[John McLaughlin]: Li nan.
[Clerk]: Mèsi. Mèsi. Yeah. Oke.
[Lungo-Koehn]: Tcheke mwen youn, de, chèk mwen youn, de, youn, de.
[Clerk]: Mwen panse ke se yon bon kesyon. Li sanble tankou sa.
[Lungo-Koehn]: Bonswa, tout moun. Ezite gen yon chèz. Nou pral jwenn te kòmanse yon ti jan sou tan paske nou vle tout moun rive lakay ou san danje ak move tan an. E nou ap eseye kenbe pwogram lan nan mwens pase yon èdtan. Se konsa, mèsi pou tout moun pou yo te isit la. Premye leve, mwen vle anonse ke nou gen yon envite trè espesyal yo kòmanse nou nan aswè a. Nou gen premye nou tout tan powèt Loreya, Terry Carter, ki moun ki pral li nou yon powèm. Terry se yon otè pibliye nan senk liv. Kounye a ekri sizyèm l 'yo, ki pral ale nan enprime trè byento. Li se yon gwo avantaj pou tout pati nan kominote nou an, lekòl yo, West Medford Community Center a, ak kominote a kòm yon antye ak pwezi li yo ak anpil plis ankò. Se konsa, san yo pa plis tarde, Terry Carter.
[John McLaughlin]: Dwe komite a akeyi.
[Carter]: Yon eta Medford nan tèt ou. Ou te peye atansyon sa a, mwen sèten. Tanpri konnen entansyon nou yo apeze ak pi. Nou ap chèche fè vil nou an travay nan biwo majistra a nan grefye vil la. Nou vle ou wè akomodasyon yo, liy yo bisiklèt, pak ak estasyon tren. Nou vle ou wè kolaborasyon yo nan boza, ONG yo ak fondasyon fèm. Nou vle ou gade ti biznis boujonnen ak sante piblik kenbe jan vivan. Pwogresis deplase ak yon sans de tradisyon ka dife moute ignisyon motè a kòm sitwayen yo travay pwoblèm yo deyò epi yo kalm ranplase rèl la fache. Diskisyon reyèl nan ras ak rezon ki fè, e pa gen okenn laperèz nwa nan romancing trayizon, nouvo lekòl la ak done ak prèv, pwomès la lekòl fin vye granmoun nan sans komen. Sa a rete espwa fondest nou an pou gouvènans nan sijè ki abòde sezonman ki satisfè bezwen yo nan chak nanm, ki fè nou pi fò kòm yon antye, ki pa pran vòt la pou yo akòde, men onè grenn yo zansèt nou yo plante. Sa klere yon limyè sou konfyans piblik la ak solisyon ki gen bon konprann ak jis. Sa yo rim senp, pa ilistrasyon, fè deklarasyon vil sa a. Pou travay ansanm, men nan men, tankou yon gwoup mache Medford Mustang la. Ki kote travayè yo ka negosye ak touche lafwa li, san yo pa rayi. Ki kote premye sekouris yo touche respè, ak repons lan se wi, yo toujou sèvi ak pwoteje. Ki kote bòs mason pran yon poz konsyan li pi lwen pase kloz kontra a, yo wè pi lwen pase egzèsis yo ak so, tande vwa a nan kòz komen. Ki kote lakansyèl Fyète a konplètman kouri met deyò epi yo pa jwenn nou pè. Kote legliz yo adore yon lapè fanmi ak disip fidèl. Kalite lage, kote Nwa lavi Matter se fondamantal ak nou wè tout figi tankou kalite ak dou, kote nou ogmante timoun nou yo ak je louvri ak leson ki pa senpleman dezenfekte, kote pwofesè yo ka anseye ak timoun yo ka aprann, epi pa gen okenn sorcier oswa liv pou boule, kote nou akeyi nouvo jan nan tout nasyon, Bengali, Latinx, ak ayisyen, Ki kote tribinal inovasyon tradisyon yo fòme yon nouvo kondisyon amelyore ak eritaj fè yon dans bèl ak avanse transfòmasyon an. Sa a se rèl la nan kè vil la. Nan sezon sa a nouvo, li nan kote nou kòmanse. Vize nan pwogrè, tou de lisid ak entelijan, ki rale ansanm epi yo pa apa. Ki kote jistis sosyal rezon, ak jan angaje yo nan deba an sante, ak bon manje plen plak chak fanmi an kòm vwazen mache nan pòtay louvri. Kounye a se tan a pou tout tande yon mesaj nan inite byen fò ak klè, pandan ke lòt moun ka defann raj ak diskisyon ak fè pi byen yo nan brase moute tansyon. Objektif la nan yon administrasyon ou fè konfyans se kominikasyon klè ak transparan. Nan laj sa a nan Covid, nou toujou dwe mande pou lidè yo san danje retire mask yo. Eta a nan verite senp nan vil la se moun ki vle wè plis prèv. Lidè konpetan sa yo dirije bato a epi yo gen yon priz fò ak fiks. Ke nouvo lide yo aplike kòm bon konprann vide tankou diven fèrmante soti nan jete gwo twou san fon istwa a ak fèrmante yo dwe dispanse lè pwogrè mande. Ki sa ki solisyon an apwopriye ak son ki mennen nan ekzekisyon pafè, ki mennen lwen pèsekisyon, ki tij mare nan vanjans? Sa yo rim senp, pa konfimasyon, konfese swaf dlo nou an pou deklanchman, konfese demand nou an pou Kominte nan pi bon koperasyon Medford la. Se konsa, powèt la li zetwal yo tankou lusyol nan krich vè klè yo ofri yon allusion nan sa ki ta ka nan yon espwa 2023. Mik yo Mystic pral tòde ak pliye. Men, sa a se tan Medford a rapyese ray yo kase nan mach eskalye sivik nou an, konfyans nan fraying nan zafè piblik nou yo. Sa a rete espwa fondest nou an pou lidèchip nan dimansyon sezonman ki satisfè bezwen yo nan chak nanm ki fè nou pi fò kòm yon antye. Sa a se lapriyè mwen, bon Medfordite. Epi, koulye a powèt sa a di bonswa. Mèsi. Mèsi. Mèsi. Epi, koulye a li se onè mwen. Mèsi. Epi kounyeya se onè mwen pou prezante vis chèz komite lekòl la, Jenny Graham.
