CommonWealth editor Bruce Mohl moderates issues forum with candidates for mayor of Lawrence

Policy Center
Sep 11, 2013 Policy Center

Lawrence mayoral candidates Marcos Devers, Juan “Manny” Gonzalez, James Patrick O’Donoghue, and Daniel Rivera participated in an issues forum/debate Monday night hosted by Commonwealth Magazine, The Eagle-Tribune, and Rumbo Newspaper. The debate was moderated by Bruce Mohl, editor of Commonwealth Magazine. Gabrielle Gurley, Senior Associate Editor of Commonwealth Magazine, Keith Eddings, reporter at The Eagle-Tribune,

MassINC’s Gateway Cities Institute to host 2013 Innovation Awards Luncheon

Policy Center
Aug 19, 2013 Policy Center

Suffolk Construction CEO John Fish to speak on need for Transformative Investment in small, historic cities This first annual event celebrates the innovative spirit of the state’s historic Gateway Cities with an awards ceremony honoring organizations or individuals devoted to investments that transform communities. To be held on November 12th, 2013, the event will mark

California leads decline in prison population, but reentry reform is uncertain

Policy Center
Aug 6, 2013 Policy Center

Last month the Department of Justice announced a 1.7 percent decline in the estimated US prison population from 2011 to 2012, marking the third consecutive year of slight decreases. There were 1,571,013 inmates in federal and state prisons at the end of last year, which is not too far off the all-time high of 1,615,487

Paul Krugman: Sprawl may be to blame for low social mobility

Policy Center
Jul 31, 2013 Policy Center

Champions of older cities long ago criticized suburbs (or, worse, exurbs) on aesthetic grounds. Then they pointed out the environmental damage of sprawl. Now comes data suggesting that the dispersal of homes and jobs from urban areas is bad economics. This week New York Times columnist Paul Krugman used the occasion of Detroit pleading bankruptcy

New Bedford schools are spared worst-case scenario but still face elimination of 200 jobs

Policy Center
Jun 28, 2013 Policy Center

Thanks to a reversal by the City Council, New Bedford will not have to close elementary schools and eliminate its school athletics program, but it will still have to cut 200 jobs, reports Natalie Sherman of the Standard-Times (story behind paywall). In one of this year’s most contentious budget fights, the New Bedford City Council

Holyoke’s Lyman Terrace Study Pitches Transformative Redevelopment

Policy Center
Jun 26, 2013 Policy Center

A new plan to develop the Lyman Terrace public housing complex in downtown Holyoke could spur revitalization, according to a new report prepared by Utile with support from MassDevelopment and the Massachusetts Housing Partnership. The report, created through a joint partnership between the Holyoke Housing Authority (HHA), the City of Holyoke, the Massachusetts Development Finance

Luck of the map: Away from the coast, “legacy cities” are still shrinking

Policy Center
Jun 24, 2013 Policy Center

New population estimates released last month showed that several major cities on the East Coast, including Boston, are in a period of renewed growth — while mid-sized urban areas, including most of the Gateway Cities in Massachusetts, are growing at a slower pace and have a more uncertain economic future. The situation is bleaker in

Lawrence mayor proposes a boost to school spending, but most Gateway Cities stick to tight budgets

Policy Center
Jun 12, 2013 Policy Center

INCSpot will be providing updates as Gateway Cities go through the process of approving school budgets for the next fiscal year. Our first post was last week; here are some other recent developments that illustrate the challenges of funding schools during a time of escalating costs and revenue uncertainties. —In contrast to most Gateway City

Youth Violence Prevention Initiative Threatened by House Budget

Policy Center
Jun 12, 2013 Policy Center

The fate of The Safe and Successful Youth Initiative (SSYI), a violence prevention strategy focused on young men between the ages of 14 and 24 who are at risk of being victims or perpetrators of violence, now lies with the conference committee reconciling the House and Senate budgets. While the Senate Budget proposal included $4

Transformative redevelopment heating up

Policy Center
Jun 12, 2013 Policy Center

Ben Forman delivered an opening address on the concept of Transformative Redevelopment at a MassDevelopment event on Wednesday. The daylong forum, billed as “Lessons in Transformative Economic Development,” brought together leaders from several Gateway Cities, including Fitchburg, Leominster, and Worcester. The transformative redevelopment discussion continued Wednesday afternoon at the State House before the House Committee on

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