Mayor Janey announces updates to City of Boston's Reopening Guidance; Will delay state rules by 3 weeks.

Modified and delayed guidance of the latest phase of Reopening Massachusetts plan will allow the City of Boston to prepare for industry-specific needs

(BOSTON - Tuesday, April 27, 2021) - Mayor Janey today announced that the City of Boston will move into a modified version of the state’s current phase of the Reopening Massachusetts plan, effective Friday, April 30. The City of Boston will delay most of the state’s reopening guidance announced today by three weeks, in an effort to accommodate the unique preparations needed by the City. In late March, the City announced that it would not move forward with additional reopening steps until the citywide positivity rate remained at or below 2.75 percent for two consecutive weeks. It is currently at 3.6 percent. However, given improved trends in the positivity rate and other COVID-19 public health metrics, the City will move cautiously to advance reopening efforts. The latest modified update will support Boston’s economic recovery as COVID-19 health metrics continue to improve. All reopening guidance will be subject to current COVID-19 public health data.

As of April 20, 2021, 33.1 percent of Bostonians are fully vaccinated; 55.1 percent have received at least one dose. The citywide community positivity rate continues to decrease, dropping to 3.6 percent, with three neighborhoods slightly above the 5.0 percent threshold (East Boston, Dorchester and Roslindale). New positive tests in the City of Boston decreased by 34 percent over the past week, averaging 144 new positive tests per day. The percentage of available adult ICU beds remains stable, and the percentage of non-surge ICU beds continues to be below the City’s threshold. Boston has had two reported deaths in the past week. 

“In every aspect of Boston's reopening, we will take the right measures, at the right time, to protect our people and businesses,” said Mayor Janey. “As we look ahead to better days, we must remember that the COVID-19 pandemic is not over. Reopening our economy does not remove our personal and collective responsibility to remain vigilant. Thank you to all Bostonians for your continued efforts and cooperation as we reopen our city.”

Effective Friday, April 30, the City of Boston will align with Commonwealth’s updated Face Coverings Order. This states that face coverings will be required at all times at indoor and outdoor venues and events, except when eating or drinking. Face coverings are recommended to be worn both inside and outside during small gatherings at private homes. Face coverings are not required outside in public spaces when individuals are able to remain at a safe distance from others.

Also effective April 30, public gatherings in Boston may increase to 100 people indoors and 150 people outdoors, in alignment with the Commonwealth's previously announced limits. In Boston, all private gatherings and events in private residences will remain subject to current capacity limits of 10 people indoors and 25 people outdoors. However, public and private gathering limits will increase to 200 people indoors and 250 people outdoors on June 19 in Boston, three weeks after the higher limits go into effect in other parts of the Commonwealth. The City of Boston and the Boston Public Health Commission will continue to closely monitor public health data and adjust reopening plans as necessary.

The City of Boston will align with the Commonwealth’s updated guidance for indoor and outdoor stadiums, arenas and ballparks, allowing capacity to increase to 25 percent, effective May 10.

The City of Boston plans to allow the following industries to reopen or resume June 1, subject to certain capacity limits and safety measures, three weeks after the Commonwealth will allow for their reopening in other parts of the state:

• Road races and other large, outdoor organized amateur or professional group athletic events
• Youth and adult amateur sports tournaments for moderate and high-risk sports
• Singing indoors at performance venues, restaurants, event venues and other businesses, subject to the Commonwealth’s Theater and Performance Venue guidance

The City of Boston plans to allow the following industries to reopen or resume starting June 19, subject to certain capacity limits and safety measures, three weeks after the Commonwealth will allow for their reopening in other parts of the state:

• Street festivals, parades and agricultural festivals, at 50 percent capacity
• Bars, beer gardens, breweries, wineries and distilleries for seated-service only, subject to a 90-minute table limit, and no dance floors.
• Food will no longer be required with alcohol service, and 10 people can be seated at a table.

If public health metrics support continued safe reopening in Boston, effective August 22, industry restrictions will be lifted, and 100 percent capacity will be allowed for all industries. This would be three weeks after the Commonwealth takes this step in other parts of the state. Remaining Phase Four, Step Two industries and businesses, including dance clubs and nightclubs; saunas, hot tubs, steam rooms, and health clubs; and ball pits, would be allowed to reopen on August 22 in Boston. All businesses will be expected to adhere to ongoing safety guidance, and mask wearing will continue to be required indoors.

The Mayor’s Office of Economic Development (OED) will also hold two upcoming webinars about updated reopening guidance on Friday, April 30th at 2:00 p.m. and Wednesday, May 5th at 8:30 a.m. OED also hosts weekly small business calls every Tuesday at 3:00 p.m.and Reopen Boston Business Office Hours every Friday 9:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. and 2:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. These meetings ensure business owners, customers, and workers have access to all of the guidance and details necessary to return safely, as Boston reopens. For more information, please visit boston.gov/smallbusiness.

All of this guidance is subject change based on evolving COVID-19 public health metrics. For more information about reopening in Boston, visit boston.gov/reopening. For more information about the state’s reopening plan, visit mass.gov/reopening. 

