Baker-Polito Climate Change Action Grant Will Launch Lake Mansfield Area Improvements

The town will receive approximately $1 million in state funds to help pay for improvements to the Lake Mansfield Recreation Area.

The funds are part of the Baker-Polito administration’s recent $32.8 million in grants to cities and towns, awarded through the Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs’ Municipal Vulnerability Preparedness (MVP) Program.

Lake Mansfield is an important recreational area for the community, but the lake and its surroundings are susceptible to climate change impacts like heavy rains, hotter temperatures, and ecological disturbance. These MVP funds will help address these vulnerabilities by installing an additional culvert to prevent flooding of the road at the outlet stream, constructing a new parking lot which will control and clean stormwater runoff and provide accessible parking, and by improving accessibility at the playground, beach and the forest trails.

“Lake Mansfield is a free, open-to-anyone recreation area, and it is centrally located within town for people of all ages and backgrounds,” said Assistant Town Manager/Director of Planning Chris Rembold. “As temperatures get hotter, outdoor areas like this become more and more important for our community.”

The project also includes gently sloped pathways, plenty of trees and vegetation to provide shade, and planted areas and permeable surfaces to filter and cool runoff from summer rains. When climate change brings even more wet weather, the increases in storms will not pollute the lake. Design documents will be completed this calendar year. A construction timeline is not yet established. 

The MVP program provides competitive grants to support cities and towns in identifying climate hazards, developing strategies to improve resilience, and implementing priority actions to adapt to climate change. Great Barrington’s project is one of 73 projects to have received action grant funding in the latest round of applications.

The Town is seeking additional grant funds in order to convert the lake road into a recreational path. The overall improvement plan for Lake Mansfield can be found here.

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