MaineHousing has awarded a record $2.72 million in funding to 12 warming shelters from York County to Presque Isle this winter.

The funding will support safe, heated spaces in Bangor, Lewiston and Portland, as well as Augusta, Biddeford, Brunswick, Ellsworth, Orland, Presque Isle and Waterville. The facilities will offer a combined 474 beds for people during cold and dangerous winter weather, and most plan to stay open through April.

“Dangerous winter weather can put lives at risk, especially for people experiencing homelessness or housing instability,” MaineHousing Director Dan Brennan said in a news release Tuesday afternoon.

This year’s funding is the most money doled out in the five years that MaineHousing has offered this program. Last year, the Legislature gave the agency $2.3 million to distribute.

The organizations running the shelters can use the funding from the quasi-governmental agency for staffing, supplies, transportation, extended hours and other operating costs. Recipients of the warming shelter grants will work with their municipalities, emergency management officials and community partners to connect people in need to a warming shelter.

“We are grateful to the governor and the Maine Legislature for making these funds available,” Brennan said. “This investment helps local organizations prepare before winter and respond when dangerous weather threatens Maine people.”

Biddeford-based Seeds of Hope is the top recipient of this year’s funding. The nonprofit will get more than $660,000 — about $304,000 to support its 55-bed facility in Biddeford, and nearly $361,000 to operate a nightly warming shelter in Portland.

Seeds of Hope stepped forward in early September to operate the Portland shelter after the city sought an agency to run a winter shelter following the closure of its shelter for asylum seekers.

Portland Mayor Mark Dion said at the time that he had some concerns with Seeds of Hope taking the shelter on, noting that the city’s past partners couldn’t handle the capacity needs in Maine’s most populous area.

But Seeds of Hope Director Vassie Fowler said her staff is experienced in managing high-needs populations, complex situations and the operational demands that come with running a full-capacity warming center.

Still, the $360,720 for this winter’s shelter is less than the roughly $400,000 that the city received last year to operate a shelter that only opened based on certain thresholds. This year, the plan is for the facility to be open every night, regardless of temperature or snowfall.

Fowler declined to comment on the funding Wednesday.

Alter L/A, a 24-hour warming shelter in the Lewiston and Auburn area, received just under $390,000 for a 112-bed facility. That funding will primarily go toward staffing, said Kevin Boilard, the executive director.

The shelter employs around 25 people and plans to bring on an additional 12 to 15 staff members for the colder months. Last year, the shelter served more than 700 people, with an average of 112 per 24-hour period. It’s thought to be the only 24/7 warming shelter in the Twin Cities, Boilard said.

“The intention is not just to house (people), but to bring them in, make them warm and connect them to stability and the structure that most are looking for,” he said.

The other nine agencies receiving funding are:

• Augusta Overnight, $375,750 for 50 beds in Augusta
• Bangor Area Homeless Shelter, $10,000 for 5 beds in Bangor
• Brick Church, $427,650 for 65 beds in Bangor
• Tedford Housing, $225,450 for 30 beds in Brunswick
• Healthy Acadia, $263,025 for 35 beds in Ellsworth
• HOME Inc., $28,611 for 18 beds in Orland
• State Street Church, $52,000 for 18 beds in Portland
• Homeless Services of Aroostook, $112,725 for 15 beds in Presque Isle
• Mid-Maine Homeless Shelter, $172,845 for 23 beds in Waterville

The shelter funding is a piece of broader winter preparedness efforts across the state. MaineHousing also runs the Home Energy Assistance Program (HEAP) and the Energy Crisis Intervention Program, which both help eligible households with heating costs and emergencies.

Heating costs have soared in Maine, with the price of heating oil hitting a record $6.02 per gallon last week.

Steve Hoad, of Windsor, is just one of a large number of Maine homeowners who use heating oil to keep their homes warm during the winter. Hoad told the Portland Press Herald in early September that his farmhouse will cost him thousands more to keep warm this winter. He’s exactly the kind of person HEAP aims to help.

“We know many families are concerned about heating costs,” Brennan said. “Programs such as HEAP can help thousands of Maine households each year, and we urge people to seek help before they face a crisis.”

Staff Writer Emily Duggan contributed to this story.