Peabody path plan receives $12G grant

PEABODY-An environmentally-friendly project to design a walking path along Spring Pond Road was among seven initiatives statewide that were awarded grants Friday because they adhere to principles of smart-growth or energy efficiency.Energy and Environmental Affairs Secretary Ian Bowles said the Spring Pond Road Walking Path project incorporates a low-impact development design. As a result, the project received a $12,000 state technology grant.The Pulaski Park project in Northampton received $10,000 for engineering to bury utilities. Pulaski Park is part of the larger Roundhouse brownfields project and one of many statewide where contaminated, former industrial sites are being reclaimed, environmentally cleaned and adapted to new uses.In Stow, the so-called Lundy property, which includes cluster affordable housing and a bypass for the Assabet Rail Trail, received $19,500. The design for a new senior center in Dedham received $20,000, as did a feasibility study for hydroelectric power at the Blackstone Visitor Center in Worcester.The Bass River Park project in Dennis was awarded $10,000 for design plans, while in Shelburne, design efforts for the Salmon Falls observation area and a Mahican-Mohawk Trail connection received $20,000.The most recent round of Smart Growth/Smart Energy Technical Assistance Grants totaled $111,500.According to Bowles, the grants are designed to help incorporate the state’s sustainable development principles. More than $3 million has been awarded to cities and towns since the program began four years ago, helping to produce more than 100 new land use plans and bylaw amendments, he said.Eligible grant applicants include regional planning agencies and municipalities. Selection criteria favor activities that implement recommendations from local master plans or community development plans; realize significant energy or environmental benefits; and implement techniques from the Massachusetts Smart Growth/Smart Energy Toolkit ? the latest version of which was unveiled by Bowles last December.In addition to the technical grants, Commonwealth Capital Policy provides a financial incentive to communities to implement specific land-use measures consistent with smart growth and energy, he said.