[Graham]: Bonswa, tout moun. Mèsi Majistra Lungo-Koehn pou mande m 'pale aswè a. Mwen onore yo dwe isit la ak yo dwe vis chèz la nan komite lekòl la ak petèt plis onore ke sitwayen yo nan Medford te bay konfyans yo sou mwen pou prèske kat ane kounye a. Ki santi tankou yon ti lavi pou kat ane sa yo sot pase yo. Lè mwen panse osijè de ane a nan revizyon, li santi l tankou chak ane nan revizyon ke mwen panse osijè de depi mwen ansanm komite lekòl la. Se konsa, chak ane, komite lekòl la travay vrèman difisil ak administrasyon lekòl nou an fè pwogrè. Ak chak ane li la tou anpil anpil klè ke gen nan anpil plis pwogrè ke elèv nou yo merite. Se konsa, lè mwen panse sou sa, mwen souvan akable, men mwen pral kòmanse ak kèk en. Se konsa, ane sa a sot pase yo, nou envesti nan yon anpil nan kourikoulòm nan kourikoulòm kalite siperyè pou elèv nou yo. Sa anreta. Sa gen ladan liv pou anpil kou lekòl segondè. Li gen ladan yon nouvo kourikoulòm matematik pou lekòl mwayen nou yo, epi li gen ladan yon nouvo kourikoulòm matematik pou lekòl elemantè nou yo. Nou menm tou nou te kontinye nan nivo elemantè a pénétrer fonik ki baze sou kourikoulòm nan pwogramasyon nou an, nan pwogram alfabetizasyon nou an pandan ke nou pouswiv Yon ranplasman konplè nan kourikoulòm alfabetizasyon nou an. Apwòch sa a ki baze sou fonik se konsa klèman sa ki syans la di nou se yon fason a sipòte tout lektè ak chanje lavi. Se konsa, mwen vrèman rekonesan anvè administrasyon lekòl la pou Tenacity yo jan yo te travay reyèlman fè yon gwo chanjman nan fason ke ansèyman ak aprantisaj k ap pase nan nivo lekòl elemantè nou an lè nou pale sou bagay ki pi fondamantal, ki ap aprann li. Kòm nou gade pou pi devan, mwen menm mwen te eksite yo wè ke nou te reyini yon gwoup moun ki abite Medford pran yon gade nan kourikoulòm sante nou yo ak asire w ke nan lavni an, kourikoulòm sante nou an se konplè, li nan chita nan syans ak ke li. Travay pou anpeche entimidasyon ak vyolans nan kò elèv nou an. Ekip la ke nou te reyini se vrèman etonan. Yo se konsa kalifikasyon. Mwen jis tankou pa menm ka kwè ke tout talan sa a ap viv dwat Pran swen nan ti espas sa a ti kras ke nou rele Medford. Beyond tout bon travay la ke nou ap fè sou bò kourikoulòm lan, lòt bagay la ke nou te pase anpil tan ap travay nan ak mwen vrèman fyè de se travay la nou te fè ranfòse sipò sante mantal nou yo pou elèv ki Se konsa, klèman, menm jan nou tout yo, toujou panse sou navige wout yo soti nan pandemi an ak tout fason yo ke li te afekte yo. Se konsa, mwen vrèman kontan ke nou te kapab ranfòse sa yo sipò ak travay la ke nou ap fè gen se jòb ki vrèman difisil ak super enpòtan. Ane pase a te yon gwo yon sèl jan nou negosye ak 11 patnè negosyasyon nou an. Nou gen 11 sendika nan lekòl piblik Medford. Atravè travay sa a, nou te remèsye pwofesè nou yo pou travay di yo pandan pandemi an ak pi lwen, ak nan konsekans li pou asire w. Epi nou rete kontra ki pi favorab Nan deseni pou pwofesè nou yo, petèt tout tan. Nou menm tou nou komèt ke anplwaye nou yo nan lekòl piblik Medford merite yon salè k ap viv ak nou jwenn yon fason asire ke parapwofesyonèl nou yo resevwa konpansasyon ki se pa sèlman yon salè k ap viv, men yon etap enkwayab pou pi devan pou anplwaye nou yo ak elèv yo yo merite. Nou te tou rete kontak ak enfimyè, sekretè lekòl nou yo ak bòs chapant nou yo. E nou toujou gen travay pou fè pou rezoud kontra ki rete nou yo, men nou pran