"When you live in Greater Boston, it can feel like the rent never stops climbing. Each year, the price of signing a new lease, or resigning an old one, grows more expensive — whether it be by $50 or $200 — than it was last year.Indeed, there’s some truth to that.In many metropolitan areas across the US, rents have trended down over the last year or so, particularly in places where an abundance of new housing has come online.Not Greater Boston.Rent in this housing-starved region has grown more expensive in nearly every community over the last year, according to a new monthly rent tracker launched by the Globe that compares rental trends at the local level"
See the latest rent estimates and trends
"Attorney General Andrea Campbell issued guidance on Thursday for Massachusetts immigrants and their supporters on how to respond to federal immigration officials, as arrests have sharply increased in the state.The guidance addresses questions her office has received about ICE’s jurisdiction, the rights of people being targeted, what bystanders are allowed to do, and whether local law enforcement can cooperate with federal officials.
Todd Lyons
It comes as Campbell has said there is little she or other local politicians can do to stop the ICE arrests taking place under the Trump administration.“From arresting parents in front of their children to pulling people who present no public safety threat out of their cars in broad daylight, the aggressive ICE tactics we’re seeing across the Commonwealth do not protect the public, and instead spread fear,” Campbell said in a statement. “In releasing this guidance, I strongly encourage everyone to inform themselves of their rights when they see immigration officers in their communities.”
"A Superior Court judge Friday dismissed a group of lawsuits from nine Eastern Massachusetts communities over a controversial state housing law that mandates cities and towns with access to the MBTA make it easier to build multifamily housing.The lawsuits — filed by the towns of Duxbury, Hamilton, Hanson, Holden, Marshfield, Middleton, Wenham, Weston, and Wrentham — sought relief from the MBTA Communities Act on the grounds that it constitutes an “unfunded mandate,” and that more multifamily development would strain their local infrastructure like roads and sewer systems.Judge Mark Gildea rejected the towns’ argument as “speculative,” saying they did not provide concrete examples of the costs multifamily housing would inflict on them.“The Municipalities have neither pled specific costs for anticipated infrastructure costs, nor provided any specific timeline for anticipated construction projects,” Gildea wrote in the ruling. “Instead, the only allegations and averments before the court are generalized comments about large-scale issues they foresee, which are insufficient to sustain the Municipalities’ claims.”
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| Franklin Interim Compliance District Compliance Application in review |
Via the Boston Globe:
"A girl died and two others suffered serious injuries after, police say, a drunk driver struck another car in Franklin on Saturday evening.James N. Blanchard, 21, of Franklin, was arrested at the scene and charged with motor vehicle homicide while driving negligently and under the influence of alcohol, according to a statement released by the Norfolk District Attorney’s office.The crash occurred around 6:22 p.m. in the area of 76 Grove St., according to the statement.The girl, whose name was not released, was rushed to the hospital where she was later pronounced dead, according to the statement."
On March 14, 2025 President Trump signed Executive Order 14238 eliminating the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) "to the maximum extent consistent with applicable law." IMLS is the single largest source of critical federal funding for libraries. Through IMLS' Grants to States Program, for FY2025 the Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners (MBLC) was allocated $3.6 million to support statewide library services and grants to local libraries. In the weeks that followed the executive order, IMLS staff were placed on administrative leave and in the President’s FY2026 budget, IMLS is eliminated (pg. 39 under Small Agency Eliminations).
At the annual Massachusetts Library Association conference, MBLC Director Maureen Amyot addressed the impact of ongoing federal uncertainty caused by the executive order and spoke about the MBLC’s efforts to preserve as many federally funded statewide services as possible. Director Amyot announced the FY2026 plan for statewide research databases, the statewide eBook program, and the Commonwealth Catalog.
"The federal impact cannot be overstated. In Massachusetts, over 1,600 school, public, academic and special libraries from across the state benefit from federal IMLS funding. Millions of people rely on federally funded library services,” she said. "Developing a plan for services in an environment of almost daily federal change has been challenging, but our goal has remained constant: to maintain services that are integral to the functioning of our system and heavily relied on by the people of the Commonwealth."
Starting on July 1, 2025, statewide research database offerings will be significantly reduced. However, the MBLC and the Massachusetts Library System (MLS), which jointly fund databases, will maintain several of the most heavily used. The MBLC spends close to $2.2 million of its federal allocation to fund statewide research databases, an amount that cannot be made up in state funding. For FY2026, the eBook content grant to Networks from MBLC’s state line 9506 will likely be funded at $500,000*, which will allow for $500,000 funding in that line to go towards databases. MLS will increase its support for databases by $18,575 to a total of $670,575. Overall, combined database funding from MBLC and MLS will go from $2.8 million to $1.17 million.
