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Reposted by John Lin

Boston Planning Department @planning.boston.gov · 21/07/2026

An Institutional Master Plan Notification Form (IMPNF) has been filed with the Planning Department for the Boston University Charles River Campus Institutional Master Plan. The filing was submitted by Boston University Charles River Campus on 7/21. bpda.app.box.com/file/2360098...

bpda.app.box.com

2026-07-21_Institutional Master Plan Notification Form (IMPNF)_Boston University Charles River Campus 2024-2026.pdf | Powered by Box

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John Lin @linjohnz.bsky.social · 22/07/2026

Joanna and I spent a day last week talking to some of the folks and businesses that have called Harvard Avenue their home for decades. Due to a recent change in ownership within the Gordon Building, many of them are either moving out or closing. We tell their stories in this feature on Allstonia.

allstonia.com

“Bustling humanity": Four friendships of shop owners who brought life to Harvard Avenue - Allstonia

Say the word “Harvard Avenue,” and something different pops up in the mind of anyone who has passed through Allston. The savory taste of cheese bread from a Brazilian bakery. The bubble tea shop that ...

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John Lin @linjohnz.bsky.social · 06/07/2026

Fork & Shoe has an extensive puppet inventory, which includes a Green Line puppet used in Destination Unknown!

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John Lin @linjohnz.bsky.social · 13/05/2026

SCOOP: Mayor Michelle Wu convened a small group of residents to talk about the Jackson Mann prior to the April 14 rally, which called for a long-term plan for the community center. During the meeting, she shared her reasoning about why the city could not commit more money for Jackson Mann.

allstonia.com

Prior to April 14 rally, Mayor Wu held a small meeting with residents about the Jackson Mann - Allstonia

Shortly before neighbors congregated for a rally at the Jackson Mann Community Center on April 14, Mayor Michelle Wu convened an invite-only meeting with residents at the Veronica Smith Senior Center ...

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John Lin @linjohnz.bsky.social · 13/05/2026

with the help of Claude, we created an interactive graphic where you can explore the different options that the study narrows down for the new Jackson Mann as well as how much it will cost.

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John Lin @linjohnz.bsky.social · 13/05/2026

our latest issue includes a story on the financial feasibility study released by the city on Jackson Mann. In it, the city puts a price tag on several options for a future community center (which could also include a school and housing). allstonia.com/2026/05/10/c...

allstonia.com

City releases long-awaited financial feasibility study on the Jackson Mann - Allstonia

After months of delay, the City of Boston released a report that tested the financial feasibility of different models for a future Jackson Mann last week. We break down the options for you.

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John Lin @linjohnz.bsky.social · 03/05/2026

The Jackson Mann financial feasibility plan is out after months of delays. In the report, the city evaluated the cost behind THREE models of a future Jackson Mann -- including housing, BCYF center and BPS school. More to come on Allstonia. www.boston.gov/sites/defaul...

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John Lin @linjohnz.bsky.social · 02/05/2026

nearly three months after winter storms caused damaged that lead to its closure, Allston-Brighton food pantry is expected to re-open early this month Sarah Cruz reports for Allstonia allstonia.com/2026/04/26/a...

allstonia.com

Allston-Brighton Food Pantry to reopen early May - Allstonia

The Allston-Brighton Food Pantry is aiming to re-open during the first week of May as it undergoes repairs caused by winter storms earlier this year. The food pantry has been closed since February 6 a...

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John Lin @linjohnz.bsky.social · 14/04/2026

A rally is scheduled tonight at 5:30pm at the Jackson Mann plaza where residents will advocate for more investment and a clearer timeline for the Jackson Mann.

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John Lin @linjohnz.bsky.social · 14/04/2026

Alongside Ruthzee Louijeune and Erin Murphy, Mejia is the third of four at-large councillors to publicly state their support for a more clear timeline for Jackson Mann rebuilding.

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John Lin @linjohnz.bsky.social · 14/04/2026

just updated the article w/ a statement from Councilor Mejia, who said that the $10m allocation falls short of the amount that residents are advocating for. she says "We need to move beyond planning and commit to rebuilding this community asset with urgency."