angajman pou asire ke anplwaye nou yo resevwa yon salè k ap viv pou sèvis yo bay elèv nou yo. Mwen vle remèsye Komisyon Konsèvasyon Kominote a pou sipò kontinyèl yo nan Lekòl Piblik Medford. Pi resamman, nou te kapab rasanble yon komite konsiltatif pou gade ranplasman lakou rekreyasyon lekòl primè McGlynn ak sipò yo. Konsepsyon an se sansasyonèl. Li rekonèt ke jwe ap aprann, ki se etonan. Epi li se premye lakou rekreyasyon an vrèman enklizif nan vil Medford, oswa yo pral. Komite a konsiltatif te travay vrèman dilijans asire ke nou tande soti nan yon varyete antye de moun ki gen enterè. Nou te tande pale de timoun yo, nou te tande pale de pwofesè yo nan bilding lan, epi nou te tande pale de kominote a paske espas sa a pral yon espas kominotè tou. E nou te kapab vini ak yon konsepsyon ki santre dirab, enkluzivite, ak plezi. Mèsi a CPC a pou sipò kontinyèl yo. Nou gen angajman pou finanse konstriksyon ak majistra a pou dedye lajan ARPA Pou fè lakou rekreyasyon sa a yon reyalite. Mwen te fyè pou m te sèvi nan komite sa a, sou komite konsiltatif la, ansanm ak fanm komite lekòl la, Melanie McLaughlin. Apre sa, mwen panse ke li nan san danje yo di tout komite lekòl la pa ka tann yo koupe riban an sou lakou rekreyasyon an fini. Ane pase a te poze pati li yo nan defi yo. Mwen sèten ou te tande pale de yo tout. Apre sa, mwen panse ke li san danje yo di ke pa gen okenn bilding lekòl te santi pi defye pase Medford High School. Nou te pran etap nan mwa sa yo sot pase yo asire ke lekòl segondè nou an, se san danje ak fezab nan aprann pou tout elèv yo. Kreye yon klima ak kilti ki merite nan fyète Medford a se sètènman yon travay nan pwogrè, epi li nan youn ke nou ap tout angaje nan. Kè mwen ak travay mwen ale soti nan fanmi yo ki te santi doulè a ki se istwa nou an, epi li paske nan sa yo vwa ak paske li nan bagay ki dwat yo fè sa nou ap pran yon gwo twou san fon, gade difisil nan sa k ap pase dwat, ak plis ankò Enpòtan, sa ki bezwen chanje. Mwen pran angajman pou fè chanjman sa yo, kèlkeswa jan yo ye, paske elèv nou yo pa merite anyen mwens. Finalman, elèv lekòl segondè nou yo tou merite yon bilding ki ka sipòte modèn, dènye kri edikasyon ak gen ase espas pou elèv yo pwofesyonèl nou yo. Mwen fyè de aplikasyon an ke nou soumèt nan Otorite a bilding lekòl Massachusetts ane sa a sot pase yo, e li te dekouraje yo aprann ke nou pa te envite nan pwochen etap la, sitou akòz flanbè depans nan pwojè bilding, pwojè bilding lekòl atravè la eta. Mwen rele sou delegasyon eta nou an pou fè tout sa yo kapab pou asire ke nou ogmante finansman nan nivo eta a nan MSBA ane pwochèn ak pou ane kap vini yo. Apre sa, mwen eksite anonse ke nou pral remèt aplikasyon nou an nan mwa avril, Avèk ajoute jan sa endike ak rekòmande pa Otorite a Building, e ke nou pral tou kòmanse diskisyon sou sa ki lòt opsyon nou ka gen epi yo kòmanse yo eksplore ki jan nou avanse pou pi devan nan rebati oswa ranplase Medford segondè. Mwen menm mwen te gade pou pi devan pou travay ak Majistra a fè ki re-imajine Medford segondè yon reyalite. Mwen pral fèmen pa di sa a, nan tout milyonè yo ak milyardèr nan odyans lan, Si w ap mande ki jan fè yon enpak nan lavi yo nan moun ki ozalantou ou, rele m '. Nou ka pale sou enpak la yon reimagined Medford segondè ka gen sou elèv nou yo ak vil nou an. Avèk sa, li se plezi mwen prezante zanmi m 'yo, Nicole Morell, ki moun ki se prezidan an nan konsèy vil la. Mèsi.
