City of Cambridge Awarded $1 Million Grant to Support Dam and Watershed Infrastructure

The City of Cambridge today announced it has been awarded a $1 million construction grant from the Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs’ (EEA) Dam and Seawall Program that will help ensure repairs of critical infrastructure with the Cambridge Reservoir Dam, Hobbs Brook Gatehouse, and Outlet Culvert. Cambridge was one of the 21 municipalities and nonprofit organizations to be awarded over $5.6 million in grants to repair dams and strengthen coastal infrastructure across Massachusetts. 

These grants come following devastating storms that recently flooded streets, fields and farms in Western Massachusetts, as well as many parts of Vermont and New Hampshire. The Dam and Seawall Program is one of the many resources being provided to communities by the state to ensure their structures can adapt to climate impacts. Repairing and/or removing deteriorating infrastructure will improve public safety and restore ecological systems.

“Thanks to the tireless efforts of Watershed Manager David Kaplan and his staff, this grant funding will be very beneficial to Cambridge and the maintenance of our critical infrastructure,” said Mark Gallagher, Acting Managing Director of the Cambridge Water Department. “With the intensity and higher frequency of storms, and other climate impacts, this will greatly help ensure our water sources are protected and as resilient as possible.”

The City of Cambridge owns three source water reservoirs, including Hobbs Brook (593 acres) in Waltham, Stony Brook (74 acres) in Weston and Waltham, and Fresh Pond (155 acres) in Cambridge. The Hobbs Brook Gatehouse is one of three gatehouses owned by the City of Cambridge. For more information about Cambridge’s water infrastructure and properties, please visit https://www.cambridgema.gov/Water/watershedmanagementdivision/sourcewaterinfrastructureandproperties.