New Bedford Community Preservation Projects Announced

New Bedford’s Community Preservation Committee is recommending 16 projects be funded through the Community Preservation Act for Fiscal Year 2022, totaling $1.6 million.

The funding would support projects in areas including affordable housing, outdoor recreational facilities, and historic preservation. The largest of the projects would be $300,000 for restoration of the Strand Theater and creating handicapped access at the former Sister Rose House, which is now New Bedford’s LGBTQ+ Community Center.

According to a city press release, the committee received 17 applications, but one of the proposals did not meet the criteria and will instead reapply for FY23.

Get our free mobile app

The committee is recommending that, for affordable housing, the City of New Bedford spends $175,000 on the Holy Family High School Adaptive Re-Use Project, and $93,600 on Temple Landing II.

For outdoor recreational facilities, the committee recommended spending $22,000 for designing a skate park at Brooklawn Park, and another $24,000 for city-wide signage for parks.

When it comes to historic preservation, the committee recommended funding a dozen different projects. They are: Cliftex II ($86,000); digitization of maritime records, Phase II ($14,000); digitization of the Milton Silvia negative collection, Part II ($20,000); the First Baptist Church Preservation Project ($108,000); exterior painting of Gallery X ($86,000); conservation of the portrait of George Washington ($26,000); the final phase of roof work for the James Arnold Mansion ($26,000); creating handicapped access for the LGBTQ+ Community Center ($200,000); masonry repairs of the Whaling Museum’s Bourne Building ($187,500); masonry repairs of the Rotch Jones Duff House ($142,900); Thomas Department Store envelope assessment ($15,000); and restoration of the Strand Theater ($300,000).

The funding recommendations now go to the New Bedford City Council to be placed on the March 10 agenda. The council will decide which projects to approve and what funding to allocate.