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John Lin @linjohnz.bsky.social · 09/04/2026

Happy Local News Day! It's been a true honor to grow Allstonia for the past eight months w/ @allston-rat.bsky.social. We are so grateful to everyone supporting us along the way as we tell stories of and about Allston-Brighton! Subscribe and share w/ ur friends! allstonia.com/subscribe/

allstonia.com

Get Allstonia In Your Inbox - Allstonia

Built for renters, artists, immigrants, and longtime Allstonians alike, Allstonia covers the stories that shape our neighborhood. Your weekly news roundup goes straight to your inbox every other Sunday at 10AM. Welcome to Allstonia.

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John Lin @linjohnz.bsky.social · 08/04/2026

*BCYF Community Center at Jackson Mann

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John Lin @linjohnz.bsky.social · 08/04/2026

$1.2m to replace the roof of Brighton Library

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John Lin @linjohnz.bsky.social · 08/04/2026

It looks like the city still hasn't made a final decision on the Jackson Mann as a school yet. It allocated BPS $500k for a building and programming study on a preK-6 school. Reminder that the city had previously allocated BPS $150k in FY23 to do such a study.

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John Lin @linjohnz.bsky.social · 08/04/2026

In terms of park improvements: - McKinney Playground allocated $5.185m - Ringer Playground allocated - Fidelis Way allocated $2.645m - Penniman Road Play Area allocated $2.32m - Hardiman Playground allocated $240k - Roger Parks allocated $300k

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John Lin @linjohnz.bsky.social · 08/04/2026

Also capital budget is out. Notable for A-B: - BCYF Community Center was allocated $10m (confirming Allstonia reporting) - Brighton High School Renovations were allocated $10m

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John Lin @linjohnz.bsky.social · 08/04/2026

meeting wrapped up. that's it for now! thanks for following along -- this was my first time doing one of these, so feel free to comment on anything I missed. :)

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John Lin @linjohnz.bsky.social · 08/04/2026

notable investments from the slide on capital plan: - rennovations for Brighton High School - BCYF center in Grove Hall will be completed next year; - rennovations underway to reopen elementary school in Grove Hall this fall - Nazzaro Community Center in North End which broke ground.

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John Lin @linjohnz.bsky.social · 08/04/2026

aside from operating budget, city will leverage federal and state funds; Boston Acquisition Fund; and local-generated revenue (housing trust fund, inclusionary development policy and community preservation act) to preserve affordable housing

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John Lin @linjohnz.bsky.social · 08/04/2026

says city will protect core housing programs (home ownership assistance, supportive Housing, tenant stabilization and housing vouchers)

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John Lin @linjohnz.bsky.social · 08/04/2026

- reducing civilian positions in public safety, but will maintain service levels - maintain evening and weekend hours and programming for libraries and BCYF centers - Age Strong will see a decrease, but city secured 1m dollars for transportation services for older residents

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John Lin @linjohnz.bsky.social · 08/04/2026

- budget will guarantee that every BPS has a paid summer job - programs previously managed by Office of Youth Employmeent and Opportunity will be moved to other departments or will be paired with public and private sector

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John Lin @linjohnz.bsky.social · 08/04/2026

- streets cabinet will see an increase in budget for projects involving mobility infrastructure, collecting trash and street cleaning

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John Lin @linjohnz.bsky.social · 08/04/2026

- says Boston is ready to deal with uncertainty with triple A bond ratings - healthcare costs have grown by $97.3m - city is working reduce overtime for public safety with police commissioner cox - not increasing use of reserves --> giving flexibility for things like increased snow removal

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John Lin @linjohnz.bsky.social · 08/04/2026

I'm a bit behind, but wanted to provide some highlights from City CFO Ashley Groffinger's speech earlier. - operating budget = $4.9 billion (+2.1% - one of lowest rates of growth since FY2010) - capital plan = $4.4 billion

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John Lin @linjohnz.bsky.social · 08/04/2026

She says "It's something like 7% of our workforce accessing those medications." She says city unions are entering a negotiation for the next five years with the hope to contain some of those costs. She says that she hopes the projected decrease in GLPs will also contribute to that.

