Boston City Council Looks At Local Wetlands Ordinance & Grants

City Councilor-At-Large Michelle Wu publishes notes from Boston City Council meetings. Here are some highlights from the October 30, 2019 meeting:

Local Wetlands Protection: Councilors Flaherty, O’Malley & I reported back on yesterday’s working session on the Local Wetlands Protection ordinance. After receiving a line-edited version of proposed amendments from the Administration, we are making progress with resolving points of discussion that center around jurisdiction, timeframe, and whether to shrink proposed buffer zones around natural resource areas. We expect to make amendments and present a version for a vote by the end of the year.

GRANT: 

• $4,342,674 FY19 Lead Paint Hazard Reduction Grant, awarded by the United States Department of Housing & Urban Development to be administered by the Department of Neighborhood Development to fund abatement, inspection, risk assessment, temporary location and interim control of lead-based paint hazards in eligible privately owned, single-family and multi-family housing units that are occupied by low-income families. (Assigned to the Housing & Community Development Committee)
• $400,000 Parkland Acquisitions and Renovations of Communities (PARC) Grant, awarded by the Massachusetts Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs, Division of Conservation Services to be administered by the Boston Parks and Recreation Department to fund Phase III of the renovation of Harambee Park in Dorchester. (Assigned to the Environment, Sustainability & Parks Committee)
• $300,000 Go Boston 2030 grant, awarded by the Barr Foundation to be administered by the Transportation Department to fund transparent communication, tracking and evaluation of the progress of implementing the projects identified in Go Boston 2030. (Assigned to the Planning, Development & Transportation Committee)
• $99,811 FY19 BJA Justice and Mental Health Collaboration Program grant, awarded by the United States Department of Justice to be administered by the Police Department to fund a cross-system collaboration to improve responses and outcomes for individuals with mental illnesses (MI) or co-occurring mental illness and substance abuse (CMISA) who come into contact with the justice system. (Passed)
• $50,000 Harvard-Allston Public Realm Flexible Fund, awarded by the Boston Redevelopment Authority to be administered by the Arts and Culture Department to fund a consultant to identify both creative place-making and place-keeping opportunities in keeping with the unique and varied present-day character of the dynamic Allston-Brighton neighborhood. (Passed)
• $40,000 FY2020 Jail/Arrest Diversion Grant, awarded by the MA Department of Mental Health to be administered by the Police Department to fund crisis intervention training. (Passed)
• $4,520 FY17 Youth Homelessness Demonstration Program, awarded by the United States Department of Housing & Urban Development to be administered by the Department of Neighborhood Development to fund planning and implementing programs to move Boston from a city where multiple programs serve youth and young adults at risk and experiencing homelessness, to a city with a coordinated, resourced and data-informed system with common vision and goals aimed at preventing and ending youth homelessness. The original award of $4,920,000.00 was increased by $4,520.00 when the contract was finalized by HUD. (Passed)

UPCOMING HEARINGS (In the City Council Chamber unless otherwise noted. Watch online too.)

• Our next Council Meeting will be on Wednesday, November 6th 

For complete notes of Boston City Council meetings, visit MichelleForBoston.com or sign up to receive these notes automatically.