Reps with state’s Federal Funds & Infrastructure Office speak to changing landscape

Federal Funds & Infrastructure Office Deputy Director Bob LaRocca speaks at an information and listening session at Greenfield Community College on Thursday.

Federal Funds & Infrastructure Office Deputy Director Bob LaRocca speaks at an information and listening session at Greenfield Community College on Thursday. STAFF PHOTO/PAUL FRANZ

Federal Funds & Infrastructure Office Director Quentin Palfrey speaks at an information and listening session at Greenfield Community College on Thursday.

Federal Funds & Infrastructure Office Director Quentin Palfrey speaks at an information and listening session at Greenfield Community College on Thursday. STAFF PHOTO/PAUL FRANZ

Ashfield Town Administrator Paul McLatchy III asks a question at the Federal Funds & Infrastructure Office’s information and listening session at Greenfield Community College on Thursday.

Ashfield Town Administrator Paul McLatchy III asks a question at the Federal Funds & Infrastructure Office’s information and listening session at Greenfield Community College on Thursday. STAFF PHOTO/PAUL FRANZ

Federal Funds & Infrastructure Office Director Quentin Palfrey speaks at an information and listening session at Greenfield Community College on Thursday.

Federal Funds & Infrastructure Office Director Quentin Palfrey speaks at an information and listening session at Greenfield Community College on Thursday. STAFF PHOTO/PAUL FRANZ

Attendees discuss transportation in a breakout group at the Federal Funds & Infrastructure Office’s information and listening session at Greenfield Community College on Thursday.

Attendees discuss transportation in a breakout group at the Federal Funds & Infrastructure Office’s information and listening session at Greenfield Community College on Thursday. STAFF PHOTO/PAUL FRANZ

By MADISON SCHOFIELD

Staff Writer

Published: 06-26-2025 3:59 PM

GREENFIELD — In the wake of uncertainty regarding federal funding, representatives from the state’s Federal Funds & Infrastructure Office have hit the road to see how they can support communities across Massachusetts.

Town administrators, Selectboard members, sewer commissioners and other municipal representatives from across Franklin and Hampshire counties gathered at Greenfield Community College Thursday to discuss the funding challenges and how the state can help.

“In a time of great uncertainty for various grants and initiatives, information sessions like this are imperative to keeping us all in the loop,” Greenfield Mayor Ginny Desorgher said.

Federal Funds & Infrastructure Office Director Quentin Palfrey said the office was created by Gov. Maura Healey as a way to coordinate with the federal government, state representatives and town officials, and ensure everyone is working together to fund infrastructure projects in Massachusetts.

“For those of you who don’t know Gov. Healey, she’s an extremely competitive person. … It’s very important to Gov. Healey that Massachusetts really get down there and fight for every dollar,” Palfrey said. “It was also really important and a day one mandate that we were thinking about all 351 cities and towns across Massachusetts. One of the things I’ve noticed working in politics is that sometimes Beacon Hill forgets there are places like Greenfield, places like Franklin County, and it’s really important to us to make sure we’re thinking about the whole state.”

Palfrey said the office has technical assistance and grant match funds, and can help towns, cities and nonprofits apply for and manage grants. He and other representatives from the office also gave attendees an overview of different federal grant programs that are still accepting grant applications, ranging from clean energy infrastructure and roadway repairs to public transportation and more.

“We’re here to help you navigate this changing landscape,” Palfrey said. “We’re here to help, and we will muddle through this together.”

After presenting information about different grant opportunities and how the Federal Funds & Infrastructure Office can support communities, the floor was opened to municipal representatives with questions about projects in their communities.

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Westhampton Town Coordinator Doug Finn said the town has three solar projects underway, and is relying upon federal reimbursements and tax credits. He asked if the town should be worried, given federal funding cuts.

“The funding for these projects is intrinsically and entirely dependent on that 30% direct pay (a federal tax credit program to incentivize municipal clean energy projects). We received a letter from one of the developers saying that may be at risk,” Finn said.

Montague Town Administrator Walter Ramsey asked about the status of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, adding that Montague and surrounding towns rely on USDA loans to match grants and fund municipal projects.

“A lot of the communities out here make use of USDA funds or community facilities’ long-term loans and we take out these loans in order to get grant funding for projects,” Ramsey said. “I haven’t heard much from USDA on a couple of projects we have going on with them.”

Federal Funds & Infrastructure Office Deputy Director Bob LaRocca said that while he “doesn’t have a crystal ball,” based on conversations with federal partners, he believes any projects that are currently underway or that will get started in the immediate future should be OK, but in future years, federal funding for many grant programs and tax incentives may be cut.

In addition to the status of existing funding, attendees asked about future opportunities, and how the office could help them be competitive with larger towns and cities.

“I think that my fellow town administrators can pledge that we administrators do not have a lot of free time to be writing grants. We cannot compete with these larger communities that have full-time grant writers or full-time administrative people in their highway departments,” Ashfield Town Administrator Paul McLatchy III said. “It’s very hard for me to make an argument to the state to give us $1 million to redo this road that’s going to impact 10 households versus a larger community where it’s going to impact hundreds of households for the same price.”

Palfrey said the Federal Funds & Infrastructure Office is able to help navigate grant opportunities and offers technical assistance funding to help rural municipalities in submitting competitive applications. The office is also working with state and federal legislators to ensure grant programs specifically geared toward rural communities are funded, such as a $7 million pilot program to fund repairs and maintenance of dirt roads, which was included in the supplemental budget signed by Healey earlier this week.

Greenfield Community College was the third to last stop on the office’s tour across the state. Palfrey said similar presentations will be held in Lynn and Leominster in the near future, and anyone with additional questions can contact the Federal Funds & Infrastructure Office or attend a meeting of the Massachusetts Federal Funds Partnership (next scheduled for July 22).

“We’re happy to roll up our sleeves with you,” Palfrey said.

Reach Madison Schofield at 413-930-4579 or mschofield@recorder.com.