[Morell]: Mèsi Vis Prezidan Graham pou entwodiksyon sa a ak pou travay la ke kòlèg ou yo te fè nan ane ki sot pase yo. Mwen konnen gen kèk moun ki di ke komite lekòl la se aktyèlman travay ki pi difisil nan politik ak mwen ap diskite avèk nou tout. Mwen ta dakò. Mèsi pou Majistra Longo Cohn pou envite m 'pale aswè a yo pataje kèk En soti nan Konsèy Vil la. Si gen yon timoun squealing pandan li, li nan pitit mwen an. Se konsa, li la totalman amann. Mwen onore pou sèvi kòm prezidan Medford City Council la. Apre sa, mwen trè fyè de travay la ke nou te akonpli nan plis pase 100 reyinyon yo nou te kenbe depi janvye, 2022. Nou te travay sou nouvo òdonans, te vote pou yon revizyon charter, finansman apwouve pou kèk pwojè transfòmasyon, epi li te konplete recodification nan kòd dekoupaj an zòn nou an, tout nan sipò nan yon Medford plis dirab, vibran, ak dirab. Se konsa, anpil nan sa nou fè kòm yon konsèy se yon travay nan pwogrè, paske bon travay pran tan. Tan yo travay youn ak lòt kòm Councilors, tankou konseye Carballo, ki moun ki mwen wè isit la aswè a, Tan pou tande ak travay ak rezidan yo, tan pou balanse opinyon konpetisyon, ak tan pou reponn a efò fòmidab nan depatman vil nou yo, tablo yo, ak komisyon. Pandan ane ki sot pase a plis, Konsèy la te konsantre sou lojman, kontinye travay la nan etabli yon konfyans lojman abòdab, bay sijesyon pou plan konplè vil la, vote an favè Plan an Pwodiksyon Lojman, ak travay yo etabli yon òdonans notifikasyon lojman, tout nan yo ki vize bay opòtinite lojman ak sipò pou rezidan yo. Bonè ane pase, konsèy la fini ak te vote an favè yon recodification dekoupaj an zòn, premye revizyon an konplè ak refòm nan dekoupaj an zòn Bedford nan deseni. Zonaj la mete ajou se klè ak kout ak ponn baz la pou devlopman dirab ak opòtinite lojman. Mwen gade pou pi devan pou faz de nan travay dekoupaj an zòn nou an, e mwen remèsye majistra a pou asiyen finansman pou sa, ak nan travay sa a kote nou ka yon lòt fwa ankò travay ak depatman vil yo mete ajou dekoupaj an zòn nou yo sipòte rezidan yo ak travay nan konsè ak plan an konplè pou vil la. Anplis de travay dekoupaj an zòn nou an, konsèy la te travay yo modènize òdonans ak politik alantou manje deyò ak kamyon manje nan vil la, reponn a kominote biznis nou yo ak rezidan nou yo sipòte yon Medford trè aktif. Nou te pase yon entèdiksyon polystyrène nan vil la, te dirije premye pa elèv yo nan Sant pou Sitwayènte ak Responsablite Sosyal. E ak sa a, Medford kontre ak kominote alantou eta a, pran seryezman enpak yo danjere nan sa a ki kalite polisyon ak angajman nou nan dirab. Konsèy la tou te vote pou mare limit la pwolongasyon taks sou pwopriyete granmoun aje nan Senior Circuit Brewer kredi taks la, ki otomatikman ogmante kalifikasyon pou pwogram sa a chak ane epi li ede granmoun aje rete nan kay yo. Ane pase a, nou mete ajou òdonans retire nèj nou yo ak lage yon kantite sijesyon politik nan administrasyon an rasyonalize konsèy pou retire nèj ak èspere ke yon jou pilòt yon vil kouri twotwa netwaye pwogram nan Medford. Nou te fè tout bagay sa yo avèk èd nan rezidan yo ak enpòtan, tablo yo nan vil la ak komisyon ak anplwaye a nan bilding sa a. Yo se patnè nan travay sa a epi yo bay ekspètiz anpil valè ak insight. Apre sa, mwen remèsye sa yo anplwaye vil la pou yo te konsa bay nan tan yo sipòte travay sa a. Nou toujou gen anpil travay pou akonpli e mwen gen konfyans nou ka travay ansanm kòm youn nan City Hall pou avanse pou pi devan ak dènye zonaj, avanse pou pi devan ak yon Medford plis dirab ak fleksib ak avanse pou pi devan ak revizyon nan charter vil nou an asire li reflete Vil la ke nou se jodi a. Mwen vle di ou mèsi tout pou tan ou ak pèmèt m 'pataje kèk nan en yo ke nou te fè kòm yon kò k ap travay ansanm ak travay ak moun ki nan bilding sa a trè. E ak sa, mwen ta renmen prezante majistra a onorab nan Medford, Brianna Lundekarp.
