The Rhode Island municipal infrastructure grant program is hereby created within the Rhode Island infrastructure bank. The Rhode Island infrastructure bank shall have all the powers necessary and convenient to carry out and effectuate the purposes and provisions of this chapter, including, without limiting the generality of the preceding statement, the authority to:

(1)  Issue public infrastructure grants to municipalities and other public instrumentalities for design, construction, building, land acquisition, rehabilitation, repair, and other improvements to publicly owned infrastructure including, but not limited to, sewers, utility extensions, streets, roads, curb-cuts, parking, water-treatment systems, telecommunications systems, transit improvements, and pedestrian ways;

(2)  Assist municipalities to advance projects that support job creation and expansion, housing development and rehabilitation, community development projects in areas or districts that communities have determined are best suited to efficiently accommodate future growth and redevelopment, largely in previously developed areas with some level of existing or planned infrastructure;

(3)  Establish a fund within the Rhode Island infrastructure bank to receive and disburse such funds as may be available for the purpose of the program, subject to the provisions of this section;

(4)  Make and enter into binding commitments to provide grants to municipalities and other pubic instrumentalities from amounts on deposit in the program fund;

(5)  Engage the services of third-party vendors to provide professional services;

(6)  Establish one or more accounts within the fund; and

(7)  Such other authority as granted to the Rhode Island infrastructure bank under this chapter and chapter 12.2 of Title 46.