Baker-Polito Administration Awards $10.8 Million in 19 Grants through the Seaport Economic Council

Baker-Polito Administration Awards $10.8 Million in 19 Grants through the Seaport Economic Council

 

Funding will support commercial fishing, improve public access to maritime assets, and prepare for future dredging

 

CHATHAM – Today, the Baker-Polito Administration announced nearly $10.8 million in Seaport Economic Council grants for 19 projects. The grants will help coastal communities advance projects that benefit commercial maritime industries, improve resident and visitor access to waterfront assets, mitigate the impacts of climate change, and advance future dredging. The grants were approved at today’s meeting of the Seaport Economic Council, chaired by Lieutenant Governor Karyn Polito at the Chatham Harbormaster Building in Chatham. “Massachusetts’ coastal communities are home to working waterfronts, maritime industry and innovation,” said Governor Charlie Baker. “I’m proud that the Seaport Economic Council, led by Lieutenant Governor Karyn Polito, has directed nearly $77 million since we have taken office to strengthen Massachusetts’ coastal communities and reinforce them for the future.” “I appreciate the hard work of the Seaport Economic Council members in evaluating and investing in projects that will deepen our maritime economy, promote economic development, and support resilient infrastructure in our coastal communities,” said Lt. Governor Karyn Polito, Chair of the Seaport Economic Council. “From the North Shore to the South Coast, today’s awards will advance important improvements along our waterfront.” The Seaport Economic Council serves all 78 of the Commonwealth’s coastal communities. The Council awards grant funding to municipalities and other entities in support of projects that promote job creation and economic growth, transformative public-private partnerships, educational opportunities for young people, local economic development planning efforts, coastal infrastructure improvements, and the planning and permitting of saltwater dredging. With this latest round of grants, the Seaport Economic Council has invested approximately $77 million through 164 grants in 54 coastal communities since 2015. “Our waterfronts are economic drivers for Massachusetts, supporting maritime industries and drawing visitors to enjoy our beaches and local businesses,” said Housing and Economic Development Secretary Mike Kennealy. “Providing the resources to shore up our waterfronts through infrastructure improvements and coastal resiliency efforts is integral to both the long-term environmental and economic health of our Commonwealth.” “Capital grants from the Seaport Economic Council help our coastal communities tackle locally identified projects to update and improve their waterfront infrastructure,” said Undersecretary of Community Development Ashley Stolba, Vice Chair of the Seaport Economic Council. “Under the leadership of Lieutenant Governor Karyn Polito, we are proud to award nearly $10.8 million in grants today to advance 19 important projects.” Seaport Economic Council Grant Recipients City of Beverly, $800,000 The City will use this grant to buy private waterfront property for public use that is immediately adjacent to the existing harbor center, public commercial marina, and public recreational marina.   Town of Chatham, $1 Million This project will address various existing structural and public safety deficiencies at the Municipal Fish Pier. The Fish Pier is a critical component to Chatham’s fishing and maritime heritage with stakeholders including the local and regional fishing community and vast numbers of the public who seek access to an authentic “working waterfront.” The Fish Pier services the largest commercial fishing fleet on Cape Cod, managing millions of pounds of seafood yearly destined for local, regional, national, and international markets. It is also one of, if not the, largest tourist destinations on the Cape with visitation during the 2020 summer season estimated at more than 70,000 individuals. Town of Chilmark, $176,000 The Menemsha Dock Replacement and Elevation Project is a multi-phased program to ensure long-term economic stability and climate resilience of the commercial fishing docks in Menemsha Harbor. A recently completed, Seaport Economic Council-supported Phase I engineering assessment identified significant deterioration of the dock, bulkhead, and supporting infrastructure. Phase II of the project will create design options and engineer plans for the replacement of this economically critical infrastructure through a public community engagement process.  