MCOG Monthly Newsletter

The deadline for submitting New Business Recovery Grant applications has been extended to June 14th. 

To be eligible, businesses and nonprofits located in the Midcoast region must have  

• started or been acquired on or after January 1, 2020, 

• fewer than 250 employees, and 

• be current on State of Maine taxes, in compliance with labor laws, and in good standing with entity registration and reporting requirements. 

Additionally, applicants must demonstrate that they were unable to take advantage of previous pandemic-related relief funds or continue to experience adverse economic impacts related to COVID-19. (Impacts due to ongoing challenges, including labor and supply chain constraints, will satisfy the latter requirement.)

The maximum award under this program is $25,000, and applications are due by June 14, 2024. Businesses/nonprofits may apply online at MCOG’s website–link to New Business Recovery Grant page below: 

https://www.midcoastcog.com/new-business-recovery-program 

Applicants should direct questions to hub@midcoastcog.com.  

The MCOG General Assembly will be held June 27th at the Rockland City Hall from 11am to 2:30pm. Lunch will be provided. There will be presentations on EPA Investing in America Funding Programs, subregional housing projects including a missing-middle housing option, and an update on the Midcoast Economic Development Council process including a presentation on a new four-year, full-time technical high school. The General Assembly will also take action on the MCOG annual budget.

Registration can be found here.

Working Waterfront Resilience Grant Program 

Applications for funding are now available to help repair and rebuild working waterfronts damaged by the winter storms. Funding will be made available to help rebuild wharves and piers that provide a “significant and compelling community benefit” to Maine’s commercial fishing and aquaculture industries.  

For more information and to apply, please visit www.maine.gov/dmr/resilience 

 The deadline for applications is June 10, 2024. 

Business Recovery and Resilience Fund 

The Business Recovery and Resilience Fund provides grants for businesses and organizations, including nonprofit organizations, that have been affected by severe weather-related events. Business and non-profit applicants may request up to $100,000 toward design, permitting and construction costs for their project. Projects receiving grants may include a recovery component for damage sustained and must include efforts to increase business resilience to future storms and other climate conditions. 

The application and a Frequently Asked Questions document with additional information are available here.   

Applications are due by no later than 11:59 pm on June 25, 2024. 

MCOG will be applying for an EPA Brownfields Revolving Loan Fund grant this fall. MCOG is also considering a Multipurpose Grant application as well. Revolving Loan Fund (RLF) Grants provide funding for a grant recipient to capitalize a revolving loan fund and to provide loans and subgrants to carry out cleanup activities at brownfield sites, while the Multipurpose program provides grant funds to projects ready to move forward. When loans are repaid, the loan amount is returned to the fund and re-lent to other borrowers, providing an ongoing source of capital within a community. Please take the time to identify Brownfield sites in your community and provide that list to Mat Eddy (meddy@midcoastcog.com). We are interested in both Phase 1 and Phase 2 Sites but have an interest in understanding how many sites are ready to proceed to Phase 2 assessment and cleanup. 

Municipal Stream Crossing Program

This round is intended to provide assistance to communities impacted by recent storm damage. The focus of this round of is to create infrastructure that is resilient to future climate conditions and that provides community, economic, and environmental benefits. Eligible projects involve road crossings that carry a stream under a local government road, not a state (including state-aid) or private road. 

Maximum request: $200,000 for projects that include design and construction 

Local match: at least $5,000 (cash or in-kind). 

More info here. 

Maine Infrastructure Adaptation Fund 

The Maine Infrastructure Adaptation Fund (MIAF) provides one-time funding to municipal, tribal, and infrastructure districts to adapt their critical infrastructure to reduce vulnerability to climate change. All projects must demonstrate increased resilience to future storm and flooding impacts. 

Maximum request: up to $75,000 to support scoping and design and up to $4 million for direct construction costs or to support matching funds for construction.  

Local match: at least 5% of the project total 

The applications with additional information are available here.  

On July 11 from 9:00 am to 11:00 am, MCOG will have the pleasure to host Delilah Poupore from Heart of Biddeford to discuss Diversity, Equity, and Inclusivity (DEI) in communities and what municipal partners can do to help promote it. We strongly encourage municipal leaders or volunteers associated with the town office to attend. The workshop will be held at the Community Action Parter building at 34 Wing Farm Parkway in Bath. A zoom option will be available for those unable to attend in person; however, we strongly recommend attending in person if you have the ability to do so. Please contact Max Johnstone at mjohnstone@midcoastcog.com if you would like a zoom link when it is available. Click here to register 

Community Action Grants 

MCOG staff helped five (5) communities in the region with applying to the latest Community Action Grant round, all of whom have been conditionally approved by the release of this newsletter. These grants will go towards improved ventilation and heating in Appleton and Waldoboro at their municipal buildings, a vulnerability assessment and village plan in Brooks, a road management plan and comprehensive plan update for Montville, and EV chargers at the Owl’s Head town office. 

Weather the Storm: Resilient Crossings in Knox and Waldo Counties

MCOG is pleased to announce that we received a $140,860 Economic Development Administration Economic Adjustment Assistance disaster grant. This award is based on emergency declarations from 2022 and 2023 that resulted in severe stormwater and flooding damage in Knox and Waldo Counties. This award will result in MCOG staff members conducting outreach and research with communities and counties impacted by recent storm events, and to establish strategies for replacing culverts that provide significance to the region. We will be reaching out to community and county leaders this summer to begin this nearly two-year process. 

Village Partnership Initiative in Waldoboro 

With the assistance of Max Johnstone, the Town of Waldoboro received $210,000 from the Maine Department of Transportation to install speed tables/crosswalks approaching a downtown intersection. This grant is part of the Town’s work to improve pedestrian and vehicle safety in their downtown. The Village Partnership Initiative is a rolling grant with the Maine Department of Transportation to collaborate with interested communities to help with downtown and village investments that have a state-aid road. If your community is interested in this program, please contact Max Johnstone at mjohnstone@midcoastcog.com.