The Somerville Finance Committee on Feb. 25 recommended approval to accept and expend a $1,000,000 grant from the Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities to support the Somerville Community Land Trust’s project at 14–16 Sewell Street.

Senior Planner Ben Demers of the Office of Strategic Planning and Community Development told the committee the grant will fund land acquisition by the community land trust and may also cover overhead and design costs for the project. “A portion of the funds here will go towards the land trust’s land acquisition, and then the remainder of the funding is able to go, towards supporting the land trust overhead and design costs for the project,” Demers said.

Councilors expressed support. Councilor Klinge, the ward councilor, said she was “really excited about this,” noting the opportunity for homeownership options on the parcel and thanking staff for bringing the funding forward. The item was laid on the table to be included in a combined approval vote at the meeting’s end. No council member proposed amendments or conditions during the committee discussion.

The grant was described in the agenda as carrying no new match requirement. Demers acknowledged that the agenda title identified the item as acquisition and that staff would work with the city’s CPA manager and other project stakeholders on next steps. The meeting record did not include a detailed acquisition price, timeline, or final project design; those specifics were not specified during the committee’s on-the-record discussion.

The combined roll-call vote at the end of the meeting recorded approval of the items on the table, including this grant acceptance.