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John Lin @linjohnz.bsky.social · 08/04/2026

Mayor Wu says that the use of GLPs has contributed to a spike in cost for healthcare due to their high cost of those medications.

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John Lin @linjohnz.bsky.social · 08/04/2026

City's CFO Ashley Groffenberger says that larger geopolitical events (such as the FIFA world cup in June) has created instability and uncertainty that makes budgeting "challenging at the local level."

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John Lin @linjohnz.bsky.social · 08/04/2026

Wu says that she is working to find funds through different sources and philanthropic partnerships. For instance, Private Industry Council (PIC) is helping absorb school year jobs to ensure that student jobs are not disrupted this year.

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John Lin @linjohnz.bsky.social · 08/04/2026

Wu said that she had to cut 285 FTE cuts in the city's operating budget compared to 500 FTE last year (which she said was in preparation of difficult times).

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John Lin @linjohnz.bsky.social · 08/04/2026

Skipper also said that enrollment was "deeply hit" by the loss of immigrant students -- who she calls "the lifeline and blood flowing through our district" in increasing and stabilizing enrollment. "All of a sudden, that stopped," she says with the current federal administration

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John Lin @linjohnz.bsky.social · 08/04/2026

Skipper says that the positions cut are primarily align with vacant position, such as those for closing schools.

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John Lin @linjohnz.bsky.social · 08/04/2026

Mary Skipper (BPS Superintendent) says that she has been making deep investments in inclusive education, including multilingual education and IEPs. She says that these are multi-year investments and that this year's budget is building upon those.

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John Lin @linjohnz.bsky.social · 08/04/2026

Wu emphasized the city's investment in young people and seniors. "When we invest in our young people and our seniors, everyone else in between is good as well."

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John Lin @linjohnz.bsky.social · 08/04/2026

Wu said that rising health insurance contributed significantly to the costs. She said that she had originally asked for a 2% budget cuts per department but was able to cut it down to 1.3%. She thanked unions to help curb healthcare costs.

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John Lin @linjohnz.bsky.social · 08/04/2026

Mayor Wu is now answering questions from city councilors.

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John Lin @linjohnz.bsky.social · 08/04/2026

But this year is different. Weber says that "this isn't shampoo though. We can't lather, rinse and repeat." He says revenue caps and rising costs lead to a "double whammy" for the city. "We need to plan differently so we can avoid deficits and preserve our AAA bond rate," he says.

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John Lin @linjohnz.bsky.social · 08/04/2026

After Breadon spoke, Councilor Ben Weber (Chair of the Ways and Means Committee) spoke. Weber praised the leadership from previous Brian Worrell (the previous Ways chair) and former Council President Ruthzee Louijeune.

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John Lin @linjohnz.bsky.social · 08/04/2026

Breadon also emphasized transparency in the capital budget process. "I have advocated for increased transparency and meaningful reform in the city's capital planning process. Other cities have a different more transparent process" She points to DC as a gold standard.

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John Lin @linjohnz.bsky.social · 08/04/2026

Following Wu's opening speech, Liz Breadon (City Council President and Allston-Brighton City Councilor). Breadon highlights the responsibility of the council as a "impartial co-equal branch of city government to ask hard questions and rigorously investigate this budget."

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John Lin @linjohnz.bsky.social · 08/04/2026

Wu said that this year's budget delivers on these goals noting the triple A bond ratings. "With years of careful management and intentional decisions about the tough trade offs, we are uniquely positioned in Boston to weather this storm" Mayor Wu said.

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John Lin @linjohnz.bsky.social · 08/04/2026

Mayor Wu highlights three priorities of the budget: providing "excellent city services for the highlight quality of life", investing in the infrastructure (e.g. civic spaces and programming for young people) and protect the financial health of the city.

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