City Council - Regular Meeting

Good afternoon, everyone. I call to order today's meeting of the Boston City Council. Viewers can watch the council meeting live on YouTube at boston.gov backslash city dash council dash tv. At this time I ask my colleagues and those in the audience to please silence their cell phones and electronic devices. Also pursuant to rule 42, I remind all in this chamber that no demonstration of approval or disapproval from members of the public will be permitted. Thank you. Madam Clerk, will you please call the roll to ascertain the presence of a quorum?

Thank you, Madam Clerk. I've been informed by Madam Clerk that a quorum is present. Madam Clerk, I would invite you to come and offer some brief remarks as an invocation since our clerk is absent today. Following Madam Clerk's remarks, we'll do the Pledge of Allegiance.

Thank you, everyone. Thank you, Madam Clerk. Before we begin our presentations, I'd like to invite the Boston Medical Center Resident Physicians Group to come up for a quick photograph with my colleagues, our colleagues. We will be voting on this legislative resolution later on in the agenda. But for right now, if you'd come forward and ask my colleagues to come up for a photograph with the Boston Medical Center Resident Physicians Group, who are in the midst of contract negotiations right now. I'll put you center, front and center.

Excellent, thank you. Oh, thank you, gotta bring a little sunshine every now and then.

We have two presentations today. Councillor Santana is recognising Bisexuality and Visit Plus Visibility Day. Councillor Webber is recognising Mark Cohen. Councillor Santana, would you like to come forward?

Thank you, Madam President. Come up here. Good afternoon, everyone. Last week, the council passed my resolution recognizing September 23, 2026 as BIPLUS Visibility Day in Boston. Ever since activists like Wendy Curry, Michael Page, and Gigi Raven Wilbur established this day in 1999, the demand has remained clear. visibility, safety, and respect. Boston must stand firmly against bi plus aversion. I am proud to introduce today's featured speaker, Ayanna Peoples. Ayanna is a board member of the Bisexual Resource Center and a legal aid paralegal whose work bridges community advocacy with the legal

Thank you, Ayanna. I really appreciate those words. And we're actually going to do a picture, if that's OK. So yeah, if I can invite all my council colleagues, please come up here.

Thank you, Councillor Santana. Thank you to our friends from the Bisexuality Plus Visibility Group. Thank you for being here. We're now on to Councillor Webber. I invite you and Mark.

Mark, over here. uh yeah okay yeah uh there's also like this way we can walk that way okay uh well um i guess as you're walking up here so uh you know i i i speak from personal experience, but I think every counselor could use someone in their office who is smart, will go to the mat for you, and who is able to occasionally look you in the eye and say with conviction, you're full of crap. Mark Cohen, for me, is that guy. As someone who's worked for the city for nearly 40 years, Mark brought his saltiness and some wisdom sprinkled in to this job and to our office. But hey, I always wanted to wor

If my colleagues could join us for a photograph.

Madam Clerk, if you could please amend the attendance to reflect that Councillors Colletta Zapata and Councillor Pepin have joined us. Thank you. I also want to give a shout out to the Suffolk students who were visiting with Councillor Pepin's office this morning. Sorry I didn't get an opportunity to meet you, but you're welcome to City Hall. Thank you. Now we're on to the first order of business, which is to approve the minutes from the meeting of September 16th, 2026. All in favor say aye. All opposed say nay. The ayes have it. The minutes of the September 16th meeting are approved. We're on

I would like to seek suspension of the rules and pass this appropriation. As we all know, the Community Preservation Act provides vital funding to get beloved affordable housing, open space, and historic preservation projects launched throughout the city. I'm grateful for Director Thaddean Brown and her team for providing robust updates on the status of current projects to see how CPA funds can be stretched even further for more community projects. We will have hearings on these in the future, as always, where we get to learn about the new projects that are going to be considered by the CPC. I

Thank you, Councillor Pepin. The Chair recognizes Councillor Flynn. Councillor, you have the floor.

Thank you, Madam Chair. Madam Chair, through the Chair, may I ask Councilor Pepin a question?

Councilor Pepin, did we have a hearing on this? And is it likely we could have a hearing on this? It is a significant amount of money. Just want to see what your thoughts are.

Yes, thank you to my colleague from District 2. In regards to this, this is simply transferring the $7.6 million that were unused due to projects actually not costing as much as they were estimated to be, or some projects withdrew from their application due to other issues. So we're just making sure that this money gets transferred to the FY27 budget. For the CPC and we will have hearings on these to go over every single project that's being considered for the community preservation grant for this year.

Thank you. Councillor Murphy, your light was on.

Yes. Thank you, Councillor Pepin, for bringing this forward. I do just want to thank Sabine and her team. They're always very open, transparent, and share information. read and print out the email that was sent from her back on August 25th that has an attached spreadsheet and I also saw the 47 million and thought well that's a lot to just move forward but when I had read more about what was actually going to be voted on today is that you know now that the projects are completed so any money we can get back into the pool and hopefully be funding more great projects and knowing that that office

Yes, yes, responding to my council colleague. Yes, so just making sure that all my colleagues know that this is not the last vote. This is just a vote to make sure that we can use these funds We will then have the hearings to go over the project. We will be able to ask the questions to each individual project, which Thadine Brown and her team does an amazing job of breaking down. And then we will take a vote to either grant these grants to the projects. So that's the answer.

Thank you. Councillor Flynn, your light is on.

Thank you, Madam Chair. I'm not going to object to having a vote, I do think. I do think we should have a hearing on it, but again, I'm not going to object. I'm going to vote in favor of it, but I do think it's worth having a discussion on what impact this proposal and this funding will have on CPA. I have long supported CPA, longer than for eight or nine years here on the council. and have tremendous respect for Faye Dean and her CPA team as well. Again, I'm voting in favor of it. I do wish we could have had a hearing on it, so I would be thoroughly informed of all aspects of this. Thank you.

Thank you. I have a question for Councillor Pepin. Are you seeking a vote on this or just to send it to committee?

Just bend and pass. Fine. Thank you. Contra me here. You have the floor.

Thank you, Madam President. And just so that I understand and those who are tuning in understand that this particular vote is just to make sure that the money that we have left over that we can use in the future. And therefore, the vote that we're about to take for everybody that's paying attention is a responsible vote because what we're doing is just reallocating those dollars for future use. I just want to make sure that my interpretation of what's happening here is that simple. Is that what that is? Yeah, I'm going to thank you. Yeah. Okay, so then the vote that I'm taking is to just make sure that we can reallocate the leftover funds so that we can use in the future. Correct? Okay, good. Thank you. Thank you.

Yeah, and I also believe that it's at the request of Thadine Brown and her leadership. It is the money, it's not even just being reallocated, it's being used for the same exact purpose. So the hearings will happen the same way that the CPC hearings happened already for the three purposes for which we can use Community Preservation Act funds, open space, affordable housing, and historic preservation. It will still be those three categories. The money will be allocated for those same purposes, and it's actually probably a net good because we will have more money to allocate towards those three p

Thank you, Madam Chair. Again, I don't object to having a vote. I do wish we had a hearing, though. I'm going to vote in favor of this. I just want to do my due diligence because it's a large amount of money that's being appropriated, and it is our obligation to know exactly how every cent is spent in the City of Boston. That's my point, and that's my only point. Thank you, Madam Chair.

Thank you, Councillor Flynn. I think it's clear from the Chair there will be hearings on how this money is going to be spent. It's just been shifted over to the Community Preservation Act under the leadership of Saydean. So the Chair of the Committee on Community Preservation seeks suspension of the rules and passage of Docket 1771. All in favor, please say aye. All opposed, say nay. Madam Clerk, could you please take a roll call vote on 1771?

Thank you, Madam Clerk. Docket 1771 has passed. Madam Clerk, could you please read Docket 1772?

Thank you, Madam Clerk. Docket 1773 will be referred to the Committee on Public Safety and Criminal Justice. Madam Clerk, could you please read Docket 1774? Docket 1774.

Thank you. Docket 1774 will be referred to the Committee on Civil Rights, Racial Equity and Immigrant Advancement. Madam Clerk, could you please read Dockets 1775 and 1776 together?

Thank you Madam Clerk. Dockets 1775 and 1776 will be referred to the Committee on Labour and Economic Development. Madam Clerk, could you please read Docket 1777?

Thank you, Madam Clerk. The chair recognizes Councillor Louis-Jean. You have the floor.

Thank you, Madam Chair. This is a grant similar to the grants that we suspended and passed last week in support of Boston Family Days to support the program. I also meant to say this last week, and I was remiss, that one of the participants of the program, the Museum of Fine Arts, had a celebratory moment. Their board elect is the first black woman, first black person to chair their board. So I want to give a big thank you to Michelle Corden Brown. I want to say a continued thank you to all of the entities that participate in Boston Family Days so that our kids can have access and their famili

Thank you, Councillor Louis-Jean. Councillor Louis-Jean, the chair of the Committee on Arts, Culture, Entertainment, Tourism, and Special Events. Councillor Flynn, you have a problem. Councillor Flynn?

Thank you. I rise to support this proposal. This funding is coming from Amazon. in Boston Foundation. I also want to acknowledge myself and Councilor Murphy. We work to ensure, working with the nonprofits, to ensure that all children of Boston would be able to attend these museums, including children attending private schools. We do feel that's an important addition to the program. They are part of the city. and Boston is a better city because all of our children are included in this program. Thank you, Madam Chair.

Thank you, Councillor Flynn. So Councillor Louis-Jean seeks suspension of the rules and passage of Docket 1777. All in favour say aye. All opposed say nay. Madam Clerk, could you please take a roll call vote on Docket 1777.

Thank you, Madam Clerk. Docket 1777 has passed. Madam Clerk, could you please read Docket 1778?

Thank you. The chair recognizes Councillor O'Reil, chair of the Committee on Labor and Economic Development. Councillor, you have the floor.

