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星期二, 8月 31, 2021

波士頓華埠迎雙十掛新國旗 街頭串旗還待審批許可

謝中之提供
          (Boston Orange)送走8月,迎向10月,波士頓華埠街頭又將出現旗海飄揚,兩岸爭輝的美麗風景。

            不過今年情況有點不同,830日傳出華埠街頭要掛旗,得申請許可的消息。

紐英崙中華總會原定831日在波士頓華埠街頭掛滿青天白日滿地紅的中華民國旗幟,因為這一消息,紐英崙中華總會的雷國輝,余麗媖,以及陳台榮,謝中之,劉樹榮和一名裝修師傅等人,決定只為一直掛在華埠牌樓「天下為公」、「禮義廉恥」牌匾下方,以及懸掛在泰勒街和必珠街上空的共6面大幅中華民國與美國星條國旗,換上新旗。往年每條街上都懸掛的串旗,就等有明確訊息後再決定是否掛,何時掛。

             根據收到消息者透露,波士頓華埠主街在30日發電郵給華埠5個機構的行政負責人,說是收到波士頓市公共工程局電話通知,任何個人或組織未獲該局批准,或取得許可,不得張貼任何形式的海報,掛旗幟,或拉布條,該局將執行罰款措施。

謝中之展示2面新旗。
             波士頓華埠街頭在過去這幾年間,每到9月,10月就開始熱鬧,慶祝101日的五星旗,慶祝1010日的青天白日滿地紅旗幟,同時掛滿街頭,交相輝映。由於兩面旗幟的各自支持者都積極護旗,串旗雖然在節慶過後取下,但掛在牌樓及街道上空的大幅青天白日滿地紅,以及路邊街燈上的五星旗,卻都留了下來,成為波士頓華埠常年累月的風景。

波士頓華埠牌樓和街道上掛出的旗幟。
             華埠坊間有聽聞這消息者好奇探問,波士頓市的北端(North End)才剛在七,八月間舉辦了聖安東尼節等節慶活動,張燈結綵的規模十分盛大。相關規定應該一樣才是。

             紐英崙中華總會刻正向波士頓市政府探詢,關於張貼海報,掛旗等的規定,罰款金額等細節。

             受新冠病毒疫情影響,今年報名參加遊行人數不多,負責籌備中華民國國慶活動的2名僑務委員蔣宗壬,郭競儒,以及紐英崙中華總會,透過波士頓僑教中心發出通知,今年的遊行活動取消,109日的波士頓市政府廣場升旗,以及帝苑大酒樓餐會,將照常舉行,歡迎各界報名。(圖片謝中之提供)






 

波士頓市在全美開車體驗最糟城市中排第18名

         (Boston Orange編譯)WalletHub的一份最新調查,把波士頓市列為全美開車體驗最糟糕城市的第18名。

該網站稱,根據交通統計局,全美有87%的每日出門活動,都開車。在新冠病毒期間,人們恐怕搭乘公共交通工具容易染疫,更加依賴個人車輛,在2021年的第一季,和去年同期相比,汽車銷量增加了9%

WalletHub以擁有及維修開支,交通,基礎建設,安全,可獲得車輛和維修等30項關鍵指數,比較了美國100大城市後,麻州的首都波士頓,在可獲得車輛和維修上排名第97,在交通及基礎建設上排名第92,在擁有及維修開支上排名第67,在安全上排名第33

WalletHub的記載中,駕駛人平均每年花在路上開車的時間高於310小時,換算下來等於13天了。因為交通堵塞而浪費的時間及油費,加起來等於每名駕駛每年花1400元。

路況是人們開車體驗是否良好的另一大因素。而美國土木工程師協會稱美國的道路橋梁,還在等數以十億元計的經費來維修。世界經濟論壇也把美國的道路品質排為141個已發展經濟國家中的第17名。

開車體驗最糟糕城市的排名為加州的奧克蘭(Oakland, CA),密西根州的底特律,加州舊金山,賓州費城,紐約州紐約,伊利諾州芝加哥,加州洛杉磯,馬里蘭州巴爾的摩,華盛頓特區,加州聖伯納迪諾(San Bernardino, CA)。(標題訂正)

Kim Janey宣佈房屋穩定議程

MAYOR JANEY ANNOUNCES HOUSING STABILITY AGENDA

Creates citywide eviction moratorium and plans for Foreclosure Prevention Fund

 

BOSTON - Tuesday, August 31, 2021 - Mayor Kim Janey today announced a Housing Stability Agenda, following the recent ruling by the Supreme Court of the United States to end the Center of Disease Control’s nationwide eviction moratorium and the continuing challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic. As part of the Housing Stability Agenda, the Boston Public Health Commission's Interim Executive Director signed a new public health order establishing a moratorium on evictions in the City of Boston, effective immediately. Mayor Janey has also directed the Department of Neighborhood Development to lead creation of a $5 million Foreclosure Prevention Fund, with program information to be released next week.   

