safety and tree planting along Wilbraham Road from Waltham Ave to Roosevelt Ave.
Old Hill Neighborhood Council will receive funding to support pedestrian safety and tree planting along Hancock Street, Oak Street, Union Street and Walnut Street.
Hungry Hill Neighborhood Council will receive funding to support pedestrian safety and tree planting along Liberty Street, Carew Street and Armory Street. Funding will also support public internet accessibility and public safety for seniors at the Hungry Hill Senior Center on Liberty Street.
Commonwealth Mural Collaborative will receive funding to support a new Light Festival in downtown Springfield that will enhance the tourism industry by supporting and activating public spaces in a QCT, provide outdoor recreational opportunity to support and promote covid prevention and education as part of festival programming improved health outcomes for residents, to support and provide foot traffic to assist downtown businesses in recovering from the pandemic and to prevent additional vacancy and job loss. This builds off of our very successful city mural program.
Armoury Quadrangle Civic Association will receive funding to support pedestrian enhancements and traffic study for intersection improvements at Dwight Street and Frank B. Murray Street outside of Union Station.
“I am proud to say that this ninth round of our local ARPA grant funding for our neighborhoods, as part of my administrations Neighborhood Economic Recovery Fund, will help to enhance the quality of life and public safety aspects for our residents and business community,” said Mayor Sarno. “Our neighborhoods play such a vital and important role, serving as an extra pair of eyes and ears for our citizens and helping to connect them with key services and resources. All of our neighborhood councils do such a tremendous job supporting our community and my dedicated city team is looking forward to working with them to see these projects and initiatives through.”
“I am proud of my administrations continued efforts to commit our local ARPA funding that will enhance the quality of life in our neighborhoods. Chief Development Officer Tim Sheehan and I are looking forward to announcing additional neighborhood projects and initiatives in the future as we work with all of our neighborhood councils on their special projects,” Mayor Sarno continued.
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To date, this 9th round of ARPA funding brings the total amount that has been awarded and/or allocated to approximately $91 million.
Mayor Sarno remains proud of the fact that he is the only mayor in the state and one of the few in the nation to put forth such a comprehensive and all-encompassing initiative to get local federal ARPA funding directly into the community.
“My dedicated finance and economic development team have been very thorough, doing their due diligence throughout this process. Together, we have met with almost all of our local neighborhood councils, as part of my administrations citywide listening tour, to hear directly from them what their needs are to help enhance the quality of life and aesthetics of our neighborhoods – much like what was done with many of the post-2011 tornado economic and neighborhood development projects and initiatives. It is important to mention that most of these projects will take time to get underway, designed and implemented. We must remain cognizant of the fact that we still need to complete these projects and initiatives within a certain timeframe to meet all of the federal requirements for committing and allocating our local ARPA funding,” said Mayor Sarno.
It is important to note that the city of Springfield remains on target to meet the federal requirements to have all ARPA funding committed by 2024 and allocated by 2026.
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In closing, Mayor Sarno stated that the city is coming to the tail end of our local ARPA funding. He is hopeful that the State will follow Springfield’s lead and commit the billions of dollars of ARPA funding the Commonwealth has to our local municipalities and communities ASAP. When and if they do, the dedicated city finance and eco dev team can review more city needs and requests.
The City of Springfield received $123.8 million in ARPA funding as part of the $350 billion federal American Rescue Plan Act designated for direct aid to state, local and tribal governments. After meeting with over 30 neighborhood councils and other organizations as part of Mayor Sarno’s citywide listening sessions to hear directly from our residents and the business community, Mayor Sarno identified seven categories in which RFP’s will be utilized to enhance projects, programs and initiatives across the city for the betterment of our residents and businesses. They include: Nonprofit Assistance, New Business Assistance, Small Business Assistance, Senior Citizen Assistance, Neighborhood/Household Assistance, Capital Projects/Public Space Improvements, and Job Creation/Economic Development.
