In 2021, the Town of Wrentham was awarded a $113,000 municipal climate resilience grant by the Baker-Polito Administration’s Municipal Vulnerability Preparedness (MVP) program. The project focuses on two main tasks. First, to review Town bylaws and regulations to integrate Low Impact Development (LID) and climate resilience principles. Second, to develop a town-wide green infrastructure plan to help protect water quality. These competitive grants support cities and towns in identifying climate hazards, developing strategies to improve resilience and implementing priority actions to adapt to climate change.
This project is a critical step for Wrentham to prepare for future climate conditions. Specifically, the goal of this project is to improve Wrentham’s resilience to flooding while also protecting surface and groundwater sources from stormwater pollution, which will improve the resilience of both the Town’s water supplies and important recreational resources such as Lake Pearl, Mirror Lake, and Lake Archer.
Using the grant funds, Wrentham has developed new stormwater and land-use bylaws and regulations that promote the use of low-impact development and green infrastructure. Wrentham has also developed a Town-wide Green Infrastructure Master Plan to address stormwater-driven flooding hazards and improve water quality, as well as engaged the community on resilience and water quality issues through in-person workshops held at each of the three major lakes in Town. The Green Infrastructure Master Plan includes ten concept-level designs for future design, permitting, and implementation.
A project-specific website was developed to track the project’s progress and display the Town’s findings as they become available. Please visit https://tinyurl.com/WrenthamMVP2022 to review the proposed stormwater bylaw and associated regulations and the Green Infrastructure Master Plan, as well as vote on your favorite proposed green infrastructure concept plans.
Community members interested in the project should get in touch with Rachel Benson, Director of Planning & Community Development at planning@wrentham.gov or by calling 508-384-5441.
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