A LIFETIME OF SERVICE TO MASSACHUSETTS
Infrastructure
Record Federal Funding For Massachusetts Roads, Subways, and Buses – Senator Kennedy worked to secure record federal highway and mass transit funding in the new multi-year surface transportation bill. Specifically, Massachusetts highways will receive $3.65 billion over six years – a $568 million increase over the previous federal transportation bill – and public transportation authorities will receive $1.576 billion for public transportation investment – a $496 billion increase over the previous bill. The US Department of Transportation estimates that each $1 billion of transportation investment creates and supports over 47,000 jobs, so this increased level of investment can be expected to support tens of thousands of jobs in Suffolk County.
Boston – Greater Boston Food Bank Expansion – Senator Kennedy secured $310,000 in federal funding for the expansion of the Greater Boston Food Bank’s distribution center to help Greater Boston better serve its clients. The Greater Boston Food Bank is the largest hunger relief organization in New England and one of the largest food banks in the country. The Greater Boston Food Bank distributes more than 24 million pounds of food each year.
Cambridge/Boston/Somerville – NorthPoint Redevelopment – Senator Kennedy helped move the NorthPoint Project forward by securing federal approval of more than $7 million in public transportation improvements. This innovative smart-growth project will transform a brownfield and underutilized industrial property near the Somerville, Boston, and Cambridge lines into a vibrant commercial, retail, and residential community with an affordable housing requirement. The project will create a new 10-acre park, 2,700 residential units, and more than 2.2 million square feet of office and laboratory space to support the expansion of Boston’s burgeoning life science and biomedical industries. It will create thousands of construction jobs initially and hundreds of permanent jobs when completed.
Boston – Port of Boston Development – Senator Kennedy has secured more than $20 million to begin deepening Boston’s Inner Harbor channels to depths of 40 feet, which will enable larger, more fully loaded vessels to access all of Boston’s private and public port terminals and help the Port keep up with soaring cargo demand. Since 2002, tonnage at Massport’s Conley Terminal is up 45 percent and export tonnage alone is up 53 percent.
Brockton – Intermodal Centre and New Buses for the Brockton Area Transit Authority – Over the past five years, Senator Kennedy has helped secure more than $5 million to complete and expand parking at the downtown Brockton Intermodal Centre and help the Brockton Area Transit Authority acquire new modern buses. Since opening, the Brockton Intermodal Centre helped attract more than $40 million in private sector real estate investment in downtown Brockton.
Worcester – Gardner-Kilby-Hammond Neighborhood Revitalization Project – Senator Kennedy has helped lead efforts to renew the Main South Neighborhood in partnership with the Main South Community Development Corporation, Clark University, the City of Worcester, and Congressman Jim McGovern. To date, they’ve secured a total of $6.6 million in federal funding for the project, which will be used to expand new affordable housing opportunities, remediate polluted properties, and fix damaged roadways, sidewalks, and sewer systems.
Worcester – CitySquare Downtown Redevelopment Project – To assist with the $500+ million anticipated CitySquare investment downtown – the largest development outside of Boston in Massachusetts history – Senator Kennedy helped secure $4.5 million in federal transportation funding to make roadway, sidewalk, and utility improvements. When completed, CitySquare will include 2.2 million of medical, office, and residential space, including 900 housing units. It will also create up to 1,700 new jobs.
Franklin – Downtown Franklin Streetscape and Roadway Improvements – Senator Kennedy obtained $5 million to support the development of a new transportation master plan for downtown Franklin to improve pedestrian access and promote economic development
