Absolutely! Revising Land Use regulations for climate is a great match for our Accelerating Climate Resiliency Grant program.

This project could be either a one-year or two-year project. Grant funding supporting costs associated with the land acquisition such as due diligence, title, survey/engineering, etc., would qualify as a one-year grant. If the grant award was toward capital for the purchase of the land, then this qualifies as a two-year grant.

Yes! We encourage municipalities to work with consultants and provide assistance where applicable for their resilience projects.

Your goals do sound like a good match to the grant program. We encourage you to work with your municipal partners to apply for a grant as municipalities are the eligible applicants. We strongly encourage partnerships with community-based organizations and the grant funds can be used to support the organization’s work on the project.

Yes, agriculture, food security, and local farm programs are all projects that qualify and MAPC is prioritizing projects that support climate justice populations which includes low-income individuals.

Full question: In Essex, we have been working to elevate two low spots that flood on tidal surges. This is on the only other road connecting the Town north-south and the main road, Route 133 floods even before the alternate floods.  If we elevate just those two spots, the rest of the road is way above flood.  We have been working with DER on a culvert replacement design (in the first low spot).  Does this program support design and construction for infrastructure, with the tie in to the ecological improvement that will meet Mass crossing standards?

Answer: Infrastructure resilience projects are definitely applicable for the grant program. Incorporating nature-based resilience solutions in conjunction with hard resiliency improvements will make your proposal more competitive.

Full question: There doesn't seem to be an obvious place for social resilience in the priorities.  We have a possible project to propose that would involve building greater social capital or social connectedness.  If the project doesn't fit a priority, will it be rated lower? I see social resiliency is in the priority areas, it's just not in the list of program priorities.  Is there some distinction there we should be aware of?

Answer: Social resilience projects fall under two of our program priority areas listed below. Additionally, we will consider innovative resilience projects and programs that may be outside of the program priority areas.

• Climate coalitions or convenings, such as stormwater partnerships, regional climate networks, or watershed-based climate resilience initiatives.
• Climate Change capacity building including Improvements to social resiliency or cohesion, such as through dialogues, gatherings, and networks, particularly for at-risk or vulnerable populations/neighborhoods. Building municipal staff capacity to implement climate resilience.

If a grant includes revising local bylaws and regulations, we would encourage a two-year grant program to bring the vote to Town Meeting to implement the new regulations. In this case, the applicant will want to consider an ambitious community engagement plan that works to secure a “yes” vote at Town Meeting.

In this program, the agricultural program priority area is designed specifically for food production, resilience, and security. However, forestry would fall under the nature-based solutions program priority areas.

The grant timelines can not be altered. However, we are offering another grant round next year for one-year projects.

Projects are not expected to be fully designed, permitted, and ready for construction. However, MAPC will fund construction projects that can be completed within the two-year grant period, and project readiness will be an important evaluation criterion. The level of design and permitting will be evaluated in relation to the scope and scale of the project.

Full question: Can a design project for green infrastructure be a 2-year project with a budget up to $150,000? Or do all design projects need to be 1-year with budget up to $55,000?  As noted, most construction projects would have a larger budget that would need additional alternative funding.

Answer:

We may consider funding a design project that is worth more than $55,000. The applicant will need to articulate a strong case based upon the financial, climate, and community need, for requesting a grant that is outside the given parameters.

Absolutely! This is a great use of grant funds.

Our intent is that the grant would begin in October 2020 and completed by October 31, 2021. However, the timeline is subject to change based upon extenuating circumstances, such as delays due to COVID-19.

Yes, communities can submit multiple applications. MAPC would only fund one of them, but we welcome your presenting your best potential projects!

If the Climate Vulnerability Indicators data analysis includes future flood projections from only the Boston Harbor Flood Risk Model. If you need assistance in determining your community’s flood vulnerability risk, please reach out to Darci at dschofield@mapc.org to provide additional data for your climate equity analysis.

Yes, this year we are supporting capacity building for a municipal climate staff position.

A couple things to consider in your proposal:

• Demonstrated commitment from municipal leadership to continue staffing this position. A good example the Town providing some portion of the staff salary and the grant funding is a seed to the position. However, mostly we are seeking a demonstrated commitment for the position for the long term.
• Since this program is for accelerating climate resiliency, the job description would need to be specific to that work. It could include clean energy work but mostly we would be looking for the position to be advancing or implementing your MVP, Natural Hazard, or other climate planning/resilience work.
• Please articulate the need for the staff position and the roles/responsibilities of the proposed position in your proposal.
• MAPC would consider funding a part-time position.

Yes, please see the answer above regarding funding a municipal staff position for climate resilience.

Vehicles would be considered, particularly as it helps to eliminate food insecurity and advances climate equity through delivery and production.

We have approximately $1 million for grant awards over a two-year period. The number of grants we award each depends on the proposals we receive.

We may consider grants where MAPC is part of the project, particularly where it relates to a specific area of MAPC’s expertise that is required to complete the project.

Yes, that is a great use of the grant funds!

We are considering clean energy and climate mitigation projects that align and have synergies with climate adaptation/resilience to promote multiple benefits. So in this example, we might suggest creating a “green” parking lot that provides electric charging stations as well as green infrastructure to manage stormwater and reduce the urban heat island effect.

Beach nourishment would definitely be considered for the grant program, however, since MAPC is a public agency, the project would need to demonstrate a larger community public benefit.

Implementing a climate vulnerability plan through coalitions is a great match for the grant program. Particularly as it relates toward regional collaboration of implementing MVP plans.

Full question: NOAH does a lot of work on Climate and Resiliency in East Boston. We have some real needs around funding for work in Central Square/Liberty Plaza where King Tides begin to flood Shaw’s supermarket………..and are inching towards Central Square 2030, if you follow the maps. Does this work qualify for the grant and can we apply?

Answer: We definitely want to support resilience projects in high-risk communities where exposure is imminent. We strongly encourage municipalities to partner with community-based organizations on their projects, however the municipality is the only eligible applicant. Please reach out to your municipality to discuss the project and formulating a partnership.

Full question: We are working on a Harbor Resiliency Master Plan and were discussing applying for funds from this grant program to supplement that effort. We also are seeking to create a Climate Action Grant and the community is really pushing to move this forward. My question is – would this be an appropriate place to apply for funds for Assistance developing a scope and schedule for the development of a comprehensive climate action plan?

Answer: The Harbor Resiliency Planning effort does fit our District-Scale resiliency program priority area, so the planning effort would certainly qualify. The Comprehensive Climate Action Plan could also qualify if it included synergies with climate adaptation. For example, evaluating the Town’s natural assets and creating a plan for restoration/preservation to ensure no net loss of carbon capturing natural assets.

Full question: Does building a greenhouse qualify for the grant program? Our community farm provides food for food banks that are currently in significant need of more food. We would like to make our farm a year-round operation to increase our production and provide greater educational programs to the community?

Answer: Yes, building a greenhouse would qualify as long the structure is used to reduce food insecurity, create agricultural resilience to climate change risks, and prioritize climate equity.