Town of Dartmouth, $996,700 The Town will use this grant to construct a small boat docking facility at Arthur F. Dias Landing; the project will be the culmination of two other Seaport Economic Council grants for the feasibility study and design of this project. Town of Edgartown, $96,000 The Town will use this grant for engineering, design, and permitting to expand the current comprehensive permit to dredge Lighthouse Beach, the only and highly trafficked entranceway into Edgartown’s Inner Harbor and Katama Bay. Towns of Eastham & Orleans, $162,100 The proposed project will consist of the routine maintenance dredging of the existing three-foot-deep navigation channel located in Rock Harbor. The channel is the supporting lifeline to an abundance of public, water-dependent infrastructure located throughout the harbor and to accessing Cape Cod Bay. Maintenance is essential for ensuring safe access and use by the local commercial fleet, maritime industry, and recreational/transient boaters. Implementation of the proposed maintenance dredging project is also critical in supporting the Orleans Commercial Wharf Improvement Project and Eastham Harbormaster Building and Site Revitalization Project, both of which are funded by the Seaport Economic Council. Town of Fairhaven, $200,000 This grant will allow the Town of Fairhaven to be “shovel ready” with all necessary permits and studies completed to enable needed dredging in the West Island Channel in Nasketucket Bay and boat ramp areas. Ultimately, the project will increase the safety and usage of the waterway by increasing the minimum depth to at least seven feet below mean low water, and charting the dredged areas based on post dredge bathymetric surveys.  Town of Fairhaven, $1 Million The Town will use this grant for the reconstruction of the western side of the north wall, Phase 5 of the overall renovation of Union Wharf. Union Wharf provides the only public, commercial vessel off-load space available to the entire fleet within New Bedford harbor currently primarily used by the commercial fishing industry. Town of Falmouth, $45,720 The Town will use this grant for Phase I engineering and permitting services for complete replacement of the existing 115’ commercial bulkhead at the head of Falmouth Harbor.  Town of Gosnold, $300,000 The proposed project consists of surveying, engineering, and permitting associated with dredging the existing Town-owned marina, fish pier, and a shoal area outside the USACE channel in Cuttyhunk Harbor. The project will focus on surveying existing conditions, identifying areas and volumes associated with the required dredging. Once the dredge plan is developed, the grant will allow the Town to proceed with sediment sampling and characterization, and permitting with the local, state, and federal regulatory agencies. Town of Manchester-by-the-Sea, $79,836 The Town will use this grant to raise the Tuck’s Point rotunda and walkway, which are regularly submerged during storm events, to meet current engineering standards to accommodate for sea level rise. The substructure of pilings has reached the end of useful life and require annual engineering inspections to determine whether structure load needs to be reduced. Additionally, a siting study will determine if the structure could be located back on the land to preserve this historically important landmark. Town of Marion, $1 Million The Town will use this grant for construction of a new Maritime Center/Harbormaster Office. The Town has completed a feasibility study and cost estimate for a new Maritime Center/Harbormaster Office and is currently working under a Seaport Economic Council grant award to complete detailed architectural and engineering plans to include in bid and construction documents; this grant will further advance the project.    