This electric vehicle charging station in Southwest Harbor was installed in 2018 and is the kind of update that could be funded by the Community Resilience Partnership.
This electric vehicle charging station in Southwest Harbor was installed in 2018 and is the kind of update that could be funded by the Community Resilience Partnership.
SOUTHWEST HARBOR — The Select Board voted to start the enrollment process for the Community Resilience Partnership at a meeting last month. The partnership is a state program that assists communities in reducing carbon emissions, transitioning to clean energy and becoming more resilient to the effects of climate change through grants.
Once enrolled, Southwest Harbor will be eligible to apply for Community Action grants, which are offered twice a year. Throughout the state, 127 towns, including the three other towns on Mount Desert Island, have chosen to participate in the partnership.
“Each town has received about $80,000 or $85,000” said Johannah Blackman, executive director of A Climate to Thrive, which has acted as a liaison between MDI towns and the partnership program.
The enrollment process included three steps. The first is an evaluation of the town completed by department heads and government leaders. The second is a public community meeting where community members are able to rank the issues they think are most important for funding. The third and final step is an official resolution to join passed by the Select Board.
Issues or community actions that can be ranked at the public meeting will come from a list of fundable actions published by the partnership. Examples of these include, “upgrade streetlight and exterior lighting on municipally owned facilities with energy efficient LEDs,” a step that Southwest Harbor is already tackling on its own.
“There is a lot of overlap with things we are doing here already,” said Select Board member Luke Damon.
The Select Board also voted to adopt the climate change adaptation section of the comprehensive plan update. The update will go before the public to be voted on at the town meeting in May. The priorities of that section resemble actions on the fundable actions list.
Another example from the list of fundable actions is, “create or update a watershed plan to identify flooding and water quality priorities and adaptation options.” This is similar to the storm water runoff and infiltration section of the updated comprehensive plan.
“If we became a member, it would be helpful in helping us get grants for these issues,” said Select Board Chair Carolyn Ball.
A motion to move forward with the enrollment process was passed 4-1, with only board member George Jellison opposing.
Moving forward, the Select Board will take action to complete the community resilience self-evaluation. Board members will also discuss possibilities for the second step of enrollment, which is the public community meeting.
Piper Curtin covers municipal government in Southwest Harbor and arts for Mount Desert Island. She recently moved to Southwest Harbor after graduating from St. Lawrence University. Piper welcomes tips and story ideas.
