Town of Canton Awarded $40,000 Community Compact Grant for Next Phase of St. Gerard’s Property Reuse Evaluation

CANTON — Town Administrator Charles Doody and Town Planner TJ Torres are pleased to announce that the Town of Canton was awarded $40,000 in grant funding for the next phase of the St. Gerard’s Reuse project.  

The Town of Canton received the funding as part of a Community Compact Grant, which is a state grant program administered by the State Division of Local Services.  

The funding will be used for the next phase of the St. Gerard’s Reuse project, during which the Town will procure an outside firm that specializes in the feasibility analysis of projects and deliver a final reuse plan back to the Town. Receival of this grant ensures that local taxpayers will not have to pay for this next phase.  

The St. Gerard’s Reuse project stemmed from the Town of Canton’s purchase of the former St. Gerard Majella Catholic Parish property at 1860 Washington St. A St. Gerard’s Reuse Committee was formed, which undertook a public input process to solicit ideas for the property’s future use. The St. Gerard’s Reuse Committee’s final report was presented to the Select Board on Aug. 8 and it was discussed that the next phase of the process would be to hire a professional firm to do a feasibility analysis and reuse plan.

“I would like to thank the Commonwealth for awarding us this grant funding, which will allow us to accelerate our efforts in redeveloping St. Gerard’s into a community asset at no out-of-pocket cost to our residents,” said Town Administrator Doody. “I would like to commend the St. Gerard’s Reuse Committee for volunteering countless hours and valuable insight to kickstart the process, and all the residents who provided their thoughts and ideas. The input gathered and assembled will drive the next phase of the process.” 

The Community Compact Grant was created in the early days of the Baker-Polito Administration and has now been continued by Gov. Maura Healey. It is open to all 351 municipalities and provides direct assistance in achieving “best practices” via grants for consulting services. 

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