Source: Mayor's Office 4/27/2021

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News: Mayor Walsh Announces New Affordable Housing Fund Round

Includes first large scale CPA awards and $16 million in other funding that support the City's housing goals

(BOSTON -  Wednesday, September 19, 2018) - Mayor Martin J. Walsh today announced that the City of Boston has released a Request for Proposals (RFP) for affordable housing projects seeking City of Boston financial support. This affordable housing funding round will include over $16 million in city affordable housing funds, and in addition, will include the first large scale awards of Community Preservation Act (CPA) funding for affordable housing development projects.

While the exact amount of CPA funding for housing will be determined by the Community Preservation Committee (CPC), total awards from all sources in this funding round will likely exceed $25 million, making it one of the largest affordable housing funding rounds in City of Boston history.

File Photograph: EastBoston.com

File Photograph: EastBoston.com

"Addressing rising housing costs is critical for preserving the diversity and character that makes Boston a place where all residents can thrive," said Mayor Walsh. "Voters in Boston made their support for affordable housing creation clear when they passed the Community Preservation Act in 2016. My administration has put affordability at the top of our agenda, establishing a comprehensive plan, and committing more than $115 million to housing. With these new funds in this funding round, we will further accelerate our work to lift up every neighborhood and provide all residents and their families with accessible and affordable housing options."

Based on the goals outlined in Mayor Walsh's housing strategy, Housing A Changing City: Boston 2030 and the Imagine Boston 2030 Planning Process, the City of Boston has established priority criteria which proposals must meet, including:

• Affordable housing developments targeting a mix of incomes: from units for homeless households to units targeted and restricted to incomes representative of Boston's workforce;
• Affordable housing developments that serve the disabled community, vulnerable or special needs populations, older Bostonians, veterans, artists, and/or aging out youth;
• Acquisition of unrestricted housing developments in order to stabilize residents' tenancies, and provide long term affordability for a mix of incomes; or
• Affordable housing developments that utilize City-owned land;
• Affordable housing developments that have reduced the cost to build and use public funding most efficiently;
• Developments that are at risk of losing their affordability within five years.
• Projects creating new affordable units in high-cost neighborhoods where most of the IDP and NHT funds are generated.

Funds will be awarded from three sources: the first, of approximately $8 million, consists of funds administered by the Department of Neighborhood Development, including funds from the Federal HOME Investment Partnerships and Community Development Block Grant programs, the City's Housing Boston 2030 Fund, and the Inclusionary Development Policy Fund. Up to $3 million of this funding is earmarked to support housing that serves households 55 years or older. 

The second source utilizes funds from the Neighborhood Housing Trust (NHT). NHT disburses funds collected through the City's Linkage policy, which extracts affordable housing funds from developers of large commercial projects. 

The third source is CPA funds, which are collected through the one percent property tax surcharge approved by Boston voters in 2016 to help strengthen Boston neighborhoods through strategic investment in affordable housing, historic preservation, and open space. The addition of CPA funds to this funding package aligns the City's housing resources towards full implementation of Housing a Changing City: Boston 2030 plan. Applications are currently available for the next round of CPA funds.

About Housing A Changing City: Boston 2030

By the year 2030, Boston will reach more than 700,000 residents, a number the City has not seen since the 1950s. Housing a Changing City: Boston 2030 is Mayor Walsh's Administration's comprehensive housing plan to create 53,000 new units of housing for a variety of income levels. Since the policy was enacted in 2014, Boston has permitted more than 27,000 units of housing, completing nearly 18,000 of them as of the end of the second quarter in 2018. More than 11,000 of those permitted units are income-restricted, and more than 2,000 of these are reserved for Bostonians earning low and extremely low wages.

Although these results show strong progress toward the goals established by the Mayor's Advisory Housing Task Force, Boston's population is increasing more rapidly than the population models used in to establish plan targets had estimated. 

Housing A Changing City: Boston 2030 was created not as a static policy piece to be enacted, but as a living document meant to be reassessed and reframed as necessary. In the Spring of 2018, Mayor Walsh reconvened the Housing Task Force to assess progress and reevaluate the goals of the policy through this new population filter. Other factors under consideration include the Mayors Regional Housing Compact Policy and the effects on Boston and its neighbors, as well as the evaluation of lessons learned over the past four years. An update to Housing A Changing City: Boston 2030 is expected in the fall of 2018.

About Imagine Boston 2030

Imagine Boston 2030 is building on Housing a Changing City by identifying areas where continued growth can occur and where additional growth beyond the 53,000-unit target can take place. This growth will create a release valve for existing neighborhoods that are seeing pressure on housing prices. Other initiatives include: working to increase the overall housing supply, deploying tools to support the preservation of affordable housing citywide, putting forth an anti-displacement package that will create and preserve affordable housing, and preventing eviction, link housing and transportation and supporting home ownership. For more information included in the plan, please visit imagine.boston.gov.

Source: Mayor's Press Office (9/19/2018)

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