[Lungo-Koehn]: Thank you so much. First, I wanna start by thanking Steve. I wanna start by thanking Steve Smerity, the director of communications and Emma Tombley for helping me write this speech you're gonna hear tonight. I think Steve and I had a tougher job the last week cutting it down from 25 pages to nine. So you can thank me for that later, but there's so much that has been accomplished in this city that I wanna speak about. So I'm gonna do that tonight. And I'm not gonna rush, usually I rush, I feel so bad, I'm long-winded, but I'm not gonna rush because this work that everybody's doing on a daily basis is worth taking my time for. And just before I start, please know that just because something's written on a sign doesn't mean it's true. And I'm sorry that the horns are beeping. And I'm sorry to Terry, but the horns were beeping. Thank you for those joining us here tonight. Thank you, if you're watching from home or on Zoom, I do know that we have many elected officials here, Representative Donato, School Committee woman, Kathy Kreatz, Member Ruseau, and City Councilor Rick Caravielloa, and Member Hays. Thank you. And former member, Paulette Van der Kloots. Thank you for joining us. Thank you to Terry Carter, our poet laureate, member Jenny Graham, and President Nicole Morell for kicking off the event. Before I begin, I must thank the tireless work of our department heads, city staff, and volunteers who have committed to doing amazing things under the difficult and ongoing conditions caused by the pandemic. You're all integral to the success that I will be highlighting here tonight. You're the reason why we're here tonight. I stood before you last January and outlined my vision for Medford, listing many long-term goals, including numerous projects that are currently underway, and laid out our roadmap for the next two years and beyond. Now, as we begin this fourth year of growth and progress, I want to give an update on how things are going, what challenges lie ahead, and how we continue to deliver on the promises we made, the vision we shared, and the future we've imagined. Walking through the city, visiting places I frequented as a child, young adult, and city councilor, what struck me in many instances was how infrequently some places change. A community that does not grow does not thrive. And here in Medford, because we have done the planning the last three years, we now are about to see growth mode. We've been able to make this transition and kickstart our economic engine because of a key goal, tapping into the unrealized potential of our squares, our green spaces, and our city-owned properties. The most obvious opportunity to begin our next generation of development is at Wellington Station. The untapped 28 acres of land has been in city control for over half a century. Since 1969, and in our community was completely missing out. not only on the potential revenue streams, but also the exciting opportunities that could be realized with diverse transit oriented mixed use development designed to attract new families, workers, and students. Since we issued the request for information in September, we have spent the past few months reviewing proposals from eight highly qualified developers and released those to the public earlier this month. Each plan had a unique vision for the area's potential and suggested bringing much needed housing options and other mixed use features, such as retail, office, hospitality, and green space. We will take you through these proposals and use them to help inform a future RFP in 2023 that fits the needs of our community and brings about generational change to the Wellington area. In addition to Wellington, we're also attempting to reimagine a few underused city-owned lots in Medford Square. with the help of the Metropolitan Area Planning Council working to develop priorities and criteria for future redevelopment through a community-driven analysis and visioning process that will incorporate the needs of residents and stakeholders. We will finally see progress on this project in the coming year and get out an RFP for Medford Square in 2023. We have an opportunity with these lots to implement smart resident-focused development that aligns with our community's priorities and vision. If we do this the right way, it will benefit our downtown square by creating a more sustainable and accessible future for the area. But as I said, we can't do this in a silo. We must engage and work with our seniors in the neighborhood, our local small businesses, Chevalier Theater, and residents to access their needs, assess their needs, and implement a strategy that recognizes their importance to building a more vibrant and thriving downtown area. One of the three 40B projects we are negotiating on Mystic Ave has been a topic that has garnered much debate, controversy, and discussion over the years. There's an opportunity for meaningful, lasting development on this strip that we can't afford to miss. Director Alicia Hunt, Economic Development Director Victor Schrader, now part-time, and I would not settle for thousands of luxury apartments at this site. and have been working with the developer on a different vision, one that can bring innovation and lasting possibilities to Mystic Avenue, a $1 billion life science development equipped with open space and first floor retail. As we look to strengthen our commercial corridors, we must not lose sight of ensuring that people who will use these new developments also have the ability to continue to live in our city. It's no secret that there's a housing crunch in the region, Cities across the Commonwealth are feeling the pressure to create lasting solutions to this problem and Medford is no different. Our city, however, is finding solutions that will bring more housing, especially affordable housing to Medford. We'll have a comprehensive master plan, which is being released very soon, will help guide our housing policy in the future. We currently have two other 40B projects that my administration is negotiating and working on. We worked with the developers on the project on Mystic Valley Parkway to resubmit plans to the Zoning Board of Appeals that includes 350 units, 25% of which are affordable housing units. We're committed to using ARPA funds to support and assist with affordable housing projects, like the ones at our Housing Authority complexes at 121 Riverside Ave and Walkland Court. We've allocated 400,000 to help offset permitting costs of renovations, thanks to the help of Bill 40, for upgrades and renovations to new affordable units at 121 Riverside Ave just this past week. Using existing funding sources like ARPA are helpful and allow us to make immediate expenditures to ease the burden on partners, but we're doing so knowing that we need a long-term plan for additional revenue sources. ARPA will end in 2025 and we don't want our partners left holding the bag. That's why establishing affordable housing trust is so important and will help allow us to fund new projects in the absence of ARPA. We've done the work, communicated with stakeholders, and are ready to move forward. The next step in the process is working with the council, who I know is supportive and understands the value of the trust. Those are just a few of the over 30 development investments we are working on. A special thanks again to our planning team led