Town of Marshfield, $192,000 The Town will use this grant to complete a dredging design and engineering plan for needed maintenance dredging as well as a mooring field regridding project in anticipation of a fall 2022 federal navigation project for all of Green Harbor’s federal anchorage and entrance channel. Mass Maritime Academy, $1 Million Mass Maritime Academy will use this grant for the expansion of the Simulation Laboratory Center (SLC) that will provide workforce development training to enhance the safety, cost-efficiency, environmental performance of vessels, and promote opportunities for the emerging offshore wind industry. This project will install a Dynamic Positioning (DP) simulator, expand capabilities of the existing 360-bridge simulator, and upgrade the radar laboratory. The SLC will be integrated in the academy’s undergraduate degree program and offered to maritime professionals in or looking to be in the offshore wind industry. City of New Bedford, $1 Million The City will use this grant for a wholesale interior renovation of the bathhouse/lifeguard facility at West Beach, including modernizing and improving the facility for public and waterfront staff uses and making it ADA-compliant. City of Newburyport, $1.3 Million The project will rehabilitate the deteriorating bulkheads along the City’s central waterfront by driving fiber-reinforced plastic (FRP) sheet piles outshore of the old steel bulkheads. The void between the new FRP sheet piles and old steel piles will be filled with concrete, and the new concrete cap on top will be elevated in anticipation of sea level rise. New fender piles and steel mooring piles will also be installed as part of the project.  City of Revere, $35,000 Fulfilling one of the primary goals emanating from the recent Seaport Economic Council-funded Revere RiverFront Master Plan (2021) process, the City seeks to create a center for non-motorized community boating programs on a site on the Pines River where a dilapidated vacant small boat yard has stood for decades. Funds are requested to support final design and permitting of a dockage system and related waterside resiliency improvements for this purpose. City of Revere, $1 Million The City will use this grant to construct the first phase of a public walkway around the perimeter of the master-planned public/private mixed-use development in the 19-plus-acre Revere RiverFront. In 2020, the Seaport Economic Council provided essential funding for a masterplan for this area. A key recommendation stemming from the public input part of the process was the creation of a walkway to allow public access to the Pines and Saugus riverbanks where none now exists.     Town of Scituate, $367,000 This is a project to permit and design dredging for Scituate Harbor to improve the safety, navigability, and accessibility of the harbor for recreational, transient, and commercial boaters. The dredging will take place in four distinct areas: Area 1 includes floating docks currently utilized by the Lobstermen’s Association that are inaccessible at low tides; Area 2 includes the south and western limits of the of the Cole Parkway Marina which have become shoaled and make maneuvering very difficult at low water; Area 3 includes the entirety of the Maritime Center Marina which has shoaled quite significantly since being previously dredged, especially on the north and eastern limits of the marina, making safe maneuvering difficult at low tide; and Area 4 includes the north, east, and south sides of the Town Pier which has shoaled, limiting access and operations of commercial vessels during lower parts of the tide cycle.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact:  Kelsey Schiller (HED) kelsey.schiller@mass.gov

