With the February 7th Joint Rule 10 deadline for reporting bills out of committee approaching, Gateway City mayors voice collective support for the Downtown Vitality Act, the Affordable Homes Act, and a bill making smart investments in regional transit agencies.

 

Re: H.228/S.130– An Act to Promote Downtown Vitality

Dear Chairs McMurtry and Payano, and members of the Committee,

We, the undersigned mayors and managers of Gateway municipalities, ask you to report out favorably An Act to Promote Downtown Vitality (H.228/S.130) filed by Rep. Antonio Cabral and Sen. John Cronin, with the support of the Gateway Cities Legislative Caucus.

Small businesses districts in communities across the commonwealth need vibrant, walkable areas to attract enough foot traffic to succeed in today’s challenging commercial environment. Online retail and big box stores have siphoned dollars away from local economies, contributing to economic and cultural displacement. An Act to promote downtown vitality (H.228/S.130) seeks to reinvest 5% of remote retailer tax revenue back into our main streets and downtowns, helping to level the playing field by supporting district management…

Click here to read the full Gateway Cities Mayors letter on the Downtown Vitality bill

 

Re: H.4138 – The Affordable Homes Act

Dear Chairs Arciero and Edwards, and members of the Committee on Housing,

We, the undersigned mayors and managers of Gateway municipalities, write in support of The Affordable Homes Act (H.4138) filed by Governor Healey. While the bill contains many commendable investments in support of housing affordability that we support, we will focus our attention here on the provisions that promote mixed-income neighborhoods and help overcome production barriers in our regional urban centers.

The commonwealth’s 26 Gateway Cities represent 27% of the state’s population and 42% of the state’s nonwhite population; more than two out of every five households in our communities make less than $50,000 per year. According to Census data for the decade ending in 2020, Gateways accounted for only 11% of the housing permits issued in the state overall but created 31% of the state’s Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) units. In short, unique challenges and barriers continue to hinder housing production in many of our communities across all incomes, but particularly for workforce housing and reasonably priced market-rate units…

Click here to read the full Gateway Cities Mayors letter on the Housing Bond bill

 

Re: H.3272/S.2277 – An Act to Improve and Expand Regional Transit Accessibility in the Commonwealth

Dear Chairs Straus and Crighton, and members of the Committee on Transportation,

On behalf of Gateway municipalities served by Regional Transit Authorities (RTAs), we write to urge you to report the “RTA Advancement Bill” (H.3272/S.2277) filed by Rep. Blais and Sen. Moran favorably out of committee as you did last session. We thank you for your work on the budget this year which is already enabling weekend and evening service to come online in many locations; this bill will ensure that those gains are encoded in the future, creating predictability for transit agencies to plan ahead and staff accordingly.

The Commonwealth’s 15 RTAs connect riders in over 250 cities and towns representing half of the state’s population. For our Gateway communities, which act as regional hubs, transit is critical. Many of our families, especially seniors and essential workers, do not own private vehicles and depend on frequent and affordable public transportation…

Click here to read the full Gateway Cities Mayors letter on the RTA Advancement Bill