by Director Hunt and our now part-time economic development administrator. Thank you. Thanks to the work of our police chief, Jack Buckley, Medford PD is setting an example for how to operate as a diverse professional police force that continually engages with the community, builds new lasting partnerships and promotes inclusion and empathy with the way each of our officers conduct themselves. Aiding in that mission is the remarkable facility that the MPD calls home. And I have made it a priority to see that the fire department has a headquarters that is just as dynamic and meets the current needs of our firefighters and emergency personnel. Also, one of the ongoing initiatives that has been moving forward over the past year is upgrades to all six of our stations. We have already spent over $1.3 million on over 20 projects to upgrade each of our stations, including lighting projects in each substation, roof repairs or replacements, kitchen upgrades, and one final one to go. And we will continue to ensure these are the best working environments to keep Medford safe. Since day one, bringing our fire stations up to the standards of the 21st century department have been a priority of mine and my chief of staff, Nina Nazarian and chief John Friedman have been working tirelessly to get an owner's project manager hired and an architect contract signed. We are happy to announce that we do have an owner's project manager that we have hired and are very close to signing a contract with an architect firm for the design of the fire head quarter building. A special thank you to Medford residents, Luke McNeely and Paul Holian Jr. who have also done a lot of work, a lot of reading as it relates to this project. Please know that these things take time, but there is a committed group pushing these projects as fast as they can with me nagging them every step of the way. In addition to the efforts underway for the fire headquarters, our fire substation, engine three on Salem Street, is going to have the garage floors replaced this year. Thanks to the work of this team, as well as the dedicated help of our chief officer, Fiona Maxwell, and her team, and available community block grant funding, we can move forward on this project exponentially. Finally, this year, we'll begin IT work of over 500,000 and are designing window repairs or replacements at all the substations too. That's an additional over $2.2 million investment in new projects at the fire stations with a potential over $20 million bond after that for the headquarters. And in order to help fund these infrastructure improvements, I spent months negotiating to have cannabis dispensaries in Medford that would benefit our community. Our terms were eventually met and in addition to receiving the maximum 3% gross revenue coming back to the city, which will be used towards roads and sidewalks. We were also able to secure funding for our library, fire stations, DPW vehicles, cruisers for the police department, local nonprofit aid, veteran aid, and so much more. With all of these new projects coming online and countless more already completed, it's critical that we have sufficient transportation infrastructure in place to handle the demand and allow people to get to move about the city safely. That's why we commissioned a street and sidewalk infrastructure assessment early in my first term and showed the city, and the city has 200 million in backlog of road and sidewalk work that needs to be fixed due to the decades of neglect. This is a huge task, and although the city does not have the funding or capacity to complete this work in a year or two, we are not shying away from planning and implementation. We have been diligently working to complete our most critical roadways. In the past few months, With the help of our city engineer, Owen Hortella, we outlined a pavement strategy for Freedom Way. The road was in dire need of repair and was used regularly to access schools and city facilities. I'm happy to report that we have done the initial repaving with plans in place. Owen, there's more work to do. For a complete road rebuild in about two years. We've made a significant investment in upgrades to our sidewalks as well. This past year, we bonded a million dollars and we'll be going to the city council for an additional bond of 1.5 million that will include equipment. So even more work can be done in-house by our DPW team. Thank you to treasurer Judy Johnson for always helping us whenever we need her, when it relates to bonds. We've also identified more cost-friendly options for some road repair. Recently, 94 streets were identified in our assessment as prime candidates for a process called crack sailing. Over 30 streets have been completed with roughly 60 more to finish this spring. We are also working on a comprehensive patchwork plan that will be finalized and released to further repair our roads. Engineering and our Department of Public Works Commissioner Tim McGivern have been instrumental in this planning. With an eye on maintaining and improving the structural integrity of our streets and sidewalks, we've made tree stump removal and tree planting a priority. Working with our tree warden, Aggie Tudin, over the past year, we've secured over a half million dollars in funding for this work. And we'll continue to invest our resources towards this over the course of the year. I want to thank our state delegation, Rep Donato, Rep Garbally, Rep Barber, for providing some of that funding for this project and many, many others. Thank you. As we upgrade infrastructure, we additionally want to continue investing in our local businesses that are so important to the fabric of community. A few weeks ago, the city awarded $75,000 to 23 local businesses for storefront improvements. With this second round of funding completed, we have awarded over 100,000 through small business facade improvement grants. I spoke about revitalizing Medford Square in my inauguration speech last year, and I'm proud to say we are working towards that goal with programs like this that inject funding and create opportunity for local businesses to thrive. I can't mention local services without mentioning directors, Pam Kelly, Kevin Bailey, and Barbara Kerr, who have done an excellent job running our senior center, recreation department, and library through the last few years of the pandemic. And of course, without the leadership and expertise of our board of health director, Marianne O'Connor, and the staff in the health department, we would not have been able to navigate our way through the early days of the pandemic. Marianne and the team, including Board of Health Nurse Sarah Harris, provided clarity and calm during a truly chaotic and scary situation. So thank you to all, including our volunteers who helped administer over 2,800 COVID vaccines and 600 flu vaccines just in 2022, including close to 190 homebound vaccinations. Vaccines were administered throughout the city with the help of our community liaisons. who connect the community to city resources and expand communications and accessibility to our non-native English speakers in Medford. Expanding opportunities to showcase Medford's growing diversity and culture offerings has been a key part of our development strategy. Our parks and recreation spaces have also been upgraded with new murals. And just today I was at Wright's Pond working