 

Baker-Polito Administration Awards $10.8 Million in 19 Grants through the Seaport Economic Council

 

Funding will support commercial fishing, improve public access to maritime assets, and prepare for future dredging

 

CHATHAM – Today, the Baker-Polito Administration announced nearly $10.8 million in Seaport Economic Council grants for 19 projects. The grants will help coastal communities advance projects that benefit commercial maritime industries, improve resident and visitor access to waterfront assets, mitigate the impacts of climate change, and advance future dredging. The grants were approved at today’s meeting of the Seaport Economic Council, chaired by Lieutenant Governor Karyn Polito at the Chatham Harbormaster Building in Chatham. “Massachusetts’ coastal communities are home to working waterfronts, maritime industry and innovation,” said Governor Charlie Baker. “I’m proud that the Seaport Economic Council, led by Lieutenant Governor Karyn Polito, has directed nearly $77 million since we have taken office to strengthen Massachusetts’ coastal communities and reinforce them for the future.” “I appreciate the hard work of the Seaport Economic Council members in evaluating and investing in projects that will deepen our maritime economy, promote economic development, and support resilient infrastructure in our coastal communities,” said Lt. Governor Karyn Polito, Chair of the Seaport Economic Council. “From the North Shore to the South Coast, today’s awards will advance important improvements along our waterfront.” The Seaport Economic Council serves all 78 of the Commonwealth’s coastal communities. The Council awards grant funding to municipalities and other entities in support of projects that promote job creation and economic growth, transformative public-private partnerships, educational opportunities for young people, local economic development planning efforts, coastal infrastructure improvements, and the planning and permitting of saltwater dredging. With this latest round of grants, the Seaport Economic Council has invested approximately $77 million through 164 grants in 54 coastal communities since 2015. “Our waterfronts are economic drivers for Massachusetts, supporting maritime industries and drawing visitors to enjoy our beaches and local businesses,” said Housing and Economic Development Secretary Mike Kennealy. “Providing the resources to shore up our waterfronts through infrastructure improvements and coastal resiliency efforts is integral to both the long-term environmental and economic health of our Commonwealth.” “Capital grants from the Seaport Economic Council help our coastal communities tackle locally identified projects to update and improve their waterfront infrastructure,” said Undersecretary of Community Development Ashley Stolba, Vice Chair of the Seaport Economic Council. “Under the leadership of Lieutenant Governor Karyn Polito, we are proud to award nearly $10.8 million in grants today to advance 19 important projects.” Seaport Economic Council Grant Recipients City of Beverly, $800,000 The City will use this grant to buy private waterfront property for public use that is immediately adjacent to the existing harbor center, public commercial marina, and public recreational marina.   Town of Chatham, $1 Million This project will address various existing structural and public safety deficiencies at the Municipal Fish Pier. The Fish Pier is a critical component to Chatham’s fishing and maritime heritage with stakeholders including the local and regional fishing community and vast numbers of the public who seek access to an authentic “working waterfront.” The Fish Pier services the largest commercial fishing fleet on Cape Cod, managing millions of pounds of seafood yearly destined for local, regional, national, and international markets. It is also one of, if not the, largest tourist destinations on the Cape with visitation during the 2020 summer season estimated at more than 70,000 individuals. Town of Chilmark, $176,000 The Menemsha Dock Replacement and Elevation Project is a multi-phased program to ensure long-term economic stability and climate resilience of the commercial fishing docks in Menemsha Harbor. A recently completed, Seaport Economic Council-supported Phase I engineering assessment identified significant deterioration of the dock, bulkhead, and supporting infrastructure. Phase II of the project will create design options and engineer plans for the replacement of this economically critical infrastructure through a public community engagement process.  Town of Dartmouth, $996,700 The Town will use this grant to construct a small boat docking facility at Arthur F. Dias Landing; the project will be the culmination of two other Seaport Economic Council grants for the feasibility study and design of this project. Town of Edgartown, $96,000 The Town will use this grant for engineering, design, and permitting to expand the current comprehensive permit to dredge Lighthouse Beach, the only and highly trafficked entranceway into Edgartown’s Inner Harbor and Katama Bay. Towns of Eastham & Orleans, $162,100 The proposed project will consist of the routine maintenance dredging of the existing three-foot-deep navigation channel located in Rock Harbor. The channel is the supporting lifeline to an abundance of public, water-dependent infrastructure located throughout the harbor and to accessing Cape Cod Bay. Maintenance is essential for ensuring safe access and use by the local commercial fleet, maritime industry, and recreational/transient boaters. Implementation of the proposed maintenance dredging project is also critical in supporting the Orleans Commercial Wharf Improvement Project and Eastham Harbormaster Building and Site Revitalization Project, both of which are funded by the Seaport Economic Council. Town of Fairhaven, $200,000 This grant will allow the Town of Fairhaven to be “shovel ready” with all necessary permits and studies completed to enable needed dredging in the West Island Channel in Nasketucket Bay and boat ramp areas. Ultimately, the project will increase the safety and usage of the waterway by increasing the minimum depth to at least seven feet below mean low water, and charting the dredged areas based on post dredge bathymetric surveys.  