“The loss of federal eviction protections and the ongoing pandemic has put our most vulnerable neighbors at risk of losing their homes,” said Mayor Janey. “I am implementing a housing stability agenda to continue Boston’s public health recovery with emergency assistance for renters and homeowners who need help.” 

The moratorium temporarily halts residential evictions in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, including the rise of the Delta variant. The public health order prohibits landlords and property owners from pursuing tenant eviction proceedings in the City of Boston. 

In the coming weeks, the $5 million Emergency Foreclosure Prevention Fund will be available to eligible homeowners to help cover costs related to homeownership including mortgage, insurance, and condominium fee payments. To be eligible for the Fund, a homeowner must be delinquent on those payments. Priority will be given to those homeowners most at risk for foreclosure. The program will be financed through both the American Rescue Plan Act and the CARES ACT Coronavirus Relief Fund (CRF).

The new eviction moratorium and Emergency Foreclosure Prevention Fund build on the City’s ongoing measures to protect both renters and homeowners, including allocating $50 million to the Rental Relief Fund, distributing more than $19 million to 3,500 households around the City at a pace exceeding state and national averages. The recently expanded Office of Housing Stability has also connected Boston residents to state housing relief resources. To date, a total of 12,500 Boston households have received $72 million in state and City housing stability assistance.  

Danielle Allen Hosts ‘Listening Live’ Event on Back to School and Covid Safety

Danielle Allen Hosts ‘Listening Live’ Event on Back to School and Covid Safety 

Meira Levinson to Join Danielle Allen to Talk Covid Safety This School Year

 

Wednesday, September 1, 5:15 – 5:45pm. 

https://www.facebook.com/allenforma/live_videos/

Gubernatorial candidate Danielle Allen and co author of The Path to Zero and Schools: Achieving Pandemic-Resilient Teaching and Learning Spaces policy guidance,  Professor Meira Levinson will gather on Facebook Live for a thirty minute Q&A about best policy practices that Massachusetts can take up as this school year starts to keep students, educators, and school staff safe as the Commonwealth starts its second school year affected by COVID. Both Allen and Levinson have worked with schools on COVID safety practices throughout the pandemic and are considered national experts. 

 

 

Meira Levinson, in collaboration with other colleagues, co-authored The Path to Zero and Schools: Achieving Pandemic-Resilient Teaching and Learning Spaces policy guidance, a New England Journal of Medicine article on Reopening Primary Schools in a Pandemic, and two additional white papers. She is a normative political philosopher who works at the intersection of civic education, youth empowerment, racial justice, and educational ethics. In doing so, she draws upon scholarship from multiple disciplines as well as her eight years of experience teaching in the Atlanta and Boston Public Schools. Since the onslaught of the global novel coronavirus pandemic, Levinson has been focused on expanding educational ethics to address the multitude of ethical challenges posed by school closures, remote schooling, and uncertain reopenings. She has also been leading global teacher discussion groups on the ethical challenges they face.

 

 

Danielle is a mom, policy expert, nonprofit leader, and professor at Harvard University. She has advised policy makers at all levels of government on critical policy decisions. Over the last twenty years, she has led organizations at all scales from local civic education providers to a global philanthropy. Danielle has achieved impact over decades through policy and implementation in the domains of education, justice, health, and democracy. Her leadership is characterized by listening, collaborating, and innovating--as in leading a multi-disciplinary covid response team that led to the Biden-Harris Pandemic Testing Board and an interstate compact to build out COVID testing resources. 