Thank you, Madam President. This grant is the second of three for the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act. These grants come from a federal form of design to help job seekers access education, training, and support services. This docket is a $202,537 grant to support staff time to implement the larger adult support services to mass hire. Those services include job search, coaching, connection to training, and access to funding for eligible job seekers pursuing further training. WIOA adult clients are primarily low-income adults who are unemployed or underemployed. As Chair of the Committe

Thank you, Councillor Worrell. Councillor Worrell, the Chair of the Committee on Labour and Economic Development, seeks suspension of the rules and passage of docket number 1778. All in favour say aye. All opposed say nay. Madam Clerk, could you please take a roll call vote on docket 1778.

Thank you. Docket 1778 has passed. Madam Clerk, could you please read Docket 1779? Docket 1779.

Councillor, you have the floor. Thank you, Madam Chair. I rise again for suspension and passage of this $150,000 grant to support the Boston Family Days program. The James M. and Kathleen D. Stone Foundation have been early supporters of this program since its inception, and it's great to see their continued support. So I just ask my colleagues to join me in supporting this grant for the Boston Family Days program. Thank you so much.

Thank you. Councillor Louis Jain, the Chair of the Committee on Arts, Culture, Entertainment, Tourism and Special Events, seeks suspension of the rules and passage of Docket 1779. All in favour say aye. All opposed say nay. Madam Clerk, could you please take a roll call vote on Docket 1779.

Madam Clerk, can you please read Docket 1780?

Thank you, Madam Clerk. Chair recognizes Councillor Murphy, the Chair of the Committee on Human Services. You have the floor.

Thank you, Madam Chair. I'd like to suspend and pass. I hope my colleagues join me. This is $150,000, which helps support the work that director Pedro Cruz and his team are doing for our youth. So as it was said, that was read already, but this will also host events on Friday evening throughout the summer. Some of this money just needs to be work that's already happened. So looking forward to supporting Pedro and his team. And I want to thank Denise for always sending along the explanations. so that we can get these grants passed quickly. If anyone has any other questions after the vote, they

Zero. Vote call vote on docket 1780. Councillor Braden?

Thank you. Docket 1780 has passed. Madam Clerk, could you please read Docket 1781? Docket 1781.

Thank you. The chair recognizes Councillor Worrell, the chair of the Committee on Environmental Justice, Resiliency, and Parks. You have the floor.

Thank you, Madam President. This grant will be administered by the Office of Workforce Development. It will support activities at Power Corps Boston, Funds will go towards supportive services and living stipends paid to Power Corps members during their period of service. And I want to give a shout out to the whole crew at Power Corps, especially Richard and Joe, for their work with my office on helping to get some extra love to the green spaces in my district, whether it's the garden behind the Common Square Library or Evans Playground. They stepped up in a force for my community, and as chair

Thank you, Councillor Worrell. Councillor Worrell seeks suspension of the rules in passage of Docket 1781. All in favour say aye. All opposed say nay. Madam Clerk, could you please take a roll call vote on Docket 1781.

12 votes in the affirmative. Thank you. Docket 1781 has passed. Madam Clerk, could you please read Docket 1782?

Thank you. Chair recognizes Councillor Santana, the Chair of the Committee on Public Safety and Criminal Justice. You have the floor.

Thank you, Madam President. This grant, as part of the Massachusetts Department of Mental Health efforts to place trained mental health professionals within city police departments, will fund a full-time recovery coach position at the Boston Emergency Services team, known as BEST. Recovery coaches can connect with individuals at risk of overdose and or of survivors of non-fatal overdose and their families with substance abuse resources and diversion programs. Recovery coaches are embedded as part of the police departments across the country, including in cities like New Bedford. This position

This docket number, I think it'll be critical to supporting people in need of mental health counseling. I also wanted to rise to acknowledge the state legislators and the governor for supporting the residents of Boston. Thank you, Madam Chair.

Thank you. Councillor Santana seeks suspension of the rules and passage of docket number 1782. All in favor say aye. All opposed say nay. Madam Clerk, could you please take a roll call vote on docket 1782?

Thank you, Madam Clerk. Docket 1782 has passed. Madam Clerk, could you please read Docket 1783?

Thank you. The Chair recognizes Councillor Worrell, the Chair of the Committee on Labour and Economic Development. You have the floor.

Thank you, Madam President. This is a small dollar grant that goes to the office to provide job search support. through opportunity to retrain foreign-demand careers, and as Chair of the Committee on Labour, Economic and Development, I'm asking for suspension and patch of the VIST docket. Thank you.

Thank you. Councillor Worrell seeks suspension of the rules and passage of docket number 1783. All in favour say aye. All opposed say nay. Madam Clerk, could you please take a roll call vote on docket 1783?

Thank you. Docket 1783 has passed. Madam Clerk, could you please read docket number 1784?

Councillor Murphy, you have the floor. Do you have a question?

No, but if you wouldn't mind if we could reconsider docket 1784. I didn't realize that was going to happen.

I have a second. Thank you. Councillor Murphy, you have the floor.

For this small dollar amount, I think it would be important if we could just pass this grant.

Councillor Murphy, I beg your pardon. We don't do this every day. I need a vote to reconsider your... No, I understand. I'll wait. Madam Clerk, could you please take a roll call vote on the motion to reconsider docket 1784?

Yes. Thank you. I think the Grant is described nicely. People understand what it's doing, but I am excited to see that we're funding and supporting our youth to come up with ways to design and find ways to help the Climate Action Fund here. So looking forward to doing whatever I can to push this money forward. Thank you.

Thank you. Councillor Murphy seeks suspension of the rules and passage of docket number 1784. All in favour say aye. All opposed say nay. Madam Clerk, could you please take a roll call vote on docket 1784?

Yes. Twelve votes in the affirmative. Thank you. Docket 1784 has passed. Madam Clerk, could you please read dockets 1785 through 1787? Docket 1785.

Thank you, Madam Clerk. Dockets 1785 through 1787 will be referred to the Committee on Labour and Economic Development. Madam Clerk, could you please read Docket 1788?

Thank you. Docket 1788 will be referred to the Committee on City Services. Madam Clerk, could you please read Docket 1789?

Thank you. Chair recognizes Councillor Worrell. Councillor, you have the floor.

Thank you, Madam President. This is a small dollar amount grant that's going to help with free tax services. I'm looking for suspension and pass.

Thank you. Councillor Worrell, the Chair of the Committee on Labour and Economic Development, seeks suspension of the rules and passage of Docket 1789. All in favour say aye. Aye. All opposed say nay. The ayes have it. Docket 1789 has passed. Madam Clerk, could you please read Docket 1790?

As the only nationwide database of its kind, the system gathers anonymous data across all 50 states on homicides, suicides, and firearm-related deaths. Data elements collected, such as mental health conditions, can provide valuable context and help decision-makers in public safety to develop and tailor violence prevention efforts. By gathering key details, like mental health history and toxology reports, we get a much clearer picture of why these tragedies happen. As Chair of the Public Safety and Criminal Justice, I recommend that this docket ought to pass.

Madam Clerk, could you please take a roll call vote on docket 1790?

Thank you, Madam Clerk. Docket 1790 has passed. We are now on to reports of public officers and others. Madam Clerk, could you please read dockets 1791 through 1794?

Thank you. Dockets 1791 through 1794 will be placed on file. Madam Clerk, could you please read Docket 1795?

Thank you. Docket 1795 is approved under the usual terms and conditions. We now on to matters recently heard. Madam Clerk, could you please read dockets 1-085, 1-395, and 1-397 together?

The committee held a hearing on Monday, September 21st, 2026 to discuss dockets 1084, 1395, and 1397. The committee heard testimony from panelists from the City of Boston Department of Innovation and Technology Chief Digital Equity Officer and Director of Broadband and Cable, Brian Donahue. Broadband and Digital Equity Advocacy Employee, Peter Favarito, and Senior Director of Operation Sheila Lee, as well as from the Mayor's Office, Deputy Chief of Operations, Real Estate and Capital Strategies, Trish Cafferkey. The following city councilors attended the public hearing. None. No city council h

Thank you, Councillor Flynn. Councillor Flynn, the Chair of the Committee on City Services, seeks acceptance of the committee report and passage of Docket 1085. All in favour, please say aye. All opposed, say nay. Madam Clerk, could you please take a roll call and vote on docket 1-0-8-5?

Thank you. Docket number 1085 is passed. The Chair of the Committee on City Services seeks acceptance of the committee report and passage of Docket 1395. All in favour say aye. All opposed say nay. Thank you. Madam Clerk, could you please take a roll call vote on docket 1395?

Twelve votes in the affirmative. Thank you, Madam Clerk. The committee report has been accepted and Docket 1395 has passed. Madam Clerk, could you please take a roll call—no, beg your pardon— The Chair of the Committee on City Services seeks acceptance of the committee report and passage of Docket 1397. All in favour say aye. All opposed say nay. Madam Clerk, could you please take a roll call vote on Docket 1397.

Madam Clerk, could you please read Docket 1414?

Chair recognises Councillor Greta Zapata. Chair of

Government Operations. You have the floor. Thank you, and thank you so much, Clerk. I did not know how to say it either. So we're just saying 7-OH for the record. On September 21st, the Committee on Government Operations held a three-hour hearing on this docket, sponsored by Councillor Fitzgerald and Flynn, addressing the sale and use of synthetic and highly concentrated kratom compounds, including 7-OH. We heard from the BPHC, the National Kratom Policy and Regulatory Experts, and two dozen members of the public. The testimony underscored an important distinction between traditional botanical

Thank you. Chair recognizes Councillor Fitzgerald. Councillor, you have the floor.

Thank you, Madam President. I just want to thank the Chair, Governor Ops, Councilor Galeta Sabato. She ran a great hearing the other day and we had a lot of testimony. At the end of it, we just want to make sure we get the wording right. The state has a temporary ban on the synthetic kratom as it speaks. It is still available over the counter in our city at the moment, but that ban is temporary. And so we want to make sure whenever that ban is taken down, whether it runs out in the statutory year or it's taken down for any other reason, that our ordinance would go into effect right away so not

Thank you, Councillor Fitzgerald. Docket 1414 will remain in committee. Madam Clerk, could you please read Docket 1338?

Chair recognizes Councilor Durkan. Councilor, you have the floor.

