Housing projects in each Island town received a funding boost of more than $400,000 through the seasonal communities designation, part of a statewide initiative to increase housing stock and affordability in municipalities that “experience significant seasonal swings in housing demand and employment,” according to a press release from the governor’s office.
Gov. Maura Healey’s administration announced the awarded grants Tuesday, Oct. 20, as part of the Seasonal Communities Grant Program (SCGP). Local towns received six of 24 total grants, which totaled $2 million.
“From the Berkshires to Cape Cod and the Islands, our seasonal communities are an important part of what makes Massachusetts special,” Healey said in a press release about the grant funding. “But we know these communities face unique challenges, especially when it comes to housing for the people who live and work there year-round. That’s why we created the seasonal communities designation, and are backing it up with funding to help local leaders build more homes, support their workforce, and keep their communities strong for generations to come.”
The SCGP is designed as assistance for municipalities with a heavy reliance on tourism. The Vineyard is one of 44 designated municipalities through the Affordable Homes Act, a substantial state housing bond bill that was signed into law in 2024 by Healey. In March, approximately $775,000 was awarded to local housing projects on the Island in the first round of grant funds seen by towns from the designation.
Housing continues to be the crux of the Island’s economy, as The Times reported this spring, and the sustainability of both is increasingly at risk as the seasonal nature of Martha’s Vineyard pushes rental and homeownership costs to higher margins.
The grants awarded on Tuesday are for infrastructure, development, and construction of projects like Bellevue Veterans Community in Oak Bluffs and Carl Widdis Way in Aquinnah; they can also be used for town and housing planning, local zoning, and other actions that support housing development. Three out of six grants are to Island Housing Trust (IHT), the largest nonprofit affordable housing developer on the Island. The awards must be spent by June 30, 2027. IHT was additionally awarded a $750,000 grant for Cat Hollow, a six-unit affordable housing project in Tisbury, through the HousingWorks Infrastructure Program. This award was through a separate state grant package, the Community One Stop for Growth Awards.
“Island Housing Trust collaborated this year with Tisbury, Oak Bluffs, and Aquinnah to secure approximately $950,000 in state grants through the Seasonal Communities Grant Program and Housing Works Infrastructure Program. This money will fund predevelopment and construction costs for active town projects, as well as much-needed municipal infrastructure upgrades that will support imminent affordable housing projects serving Island residents,” IHT told The Times in a statement.
In addition to the grants for seasonal communities, the state announced $65,153 in funding to the Wampanoag Tribe of Gay Head (Aquinnah) for updates to the tribe’s Hazard Mitigation Plan Tuesday. The plan is a federally recognized document created by the Aquinnah Wampanoag Tribe that outlines climate risks and introduces strategies to mitigate those using traditional ecological knowledge. The funds were awarded through the Municipal and Tribal Technical Assistance program, and are administered by the Federal Funds and Infrastructure Office.
“The Wampanoag Tribe of Gay Head (Aquinnah) has a deep and enduring connection to their homeland on the southwestern tip of Martha’s Vineyard, and it’s essential that the tribe’s knowledge and priorities guide efforts to prepare for the impacts of climate change and natural disasters,” Cape and Islands State Sen. Julian Cyr stated in a press release about the funds. “This funding will help the tribe do just that, allowing for bolstered hazard mitigation planning that is rooted in the tribe’s values, concerns, and intimate relationship with the land.”
The seasonal communities grants:
- Aquinnah: $56,820 for Carl Widdis Way (four units), plus predevelopment funds for Maisie’s Way (four units)
- Chilmark: $60,024 for the Peaked Hill Pastures development and rehabilitation of an affordable home (15 units)
- Edgartown: $76,423 for 294 Chappaquiddick Road (five units)
- Oak Bluffs: $77,140 for Bellevue Veterans Community through IHT (12 units)
- Tisbury: $74,960 to the Cat Hollow project through IHT (six units)
- West Tisbury: $69,737 for duplexes at 401 State Road through IHT (eight units)