"The President has determined that the Institute of Museum and Library Services is 'unnecessary.' But we know the opposite to be true. We know that welcoming ALL, including diverse voices in our collections, and providing free and equitable access to library services make public libraries the cornerstone of a free democratic society,” said Director Amyot. "Libraries change people’s lives. That’s why these reductions in critical library services hurt. But we’re in this for the long game and in the year ahead we’ll continue to work with local, state and federal partners to stabilize library funding and services."
Databases provide every Massachusetts resident with trustworthy online content covering topics such as science, health, history, biographies and more. Last year, there were over 9 million full text downloads from research databases, an increase of 12% in just one year. Sixty percent of database usage comes from schools. The chart below details which databases will be available as of July 1, 2025.
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| Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners attempts to deal with Federal funding cuts |
"The sounds of winter athletics are timeless, from the thump of a bouncing basketball in a quiet gym, the slice of a skate across ice, the thwack of skin against mat, the whoosh of waxed skis, to the splash of swimmers coming off the blocks.
While the soundtrack is ageless, there’s a new crop of high school athletes filling those gyms, rinks, tracks, pools, and slopes every season. So after crowning 31 state championship teams, it’s time to recognize the top individual athletes with the Boston Globe’s All-Scholastics for Winter 2024-25.
Chosen by a panel of Boston Globe beat writers and editors — with the exception of the prep choices — the 250 All-Scholastics, 39 athletes of the year, and 38 coaches of the year are selected using a combination of statistics, awards, notes, recommendations, and observation. Student-athletes from schools in Eastern Mass. leagues are eligible."
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"It’s a generation permanently scarred.Five years after the COVID-19 pandemic began, Massachusetts students remain far behind where they were when the global health catastrophe struck and school leaders undertook the drastic step of shutting in-person learning down for months.This is despite billions of dollars in federal aid to redress the damage done by prolonged school closures. Math skills have stagnated and reading achievement has worsened. Children who were not yet in high school when schools closed their doors have graduated, less equipped to navigate the world than those who came before.Dozens of Massachusetts superintendents surveyed by the Globe said it will be years before students catch up. While a minority said their students have already matched pre-pandemic scores or will by the end of next year — six years after schools closed — most said it will take longer."
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| Boston Globe "This is not a drill" |
"It is difficult in some cases to get to the very heart of the matter. But in this case, it is not hard at all. The government is asserting a right to stash away residents of this country in foreign prisons without the semblance of due process that is the foundation of our constitutional order. Further, it claims in essence that because it has rid itself of custody that there is nothing that can be done.
This should be shocking not only to judges, but to the intuitive sense of liberty that Americans far removed from courthouses still hold dear."
Read the full decision here -> https://drive.google.com/file/d/17wvviF6w1L5Cg9dJltxDBJTC-RT2FiZj/view?usp=drive_link
“From the college perspective, there’s some anxiety right now,” says Joseph DiCarlo, dean of enrollment and director of admissions at Worcester State University, as he looks out over the cavernous exhibition hall. “With a smaller number of students, you’ve got to cast a wider net.”
The number of college students in the state has already fallen since the last peak, in 2012, by more than 45,000, or nearly 9 percent — that’s more than the undergraduate enrollment of the University of Massachusetts Amherst and UMass Boston combined.
Before long, experts predict that higher education institutions, including some represented at this college fair, will begin to tumble down the demographic cliff and close. "
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| Apparently forecasts don't matter until they hit you where it hurts |
"Artist Merill Comeau started talking to others back in 2022 about Gather 2025, a monthlong series of events in April exploring fiber arts in the Greater Boston area.“I was thinking it would be four events over four weekends,” she said in a phone conversation from her home in West Concord.But interest snowballed. Museums, galleries, groups, and makers jumped in.“Now it’s like 70 events,” Comeau said. When you add opening and closing receptions, it’s closer to 100. There will be panel discussions, maker gatherings, demonstrations, and tours.
Franklin's "art bombing" project anticipated this trend Exhibitions include “Art Evolved: Intertwined,” a show connecting basketry and quilting at Fuller Craft Museum, “Interwoven| Textile Arts and Climate Change” at Mosesian Center for the Arts, and “Orange Line: Connecting Neighborhoods North to South” at Piano Craft Gallery."
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"The lowdown: Franklin has reached the final three times in the past decade (2024, 2018, 2014) but has yet to get over the hump. Last year, the Panthers stood little chance against a juggernaut Worcester North squad, and Newton North was a massive underdog in 2022 when the Tigers faced undefeated BC High in the state final. Now both programs have a very good shot to emerge from a balanced Division 1 field to claim a title. If North wins and goes undefeated against in-state competition, it would harken back to the great teams that won consecutive titles under Connolly’s steerage from 2005 and 2006, and cement Swint as one of the greatest players to put on a Tigers uniform. Yet scoring consistently against Franklin’s defense will be a tall task. The Panthers allowed just 47.8 points per game this season, turning in several dominant defensive performances while going 10-0 away from their home court."
