What is Holden’s current status regarding complying with the MBTA Communities Law?
Holden is the ONLY town out of 177 communities that has failed to submit the one-page action plan that was due in 2023. The State of Massachusetts considers Holden “non-compliant” with the MBTA Communities Law because it failed to submit its action plan.
Due to its non-compliant status, Holden is currently no longer eligible for state funding through Local Capital Projects Fund, Housing Choice Initiative grants, and Housing Works infrastructure grants.
In FY 22, Holden received a $220,000 grant through MassWorks. Holden is not designated as a Housing Choice community, so it is not eligible for that program regardless of 3A non-compliance.
13 additional state discretionary grants take non-compliance into consideration when reviewing applications, so Holden is also at risk for losing out on at least 13 other state funding streams.