Town of Fairhaven, $1 Million The Town will use this grant for the reconstruction of the western side of the north wall, Phase 5 of the overall renovation of Union Wharf. Union Wharf provides the only public, commercial vessel off-load space available to the entire fleet within New Bedford harbor currently primarily used by the commercial fishing industry. Town of Falmouth, $45,720 The Town will use this grant for Phase I engineering and permitting services for complete replacement of the existing 115’ commercial bulkhead at the head of Falmouth Harbor.  Town of Gosnold, $300,000 The proposed project consists of surveying, engineering, and permitting associated with dredging the existing Town-owned marina, fish pier, and a shoal area outside the USACE channel in Cuttyhunk Harbor. The project will focus on surveying existing conditions, identifying areas and volumes associated with the required dredging. Once the dredge plan is developed, the grant will allow the Town to proceed with sediment sampling and characterization, and permitting with the local, state, and federal regulatory agencies. Town of Manchester-by-the-Sea, $79,836 The Town will use this grant to raise the Tuck’s Point rotunda and walkway, which are regularly submerged during storm events, to meet current engineering standards to accommodate for sea level rise. The substructure of pilings has reached the end of useful life and require annual engineering inspections to determine whether structure load needs to be reduced. Additionally, a siting study will determine if the structure could be located back on the land to preserve this historically important landmark. Town of Marion, $1 Million The Town will use this grant for construction of a new Maritime Center/Harbormaster Office. The Town has completed a feasibility study and cost estimate for a new Maritime Center/Harbormaster Office and is currently working under a Seaport Economic Council grant award to complete detailed architectural and engineering plans to include in bid and construction documents; this grant will further advance the project.    Town of Marshfield, $192,000 The Town will use this grant to complete a dredging design and engineering plan for needed maintenance dredging as well as a mooring field regridding project in anticipation of a fall 2022 federal navigation project for all of Green Harbor’s federal anchorage and entrance channel. Mass Maritime Academy, $1 Million Mass Maritime Academy will use this grant for the expansion of the Simulation Laboratory Center (SLC) that will provide workforce development training to enhance the safety, cost-efficiency, environmental performance of vessels, and promote opportunities for the emerging offshore wind industry. This project will install a Dynamic Positioning (DP) simulator, expand capabilities of the existing 360-bridge simulator, and upgrade the radar laboratory. The SLC will be integrated in the academy’s undergraduate degree program and offered to maritime professionals in or looking to be in the offshore wind industry. City of New Bedford, $1 Million The City will use this grant for a wholesale interior renovation of the bathhouse/lifeguard facility at West Beach, including modernizing and improving the facility for public and waterfront staff uses and making it ADA-compliant. City of Newburyport, $1.3 Million The project will rehabilitate the deteriorating bulkheads along the City’s central waterfront by driving fiber-reinforced plastic (FRP) sheet piles outshore of the old steel bulkheads. The void between the new FRP sheet piles and old steel piles will be filled with concrete, and the new concrete cap on top will be elevated in anticipation of sea level rise. New fender piles and steel mooring piles will also be installed as part of the project.  City of Revere, $35,000 Fulfilling one of the primary goals emanating from the recent Seaport Economic Council-funded Revere RiverFront Master Plan (2021) process, the City seeks to create a center for non-motorized community boating programs on a site on the Pines River where a dilapidated vacant small boat yard has stood for decades. Funds are requested to support final design and permitting of a dockage system and related waterside resiliency improvements for this purpose. City of Revere, $1 Million The City will use this grant to construct the first phase of a public walkway around the perimeter of the master-planned public/private mixed-use development in the 19-plus-acre Revere RiverFront. In 2020, the Seaport Economic Council provided essential funding for a masterplan for this area. A key recommendation stemming from the public input part of the process was the creation of a walkway to allow public access to the Pines and Saugus riverbanks where none now exists.     Town of Scituate, $367,000 This is a project to permit and design dredging for Scituate Harbor to improve the safety, navigability, and accessibility of the harbor for recreational, transient, and commercial boaters. The dredging will take place in four distinct areas: Area 1 includes floating docks currently utilized by the Lobstermen’s Association that are inaccessible at low tides; Area 2 includes the south and western limits of the of the Cole Parkway Marina which have become shoaled and make maneuvering very difficult at low water; Area 3 includes the entirety of the Maritime Center Marina which has shoaled quite significantly since being previously dredged, especially on the north and eastern limits of the marina, making safe maneuvering difficult at low tide; and Area 4 includes the north, east, and south sides of the Town Pier which has shoaled, limiting access and operations of commercial vessels during lower parts of the tide cycle.