Baker-Polito Administration Awards $21 Million in Climate Change Funding to Cities and Towns

Baker-Polito Administration Awards $21 Million in Climate Change Funding to Cities and Towns

93% of Communities Participating in Municipal Vulnerability Preparedness Program 


EASTHAMPTON
– Building on its commitment to creating a more climate change resilient Commonwealth, the Baker-Polito Administration today announced $21 million in grants to cities and towns through the Municipal Vulnerability Preparedness (MVP) Program, representing a doubling of the program budget since last year. To date, this brings total awards through the MVP program to over $65 million. The grant program, which was created in 2017 as part of Governor Charlie Baker’s Executive Order 569, provides communities with funding and technical support to identify climate hazards, develop strategies to improve resilience, and implement priority actions to adapt to climate change. The grants are in addition to the Administration’s proposal to invest $900 million in funding from the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) into key energy and environmental initiatives, including $300 million to support climate resilient infrastructure.

“With the ongoing success of the MVP program, we are pleased to double the program’s funding this year to support local climate change resilience projects throughout the Commonwealth,” said Governor Charlie Baker. “Massachusetts communities are implementing important, nation-leading efforts to adapt to climate change. Our Administration is committed to working with municipalities across the Commonwealth to tackle these urgent challenges, which is why we have proposed a significant increase in funding for climate adaptation projects through our federal ARPA spending plan.”

“The MVP program is a vital tool in our efforts to prepare and strengthen our coastal and inland communities to address the impacts of climate change,” said Lieutenant Governor Karyn Polito. “We are thrilled to welcome 16 new towns to the program as they take important steps in planning for the future, and to award funding to 66 priority implementation projects that range from upgrading or removing high-risk dams and culverts to investing in Environmental Justice communities.”

Through this latest round of funding, 93% of Massachusetts cities and towns, or 328 municipalities, are now enrolled in the MVP program. The program pairs local leadership and knowledge with a significant investment of resources and funding from the Commonwealth to address ongoing climate change impacts, such as inland flooding, storms, sea level rise, and extreme temperatures. Of these funds, $20.6 million was awarded to 66 cities, towns, or regional partnerships to implement projects that build local resilience to climate change in the Commonwealth’s fifth round of MVP Action Grant funding. Additionally, $400,000 was awarded to 16 towns to pursue a community led planning process to identify vulnerabilities to climate change and priority actions. When complete, these municipalities will be eligible for the next round of implementation funding.

“The MVP program has been recognized as a national model for building climate resiliency through strong state and local partnerships, and we are proud to have enrolled 93% of the municipalities in Massachusetts in this critical effort,” said Energy and Environmental Affairs Secretary Kathleen Theoharides. “Every region in Massachusetts experienced extreme weather throughout the summer, including excessive heat, record precipitation, and flooding, and the MVP program offers vital technical and financial assistance to help municipalities address vulnerabilities and create stronger, more liveable climate resilient communities.”

The $21 million announced today will go towards MVP Planning Grants and Action Grants. Planning Grants support communities in working with a state-certified technical assistance provider to lead a community-wide planning workshop to identify key climate-related hazards, vulnerabilities and strengths, develop adaptation actions, and prioritize next steps. Results of the workshops and planning efforts inform existing local plans, grant applications, and policies. Communities are then eligible for competitive MVP Action Grant funding to implement priority on-the-ground projects. Projects are focused on proactive strategies to address climate change impacts and may include retrofitting and adapting infrastructure, actions to invest in and protect environmental justice communities and improve public health, detailed vulnerability assessments or design and engineering studies, stormwater upgrades, dam retrofits and removals, culvert upgrades, drought mitigation, energy resilience, and projects that focus on implementing nature-based solutions such as wetland restoration and floodplain protection.

“The grant allows Easthampton to act on our deep commitment to a resilient, environmentally aware ecosystem,” said Easthampton Mayor Nicole LaChapelle.The Cherry Street project serves as a model for future grants.”

"These grants provide critical funding to Easthampton, Southwick, and communities throughout our region for initiatives that focus on the consequential impacts of climate change,” said State Senator John Velis (D - Westfield). “Projects funded by the MVP program, like the Cherry Street restoration in Easthampton, allow our municipalities to address local climate hazards and build a more resilient and environmentally friendly infrastructure."

“I am very excited that Easthampton is receiving this MVP Action Grant,” said State Representative Dan Carey (D - Easthampton).This grant for Cherry Street’s green infrastructure and slope restoration construction is a perfect example of the partnership between state and municipal government.  The state funding from this grant will help to make necessary improvements in our community.  It is crucial that we address climate change on the local level and this project will make the area more resilient to ongoing and future climate change impacts.”



