Massachusetts Recovery Update

Week of October 12, 2009

The Massachusetts Recovery Update is a periodic email update of recovery-related news in the Commonwealth. If you find this information useful, please forward it to others and encourage them to subscribe or follow our updates via Twitter, RSS, or http://Mass.Gov/Recovery.

Silver Line Direct Connect

photo: riding the bus
On Tuesday, Transportation Secretary James A. Aloisi, Jr and Mayor Thomas M. Menino officially launched the addition of a new Silver Line route between Dudley Station and South Station to improve bus transportation service along the Silver Line Washington Street corridor. The $1.7 million project funded under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act creates a new route, SL4, that will for the first time provide a direct connection between the Roxbury and South End neighborhoods and South Station, improving connections for residents and visitors to the Financial District, South Boston Waterfront, and Logan Airport. "Now is our chance to make new connections for neighborhoods in Boston and throughout the state," said Governor Deval Patrick. "From the new regional transit center in Greenfield to the launch of the Silver Line Direct Connect project today, we are doing everything we can to make access to public transportation better and build stronger communities." Learn more about the Silver Line Direct Connect project.

New Opportunities for Municipalities:

Grant Writing Assistance Program

photo: construction site
The Edward J. Collins, Jr. Center for Public Management is pleased to announce a program to facilitate the provision of grant writing assistance to municipalities that are seeking competitive grants from programs funded by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. This service is being provided free of charge to local governments. The Center has designed a simple process for municipalities to follow to secure grant writing assistance. The process consists of 4 steps:

  1. The municipality identifies a specific project that meets the criteria detailed in the funding agencies guidelines;
  2. The municipality identifies one point person to contact the Collins Center to request assistance; we want to avoid multiple contacts for the same project from the same municipality;
  3. The municipality contacts the Center's program administrator Michael Herbert at 617-287-7488 or Michael.herbert001@umb.edu
  4. We will then discuss the proposed project, ascertain if it is eligible for the particular grant program and then refer the municipality to a specific contact within its regional planning agency who will actually provide the grant writing assistance.
Additional ARRA Information for Cities and Towns.

Find a Job

Opportunities for Individuals: Find a Job using JobQuest

Employers who create jobs using Recovery funding must post those job announcements to the Commonwealth's JobQuest system. A wide range of stimulus-related positions--ranging from career counselors to communication specialists are available. This system is constantly updated, so residents should check back for new opportunities.
Comm-Pass

Opportunities For Businesses: Search for Contracts

For the most up to date ARRA business opportunities , head to Comm-PASS, the Commonwealth's sole online procurement record site which supports all bid and grant records related to any ARRA funds distributed by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Comm-PASS is available for use free of charge and provides you with the ability to search for a variety of contracts by either category or department.

Contact Us

For the latest recovery news and updates: As always, please feel free to visit our website or contact the stimulus office at 617-979-8380 if you have any questions.