Thank you so much, Council President. I don't know if you want to make your way down. I was going to give you a chance to speak. Yesterday, September 21st, I chaired a hearing in the pilot committee on reestablishing a post office in Alston. This hearing order was sponsored by Council President Liz Braden. We were joined by Councilors Flynn, Fitzgerald, and Culpepper. The committee also received letters of absence from Councilors Pepin and Louisjean. Alston has nearly gone seven years without a post office after the previous building closed due to structural issues. USPS then had fully negotia

Thank you. Vice President Coletta Zapata, I would like you to briefly take the chair.

The Chair recognises Councillor Brayden. Councillor Brayden, you have the floor.

Thank you, Madam Chair. Thank you to Councillor Durkan for holding this hearing. As the District Councillor representing Alston, I sponsored this hearing to discuss the uncertain status of the Alston Post Office branch and to call for the Postal Service to re-establish this branch. At yesterday's hearing—I don't want to repeat what Councillor Durkan has already We learned that what was happening in Alston is part of a larger pattern of what USPS is doing, not only in the city of Boston, but across Massachusetts and across the country. They are not following their own required guidelines and pr

Thank you. Docket 1338 will remain in committee. Madam Clerk, could you please read Docket 0406?

Thank you. The Chair recognizes. Can't you be here? The Chair of the Committee on Education.

Thank you, Madam President. On September 22nd at 2 p.m., the Committee on Education held a hearing on docket number 0406 in order for a hearing on transparency and accountability of private fundraising in our Boston public schools. I was joined by my council colleagues, Councillor Flynn, Councillor Louis-Jean, Councillor Weber, Councillor Culpepper, and Councillor Fitzgerald, and with a letter of absence that we received from Councillor Pepin. At this hearing, We heard from experts, advocates, and members of the administration. Former New York City Councilor Mark Treger shared his legislation

Thank you, Councillor Mejia. Docket 0406 will remain in committee. We are now on to motions, orders and resolutions. A reminder that under Rule 39, remarks on new matters not up for a vote today should be limited to three minutes for the lead sponsor and two minutes for the co-sponsors. Madam Clerk, could you please read Docket 1796?

Thank you. Chair recognizes Councillor Webber. Councillor, you have the floor.

Thank you very much, Madam President. First, I'd like to add Councillor Coletta Zapata as an original co-sponsor. Councillor Coletta Zapata is so added. And I'd like to add Councillor Santana as a third sponsor.

Seeing and hearing no objections, Councillor Santana is added as a third.

Okay, and I'd just like to recognize some of my other colleagues. We only have room for two co-sponsors. I know Councillor Culpepper reached out. I apologize for the clean-up hitter, but we only have room for three here. And I know Councillor Mejia has spoken. ABOUT SURVEILLANCE AND CERTAINLY WANT TO ACKNOWLEDGE HER COMMENTS PUBLICLY ABOUT THIS ISSUE. SO THIS BODY PASSED A SURVEILLANCE OVERSIGHT ORDINANCE IN OCTOBER 2021. I THINK NOW IS THE TIME TO take another look at that given what we've seen over the last few years regarding how that ordinance applies to what's going on in the city and the

Thank you, Councillor Webber. The Chair recognizes Councillor Coletta Zapata. Councillor, you have the floor.

Thank you so much, Madam President, and I rise as the second co-sponsor of this ordinance, but I want to thank Councillor Webber for his leadership on this, as well as Councillor Mejia. I remember in 2025, during the budget cycle, we both asked questions during the BPD hearing about the uses of flock, and we received a partial answer. And during my recent briefing with some members of the administration and BRIC, It had become apparent that this body, I think in either 2022 or 2023, had given blanket approval for this type of technology. And at that point, I had said, okay, well, it sounds lik

Thank you, Councillor Clarissa Spada. Chair recognizes Councillor Santana. Councillor, you have the floor.

Thank you, Madam President. I'd like to also thank Councillor Webber for adding me as an original co-sponsor and for his diligent attention to matters of data and surveillance. This ordinance closes a loophole in the 2022 Ordinance on Surveillance Oversight information sharing that allowed for both a change of vendors and renewed agreements for current technologies to be done without notifying the boston city council this loophole violates the original purpose of the 2022 ordinance and its use and its use has led to rising public concern about the boston police department's usage of the automa

Thank you, Councillor Santana. Would anyone like to add their name? Councillor Culpepper, Councillor Durkan, Councillor Flynn, Councillor Louisianne, Councillor Murphy, Councillor Fitzgerald, Councillor Pepin, Councillor Worrell, and please add the Chair. Docket 1796 will be referred to the Committee on Government Operations. Madam Clerk, could you please read Docket 1797?

Thank you. Chair recognizes Councillor Murphy. Councillor, you have the floor.

Thank you, Madam President. And I would like to add Councillor Culpepper. And I would like to suspend the rules and add Councillor Flynn, please.

Councillor Culpepper is added as a second. Who is your third? Councillor Flynn. Seeing and hearing no objections, Councillor Flynn is added as a third.

I filed this hearing order because the intersection of Tremont Street and Parker Street raises two important questions. How we make this busy intersection safer and who has the authority to change our public streets. A horrific fatal crash occurred at this intersection in July. The safety concerns are real and I understand why residents are frustrated by the pace of the city's response. The people who made these changes left a message on our nearby poll saying, if we won't, we will. That says a lot. People felt unheard and they wanted action. Frankly, I understand their frustration. Last week,

Thank you, Councillor Murphy. Chair recognizes Councillor Culpepper. Councillor, you have the floor.

Thank you, Madam President. I want to thank Councilor Murphy for adding me as a co-sponsor and for bringing attention to this issue. For me, this hearing needs to focus first on accountability from the Boston Transportation Department. The community has raised concerns about safety along Parker Street and at Tremont Street for years. And the city's own transportation planning process identified this intersection as a crash cluster back in 2023. The city also identified Parker Street from Tremont Street to Allegheny Street as a high crash corridor for people biking and was considering improveme

Thank you, Councillor Culpepper. Chair recognizes Councillor Flynn. Councillor, you have the floor. You are the third co-sponsor?

I do not wish to speak at this moment, thank you. Would anyone like to add their name? Councillor Worrell? Councillor Fitzgerald? Docket 1797 will be referred to the Committee on Planning, Development and Transportation. Madam Clerk, could you please read Docket 1798?

Thank you, the chair recognizes Councillor Durkan. Councillor, you have the floor.

Thank you. I'd just like to take a point of privilege. Obviously, the last filing was about something that is in my district. I do think the new council rules does not allow for us to speak on issues unless they're being voted on, unless we're a lead sponsor. I do think it's really important as city officials. The reason why the folks that are filing this have a lot of questions is because they don't do transportation work in Mission Hill. and so it's very important to me— Councillor Dworkin, would you mind—we take your point.

Would you please move on to your docket?

Thank you, Councillor President. I'd like to suspend the rules and add Councillor Flynn as an original co-sponsor and Councillor Santana as a third original co-sponsor.

Councillor Flynn is added as a second, and seeing and hearing no objections, Councillor Santana is added as a third.

Package theft is an issue that I know many Boston residents have experienced. We are in the era of home delivery where most residents receive packages at their homes. In a dense city like Boston, especially in my district, it's multi-unit buildings with limited space for deliveries. Packages are often left on sidewalks or in vestibules. But we know package theft happens everywhere. And I actually want to thank a member of Councillor Fitzgerald's constituency who filed a Dorchester Reporter op-ed Yes, I read the Dorchester Reporter, some of the best reporting in Boston. Stealing someone's prope

Thank you, Councillor Durkan. Chair recognizes Councillor Flynn. Councillor, you have the floor.

Thank you, Madam Chair, and thank you to Councillor Durkan for adding me. This is a major issue that impacts District 2, which includes South Boston, the South End, Chinatown, the Bay Village, parts of Beacon Hill, Back Bay, downtown Boston, the Wolf District Council, almost every neighborhood that I highlighted has talked to me about package thefts. And it's especially significant in my neighborhood in South Boston, but also in the South End as well. Residents literally have said to me, Ed, seven packages over the last 30 days that have been stolen and i would say to them i i assume you calle

Thank you, Councillor Flynn. The Chair recognises Councillor Santana. Councillor, you have the floor.

Thank you, Madam President. I want to thank Councillor Durkan for introducing this hearing order and leading on this issue. When a package is stolen off a porch, it is rarely just a minor inconvenience. For our seniors and our neighbours living with disabilities, that package often contains a vital medication, specialised medical supplies or essential tools for daily living. Almost every one of us has experienced this firsthand or knows someone who has, and the numbers back that up. Last year alone, nearly one in three Americans, over 41 million people, fell victim to package theft. Right here

Thank you, Councillor Santana. Would anyone like to add their name? Councillor Culpepper, Councillor Fitzgerald, Councillor Louis-Jean, Councillor Murphy, Councillor Pepin, Councillor Webber, Councillor Borrell, and please add the chair. Docket 1798 will be referred to the Committee on Public Safety and Criminal Justice. Madam Clerk, could you please read Docket 1799?

Thank you. The Chair recognizes Councillor Culpepper. Councillor, you have the floor.

Madam President, I would like to add Councillor Santana as the second original co-sponsor. Councillor Santana so added. Thank you, Madam President. Earlier this year, this council passed a resolution supporting the 21st Century Road to Housing Act. Now that it has become federal law, I believe the next question for Boston is straightforward. How do we take advantage of it? The act became Public Law 119-101 on July 11th and contains a number of housing programs and policy changes that could have implications for cities like Boston. The law creates opportunities around affordable housing product

Thank you, Councillor Culpepper. The Chair recognizes Councillor Santana. Councillor, you have the floor.

Thank you, Madam President, and I would like to thank Councilor Culpepper for including me as an original co-sponsor. The 21st Century Road to Housing Act, which became law in July of this year, is in large part due to the leadership from Senator Warren. It's the most significant piece of federal housing legislation to be passed in a generation. It contains over 40 provisions focused on affordability and increasing housing supply nationwide. We could not let this opportunity pass by us. It's no secret that Boston is in a housing crisis and we need to use all of the tools in our toolbox to fix

Thank you, Councillor Santana. Would anyone like to add their name? Councillor Kaleta Zapata, Councillor Durkan, Councillor Fitzgerald, Councillor Flynn, Councillor Louisianne, Councillor Murphy, Councillor Webber, and please add the chair. Docket 1798 will be referred to the committee. Oh, sorry, wrong number. 1799. will be referred to the Committee on Housing and Community Development.