波士頓市長吳弭: 應考慮暫時關閉MBTA 大規模整修

波士頓市長吳弭 (Michelle Wu)和麻州眾議會財政委員會主席麥家威 (Aaron Michlewitz)
對麻州地鐵都有看法。 (檔案照片，周菊子攝)

               (Boston Orange 綜合編譯) 麻州地鐵 (MBTA) 近來發生一連串事故，最新一宗是7月21日橘線地鐵在行駛中起火。事後，麻州州長查理貝克 (Charlie Baker) 表示願意考慮解散MBTA。波士頓市長吳弭(Michelle Wu) 今 (25) 日在WBUR電台節目中表示，該採取激烈行動，徹底改善。

              6月底，波士頓市長吳弭在紐英崙至孝篤親公所慶祝陳孔恩榮升波士頓市警察局社區參與總監的宴會中被問及MBTA一事時，笑說索性把MBTA交給波士頓市來營運。

              MBTA在過去這一年中發生的大事故，包括2021年的7月30日綠線地鐵在Pleasant街車站撞上前一輛列車，導致27人送醫治療；9月11日，波士頓大學教授 David Jones在多徹斯特 (Dorchester) 靠近JFK/麻州大學車站，一個已關閉，生鏽了樓梯上跌落，摔死了；9月26日，後灣車站的上升電梯突然倒轉向下，使得電梯上站在前面的人相繼疊壓在後面的人身上，有人流血受傷，9人送醫；2022年的1月21日，由於Wilmington那兒提醒車輛離開軌道的欄杆和閃爍燈號沒及時啟動，一輛通勤火車撞了一名婦女的車，把該名婦女撞死了；4月10日，在紅線地鐵百老匯 (Broadway)車站，39歲的乘客 Robinson Lalin在車門關上時，手臂卡住，被地鐵拖行而死；6月1日，兩列綠線地鐵在政府中心車站互撞脫軌，導致4名駕駛送醫。

              最新這宗是7月21日一大早7點以前，橘線地鐵從麥德福市 (Medford) 開進尚莫維爾市 (Somerville)市的”集合 (Assembly)車站”時，第一節車廂竟起火了，把車上200多名乘客嚇得紛紛敲破窗戶，奪路而逃，還有一名女子索性縱身跳進橋下的神秘 (Mystic)河，再游上岸。

              聯邦政府交通行政局 (The Federal Transit Administration) 因為這一連串事故，五月中時派員到麻州調查，揚言為了公眾安全，考慮接管麻州地鐵。

              7月21日的事故發生後，麻州州長查理貝克在GBH電台的「問州長 (Ask the Governor)」節目中，就麻州眾議員William Straus稱麻州地鐵已經不再能洽當的服務大眾，應該由麻州交通廳 (MassDOT) 接收這意見表達看法時，表示他不反對探討解散麻州地鐵這機構的可行性。查理貝克州長 6月底回應本刊提問時，先指出麻州地鐵之所以是半官方機構，並不由麻州政府管轄，源於其營運經費來自許多不同管道，接著也認為把MBTA納為州政府機構的做法值得探討。

              波士頓市長吳弭今日在WBUR電台的訪談節目中直言，MBTA是個十分老舊的系統，許多車廂已超過使用年限，軌道需要更換，運作科技也很過時。現在人們看到政府有經費，卻沒有放進麻州地鐵的更新，改善及維修，才會出現一連串的問題。

              吳弭直言，由於大部分地鐵的行駛路段，都在波士頓市內，她支持容許波士頓市長指派一名代表進麻州地鐵董事會，還懸在議會中的一項議案。她說麻州地鐵早就該整頓了，得大規模維修軌道及更新信號系統，她聽到的聲音是，橘線地鐵是最迫切需要維修及更新的路線。她指出，地鐵最大問題在於架構，長痛不如短痛，或應考慮採取激烈做法，大規模的關閉地鐵，迅速整修後，再重新營運。

中華表演藝術基金會15場免費夏日音樂會訂8月10至27日舉行

              (Boston Orange) 中華表演藝術基金會2022年夏日系列音樂會，訂8月10日至27日在紐英崙音樂學院的威廉斯廳及喬頓廳，由23位音樂家免費演出15場。8月20及21日，另有傅聰國際協奏曲比賽的複賽及決賽。

受新冠病毒疫情影響，中華表演藝術基金會主辦的這夏日系列音樂會（Summer FREE Concerts @ NEC），已中斷兩年，今年終於恢復，已排定15場免費音樂會，將於8月10日至27日在紐英崙音樂學院（New England Conservatory）的威廉斯廳（Williams Hall）及喬頓廳（Jordan Hall）舉行。

8月20至21日，將同時舉行傅聰國際協奏曲比賽的複賽及決賽。

這15場夏日系列音樂會的演出者介紹和曲目詳請，已在中華表演藝術基金會的官網上公佈，http://www.chineseperformingarts.net/contents/summer/2022/index.html。