The following communities will receive funding to complete the MVP planning process in 2021-2022: 

Applicant

MVP Program Region

Total Award

Boylston

Central

$20,000

Clarksburg

Berkshires & Hilltowns

$15,000

Egremont

Berkshires & Hilltowns

$40,000

Hawley

Berkshires & Hilltowns

$27,000

Huntington

Berkshires & Hilltowns

$38,000

Ludlow

Greater Connecticut River Valley

$31,000

Millville

Central

$27,000

Oxford

Central

$26,900

Raynham

Southeast

$15,000

Savoy

Berkshires & Hilltowns

$15,000

Southbridge

Greater Connecticut River Valley

$22,000

Tolland

Berkshires & Hilltowns

$27,000

Tyringham

Berkshires & Hilltowns

$20,000

Warren

Greater Connecticut River Valley

$26,895

Webster

Central

$25,000

West Bridgewater

Southeast

$22,000

Total (16)

 

Total: $397,795

 

The following communities were awarded Action Grants: 

Applicant

Project Title

Grant Award

Acton & Acton-Boxborough Regional School District

Climate Action Plan and Electrification Roadmap

$157,940

Andover

Shawsheen River Watershed Land Conservation Planning and Prioritization for Climate Resilience and Environmental Justice

$131,700

Ashfield

Baptist Corner Road Stream Crossing Ecological Improvements

$448,600

Athol

Greening Lord Pond Plaza Phase 2

$213,630

Belchertown

Land Conservation and Restoration of the Scarborough Brook Headwaters for Climate Resilience

$480,025

Belmont

Stormwater Flood Reduction and Climate Resilience Capital Improvement Plan

$195,000

Bolton & Clinton

Nashua River Communities Resilient Lands Management Project

$302,691

Braintree

Smith Beach Green Infrastructure Project

$47,500

Bridgewater

High Street Dam Removal

$750,000

Buckland, Ashfield, & Hawley

Watershed-Based Assessment and Climate Resiliency Plan for Clesson Brook

$100,117

Burlington

Vine Brook Watershed and Urban Heat Island Assessment

$108,500

Chelsea

Battery Storage System and Solar at Chelsea City Hall

$624,000

Conway

South River Flood Resiliency Project

$191,200

Deerfield

Healthy Soils, Green Infrastructure Policy and Climate Resiliency Public Engagement in Deerfield

$40,951

Dennis

Pound Pond, Dennis- Flood Mitigation and Storm Drainage Improvements

$120,010

Easthampton

Cherry Street Green Infrastructure and Slope Restoration Construction

$2,000,000

Everett & Chelsea

Island End River Flood Resilience Project

$716,500

Falmouth

Conceptual Design of Flood-Resiliency Improvements for Sewer Infrastructure

$104,040

Fitchburg

Bolstering Public and Private Action to Improve Flood Resilience in Baker Brook

$173,350

Foxborough

Advancing Green Infrastructure in Foxborough for Enhancing Climate Resilience through Planning and Design

$166,543

Framingham

Walnut Street Neighborhood Flood Mitigation - Design & Permitting

$269,030

Gloucester

Gloucester Climate Action and Resilience Plan (CARP)

$69,890

Groveland

Johnson Creek Watershed Flood Resiliency Project

$82,186

Hampden & East Longmeadow

Hampden/East Longmeadow Infrastructure Assessment and Prioritization of Nature-Based Solutions and Public Outreach and Participation

$389,092

Haverhill

Little River Dam Removal and River Restoration

$475,000

Ipswich

Ipswich River Sewer Interceptor Bank Biostabilization Project

$117,803

Lenox, Pittsfield, Stockbridge, & New Marlborough

Housatonic Stream Restoration for Regional Flood Resilience Project

$295,190

Leominster

Monoosnoc Brook Bank Stabilization Project

$167,625

Leverett

Shutesbury Road Culvert Enhancement

$258,750

Lynn

Barry Park Green Infrastructure Project

$147,367

Lynnfield

Richardson Green Conservation Acquisition

$1,638,750

Malden

Malden River Works for Waterfront Equity and Resilience

$354,600

Marlborough

Regulatory Updates to Support Climate Resiliency

$56,250

Marshfield

Marshfield Long-term Coastal Resiliency Plan

$78,030

Mashpee

Watershed-based Solutions to Increase Resilience to Harmful Algal Blooms in Santuit Pond in a Warmer and Wetter Climate