Thank you. The Chair recognises Councillor Flynn. You have the floor.

Thank you. Madam Chair, may I add Councillor Santana as an original co-sponsor, please.

Thank you Other than honourable discharge, also known as less than honorable discharge, is generally issued when a member of the military results in punishment for violating the UCMJ, which is the Uniform Code of Military Justice. According to the Veterans Affairs Department, more than 2 million service members have been discharged with an other than honorable discharge since World War II. The establishment of the Department of Defense in 1949 led to standardized anti-LGBTQ plus regulations across all branches of the military. From its inception through 1981, the Defense Department required pr

Thank you, Councillor Flynn. Thank you for your ongoing advocacy for LGBTQ. community, especially our veterans. Thank you. Councillor Santana, you have the floor.

Thank you Madam President. I want to thank Councillor Flynn for both adding me as an original co-sponsor but also thanking him for his tireless advocacy for Boston's veterans, particularly those from marginalized communities. Earlier this week I was actually on a phone call with Councillor Flynn and he informed me about the the great need of work that we still need to do on this topic, but the great work that both him and Commissioner Santiago have been doing for years now. And I'm excited to be partnering with him and Commissioner Santiago in that work. It's incredibly important that we do ev

Thank you, Councillor Santana. Would anyone like to add their name? Councillor Culpepper, Councillor Durkan, Councillor Fitzgerald, Councillor Louis-Jean, Councillor Murphy, Councillor Webber, Councillor Worrell, and please add the Chair. This docket, Docket 1800, will be referred to the Committee on Veterans, Military Families and Military Affairs. Madam Clerk, could you please read Docket 1801?

Chair recognizes Councillor Dirk and Councillor, you have the floor.

Thank you so much, Councillor President. I want to start by clarifying what the Specialized Stretch Energy Code is. It is a set of state-level regulations that add higher performance standards to the base energy code. I also want to be clear, it is separate from Berto and is one piece of a broader framework of standards that Boston has implemented to decarbonize our building stock. Massachusetts has three levels of building energy codes, the base code, the stretch code, and the specialized code. The specialized code was created in 2021 and is the most stringent of the three. It builds on the s

Thank you, Councillor Durkan. Would anyone like to add their name? Councillor Louis-Jean, Councillor Webber, Councillor Worrell, Councillor Culpepper. Thank you. Docket 1-8. Oh, Councillor Fitzgerald, I beg your pardon. Docket 1801 will be referred to the Committee on Environmental Justice, Resiliency and Parks. Sorry, point of order. Councillor Durkan.

The hearing order is specifically written to bring in developers and engineers who work on development, and I took a lot of... I took when writing it. We are not going to be talking about the environment. We will have an environmental panel, but the point of the hearing is to talk about the development-related concerns around the special municipal opt-in.

So are you appealing the decision of the Chair?

I mean, point of privilege, I'm requesting that the Chair reconsider, given the folks that I want to show up at the hearing.

So are you invoking Rule 5 and appealing the decision of the Chair?

If I have to. I mean, I think it could be a conversation. And I know that my team has reached out to your team to ask specifically, given who we want to show up at the panel.

I think I want to stick with my decision to keep it an environment, because I think I don't have to justify my decision. But if you wish to appeal the decision of the chair.

I don't think there's enough people in the room to appeal the decision of the chair right now. We need nine. Okay, I'd like to appeal the decision of the chair. Do you have a second?

The proponent, could you have three minutes to speak to, you don't need three minutes. The question before the body is, shall the decision of the chair stand as the judgment of the council? A yes vote keeps the docket in the committee the chair has decided, which is environmental resilience, and a no vote changes the committee assignment. Madam Clerk, could you please take a roll call vote on rule 5, appealing the decision of the chair? Just to remind people, a yes keeps the vote in the in the committee it was sent to. A no vote changes the committee assignment.

So the appealing to the decision of the Chair has passed. Nine votes. It has not passed. Thank you. So docket 1801 will be referred to the Committee on Environmental Justice, Resiliency and Parks. Madam Clerk, could you please read the docket 1802?

Thank you, Madam Clerk. Chair recognizes Councillor Flynn. You have the floor. Thank you, Madam Chair.

In 2018, the Massachusetts legislature passed an act to promote and enhance civic engagement that restructured the history and social science framework to comply, creating a full year course with the expectation that at the end of their eighth grade school year and prior to starting high school, the student will demonstrate civil knowledge, skills, and This act was to go into effect for the 2019-2020 school year. The legislation arose from concern shared by many parents, educators, and students about the inconsistency in civics education across the state. Supporters of this legislation, includ

Thank you, Councillor Flynn. Would anyone like to add their name? Councillor Kaleta Zapata, Councillor Culpepper, Councillor Fitzgerald, Councillor Murphy, Councillor Pepin, Councillor Worrell, and please add the chair. Docket 1802 will be referred to the Committee on Education. Madam Clerk, could you please read Docket 1803?

Thank you. Chair recognises Councillor Flynn. You have the floor.

Thank you, Madam Chair. Madam Chair, may I add Councillor Culpepper as an original sponsor and suspend the rules and add Councillor Worrell as well?

Councillor Culpepper is added as a second and seeing and hearing no objections, Councillor Worrell is added as a third.

Thank you, Madam Chair. This is one of the first hearings I held and I worked closely with Councillor Kim Janey at the time. Health disparities in communities of color has unfortunately been a persistent problem, not only in our city, in our country. In 2021, the Health of Boston report by the Boston Public Health Commission found African American, Asian American, Latino residents, Hispanic residents of Boston are significantly more likely than white residents to suffer from poor public health outcomes. in 2026, the report also highlighted on closing the gap. An examination of life expectancy

Thank you, Councillor Flynn. The Chair recognizes Councillor Culpepper. Councillor, you have the floor.

Thank you, Madam President. And I want to thank Councillor Flynn for adding me as an original co-sponsor and for continuing to bring attention to the public health disparities that persists across our cities. Boston is home to some of the best hospitals and healthcare institutions in the world. But access to those resources and the opportunity to live a long and healthy life are still not experienced equally across our communities. The Boston Health Commission's 2026 Closing the Gap Report provides a particularly concerning example. From 2013 to 2024, the life expectancy gap between Black Bost

Thank you, Councillor Durkan. The chair recognizes Councillor Worrell. Councillor, you have the floor.

Thank you, Madam President. Thank you to Councillor Flynn and Councillor Culpepper for adding me on as an original co-sponsor. We know the life expectancy gap across Boston is real. We see higher death rates from diabetes and heart disease among black residents. We see black and Latino residents going to the emergency room more often for asthma. We can't talk about those health disparities without talking about the wealth gap and what resources are available close to home. People should be able to buy fresh food in their neighborhood, fill a prescription nearby, and get a doctor's appointment

Thank you, Councillor Borrell. Would anyone like to add their name? Councillor Coletta Zapata, Councillor Fitzgerald, Councillor Louisian, Councillor Mejia, Councillor Pepin. Councillor Santana, Councillor Weber, and please add the Chair. Docket 1803 will be referred to the Committee on Public Health, Homelessness, and Recovery. Madam Clerk, could you please read Docket 1804?

I'm going to ask my colleague, Vice President I thank Councillor Flynn for his partnership on this issue. Rodent activity continues to be one of the most persistent quality-of-life concerns facing Boston residents. In Austin-Brighton, it's an issue we hear about daily. In 2024, the city released the Boston Rodent Action Plan to create a more coordinated approach to rodent control. It called for stronger inspections and enforcement, better waste management practices, improved data collection and coordination across city departments. Alston Brighton and Ward 3, which includes downtown Chinatown,

Thank you, Councillor Brayden. The Chair recognises Councillor Flynn. Councillor Flynn, you have the floor.

Thank you, Madam Chair, and thank you to the Council President for adding me for the important work that you have done, Council President. I've been focused on pest control issues for nine years now. We've held hearings on pest control. I filed an ordinance to establish the Office of Pest Control in the city of Boston and have made at least a dozen recommendations to the city on how we can improve pest control strategies in Boston. Most of them were implemented by the city, but my main point of adding a rat czar was not implemented. I do believe we have to elevate the functions of pest control

Thank you, Councillor Flynn. Would anyone else like to speak on this matter? I'll take just a quick liberty to say that I'm grateful for Councillor Braden and Councillor Flynn's leadership on this. In the North End, as we all know, we're fighting a perennial war against the rats with all of the restaurants that we have and the lack of residents' ability to place trash in barrels. And so I am heartened to see that there's been some progress that's been made. Look forward to understanding more from John Ulrich, who we all know is a great public servant, both separately in a meeting with him and

Thank you. The chair recognizes Councilor Louis-Jeanne. Councilor, you have the floor.

Thank you, Madam Chair. I rise to introduce this resolution in support of ballot question number four, which will be on the ballot in November. That would establish election day voter registration, which would allow someone to also vote on the day of the election. I am not seeking suspension in passage. At this moment, because we have a hearing scheduled for next Friday where we will include this resolution and bring advocates and talk about this, I want to say thank you to MassVote and the entire coalition of folks who are behind and who have been supporting for measures to make it easier for

Thank you, Councillor Louis-Jean. The chair recognizes Councillor Breda.

Councillor Breda Thank you, Councillor Louis-Jean, for adding me as an original co-sponsor. Same-day voter registration is associated with increased voter participation, particularly among younger voters, first-time voters and residents of historically underrepresented communities. This is particularly important in Alston-Brighton and Boston as a whole, where we have a large population of renters, students and residents who move frequently. This year served as a stark reminder of that importance. Election Day fell on move-in day, also referred to as Alston Christmas in my district, and thousan

Thank you. Would anyone else like to speak? Excuse me.

