Springfield will be receiving a $17-million grant from the federal government to help build affordable housing and a backup power supply for Baystate Medical Center.
The award is part of a program that assists areas impacted by recent disasters. Springfield continues to recover from the devastating 2011 tornado.
The city’s Chief Development Officer Kevin Kennedy says financial backing from private partners helped the city get the grant.
“When HUD looked at it, they looked at the nature of the projects, but they also looked at what was going to be leveraged by their money,” Kennedy says. “There are other partners involved, and two of the primary ones were here today in Baystate Medical and MassMutual.”
Thirteen cities and states won the grants. Springfield is the only one in New England.