BOSTON – The Federal Emergency Management Agency will be sending almost $1.3 million to the Commonwealth of Massachusetts to reimburse the City of Cambridge for setting up a non-congregate shelter for homeless populations during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The $1,295,650 Public Assistance grant will reimburse the city for operating a non-congregate shelter at the War Memorial Recreation Center between April 2020 and June 2021, as well as contracting to provide mass care; purchase food for emergency workers; and repurposing and renovating the facility.
“FEMA is pleased to be able to assist the City of Cambridge with these costs,” said FEMA Region 1 Regional Administrator Lori Ehrlich. “Providing resources for our partners on the front lines of the pandemic fight is critical to their success, and our success as a nation.”
FEMA’s Public Assistance program is an essential source of funding for states and communities recovering from a federally declared disaster or emergency.
So far, FEMA has provided almost $1.5 billion in Public Assistance grants to Massachusetts to reimburse the commonwealth for pandemic-related expenses.