Councillor Louis-Jean, you have the floor.

wanted to clarify that i will be seeking a vote on this after we have our hearing but i want us to have a conversation and hopefully the council can come on record um in supporting this measure so that no one is not able to uh vote on election day simply because of a clerical error moving or any other issues so thank you i will ask for a vote but not today thank you thank you councillor um would anyone else like to add their name the chair recognizes councillor culpepper council jerkin council fitzgerald council of flynn council mejia

Councillor Pepin, Councillor Murphy, Councillor Santana, Councillor Webber, and Councillor Whirland, please have the chair. Thank you. Docket 1805 will be referred to the committee on census, redistricting, and elections. Madam Clerk, will you please read Docket 1806?

Thank you, the Chair recognizes Councilor Lujan. Thank you, Madam Chair. Can I please, may I please suspend the rules to add Councilor Mejia as the third original co-sponsor? Seeing and hearing no objections, she is so added. Thank you, many of us were here this morning when we saw the doctors from Boston Medical Center come and take a photo with us as they fight for a fairer contract. The Committee of Interns and Residents represents over 700 unionized physicians at BMC, and it's dedicated to improving the lives and the livelihood and resident training and our broader health care system acros

Thank you, Councillor Louisianne. The chair recognizes Councillor Braden.

Thank you, Madam Chair. I want to thank Councillor Louisianne again for including me on this resolution. Boston, this is particularly close to my heart. My first job in Boston was at University Hospital At the time, it was merging with Boston City Hospital to become Boston Medical Center, so I'm a former employee at Boston Medical Center way back when. Boston is the home of one of the most well-recognized healthcare institutions in the country, Boston Medical Center. BMC is New England's largest safety net hospital with more than half of its patients coming from underserved or low-income backg

Thank you, Madam President, and I want to thank Councillor Louis-Jean and Councillor Breeden for adding me as an original co-sponsor. Boston Medical Center is one of the most important institutions in our city. Every day its resident physicians carry the enormous responsibility of caring for our city's most vulnerable populations. And yet too many of these resident physicians are struggling to make their ends meet in a city that they work to care for every day. We cannot continue to talk about Boston being a world-class healthcare city while the people delivering that care struggle to live her

Thank you, Councillor Mejia. Would anyone else like to speak on this matter? Would anyone else like to add their name? Oh, Councillor Durkin, you have the floor.

Thank you so much. I just want to thank my colleagues for standing with residents. We have a lot of residents in District 8, as I represent the Longwood Medical Area and MGH. And the residents at BMC deserve better, and I'm excited. that they are engaging and we are working with them and we are fighting for them because residents often get, I see a lot of them in my district and they're tired, they're overworked, they don't have enough benefits and they feel very unprotected. So I think that residents at BMC deserve the same attention as, you know, we're giving at any other hospital. And I jus

Council Durkan, Councilor Flynn, you have the floor.

Thank you, Madam Chair. I strongly support this resolution. These interns, these medical doctors play a critical role in our city, caring for the most vulnerable in our society. Many of them live in District 2. I see them frequently and talk to them frequently, and they don't make all that much money, and they are struggling. and they have high tuition bills that they're still paying. They have high rent or a mortgage as well. But we want to ensure that medical doctors that are providing a critical service to the residents of the city are not struggling to pay their bills. We need to ensure th

Thank you, Councillor Flynn. Councillor Fitzgerald, you have the floor.

Thank you, Madam Chair. BMC, for the most part, resides in District 3 and having to deal a lot. We stand with our resident physicians just as we do with the BMC nurses, not only to the greater city, but to the community right around them. They also have a huge impact when you think about the issues at Mass and Cass. To have an issue with nurses and resident physicians We hope that we can resolve this because as the safety net hospital for that area and for our city It's important. We provide the continue to provide these services for those in need. Thank you.

Thank you council Fitzgerald Would anyone else like to add their name? Council Culpepper council Durkan council Fitzgerald Councillor Flynn councillor region councillor Murphy councillor Pepin councillor Santana. That's a Weber council. Well, please add the chair. I Councillors Louisianne and Braden seek suspension of the rules and adoption of docket 1806. All those in favour say aye. All those opposed say nay. Madam Clerk, would you please conduct a roll call vote on docket 1806.

Thank you. Docket 1806 has passed, has been adopted.

Thank you. Madam Clerk, could you please read Docket 1807?

Chair recognizes Councillor Worrell. You have the floor. Thank you, Madam President. I'd like to add Councillor Murphy as an original co-sponsor. Councillor Murphy so added. Thank you. When I think about Codman Square, I think about the people who have poured their heart into that neighborhood for years. The business owners who know you when you walk through the door, the neighbors who keep showing up, and the organizations that have families have counted on for generations. There's a lot happening in this area. Common Square Park has been recently renovated and is now open. The weekly farmer'

Thank you, Councillor Worrell. The chair recognizes Councillor Murphy. Councillor, you have the floor.

thank you and thank you councilor well for adding me as a neighbor to codman square and as an at-large city councilor i think we all know that neighborhoods and parts of our city that have thriving small businesses coffee shops restaurants safe places clean parks are healthier and much easier to live in and not every neighborhood across the city has that So I'm happy to advocate and support something as important as this. We know that when people come together and they're putting their minds together and fighting for the same thing, knowing that together we can make this neighborhood as thrivi

Thank you, Councillor Murphy. Councillor Mejia, you have the floor.

Thank you, Madam President. I want to rise in support of this resolution. As someone who actually lives in Codman Square and I walked every day to Dorchester High from Four Corners to Dorchester High, I had to walk down Washington Street. in the 80s. And so, for me, it is really exciting to see this renewed energy regarding making sure that the merchants understand the role that they've played in not only just keeping our neighborhoods together, because back in the day, you could go into any merchants, be like, hey, I owe you. They'd be like, okay, I know you walk by here every day, so I know

Thank you. Chair recognizes Councillor Worrell. You had the floor.

Yeah, I'd like to suspend the rules and add Councillor Mejia as the original co-sponsor. And I'd also like to shout out Naldo over at the Common Square Neighbourhood Development Corporation for all his work as well in the small business area.

Thank you. Seeing and hearing no objections, Councillor Mejia is so added. Would anyone like to add their name? Councillor Coletta Zapata, Councillor Culpepper, Councillor Durkan, Councillor Fitzgerald, Councillor Flynn, Councillor Levisian, Councillor Pepin, Councillor Santana, Councillor Webber, and please add the Chair. Councillors Worrell, Murphy and Mejia seek suspension of the rules and adoption of Docket 1807. All in favour say aye. All opposed say nay. The ayes have it. Madam Clerk, could you please take a roll call vote on Docket 1807? Councillor Blythyn.

Thank you, Madam Clerk. Docket 1807 has been adopted. Madam Clerk, could you please read Docket 1808?

Chair recognizes Councilor Flynn. Councilor, you have the floor.

Thank you, Madam Chair. The longstanding issue of understaffing, overstretched resources, mandatory overtime, looming retirements at the Boston Police Department remain a public safety, public health emergency, which also disregards officers' personal, physical, and emotional well-being, as well as that of their families. In July 1980, the minimum number of patrolmen at any given time for the Boston Police Department rose from 2,300 to 2,500 by law in the city municipal code to ensure adequate staffing for police duties. Recently, the Boston Police Patrolman's Association said that there were

Thank you, Councillor Flynn. The chair recognizes Councillor Colletta Zapata. You have the floor.

Councillor Colletta Zapata Thank you so much, Madam Chair, and thank you to Councillor Flynn for bringing this forward. I just have a few questions. I think it should be said that you shouldn't mistake my questions for opposition, because I don't intend to object. I'm just doing my due diligence, as the lead sponsor so frequently says. And I think we all want to recruit and retain police officers. I myself have put forward the home rule petition seeking to waive the maximum age requirement so that we can recruit more folks and at least give them a shot into the police academy. And if they do w

Thank you, Councillor Colletta-Zapata. Councillor Flynn, would you like to respond to the question through the chair?

Yes. Thank you, Madam Chair, and thank you important questions that you asked me. What would the commission do? I think they would study issues that are impacting police and their families, making it difficult for police officers to remain in the city, to remain on the force, I should say, and how we recruit new police officers as well. I do think we have to change the dynamic of our language when we on how we interact with police officers. I don't think they feel like they're supported by the city council. That's my own personal opinion. Like you, I talk to the police officers every day. They

Thank you, Councillor. Thank you. I move on to Councillor Mejia, who's next. Councillor, you have the floor.

Thank you, Madam President. I'm curious, just for my own edification here, did we already have a hearing on establishing a commission? Because I may have missed that one. So a lot of the questions that my council colleague from District 1 asked, were related to the end of workings of what this particular commission could be. And are we supporting, are we voting on supporting the resolution because we've already done the working sessions? I may have missed that because so much has been going on in my life over the last few months. So just for the sake of the exercise. Did I miss a hearing? Was

I think we should be responsible. There has been an objection to this resolution. This resolution will go to the Committee on Public Safety. Could you please read Docket 1809?

Chair recognizes Councillor Pepin. Councillor, you have the floor.

Thank you, Madam President. I'd like to add yourself as a second co-sponsor and suspend the rules and add Councillor Ben Webber as a third co-sponsor.

I will—hearing and seeing no objections—add Councillor Culpepper as a third co-sponsor. Oh, Councillor Webber. I beg your pardon. Sorry. You're good. I know you're good. We'll put Webber in there instead, though. I will ask my colleague, Councillor Coletta Zapata, to take the chair for a few minutes.

Sorry, Councillor put that in there before.

Thank you. As we know, Boston is in a housing crisis every day. We hear from residents that rising costs make home ownership unattainable. We know that we need to build more units. Yet, even with the large number of development projects that have been approved, there are still major financial obstacles delaying them to break ground from stalled state and federal grants. We need to use every tool available to get construction started and so i support the temporary tax abatements the mayor proposed on four approved housing developments these abatements would jumpstart three projects in austin br

Thank you Madam Chair, and thank you Councillor Pepin for adding me as a second. In the midst of an acute housing shortage, Boston has seen housing construction stall due to such factors as high interest rates, rising construction costs, tariffs and broader economic conditions. Last week the Mayor proposed targeted, time-limited tax abatements for four approved developments, three of which are located in Alston Brighton. In Alston Brighton, these three projects will bring nearly 1,000 units of housing to our neighbourhood, while also delivering income-restricted housing, public realm improveme

Thank you, Councilor Braden. Council Weber is third co-sponsor.

