Merrimack Valley Planning Commission Receives $140K Grant From State

HAVERHILL, MA — The Haverhill-based Merrimack Valley Planning Commission (MVPC) learned last week that it has been awarded a $140,000 grant from the state to help update 14 of the region's existing Housing Production Plans (HPPs).

The grant was awarded Friday by the administration of Gov. Charlie Baker and Lt. Gov. Karyn Polito through the Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs (EEA) Land Use Planning Assistance Grant Program.

The Baker-Polito administration announced over $1.2 million in grants for 26 projects in celebration of Climate Week in Massachusetts.

"The grant program provides municipalities with critical funding to undertake public processes and hire technical expertise to mitigate and prepare for climate change impacts, improve land use practices, conserve and sustainably develop land, and diversify housing choices," the Baker-Polito administration said in a statement.

Certified HPPs expire after five years, and the MVPC said most of the region's existing HPPs are set to expire at the end of 2023.

The MVPC's project to update 14 of the region's existing HPPs —including Andover and North Andover — officially kicks off in October and is expected to take 18 months, the organization said.

According to the MVPC website, the upcoming project entails building on existing HPPs to update crucial demographic and housing data, conduct analyses to identify community strengths and opportunities for growth, and create tangible, direct action plans to guide communities in implementing tasks needed to lay the groundwork for increased affordable housing development.

"This effort is important because it provides Merrimack Valley communities and the region with strategies to increase housing production in a way that is tailored to the unique needs of their community," Lauren Keisling, an MVPC community planner who is heading up the organization's housing planning effort, told Patch.

Keisling continued: "During the next 18 months, MVPC will be working in partnership with each community to strategically plan for impactful development through its mission to provide safe, adequate, and affordable housing to all of our region's residents."

The 14 communities that the MVPC will work with to update their HPPs are: Amesbury, Andover, Boxford, Georgetown, Groveland, Haverhill, Lawrence, Merrimac, Methuen, Newbury, North Andover, Rowley, Salisbury, and West Newbury