23位大、中、小提琴、鋼琴、及聲樂音樂家中，有享譽全球，在紐英崙音樂學院，寇蒂斯（Curtis)，茱麗亞（Juilliard)等名校任教的資深教授（如：Victor Rosenbaum、黃心芸、Sergey Schepkin 等)，有蕭邦、范克萊本、柴可夫斯基、西貝流斯（Sibelius)、Paganini等世界大賽的獲獎者（如：Inmo Yang、Evren Ozel、JJ Bui等)，有職業樂團的首席及團員（如：李倩茜、Nathan Vickery、Zachary Mowitz等)，有獲得 Avery Fischer 職業獎者（如：廖國瑋)，有2022年度被選入古典樂台全球30位30歲以下(Classical FM’s 30 Under 30)的傑出音樂家 (如：郭紫堯)，以及多位已獲得音樂博士或藝術家文憑（Artist Diploma)，已在世界樂壇上展露才華的新星們。他們將獨奏、雙重奏，或四重奏的演出。加上團員近百人，曾獲2010年美國獎（American Prize）的水晶（Mercury）交響樂團訂8月27日演出的表演，總共有15場音樂會，可讓大波士頓人一享耳福。

今年的傅聰國際協奏曲比賽，指定曲目是貝多芬第五號降E大調皇帝交響曲，複賽及決賽，已定8月20及21日舉行。初選由五位分別在臺灣、中國、及美國各城市的大學鋼琴教授負責評審，從來自加拿大、中國、紐西蘭、新加坡、台灣、及美國的參賽者所繳交視頻，選出了10人進入複賽。

這10名複賽入圍者，有1 人因簽證問題退出，其他9人將來到紐英崙音樂學院，參加現場複賽，爭取成為5名決賽入圍者之一。

中華表演藝術基金會官網上，已公佈10名晉級複賽者的簡介及20分鐘獨奏曲，以及負責複賽及決賽的5名評委簡介，包括三名紐英崙音樂學院的鋼琴教授（Bruce Brubaker、Hae Sun Paik、Sergey Schepkin)，水晶樂團的音樂總監及指揮 Channing Yu，以及曾任波士頓環球報（Boston Globe）資深樂評，以及范克萊本、克理夫蘭、仙台（Sendai）等國際鋼琴大賽評委的 Richard Dyer。(http://www.chineseperformingarts.net/contents/summer/2022/0820/index.html)

協奏曲比賽第一名獎金5000美元，第二名1500美元。第三名1000美元。

所有15場音樂會都是免費演出。主辦單位呼籲聽眾戴口罩出席，勿攜帶6歲以下兒童入場。並請愛樂者慷慨解囊，樂捐10元，以資助邀音樂家演出的相關演出費、旅費、住宿、音樂廳場租、錄音、錄影等費用。捐款可在官網上辦理，http://www.chineseperformingarts.net/donation/index.htm，或寄支票至中華表演藝術基金會Foundation for Chinese Performing Arts, 3 Partridge Lane, Lincoln, MA 01773。

ISCT publishes conclusions and consensus from its 2022 Annual Meeting

ISCT publishes conclusions and consensus from its 2022 Annual Meeting

ISCT provided post-pandemic venue for the entire cell and gene therapy sector to generate solutions to the major barriers to providing therapies to patients 

Vancouver, Canada, July 25, 2022 - The International Society for Cell & Gene Therapy (ISCT), the global society of clinicians, researchers, regulators, technologists, and industry partners dedicated to the translation of cell and gene therapy (CGT) into safe and effective therapies to improve patients’ lives, today announces the conclusions and consensus from its international ISCT 2022 Annual Meeting. 

The ISCT Annual Meeting, held this year in San Francisco, US, between May 4-7, 2022, is the largest global yearly summit event for all those involved in the cell and gene therapy translation sector. It has set the aims, policies, solutions, and consensus path forward for the sector over each successive 12 months, addressing the biggest bottlenecks in cell and gene therapy development. The ISCT Annual Meeting is designed to connect cell and gene therapy translation professionals to educate, inspire, network and collaborate.  

In total, 1,646 cell and gene therapy experts from 38 countries attended in person the 2022 meeting, representing all stakeholders in the cell and gene therapy field across industry, academic and regulatory spheres. Of these attendees, 59 percent were from industry, including therapy developers, manufacturers, other supply chain providers and investors. 41 percent were from academia, government and non-profit organizations. The largest sector increase in attendance was from manufacturing, with 23 percent of in-person attendees at ISCT 2022, raised from 11 percent in the virtual ISCT 2021 meeting. In addition, there were over 2,000 in-person B2B partnering meetings, a 400 percent increase on previous years. 

