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You win some, you lose some

The Gateway Cities Journal

In the toughest state budget since the Great Recession, Gateway City leaders coalesced around priorities and eked out a few victories. The workforce development line-items identified by the Gateway Cities legislative caucus early in the year fared particularly well. Connecting Activities, which supports work-based learning experiences for high school students, came out of conference with

Juicing regional economic development by improving labor mobility

A look at Gateway City residents earning the Boston wage premium

A startling percentage of households migrating from Boston to the Gateway Cities are low-income and transit-dependent. For these residents, finding living wage work may now hinge on whether they can make the commute back to Boston. Data from the American Community Survey show that Gateway City residents who are able to find and get to

The push and pull of transit in Boston and the Gateway Cities

A look at gentrification forces on transit-dependent households

The trend of low- and middle-income households being priced out of urban centers with robust public transit networks is a reality in major cities all over the country. Despite its ills, the MBTA system is exceptional, which means Boston is no exception. Migration data from the American Community Survey show that more than one-quarter of

Community Benefit Districts on the table for FY18

New designation would promote collaboration in downtowns, Main Streets

Representative Brendan Crighton and Senator Eileen Donoghue have filed an outside section of the FY18 Budget, currently in Conference Committee, that would create Community Benefit Districts (CBDs) as an alternative to Business Improvement Districts (BIDs) for communities across the Commonwealth. CBDs are designed to support downtowns, cultural districts, historic areas, and Main Streets that require

Locally accountable for education-led renewal

The Gateway Cities Journal

The fate of our Gateway Cities lies in their schools. From growing a skilled workforce to maintaining healthy neighborhoods, public education will be the deciding factor. Significant progress has been made, but a lot more needs to happen to put these school systems in a stronger position to drive economic growth and renewal. Some of

Looking for a Transformative Transit-Oriented Development paradigm

View the Boston skyline from afar and you can pick out transit stops from the cranes poking out above active construction sites. TOD is occurring all over the city. This development has been fueled by relatively strong regional population and employment growth, high-frequency transit service, and perhaps most importantly, consumers with a preference for walkable

Haverhill Education Coalition working to promote excellence

New organization shows the promise of local accountability initiatives

The Haverhill Education Coalition is the latest example of grassroots leadership emerging in a Gateway City to support public education. Founded in February to help promote and advance high-quality education in Haverhill, the coalition seeks to “increase parent and citizen engagement in the public schools, increase transparency of school data and information, promote higher standards

Bending the business as usual growth curve

Leveraging existing transit assets

Massachusetts is projected to add more than a half million new residents over the next two decades. Where these new residents settle will have important consequences for quality of life, the environment, economic growth, and access to opportunity. How we grow will also have critical implications for the fiscal health of state and local governments.

Ideas without data are just hallucinations

The Gateway Cities Journal

For a decade now, we’ve been playing up the untapped potential of Gateway Cities. Their tight street grids and existing transportation infrastructure have been one of our frequent talking points. With added emphasis, we always note that this fabric is not just an opportunity for Gateway Cities, but for the entire state. At a time

Senate budget lacks funds for TDI

Other Gateway City priorities get a boost

Last week, the Senate released its fiscal year 2018 Ways and Means Budget recommendation. The Senate proved to be a leader on line items supported by the Gateway Cities Legislative Caucus, including Regional Transit Authorities, dual enrollment, Community College workforce grants, and adult basic education. However, there was one notable absences. The Senate budget proposal did
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