The Dighton Board of Selectmen and Town Administrator Michael Mullen are pleased to announce that the Town of Dighton was awarded three state grants totaling about $46,800 by the Baker-Polito Administration.
The Town of Dighton was awarded a $25,000 Community Compact Cabinet (CCC) Best Practices Program grant, a $16,869 Community Compact Information Technology grant and a $4,800 Sustainable Materials Recovery Program grant. All grant funds were allocated by the Baker-Polito Administration.
“The Town of Dighton is extremely fortunate to have been awarded these three grants from the Baker-Polito Administration as a testament to their ongoing commitment of supporting local municipalities,” Town Administrator Mullen said. “With these grants, the Town of Dighton will be able to plan forward its economic development goals, invest in our IT network infrastructure and continue our commitment to advancing sustainable waste practices.”
Community Compact Cabinet (CCC) Best Practices Program Grant
The Town of Dighton will use the funds from the Community Compact Cabinet (CCC) Best Practices Program grant to create an Economic Development Plan to help plan for managed growth in the community and future infrastructure investments.
Dighton’s recently reinvigorated Development and Industrial Commission plans to lead the advancement of the town’s Economic Development Plan through an ongoing partnership with the Southeastern Regional Planning and Economic Development District (SRPEDD). SRPEDD’s District Local Technical Assistance (DLTA) program will also provide matching funding that will enable Dighton to complete a full Economic Development Plan.
Community Compact Information Technology Grant
The Town of Dighton will use the $16,869 grant to upgrade the town’s existing network infrastructure with enhanced firewall capacity and increased network speed to ten gigabits.
The town will plan to connect the Town Hall and Old Town Hall municipal campus buildings via fiber, thereby eliminating a separate internet and phone service at the Old Town Hall. The town will also upgrade the police and fire department’s network infrastructure to increase network speed and strengthen security.
With these upgrades, the Town seeks to increase the speed and reliability of network services, reduce monthly service costs and facilitate offsite backups while the Town takes local efforts to implement multi-factor security authentication.
Sustainable Materials Recovery Program Grant
With their $4,800 Sustainable Materials Recovery Program grant award, the Town of Dighton will support its efforts to prioritize the reuse and recycle program, as well as solid waste reduction.
The Town of Dighton would like to thank the Board of Health and Health Agent for their joint work on procuring this grant.
The Sustainable Materials Recovery Program was created by the Green Communities Act of 2008 and has provided more than $46 million to recycling programs since 2010. Funds from the Sustainable Materials Recovery Program grant are allocated to municipalities to help them maximize recycling, composting and waste reduction programs.
Sustainable Materials Recovery Program grant awards were announced on Nov. 17 in recognition of America Recycles Day.
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