$131,691

Melrose & Upper Mystic Communities

Working Across Boundaries to Minimize Stormwater Flood Damage in the Upper Mystic Watershed

$108,655

Melrose, Malden, & Medford

Melrose, Malden, and Medford Building Resilience, Efficiency, and Affordability Project

$101,108

Mendon

Mendon Town Hall Campus Green Stormwater Infrastructure: Design through Contractor Mobilization

$169,905

Methuen & Lawrence

Searles Pond/Bloody Brook Corridor Resilience Planning

$80,250

Millbury

Armory Village Green Infrastructure Project- Phase II

$366,000

Millis

Flood Resiliency Plan

$170,000

Natick, Framingham, & Ashland

Building Relationships and Resilience with MetroWest Environmental Justice Neighborhoods

$127,150

Natick & Charles River Watershed Communities

Building Resilience Across the Charles River Watershed Phase II

$233,085

New Bedford

New Bedford Green Infrastructure Master Strategy and Implementation Roadmap

$432,440

Northbridge

Carpenter Road Causeway Alternatives Analysis and Source Water Green Infrastructure Protection Plan

$146,100

Norwood

Traphole Brook Flood Prevention and Stream Restoration Project

$682,421

Oak Bluffs, Tisbury, West Tisbury, Edgartown, Chilmark, Aquinnah, & Gosnold

Martha's Vineyard and Gosnold Climate Action Plan, Phase II

$173,843

Peabody & Salem

Peabody-Salem Resilient North River Corridor & Riverwalk Project

$150,000

Pepperell

Sucker Brook Continuity Restoration

$492,030

Plymouth

Subterranean Resiliency: Predicting, Assessing and Mitigating Saltwater Intrusion

$304,915

Revere

Gibson Park Resiliency Design and Permitting

$161,516

Sandwich

Dynamic Adaptation Pathways and Prioritized Resilient Design Solutions for Historic Sandwich Village

$79,789

Saugus

Saugus Climate Adaptation and Resilience Plan

$74,500

South Hadley

Queensville Dam Removal Feasibility Study and Buttery Brook Watershed Enhancement

$125,000

Southborough

Planimetric Impervious Surface Mapping Project

$22,875

Southwick

Klaus Anderson Road/Johnson Brook Replacement Culvert and Green Infrastructure

$728,300

Springfield

Trees, Homes, and People/ Creating a More Resilient Living Environment

$2,000,000

Tewksbury

Stormwater Analysis for Nature-Based Solutions and Community Co-Benefits

$193,935

Waltham

Bringing Climate Resilience to Beaver Brook

$362,000

Watertown

Equity-Based Community Greening Program

$94,240

Wellfleet

Herring River Restoration Project Phase 1 Final Construction Plans and Bid Specifications

$589,960

Wellfleet, Truro, Eastham, Brewster, Barnstable, & Bourne

Regional Low Lying Road Assessment and Feasibility

$236,258

Westford

Westford Tree and Invasive Species Inventory and Management Plan with Tree Planting Plan

$79,200

Westhampton

Resilience Building through Community Visioning and Planning

$237,516

Winthrop, Boston, & Revere

Belle Isle Marsh: Evaluating Nature Based Solutions to Protect Abutting Communities and Critical Shorebird Habitat from Coastal Inundation

$145,307

Wrentham

Climate Resilience and Low Impact Development Regulatory Integration and Green Infrastructure Master Plan

$113,344

Total (66)

 

$20,585,193

In June 2021, the Baker-Polito Administration re-filed its plan to immediately put to use part of Commonwealth’s direct federal aid from the American Rescue Plan Act to support key priorities including housing and homeownership, economic development and local downtowns, job training and workforce development, health care, and infrastructure. As part of the Administration’s proposal to jump-start the Commonwealth’s economic recovery and support residents hardest-hit by COVID-19, such as lower-wage workers and communities of color, Governor Baker would direct $900 million to key energy and environmental initiatives, including $300 million to support climate resilient infrastructure. The funding would be distributed through programs like EEA’s Municipal Vulnerability Preparedness Program and would fund priority climate adaptation projects and investments aligned with the priorities identified in the state hazard mitigation and climate adaptation plan. Investments that would be supported through the funding include the acquisition of land specifically targeted at reducing flooding and the Urban Heat Island Effect.