on the next with a local artist and Kevin Bailey. Chevalier Theater additionally renewed a five-year contract with the city back in September, bringing world-class entertainment to our hidden gem for years to come. We have signed a contract with a cannabis dispensary company, Theory Wellness, to construct our first-ever art center on Mystic Ave. They have broken ground, and we cannot wait to see this become a reality. Medford's waterfront will also become a new place for residents to enjoy, with plans in the works to create more recreation areas and beautify the area with murals and other art from the community. We hope to release the initial design for community feedback late this winter. Our city services and facilities are not the only community driven spaces that deserve our investments. We've also been able to prioritize our local nonprofits that have been instrumental to providing critical services and resources to our community. In addition to CDBG funding, we awarded over 230,000 to 25 nonprofits through the Community Fund Committee earlier this month. Included in this round of funding was the American Legion, Temple Shalom, the Medford Chamber of Commerce, and all four of our elementary PTOs, just to name a few. We expect to open up the second round of funding of grants later this year. We've talked a lot now about our progress and excitement for future projects, but we have also been met with some challenges this year, especially in our high school. Our schools, especially the high school, have needed to make change to better address the growing issues stemming from the pandemic. And I've spent, thankfully spent a lot of time over the last month with our superintendent, Dr. Maurice-Edouard-Vincent, as well as other district leaders, pushing for plans that are sustainable, adaptable, and work in the best interest of students. We have two newly trained student resource offices, a revised bathroom plan, and are engaging with students on a much more personal level. But most importantly, we have heard the students' concerns and listened to their lived experiences. We must strengthen our relationships and trust with both the students and caregivers and ensure that our school system is safe and an inviting place for all. As Jenny stated, we're still looking to obtain an MSBA loan to build a new high school. The building we have now is not amenable to quality education, and we believe we have a strong case for the next round of loans due in April to rebuild a state-of-the-art flagship school that our students and faculty deserve. I thank the school committee, the superintendent of schools, Dr. Marice Edouard-Vincent and Mr. Dave Murphy for all their work on that application and we will be resubmitting. As our community continues to grow as a destination for families and professionals, there is a significant opportunity to expand accessible and efficient public transportation options. As I'm sure you've all seen and hopefully written, the Green Line Extension finally opened in December after many challenges, delays and questions. That was probably the happiest I've seen people at 5 a.m. on a Monday morning cramming in line to get a spot on the T. That just proves that the extension is a turning point for Medford. And I want to thank the community group that advocated and worked on this project for years. I will never stop pushing for better public transportation in and around our community as I did with the MBTA new better bus redesign and the closure of the orange line over the summer. I thank director Todd director of traffic and transportation, Todd Blake, for being the expert this city needs, advocating with us, working with us, and advising us along the way. Thank you. With his help and many others, we've also increased the scope of blue bikes around the city this year with three new docking stations at Tufts Square, Brooks Park, and Medford Square. We are working to expand this network further as alternative green transportation options support our climate action and adaptation plan, including efforts to provide residents with clean, sustainable, and affordable alternatives. I'm happy to announce that we have secured funding for seven additional Blue Bike locations, with the next three coming online later this year at Hormel Stadium, Harris Park, and Spring Street. For the four remaining, we're tentatively exploring Riverbend Park, Haines Square, West Medford, and the Hillside. As outlined in our Climate Action and Adaptation Plan, we have lofty goals of reducing our emissions by 50% by the end of this decade and have been working to achieve net zero emissions by 2050. To do this, we've taken a series of steps aimed at making our city operations, facilities, and policies more conducive and adaptable to climate resiliency. The last time I spoke at this podium to you all, I mentioned that we were in the process of securing funding for two additional electric charging stations with the hope of installation this year. Thanks to the work of the Planning, Development and Sustainability Office, especially the work of Planner Yvette Niwa, we've delivered on the promise and have two new stations, one at Hormel and one at Carr Park. And I'm happy to announce that we're expanding on that growth with two more, one at the Missittuck School and one at Tufts Park, coming online this summer with an additional seven being planned over the next year or so. But to implement real changes in the way we conduct our operations, we must commit to reversing our reliance on fossil fuels internally as well. This is also a priority of our city council and school committee. I'm happy to announce that we have secured $230,000 grant Diesel Emissions Reduction Act from the Diesel Emissions Reduction Act from the state with the help of Mike Wentzel from DPW to assist with the purchasing of an all electric commercial grade sweeper, which will replace our diesel engine vehicle. We also made concerted efforts to transition our other vehicles in our fleet to more green friendly options. The police department has purchased new hybrid vehicles and is patiently waiting for their arrival, hopefully in June, which will make their daily operations much more efficient, cleaner, and adaptable to challenges. We also thank director Faye Morrison, who will also be transitioning her fleet in the near future. The city is additionally enhancing its climate resiliency and emergency preparedness efforts through our MedFit Connects program led by our office of prevention and outreach manager, Penny Fanioli. This program seeks to expand and strengthen resources for our underserved community members. And we recently secured a grant, another grant for over 400,000 from the state to accomplish this work. An important part, I'm almost done, I'm sorry. An important part of our commitment to expanding resources and programming for residents is our investment in our green spaces. Medford's many parks are a source of pride for the city. and we have plans for upgrading the construction in many of them, close to 50, actually. I engaged an internal team who have been meeting close to monthly for three years to plan, gain community input and secure funding. In projects scheduled to start this spring and summer alone, we have secured over $5 million for renovations. One of our largest upcoming projects is Carr Park. Carr Park's vision plan was released