Haverhill hopes a federal grant will allow it to rebuild a mile-long stretch of Water Street from the Mill Street to Riverside Avenue.
Mayor James J. Fiorentini and the city’s Engineering Department are inviting residents see the plans and ask questions about the potential project that would provide new river outlooks, trails and bike lanes. The community meeting takes place next Monday, Jan. 16, at 7 p.m. in the community room in the basement of St. John the Baptist Church, 100 Lincoln Ave.
“This project is part of plan to modernize and beautify the major gateways into Haverhill and take advantage of our greatest natural asset, the Merrimack River,” Fiorentini said Tuesday.
Work would also include improvements to roadway drainage and pavement, lighting and streetscape amenities and improvements to the busy signalized intersection at Mill Street.
Haverhill’s Washington, D.C.-based consultant, Merchant McIntyre Associates, is assisting in the development of the grant proposal as part of Fiorentini’s effort to go after more federal and Congressional money for local projects. The firm recently worked closely with Congresswoman Lori Trahan’s office and other Congressional representatives to win $700,000 for improvements to Haverhill’s Winnekenni Park Recreational Area.
Prior to submitting the federal Rebuilding American Infrastructure with Sustainability and Equity—or RAISE—Grant application, the city asks the public for input on what residents would like the application to include. The mayor said applying for the grant is no guarantee it will be awarded and, in fact, only a fraction of grant applications such as this are successful.
The city also seeks to have the project placed on the state’s Transportation Improvement Project list for money.
President Joe Biden’s administration recently provided $1.5 billion for the 2023 Raise Grant Program, which is designated for transportation projects with significant local or regional impacts that are harder to obtain funding for through other transportation grant programs.