ISCT 2022 featured a revamped program addressing new translational challenges arising through the rapid and sustained growth of the field. “The exponential growth phase in the field of cell and gene therapy continues as a growing number of therapies are being approved and new innovations are created,” said Anthony Ting, Chief Commercialization Officer, ISCT. “The development of a novel cell or gene therapy for the treatment of patients with high unmet medical needs is a process that requires communication and collaboration across multiple disciplines including scientists, industries including both therapeutic developers and technology enablers, as well as clinicians, regulators, and the patients themselves. The continuation of this cross-sector collaboration is vital.” 

The ISCT 2022 scientific program, renamed the Translational Pathway Program, integrated perspectives across the CGT sector to address key topics at the various stages of translation. The program was structured to mirror therapeutic development, launching with addressing barriers to early translational research, proceeding through the various phases of clinical trials, and concluding with patient access and commercialization considerations. 

“The new meeting format allowed delegates to attend sessions based not only on cell types but also product development pathways,” said Bambi Grilley, Co-Chair, ISCT 2022. “The success of this new format is largely reflective of the fact that cell and gene therapies now run the gamut of pre-clinical to post-marketing.” 

Launching the Translational Pathway Program, the Presidential Plenary provided clarification as to the scale of increases of gene editing and gene modified therapies, including those now commercially available in many countries. In addition, there were extensive discussions on equality of access issues, specifically how to widen patient access within and across countries, and the commercial and regulatory challenges in developing advanced cell and gene therapies for rare diseases. 

ISCT hosting the 33 roundtables at the Annual Meeting provided key stakeholders a platform, unique in the cell and gene therapy sector, to debate and provide consensus to guide ISCT and the wider sector on a full range of topics, barriers and milestones currently affecting cell and gene therapy. The roundtables enabled delegates to ask questions, join in debates, and participate in problem-solving to develop impactful solutions that shape their field. 

The roundtables covered the full range of therapies, including innovation, clinical translation, product launch and patient access for CAR-Ts, MSCs, iPSCs, and a variety of gene therapies. The topics included the relationship between investors and the CGT sector, expanded access and hospital exemption, managing the CGT workforce and skills crisis, product development, managing risks, potency assays, toxicity, sterility, starting materials and donors, supply chains and chain of custody and identity. 

Headline conclusions from debates in the roundtables included the requirement for region, and even country-specific solutions, whilst historically organizations in the cell and gene therapy industry had tried to present single international solutions, with limited efficacy. Similarly, solutions need to be different within different technologies and fields within the CGT sector. It was also agreed that the sector still needs to form more collaborations to serve patient requirements in the future. Finally, standardization across the reporting and qualification of facilities collecting and administering commercially sponsored products is vital. 

Workforce development was a central focus of the Roundtable Program, aiming to provide solutions to the dearth of qualified personnel to manufacture cell and gene therapy products. Training programs are limited and most personnel are trained on-the-job. Middle management roles are also particularly challenging to fill because personnel with experience are in high demand and can be lured away to the highest paying opportunity. Delegates shared experiences from their laboratories and participated in outlining solutions to the workforce shortage. The consensus was that the field needs to think ‘outside the box’ to develop hands-on training programs, not only for graduates, but also for experienced individuals looking to change careers. One opportunity to consider is academic collaborations with industry to train personnel. ISCT will look to facilitate these partnerships, utilizing the strong ties that are present with the ISCT Industry Committee. 

“The COVID pandemic has provided an ultimate clarification of the urgent need for therapeutic development for a range of therapies at the same time as preventing in-person meetings for these therapies to be discussed. The onus was therefore on ISCT, at its thirtieth anniversary, to provide the platform for the sector to meet again for the first time in three years. This platform enabled all stakeholders in the sector to reach fresh consensus and conclusions about the new priorities for the cell and gene therapy space,” said Bruce Levine, outgoing President, ISCT. “ISCT broadened its focus, through a whole series of roundtables, to cover wider challenges experienced across the industry, from generating return on investment to managing the supply chain. ISCT will continue to monitor the efficacy of solutions generated at the meeting and continue to work with all stakeholders to ensure an increasing number of patients are able to benefit from cell and gene therapies.”