Boston City Councilor At-Large Michael F. Flaherty, Chair of the Committee on the Community Preservation Act, would like to remind residents, business owners and community-based organizations that the deadline for the next round of the Community Preservation funding is scheduled for September 28, 2018 at 4pm.
Earlier this year, Chairman Flaherty had called for approval of thirty-five projects that were recommended by the City of Boston’s Community Preservation Committee for the pilot round of funding – for a total funding amount of $8,035,055.00 from FY18 Community Preservation Fund revenue. At a public hearing that was held on Monday, June 18, 2018, the Boston City Council’s Committee on the Community Preservation Act received testimony from Emme Handy (Chief Financial Officer for the City of Boston), and Christine Poff (Director of the Community Preservation Program for the City of Boston) – both of whom outlined the process behind the pilot round of funding requests from the Community Preservation Fund.
The Committee also heard from the array of applicants themselves on the three specific categories outlined by the Community Preservation Act: Historic Preservation (which included applications from St. Augustine’s Chapel & Cemetery, Roxbury Presbyterian Church, Otis House and Old Josiah Quincy School); Affordable Housing (which included applications from Talbot Commons and Call-Carolina Homes); Recreational Use and Open Space (which included applications from Higginson School Playground, McDonough Sailing Center, and Martin’s Park). Additionally, there was a blended category of Historic Preservation & Recreational Use and Open Space (which included applications from Olmstead Park, Westland Avenue Gateway, and Mt. Hope Cemetery). The initial distribution of funds will allow for these thirty-five projects to improve the landscape of communities across the city.
During this next round of funding, Councilor Flaherty encourages community stakeholders who have considered improvements to their respective neighborhoods to apply so that they may reap the benefits of the Community Preservation Act. “I have long said that we live in a city that continues to go through an era of rapid growth and development, and the programming of the Community Preservation Act allows for stabilization and betterment of our neighborhood,” Councilor Flaherty said. “As Chair of the Boston City Council’s Committee on the Community Preservation, I look forward to reviewing the next round of recommendations from the Community Preservation Committee.”
For more information and to apply, visit http://boston.gov/community-preservation.