Okay, thank you, Chair. I just want to thank Councilor Pippin for adding me. You know, I think we all know that we need to DO AS MUCH AS WE CAN TO JUMP START HOUSING PRODUCTION HERE IN THE CITY. AND THIS IS ONE WAY OF DOING THAT WHILE MAINTAINING THE REQUIREMENT THAT WE BUILD AFFORDABLE HOUSING. SO THIS IS A WAY TO GET UNITS AND EVEN IF PEOPLE BUY OUT THEIR AFFORDABLE UNITS, WE'RE GETTING AN EXTRA UNIT OF HOUSING PLUS MONEY TO BUILD AFFORDABLE HOUSING. I applaud Councillor Pepin for filing this. I look forward to the discussion with my colleagues. Thank you.

Thank you, Councillor Weber. Councillor Flynn, you have the floor.

Thank you, Madam Chair. Madam Chair, may I, through the Chair, ask Councillor Pepin a question?

Councillor Pepin, is this resolution, I know it's going to be a hearing on it, but is this similar to the proposal the Mayor Announced recently or The draft the draft report I should say is this similar to the draft report the mayor? Put out recently on some of these strategies to improve housing to build housing Thank You madam chair through the chair to respond to my council colleague from district 2

This is part of the mayor's toolbox and proposal to do more housing production across the city. This is also just very directly in response to four of the projects that have been on hold for quite some time. Those four projects are over 100 units of developments that have been on hold. So yeah, so this is in response to part of the solution in the housing proposal.

Okay, Madam Chair, may I ask one more question? Okay, thank you, Councilor Pepin. That's exactly what I was asking, so I appreciate that. So, Council Pippin, I know the draft report is a draft report, and it hasn't been released to the public. Are we able to get a copy of that so we can review it, we can read it? I know the media has it, but I don't believe the city council has it. Are we able to read it so we can be thoroughly prepared about what the plan is, so that will help us as we prepare for this meeting as well?

I think that as we prepare to have this hearing in my committee, I will make sure that the Health Department has as much resources as possible to answer these questions. I think that's why having a hearing before taking a vote on this would be the best idea, so that we can have those answers for you.

Thank you, Councillor Flynn. Thank you, Councillor Pepin. The Chair recognizes Councillor Mejia, who had her light on. It's a resolution, so people do have the opportunity to speak on it. I do think that if folks want to speak on it, they should be allowed to. Okay, if we're going to vote on it, yeah. Okay, so we might as well. It's being sent to the committee, so okay. I think people should be able to speak on it. It was introduced as a resolution. People should have the opportunity to speak on it, but it will be going to committee. Councillor Mejia, you have the floor.

Thank you, Madam President. I want to thank Councillor Pepin for sending it to committee for a hearing because I was going to ask questions myself. I'm glad that we're able to participate that way I think decisions like this really do give us an opportunity to really get into the weeds of things and so thank you for doing that I also think counselor district 9 counselor is really going to be one of the beneficiaries if we can get this off the ground and I think that also in Brighton given the housing prices that were in I think we This is a priority hearing, and I would hope that we can get it

Thank you, Councillor Mejia. Councillor Durkan, and then Councillor Murphy.

Thank you so much. Yeah, and thank you for being able to speak. Yeah, I just wanted to speak into the record. Obviously, a lot of what's been being described as sort of new powers are Chapter 121Bs, which we're already using. for office to residential conversions. We really just need to have more of a conversation about how we utilize these tools. And I know in previous hearings, I've brought up the idea of using these tools to create tax abatements for residential buildings over 100 units of housing, of which we have very few that have been built since the stretch code and the specialized mun

Councillor Murphy, you have the floor. Thank you. Thank you, Councillor Pepin, for filing this. I think it's always important that we're talking about how we're going to support accelerating housing production. I do just want to go on the record. Councillor Flynn, thank you for reminding me. When this first was reported in the media a couple of weeks ago, I did reach out to the administration, made several phone calls to different people, and I was told that this on the mayor's plan here that what you're referencing is kind of based on why you're filing this hearing order was just in draft for

Thank you, Councillor Murphy. Councillor Worrell, you have the floor.

Thank you, Chair, and thank you, Councillor Pepin, for putting this to a hearing order. Just one request. I know this is a housing issue, but also Councillor Durkan brought up the revenue projections. So I'd love to have the CFO or someone from her team here to just speak about the revenue implications around this conversation. Thank you.

Thank you, Councillor Orrell. Just really quickly, I'll say that this is supposed to benefit a parcel in Charlestown at 1 Mystic. There has been multiple hands that have overseen that parcel. I don't necessarily know why this one particular project, rather than others in Charlestown, were chosen. So I do appreciate the opportunity to have a conversation. Thank you to the late sponsor for filing. Docket 10, sorry, would anyone else like to add their name? Councillor Durkan, Councillor Fitzgerald, Councillor Culpepper, Councillor Flynn, Councillor Murphy, Councillor Santana, Councillor Weber, Co

Thank you. The chair recognizes Councillor Durkan.

Councillor, you have the floor. Thank you so much. So we are naming Friday, September 25th, 9 to 5 day in honor of Dolly Parton's incredible legacy. This is in partnership with the Massachusetts State House, who my friend Senators Julian Cyr and Rep. Sam Montano have done the same. Dolly Parton was an icon whose passing felt personal to many. Her voice and songwriting inspired generations of working people. while her service to others and message of love and acceptance uplifted communities here in Boston and across the country. For that reason, I'm introducing this resolution today. And there'

Thank you. No, because I did plan on speaking on Dolly Parton. She was such an incredible figure and an incredible person who cared deeply about the rights of others. It was interesting. I watched an interview that they did with her sister, and her sister talked about how she left, you know, intentionally left her politics sort of vague, but it was very clear where she stood on the issues. And when I was working... On a presidential campaign prior to this, Senator Warren's, this was the soundtrack to our work, making sure that we were centering the needs of workers, thinking about how too ofte

Thank you. Just a little formality here. Councillor Louis-Jean is added as a second, and seeing and hearing no... Are you going to be added as a third? I'm going to add you as a third, then. But seeing and hearing no objections, you're the third. Would you like to speak? You're speechless. All right, that's the first time for everything. Councillor Weber, and then we'll go to Councillor Mejia. Councillor Weber, you have the floor.

I just want to say, as a former resident of Nashville, Tennessee, that, you know, Dolly Parton was a wonderful part of the community there, and I think all of the accolades she's getting are well-deserved. I just want to join my colleagues in this resolution. Thank you.

Thank you. Councillor Mejia, you have the floor.

Thank you, Madam President. Working night too fast. What a way to make a living. We need a little joy here, guys. So everyone already said all the amazing things about Dolly. And the only thing that I'd like to just add is that a lot of people probably did not take her serious, just because oftentimes her demeanor and just women who tend to be voluptuous or who tend to be a little bit more animated or whatever the case may be, oftentimes people don't see their serious side. Dolly did a great job at recognizing her power and utilizing it in ways that help other women understand that they could

Would anyone like to add their name? Councillor Colletta Zapata, Councillor Culpepper, Councillor Fitzgerald, Councillor Flynn, Councillor Mejia, Councillor Murphy, Councillor Pepin, Councillor Santana, Councillor Webber, Councillor O'Reill. Please add the chair. Councillor... Where are we here? Councillor Durkan, Councillor Louisiane and Councillor Santana seek suspension of the rules in passage of Docket 1810. All in favour say aye. All opposed say nay. The ayes have it. Docket 1810 has been adopted. Madam Clerk, could you please read Docket 1811. Docket 1811.

The Chair recognises Councillor Colletta Zapata. You have the floor.

Councillor Colletta Zapata Thank you, Madam President. I rise today to recognise October as Italian American Heritage Month in the City of Boston, as a proud fourth-generation Italian American representing East Boston and the North End. This is deeply personal to me. My great-grandparents, Alessandra Severino and Carmine Gaeta, arrived here in East Boston and were processed through the immigration station, walked up the Golden Staircase, as many immigrants did in that time, and settled on Cottage Street. The golden staircase, by the way, are getting repaired this year because this council was

Thank you. I'll take a moment to also give a shout out to the Italian community in Alston Brighton. The Chomo's, the Salvucci's, the Tacci's, the whole crew. And many of them came from a small village in Italy called Sandinato. The Sandinato families are very much well represented in

alston brighton and we're very proud of our italian heritage out in alston brighton chair recognizes counselor flynn counselor you have the floor thank you madam chair and thank you to the sponsor for bringing this important resolution forward in my neighborhood of south boston i also have a large italian community and they contribute greatly to our neighborhood to our city and just want to also acknowledge the incredible role Italian Americans have made in our military as well. They served honorably in our armed forces. They sacrificed for our nation. They put their life on the line for our c

Thank you, Councillor Flynn. Chair recognizes Councillor Durkan. Councillor, you have the floor.

Thank you so much. I just want to thank Councillor Cleta Zapata for bringing this forward. I know when I got onto the council, one of the first things, one of the first invites I got was Councillor Cleta Zapata inviting me to the North End for dinner. I had very similar hospitality from Rep. Aaron Mikeowitz when I started running for office. And I just think that Italian Americans that serve our community, our city, and our state do such an amazing job of like, Being kind of beacons of their community and so I just want to thank you for your leadership And I just feel like we all benefit as Bo

Thank you. Chair recognizes Councillor Pepin. You have the floor. I may be taking you out of order, but then Councillor Fitzgerald and then Councillor Louisian.

Thank you, Madam President. Thank you to Councilor Zapata for filing this resolution. I represent a very rich Italian community as well in District 5. There's very strong Italian roots in both Roslindale and Hyde Park, and they have contributed so much to the community. Just, you know, thinking on top of my head, like, just you think about Tony and Adriana Cello, who have been in Roslindale and doing so much for the community for over 50 years. You know, owners of Tony's Market in Rossi, the owners of Tutto Italianos in Hyde Park. I'm sorry, ranked the best Italian sub in the entire city by th

Thank you. Chair recognizes Councillor Fitzgerald. Councillor, you have the floor.

