Marblehead, MA – September 19th, 2025. The Town of Marblehead, the Marblehead Housing Authority, and Sustainable Marblehead, have been awarded an $80,000 grant from the Metropolitan Area Planning Council (MAPC) to advance Resilient by Design: Cooling Marblehead’s Housing for the Future, a climate resilience initiative aimed at improving community spaces within public housing sites and to reduce urban heat island effect while protecting vulnerable residents. The four public housing sites that will be involved with the project are New Farrell Court, Powderhouse Court, Green Street, and Barnard Hawkes Court.
This project will focus on safeguarding elderly, low-income, and disabled residents, groups disproportionately at risk during increasingly frequent and dangerous extreme heat events driven by climate change. Through the design of nature-based solutions, Resilient by Design will work to create shaded and welcoming outdoor spaces, and foster stronger social connections among residents, and to lower ambient temperatures.
“Extreme heat is certainly a pressing climate challenge facing many communities. Many of our residents are vulnerable and at real risk,” said Marblehead Housing Authority, Executive Director, Cathy Hoog. “This grant will allow us to creatively transform developments into cooler, greener, more resilient community hubs. Creating cool, comfortable spaces encourages socialization and decreases isolation, which is beneficial and impactful for residents. We are so thankful to work with our partners in the community on this exciting project.”
“This partnership is a powerful example of what community development is all about,” said Brendan Callahan, Director of Community Development & Planning. “We’re not just investing in infrastructure—we’re investing in people.”
Potential interventions could include new tree plantings, expanded green infrastructure, permeable surfaces, and improving community gathering areas. By combining climate adaptation strategies with community-building, the initiative advances both environmental and public health outcomes.
The project will complete the following objectives:
- Foster a robust community engagement process to ensure meaningful resident participation.
- Create comprehensive site assessments and conceptual landscape designs at all four housing locations.
- Development of implementation-ready plans to pursue construction funding.
The initiative aligns with MAPC’s Accelerating Climate Resilience program’s goals of advancing climate equity, strengthening regional collaboration, and fostering social cohesion. In addition to grant funding received, the Town Grant Coordinator and the Marblehead Housing Authority will contribute in-kind staff time to support the project’s management, coordination, and outreach. As an ACR grantee, the project team will also have an opportunity to participate in the program’s Resilience Community of Practice – a peer-to-peer space to connect with other ACR grantees for learning and sharing best practices.
“We are thrilled to be part of the project team who received this grant award,” said Elaine Leahy, Executive Director of Sustainable Marblehead. “This funding will help reduce urban heat, improve public health, and strengthen social connections by creating shaded gathering areas and low-maintenance green spaces for our housing authority neighbors. We are especially excited to assist with the development of engagement and communication materials to ensure the community is fully involved and supported.”
Additional information from the Metropolitan Area Planning Council is available here: https://www.mapc.org/news/accelerating-climate-resilience-fy25-grants/
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