LIKE MANY MAYORS, I am often faced with the choice of investing taxpayer dollars to address immediate needs or to make investments whose benefits will be realized only in the long run. But when it came to the issue of childcare, especially in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, I didn’t have to choose. Investing in more […]
Growth and Development
Posted inOpinion
A plan for Greater Boston’s future
IT’S FINALLY springtime in Boston. The grass is green, trees are leafing, and the birds are back. It’s a time for rebirth and renewal. This particular spring seems an especially long time coming, after two years of a global pandemic. The long winter of COVID-19 brought death, devastation, and disruption to so many facets of […]
Posted inUncategorized
Golden leaving with $200,000 separation agreement
BRIAN GOLDEN is leaving his job as director of the Boston Planning and Development Agency with a payout of more than $200,000, according to the separation agreement he signed. The agreement, which was signed last Thursday and obtained through a public records request, was not particularly large. Brenda Cassellius received well over $300,000 when she agreed […]
Posted inOpinion
Staffing companies help move economy forward
AMID A NATIONAL workforce shortage impacting nearly every industry, connecting people with employment opportunities is vital to keeping the economic recovery of the past year moving forward in the Bay State and across the country. Staffing companies, crucial to helping workers and businesses navigate the economic downturn, are critical partners to both groups in addressing […]
Posted inOpinion
State must crack down on labor brokers
MASSACHUSETTS CONSTRUCTION is once again taking off to pre-pandemic levels. This is great news for working families and for the economy, since responsible development — when conducted with proper labor protections — is a key producer of economic opportunity and of great, family-sustaining careers for residents of every neighborhood. Unfortunately, some construction industry companies continue […]
Posted inOpinion
Abolishing BPDA should not be first priority
I SUPPORT Boston mayoral candidate Michelle Wu’s good government impulse to “fix Boston’s broken development system,” but worry that her plan to abolish the Boston Planning and Development Agency may very well be neither necessary nor helpful in accomplishing that goal. And as a legal matter, or even an administrative task, the “abolishing” part may […]
Posted inThe Download
Two takes on Boston’s Municipal Harbor Plan
Acting Mayor Kim Janey and the Boston City Council are united in wanting a redo of the city’s Municipal Harbor Plan, but getting all of the stakeholders on the same page won’t be easy. Janey, in the heat of the preliminary election campaign for mayor, announced she was withdrawing the plan, which outlines planning principles […]
Posted inEnvironment
Two takes on Boston’s Municipal Harbor Plan
ACTING MAYOR Kim Janey and the Boston City Council are united in wanting a redo of the city’s Municipal Harbor Plan, but getting all of the stakeholders on the same page won’t be easy. Janey, in the heat of the preliminary election campaign for mayor, announced she was withdrawing the plan, which outlines planning principles […]
Posted inOpinion
In praise of downtowns, Main Streets
COMING FROM NEWTON I should have known that Greater Boston has hundreds of wonderful little downtowns and village centers, the hearts of walkable neighborhoods. Newton itself has 13 villages. I grew up walking to downtown Newtonville for blue slush puppies and books at the branch library, now a senior center. In my 30s, I lived […]
Posted inEducation
Harvard picks Tishman Speyer for Allston phase 1
HARVARD UNIVERSITY selected Tishman Speyer and celebrated architect Jeanne Gang to develop and design the initial 14 acres of an enterprise research campus along Western Avenue across from the business school. The highly anticipated selection means Harvard’s plan to build a brand new neighborhood in Allston will take a major step forward. Still, between negotiating […]