Thank you, Madam President. I'd just like to thank the lead sponsor for leading on this and bringing it forward. And I just want to uplift the Dorchester Italian community. He's a really nice guy.

You have the floor. Thank you. As an at-large Councillor, I too represent a very large Italian community here and just want to thank Councillor Coletta Zapata for your work in making sure that your culture is uplifted and celebrated and there are also so many business owners who said who participate in the events who just wanted to just uplift your advocacy and also Wanted to just think all of the residents who do other it's true to Italiano and my hood of Hyde Park or the other many wonderful Italian restaurants around the city that we uplift all of our entrepreneurs our businesses and Celebr

Thank you chair recognizes comes from here counselor. You have the floor Thank you, Madam President, and I want to thank Councillor Calera-Zapata for bringing all of herself into this chamber and celebrating your heritage and inviting us to do so alongside you, so thank you for that. I'm going to have to go to dinner with you in the North End, just so, you know, Councillor Durkan is up in here going too. I'm going to go with you one day. But no, seriously, all jokes aside, and I really do appreciate how You have managed to really help people understand the parallel process of immigrating to th

Thank you. Oh wait, one more thing. One more thing, Constantine.

Just what I ended up, what I got up to say, I don't know where my head went today, but I went to the McKay and to the Umana. So I grew up in the 70s and the 80s being bused to the other side of town and got to, there were still Italians left, there during that time, and so got to learn some bad words. So thank you for that.

Thank you. Would anyone like to add their name? Councillor Culpepper, Councillor Durkan, Councillor Fitzgerald, Councillor Flynn, Councillor Louisianne, Councillor Mejia, Councillor Murphy, Councillor Pepin, Councillor Santana, Councillor Weber, Councillor Worrell, and please add the chair. Councillor Koleta Zapata seeks suspension of the rules and adoption of Docket 1811. All in favour say aye. All opposed say nay. The ayes have it. Docket 1811 has been adopted. We're now moving on to personnel orders. Madam Clerk, how many personnel orders do we have? We have two personnel orders. Madam Cler

Before we move on to green sheets, is there anyone who would like to add their name to a docket that they may have missed? You put your light on. We'll start with Councillor Worrell on the right here. Councillor Worrell.

Thank you, Madam President. I'd like to add my name to docket number 1799, please. Okay. 1799. Councillor Mejia.

Aye. Oh, you're not ready? Councillor Dirk, and we'll come back to Councillor Mejia.

I'd like to request reconsideration of 08-01, which was overturning the decision of the chair on the committee. I just want to give all of my colleagues who were not in chambers a chance to vote on whether to overturn the decision of the chair on 08-01, which we voted on, which got seven votes and needed nine.

Okay. Do we have a, hold on, take a brief recess here. Just get my bearings. Thank you. Thank you. So you've got a second. Do you wish to speak further on this issue?

Sure. So a yes vote would put it in the committee that the chair put it in, which is environment, and no vote would put it in planning, development, and transportation. I did make the case, and specifically looking at the committee description, this does involve the zoning commission, which is underneath the auspices of planning, development, and transportation. We didn't have a full council here when we voted on it. So I'd like to ask my colleagues to vote no to put this in the Planning, Development, and Transportation Committee. And probably even more illuminating is that the Chair of Enviro

What are we? So we'll just move on to a vote. Councillor Durkan?

It's a motion to reconsider first. A motion to reconsider, which was seconded. Yes.

And now we need to vote. So all in favor of a vote yes. Madam Clerk, could you?

Are we voting on the motion to reconsider? Yes. Okay.

We're voting on the motion to reconsider. So all in favor say aye. All opposed say nay. Madam Clerk, could you take a roll call vote on the motion to reconsider docket 1801? Council Braden.

Thank you, Madam Clerk. Councillor Murphy, you have the floor.

Yes. How many times can you put forth in the same hearing a request for reconsideration? Because we already took a vote. Could you continue to do that? Is there a limit? No, I'm asking how many times. So, Megan, if you could help answer that question. No, no, no, that's not my question, Councillor Braden. I'm saying in general for any reconsideration. How many times can you keep bringing the same question up if you don't get the vote you wanted first?

So we've had a motion to reconsider that was seconded and passed. So the question before the body is, shall the decision of the chair stand as the judgment of the council? A vote yes keeps the docket in the committee the chair has decided, and a vote no changes the committee assignment. So, Madam Clerk, could you please take a roll call vote on the question, shall the decision of the chair stand as a judgment of the council? A yes vote keeps the docket in the committee that it was sent to, and a no vote changes the committee assignment.

No, it's to whether or not the decision of the Chair shall stand.

It went to. So, go back to docket 180. Oh, is it? Let me double check. Okay. Oh, I'm sorry.

Okay. Okay. So the appeal of the decision of the chair has been passed and docket 1801 will go to the committee on, it wasn't my second choice either, will go to planning, development and transportation. Thank you. So would anyone else wish to change? Oh, yes. That's where we were. I got it. Councillor Pepin, did you wish to change or to record a vote that you missed?

Yes. I'd like to just add my name to dockets 1798, 1799, 1800, and 1801.

Got it. Concha Mejia, you had somebody who wanted to record.

Concha, you have the floor. Thank you, Madam President. I'd like to be on the record in favour of the following dockets. Docket 1778, 1779, 1780, 1781, 1782, 1783, 1784, 1789, and 1790.

I would just like to add my name to 1802, 1803 and 1804.

Thank you. Anyone else? All good? Thank you. Now we're now on to green sheets. Is anyone looking to pull anything from the green sheets? Councillor Santana, see your lights on? You're the chair of the Committee on Public Safety and Criminal Justice. You have the floor.

Thank you, Madam President. I would like to, I have a few green sheet polls. I would like to pull docket number 1394 on the Committee of Public Safety and Criminal Justice.

It's on page 27 of the green sheets Madam clerk, could you please read docket one three nine four?

Will if you have more than one I could oh yeah, have you others counselor seven Santana I do Okay, so yeah one one three nine four one six seven eight and One six eight zero

Madam Clerk, could you please read dockets 1394, 1678 and 1680?

Thank you, Madam Clerk. Absent objection, the motion of the committee chair is accepted and dockets 1394, 1678 and 1680 are properly before the body. Councillor, you have the floor. Councillor Johnston.

Thank you, Madam President. Thank you, Madam Clerk. I will just read my statements on all three different remarks. MS.

If you make your remarks, then we'll vote on them separately.

Great. So for docket number 1394, the Boston Police Department will use these funds to continue staffing and improving its new crisis intervention training and technical assistance center. The center will serve the entire city by increasing mental health training opportunities for not only VPD officers, but also other security personnel who work in the city. The crisis intervention team, the CIT team, program is a community partnership of law enforcement, mental health professionals, individuals with mental illness, and other partners to improve community responses to mental health crises. The

Councillor Santana, we've had hearings on these dockets.

So we don't have, as you know, since I've taken over the committee, we don't have hearings on every single specific docket, but we do have multiple hearings at the beginning of the year where we bring 3PD personnel to talk about all grants, and these grants were included in those dockets.

I'm not going to object on any of these dockets. I'm going to vote in favor of all of them. But I have serious concerns about the Boston Police Crime Lab. I've been looking to have a meeting, a hearing on this issue for a long period of time. Hasn't been scheduled yet. So can you just explain to me, on docket 1678, can you give me a deeper understanding of how we're going to, how this is going to improve why screening for sexual assault kits?

Yeah, thank you, Madam President, and thank you, Councillor Flynn. So what I have said is that these funds will be used for daily operations and DNA testing supplies. And then they also plan for, I talked about the reimbursement associated with the registration. This is something, I think this is money that you've actually advocated for in the past. I know you had questions about that money, especially the extra million dollars being allocated to the office. But this is gonna help their efforts and something that you've been advocating for. In terms of the hearing that you requested, I do not

The issue of the crime lab, I'm going to vote in favor of it. I am troubled. about the leadership we have over the last many years at the crime lab. I don't like just going to support a docket for funding when I know there's outstanding issues in a particular department. We have outstanding issues at the Boston Police Department crime lab. We don't have strong leadership there. And everybody knows I'm a strong supporter of the Boston Police Department, but I'm gonna call them out when I know when there are issues at a particular department or a particular reason for them, such as the crime lab

Councillor Santana has indicated that he's happy to have a hearing. I would hope that your office can work with his office to set up a hearing and expedite that. because I don't know that this is the best forum for a conversation, a long conversation about the crime land. Respectfully, I feel that it does deserve a hearing, a full hearing, rather than this back and forward discussion right now. So, Councillor Flynn? Thank you. Councillor Murphy, you have the floor. No? So these dockets, 1394, 1678, 1680. Absent objection, the motion of the Chair is accepted. We'll start with docket 1398. We've

Thank you, Madam Clerk. Docket 1394 has passed. Councillor Flynn, you have your light on?

Yeah. Madam Chair, I just wanted to correct the record. I did send a email request to Councillor Santana. I respectfully asked for a hearing to discuss resources at the Boston Crime Web. I asked for dates in August. So I just wanted to get on the record. I asked for a particular hearing and I'm still waiting and I'll continue to wait. But I am asking Councillor Santana. to please have a meeting on crime lab. That is a serious issue. I just can't take people's word that we are doing a very good job at the crime lab. I need to know for myself and ask the difficult questions. Thank you, Madam Cha

Thank you, Councillor Flynn. Thank you. Councillor Santana moves for passage of Docket 1678. All in favour say aye. Aye. All opposed say nay. Madam Clerk, could you please take a roll call vote on docket 1678?

Thank you, Madam Clerk. Docket 1678 has passed. Councillor Santana moves for passage of Docket 1680. All in favour say aye. Aye. All opposed say nay. Madam Clerk, could you please take a roll call vote on docket 1680?

I am informed by the Clerk that there are four laid files, one communication from the Mayor, one resolution, one 17F and one hearing order. Absent objection, these laid file matters will be added.

