ATHOL – On Oct. 25, Gov. Maura Healey and other administration officials announced the 2024 Community One Stop for Growth Awards, with Athol among the 161 communities sharing $164 million in grant monies.

Planning and Development Director Eric Smith said the $25,000 in funding will provide for a consultant to provide services, in this case for the development of downtown design guidelines. Smith said a Local Rapid Recovery Plan (LRRP) report completed two years ago indicated downtown Athol lacked consistency relative to storefront design and construction.

“Our design guidelines today are really out of date,” he said. “They date back to 1997. It was actually our third priority project out of that Local Rapid Recovery Plan, with the goal of updating design guidelines to improve the visual consistency of the downtown environment and preserve Athol’s character. We believe an improved downtown will enhance economic development, provide more job opportunities, and maybe lead to more housing development.”

The town received two other Community One Stop grants totaling $615,000 for an RFP process to attract a private-sector investor for a mid-scale hotel and conference facility at the North Quabbin Business Park and redevelopment of two vacant schools into 53 units of market-rate housing dubbed The Residences at the Park.

Smith said the town plans to work with consultant Emily Keys Innes of Innes Associates LTD of Boston. Smith said Innes was involved with the Local Rapid Recovery Plan, focusing on the zoning and design guidelines.

Asked if new design guidelines will be folded into the town’s zoning bylaws, Smith didn’t rule it out. He explained that Ashburnham, for example, includes such guidelines in its site plan review process. If it was proposed to include the guidelines into local zoning regulations, he said, it would require approval of a two-thirds majority at Town Meeting.

“The (consultant) will spell it out whether they become a part of our zoning bylaws or not,” he said.

Smith said the Innes would be working with the Downtown Vitality Committee (DVC) on developing the downtown design guidelines.

“They kind of agreed to take the lead on this downtown design guidelines process,” he continued. “Obviously, they’ll go to the Planning Board as well as some point if it’s a zoning change.”

Among the items to be covered in the guidelines will be signage, sign elements, storefront window display and design.

“Kind of the classical downtown storefront is what we kind of have in mind,” said Smith, “trying to move forward to making sure we’re meeting what the committee envisions for the downtown. However, when buildings do come in, design guidelines might help developers when it comes to what the town wants to see for new construction so that it fits into the downtown.”

Smith said the next step will be for the consultant to meet with the Downtown Vitality Committee.

“Once we get this consultant under contract officially, then we’ll be able to kick off the process. We’ll probably be in contracting mode here in the next couple of months, or toward the end of the year,” he said. “Actual kickoff will probably be sometime early next year with a meeting with the Downtown Vitality Committee, hopefully in January or February.”

The Community One Stop for Growth is an annual program overseen by the Executive Office of Economic Development (EOED) that provides a streamlined process for cities and towns to apply for 13 state grant programs meant to spur economic and housing development administered by EOED, the Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities, and the quasi-public agency MassDevelopment.

Greg Vine can be reached at gvineadn@gmail.com.