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| Boston Globe preview of the BIG game for FHS boys basketball on Sunday, Mar 16, 2025 |
"State Representative Jeffrey Roy, who has been the focus of Boston Globe coverage about his relationship with a top lobbyist, leveled a series of accusations against the newspaper Wednesday, claiming it used “illegal materials” and violated a court order when it published claims from his estranged wife.An attorney for the Globe disputed Roy’s assertions and said the newspaper did nothing unlawful in reporting information that was included in publicly available court records.Roy made his comments during an appearance before members of the Medway Democratic Town Committee. The Franklin Democrat repeatedly criticized the newspaper’s coverage in the roughly hourlong talk, suggesting it committed ”journalistic malpractice" in its reporting of his relationship with a lobbyist who had business before the legislative committee he led."
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| Rep Roy with Governor M Healey, and Councilor G Jones celebrating the climate bill signing in Dec 2024 (photo courtesy Rep Roy's office) |
"An aggressive wild turkey chased a parking enforcement officer in Brookline into a building on Wednesday, and police warned residents to be on the lookout as the turkey mating season gets underway.Police in Brookline, where wild turkeys are known for their boldness, said several aggressive ones were seen along Babcock Street about 8:30 a.m.“One such report stated a turkey chased a parking enforcement officer into a building and then began pecking on the glass door!” police wrote on social media.An animal control officer came to help the parking officer, police said.Breeding season for wild turkeys, which MassWildlife describes as a “strikingly handsome bird,” typically lasts from March into May."
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| part of the flock of turkeys in the front yard in Dec 2024 |
"State Representative Jeffrey Roy, who was first appointed chair of the powerful energy committee in 2021 and is dating a lobbyist with business before the committee, was removed from his post as chairman of the Joint Telecommunications, Utilities, and Energy committee and promoted by House Speaker Ron Mariano into his leadership team.The move thrusts Roy into Beacon Hill’s powerful inner circle and assures the seven-term Democrat sees no cut to his compensation despite losing the coveted committee post.The leadership shakeup comes after a series of stories published by the Globe last year revealed Roy’s relationship with lobbyist Jennifer Crawford, a partner in the state’s highest-grossing influence firm.Mariano told reporters Wednesday that removing Roy from the top of the energy committee and promoting him into the leadership ranks makes “some of the negative things that he’s been attributed with goes away.”
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| State Representative Jeffrey Roy |
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| graduation readiness for students |
"It’s no secret that homeownership is out of reach for many people in Massachusetts. The average sale price of a single-family home is $642,000, the third highest in the nation. Renting instead is cold comfort; the average Greater Boston apartment costs $3,058. Although the state and local communities have taken steps to increase the housing supply, more housing still needs to be built.Massachusetts achieved its notorious reputation for unaffordability by layering barrier upon barrier to new housing. In new research published by the Pioneer Institute, we lay out what we learned about the arduous and uncertain homebuilding process by interviewing builders, planners, lawyers, and scholars from across the state."
"Single-family neighborhoods are synonymous with the American Dream. Their driveways and grassy yards define the communities of suburban America, including Greater Boston.But are they also compounding Massachusetts' deep housing crisis?A state-appointed commission focused on the state’s worsening housing shortage in fact identified single-family-only zoning — the land-use rules that created suburban single-family neighborhoods — as a primary obstacle blocking the surge of construction Massachusetts desperately needs to address its housing problem.And so the commission proposes a seemingly profound idea: get rid of single-family zoning — everywhere in Massachusetts."
Continue reading the article online -> https://www.bostonglobe.com/2025/02/21/business/massachusetts-housing-affordability/
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| MA housing crisis and possible solutions |
"Imagine being 26 years old, at the start of your career, and figuring out how to buy an office building in the middle of downtown Boston for your fast-growing nonprofit.The improbable scenario is all too real for Connor Schoen, who in December engineered one of the most surprising real estate deals in the city: a $6.3 million purchase of a five-story building on Franklin Street for the nonprofit he leads, Breaktime.Schoen’s social entrepreneurship quickly became the talk of the town. Nonprofit executives and philanthropic leaders reached out to him about what they could learn from the deal, and whether they, too, could invest in downtown at a time when office building values have plummeted. For Breaktime and other nonprofits that might follow its lead, owning instead of leasing provides some control over their destiny."
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| Boston Globe: "Thanks to a 26-year-old nonprofit founder, one less downtown Boston office building is vacant" |