I'd like to ask for the late files to be read separately because I object to two of them.

We will start off with the— Specifically, I object to the emergency— We'll get there. We will get there. We'll start off, Madam Clerk, with the communication from Her Honourable Mayor. Absent objection— This communication from Honourable the Mayor is properly before the body. Could you read that into the record, thank you.

Thank you Madam Clerk. This communication from Honourable the Mayor will be placed on file. We're now on to the second late filed matter which is a resolution. Do you have the late-file matters? Has everyone got the late-file matters in front of them?

Thank you. Absent objection, this late-file resolution is properly before the body. The Chair recognizes Councillor Culpepper. Councillor, you have the floor.

Thank you, Madam President. Earlier this year, I filed a resolution calling for a temporary suspension of the state gas tax as Massachusetts residents face rapidly increasing fuel costs. That resolution did not pass in April, but since then, the situation at the pump has only gotten worse. Yesterday, Governor Healey announced that she will file legislation to suspend Massachusetts $0.24 per gallon tax. And I think I may have called for that earlier. $0.24 per gallon tax on gasoline to suspend it for two months. Under the proposal, retailers would be required to pass the savings on to consumers

Councillor Palletta-Sapata, you have the floor. Thank you, Madam President. I want to thank Councillor Culpepper for introducing this. This one's an interesting one. It's a little nuanced. I think from the outset, initially I would, as an environmentalist, say no, because I am not in favour of incentivising anybody to use their cars more than they should or more carbon emissions. However, this proposal is a little bit more, as you mentioned in your remarks, it's more comprehensive. There's a finite date. And in my mind, this wouldn't put... more cars on the road, but more importantly, it would

Thank you, Councillor Koleta-Zapata. The chair recognizes. I'm going to go to Councillor Flynn, then I'll come back to Councillor Durkan. Councillor Flynn, you're the second school sponsor.

Thank you. Thank you, Madam Chair. And I want to say thank you to Councillor Culpepper for bringing this important resolution forward, for the important resolution he previously brought forward as well. But this is about providing some relief to working class families, low income families, low income workers, families that are struggling. Some families need an automobile to get to work, to take their kids to doctor's appointments. They don't have the luxury to have someone take them there. But this is about a little bit of support for families in our city, in our Commonwealth, that are struggl

The chair recognizes Councillor Dirk. And Councillor, you have the floor. Thank you so much. When I knocked doors for the fair share amendment, I really believed in that money being supplemental. And I do feel like this proposal is extremely reactive. It's happening in the middle of the campaign cycle. I was probably the leading opposition the last time that this was brought forward. Honestly, as a city official, we aren't tasked with this job. And so I would like to defer to the legislature. And if I had to talk to the, I'll just speak directly to the legislators in my district. You should no

Thank you, Councillor Durkan. Anyone else wish to speak? Councillors Culpepper and Flynn seek suspension of the rules and passage of this late-file resolution. Oh, yeah, beg your pardon. I forgot to ask if anyone would like to add their names. Would anyone like to add their names? Councillor Coletta Zapata, Councillor Murphy, Councillor Worrell, and please add the Chair. So, Councillors Culpepper and Flynn seek suspension of the rules in passage of this late file matter. All in favour say aye. All opposed, say nay. Nay. Okay. Madam Clerk, could you please take a roll call vote of this late fil

Thank you, Madam Clerk. This resolution has passed. We're on to the second. We're on to 17F. Yes. You have the 17F in front of you?

Absent objection, this late... Okay, absent objection. Councillor Durkan objects. So this late file, 17F. will not be brought forward. We have one more. We have a hearing order. Councillor Durkan objects to bringing this hearing order forward. Therefore, it will not come forward. We're now moving on to the consent agenda. I've been informed by the clerk that there are no additions to the consent agenda. The question now comes on approval of the various matters contained within the consent agenda. All those in favour say aye. Thank you. The consent agenda has been adopted. We're now on to annou

Thank you, Madam Chair. There's an important City Council hearing tomorrow at 10 a.m. It's about the Blackstone swimming pool. And I believe it's at 10 o'clock in the morning. I do want to ask all my city council colleagues to be there. The Blackstone hasn't had a pool in the longest period of time. We're trying to get an independent study engineering studies so we can hopefully fix the pool. But I really need all my city councilors present tomorrow, engaged, asking questions, supporting the Blackstone School. This is about providing residents of the south end in Roxbury with the opportunity t

Thank you, Councillor Flynn. The chair recognizes Councillor Culpepper. You have the floor.

Madam President, I do support the Blackstone School getting a swimming pool. Tomorrow morning is the funeral, the home going for Victoria Williams, the former chair of Ward 12, and a former fair housing director in the city. I'll be at that funeral tomorrow morning, but I do support Councilor Flynn and his efforts to bring the pool to the Blackstone School. Thank you.

Thank you, Councillor Culpepper. Chair recognizes Councillor Pepin. You have the floor.

Thank you, Madam President. I appreciate the advocacy for the Black Center. I know that Councillor Flynn shows up to my district quite a bit for events, so I'll be there tomorrow to support you. This weekend in Roslindale, we have the Dumpling Festival on Saturday, but also to support the clerk, Alex, and the Greek community. Friday, Saturday, and Sunday is the Greek food festival at St. Nektarios Church. So I'm inviting all my colleagues to have some good food, some Greek food and some dumplings in Rossi. Thank you.

Sounds like the place to be. The chair recognizes Councillor Durkan, and then we'll go to Councillor Murphy.

Thank you so much. Tomorrow, the Link bus is doing a ribbon cutting. I think some of us remember, but through the ARPA funds, it paid for a new bus for the Mission Hill Link, so excited for that tomorrow. And then on Saturday is the Mission Hill Road Race. We just heard Rain or Shine, and obviously it's at Kevin Fitzgerald Park, so I imagine all the Fitzgeralds will be here. So I hope that everyone will be there on Saturday. And it's a requirement. You have to be there. So we'll see everyone on Saturday. And I heard Councillor Pippen's running now. So, you know, rain or shine, Councillor Pippe

The Chair recognizes Councillor Murphy. Councillor, you have the floor.

Thank you. And thank you, Councillor Flynn, for uplifting tomorrow's hearing. And I'm sorry I was not at your hearing last week.

Thank you, Councillor Murphy. Anyone else? So we're wishing a very happy birthday this week to Councillor Fitzgerald. Is it your birthday? It's Friday? Good. Well, we wish you a very happy birthday. And also to Samantha Peracci of Councillor Coletta Zapata's office. Anyone, any other birthdays to shout out? I also want to wish my spouse, Mary McCarthy, We celebrate birthdays by the month in our household. So if your birthday falls in September, you get a birthday mug for the whole month, and it's a rolling convention. It happens over and over. So Mary's birthday was on Sunday last, and just wa

Thank you, Madam President. I'd like to recognize the name of Theodore Webster and the Carroll family. Theodore Webster was the founder and CEO of Webster Excavation Company. I'm a devoted father, grandfather, and advocate for minority contractors and workers in Boston. So I just want to recognize the Webster and Carroll family.

Thank you. We'll now move on to Councillor Mejia. You have the floor.

Thank you, Madam President. I'd like to read into the record a memorial. Dr. Kari Cuff Ferguson, who passed away a few days ago, he was a professor, a tenured professor at UMass Boston since 1979, so do the math, a long time. And a lot of his focus was around the evolution of consciousness, race relations, human relations, cultural awareness. And I got to meet him through our reparations task force work, where he sat and ushered us in a group of very spirited activists around putting together the reparations task force ordinance. I want to extend my condolences to his family for the passing of

Thank you. Councillor Mejia, would you mind repeating the name of Dr. Carey?

Yes. He was affectionately known as Cuff, but his last name was Ferguson.

Ferguson. Okay. Thank you. Councillor Louis-Jean, you have the floor.

Thank you. We all share our condolences to you. I know that I've heard from many who've lost their parent that it feels really unanchoring. And so just continued condolences. I'd like to uplift the name of Marvin Zantuan, who was a football player at UMass Dartmouth and who was very, very tragically killed in Rhode Island from Fall River. But I've just reached, heard, and received outreach from so many who knew him or who affected the entire UMass Dartmouth community. He comes from a beloved Haitian-American family. My condolences to Marvin's Antoine and the entire UMass Dartmouth community as

Thank you. Chair recognizes Councillor Fitzgerald. You have the floor.

Thank you, Madam President. I just want to keep my Chief of Staff, Amanda Curley, in our thoughts and prayers as she deals with the loss of her grandfather, John Jack Curley Jr. It's a tough week for her. She lost a friend as well. and um so that's the rest of this week that's what she'll be uh she'll she'll be participating in and um i know it's not easy and uh just to the curly family i want to say uh we're keeping that family and our thoughts and prayers thank you thank you chair recognizes counselor jerkin thank you so much a lot of us know john pulgini but i called him the other day he wo

He's from Hyde Park. His mom, Audrey, passed away in late August. So just wanted to send my regards to the Polgini McCarthy family. Because I know that oftentimes we're working with people on the work of what they work with. But to know him, he works very professionally and is a lawyer in the city. And just wanted to send my best to his family and to everyone who loved his mom.

Is it Audrey Polgini McCarthy? P-O-L or C-O-L? P-U-L. P-U-L. Thank you. Chair recognizes Constable Culpepper. You have the floor.

Thank you, Madam President. I wanted to lift up the family of good family friend Fred Davis who passed. And even though he's in California, his family's in California, it doesn't lessen the pain from the loss of Fred Davis.

Fred Davis, thank you. Thank you. On behalf of Councillor Fitzgerald, John Jack Curley. On behalf of Councillor Le Regen, Mervyn Antonin. and we also hold up his community, the UMass community in Dartmouth. On behalf of the entire City Council, Raphael Mejia. On behalf of Councillor Warrell, Theodore Webster. On behalf of Councillor Mejia, Dr. Ferguson. On behalf of Councillor Durkan, Audrey McCarthy-Colgini. And on behalf of Councillor Culpepper, Fred Davis. A moment of silence, please. Council is scheduled to meet again on the Ionella Chamber on Wednesday, September 30th, 2026 at 12 p.m. Tha