A bill approved by the U.S. Senate on Friday included $850,000 for several local projects, according to a news release from U.S. Sens. Olympia Snowe and Susan Collins, both R-Maine.

A total of $5.6 million will come into Maine under the bill, which includes:

• $300,000 for improvements to the exterior granite structure of the former St. Mary’s Catholic Church, which now houses the Franco-American Heritage Center in Lewiston.

• $350,000 for Western Maine Community Action’s Keeping Seniors Home project. The money will be used to assist elderly low-income homeowners make improvements so they may stay in their homes longer before moving into assisted living facilities, congregate housing or nursing homes.

• $200,000 to help complete an environmental assessment and design study for construction of a new taxiway parallel to the main runway at the Auburn-Lewiston Municipal Airport.

– Kelly Morgan