the end of 21, and we are proud to say that phase one is fully funded and in design and expected to start this spring. Carr Park recently secured additional funding for phase two, which is on the horizon as well. In phase two, we can get excited for new basketball courts, one which will be covered by solar panels, a new playground and much more. Car's solar infrastructure will be funded by $1.5 million earmark in the federal 2023 budget. I wanna thank our federal delegation, including Congresswoman Clark, Senator Markey, Senator Warren, for their work in passing this budget and helping fund community projects here in Medford. Our planning office has been instrumental in this work. Thanks to their work, especially again, Director Hunt and Planner Amanda Centrella, we have not only secured opera funding, but a match of $1 million from another grant from the Land and Water Conservation Fund for phase one. Awesome job. Upper funds have made a huge impact on our community in the work we are able to do throughout the city. Unlike other communities that set specific funding amounts for various sectors, Medford has taken a needs-based approach, allowing us to invest funding where it is needed most. The data we collected from the community focus survey released this past summer helped inform many of the projects I've mentioned already tonight, with many others that I don't have time for. With the help of our amazing federal funds manager, Lorena Escalero, We will be continuing to invest in areas like affordable housing, public health and infrastructure, as well as plan for the future while being transparent with the work we're doing. Throughout our opera planning process, we have been open and transparent about our financial outlook and the need to allocate a percentage of funding to revenue replacement. Like many other cities and towns in the Commonwealth, the economic effects of the pandemic left a sizable gap in several revenue streams that we traditionally have counted on. For the past two years, the years we have reduced our reliance on ARPA dollars and expect the trend to continue in fiscal year 24 and 25. It's no secret that the city has incurred a structural deficit. And though we have several dynamic development opportunities on the horizon that will inject revenue into our bottom line, thanks to our assessing team, especially, I see Jim O'Brien and Ellen as well have been great. We are analyzing the potential need to come to a solution as to how to fill and address the gap. especially when ARPA is gone. We are closely monitoring and reviewing the need for an override in the future to ensure we keep performing work at this level. These decisions are not easy and we must balance the need and the ability to pay while taking into account that we will need a debt exclusion to build a new high school in the not too distant future. Since hiring CFO Bob Dickinson and budget manager Courtney Cordello, We are back to our baseline staffing levels in the finance department, and my office and the finance team have been hard at work with department heads, collecting information early in the process for the formulation of the fiscal year 2024 budget, especially given the global economic issues that persist, such as inflation and supply chain, in addition to recovering from the structural deficit of the pandemic. Fiscal year 24 is expected to be another difficult year. However, we continue to work hard to get the city's revenue stream to the needed levels to sustain the city's needs. Again, I want to thank everyone at City Hall that made all this work possible. While we're still working to optimize our staffing levels, the strength of the team that I have put together over the last three years in office has completely changed the culture of City Hall. and other places and helped usher in much needed modernization and efficiency updates in city hall operations and policies. Together, we are building the groundwork to professionalize Medford like never before and create a more meaningful and welcome experience for our residents. We have so many new hires that have been instrumental to that change. Those that I've already mentioned, as well as Jeremy Johns, our director of veteran services, Melissa Ripley, our elections manager, Jim Silver, our special projects coordinator, Bill Forty, our building commissioner, Paul Riggi, the city's first ever facilities director, a position the council and I advocated in favor for for the last 10 years. And thank you to HR and our director, Neil Osborne, and the efforts of so many others for keeping this process moving forward and helping fill roles. Accountability has been key to transforming the way our city works and serves our residents. Without accountability, it's impossible to get a professionalized government that the city needs and the people deserve. Part of accountability is ensuring every city employee and resident is aware of the importance of diversity, equity, inclusion, and has the means and support to actively promote equity and accessibility. It's part of our social justice roadmap. And with the help, amazing help of our director of diversity and equity inclusion, Francis Waje, The city has and will continue to expand DEI training for all staff, city, fire, and police, including implicit bias and cultural competency training. I've said it before, there are things I will not tolerate and no one will discourage me from doing this hard work. We can do hard things. We can transform this city and rid ourselves of the antiquated, outdated, and inefficient policies. But it takes time, it takes focus, and it takes trust. So I'm asking you to trust me. Trust me to do this work. Trust me to make decisions that are in your best interests. And trust me to lead this city to where we all know that it should be. Because there is much more to do. It is often not comfortable or fun having to make these hard choices and do the necessary work. But I've seen and heard about governments run without accountability and they quickly become chaotic and corrupt. And I will not let that happen here. I am committed to a transparent ethical administration for the city and thus will not tolerate city employees who do not share that same work ethic. That said, to be clear, the vast majority of our city employees come to work every day and try their best to move the city forward. many of whom I've mentioned tonight and all of whom I just don't don't don't have all the time. I do and I will continue to do all I can to support them in every way I can. To conclude, please know that so much work has been put work has been put in over the last year to find creative solutions to any roadblocks the city faces. When searching for funding, we find grants and secure them. When presented with differing When we say we are going to do something, we do it. I am dedicated to keeping my promises to Medford and delivering on projects, no matter the challenges we face along the way. And finally, and thankfully, we have the personnel to make it happen. Thank you. I'm the emcee, too. So I want to just thank you all so very much for coming tonight. Those who are watching from home or on Zoom, past and present employees of Medford, we just, again, appreciate all your hard work. Thank you so much. We have a reception outside, so please stay, have a bite to eat, and get home safely. Thank you.
[Clerk]: Oke.