[John McLaughlin]: ak.
[Clerk]: Mèsi. Mèsi. Wi. Ok
[Breanna Lungo-Koehn]: Tcheke mwen youn, de, chèk mwen youn, de, youn, de.
[Clerk]: Mwen panse ke sa a se yon bon kesyon. Li sanble tankou sa a.
[Breanna Lungo-Koehn]: Bonswa, tout bagay. Pa ezite chita. Nou pral kòmanse kèk tan paske nou vle tout moun ale lakay ou kòm tan pase. Nou ap eseye fè pwogram lan mwens pase yon èdtan. Se konsa, mèsi tout moun isit la. Premyèman, mwen vle anonse ke nou gen yon envite trè espesyal aswè a. Nou gen premye liv la, Laraddot powèt Terry Carter pral li yon powèm. Terry se Piblikatè nan senk liv. Sizyèm fwa mwen te ekri a, yo pral enprime byento. Pou tout pati nan kominote nou an, lekòl yo, West Medford Community Center a ak kominote jeneral la, li se yon gwo avantaj nan pwezi li yo ak plis ankò. Se konsa, pa gen okenn plis tarde, Terry Carter.
[John McLaughlin]: Li dwe yon bon komite.
[Terry Carter]: Eta mantal Medford la. Mwen sèten ou swiv li. Tanpri konnen ke entansyon nou an se mosad. Nou ap travay pou jwenn vil nou an nan biwo majistra a bay anplwaye nan vil la. Nou espere ou wè aranjman, tren bisiklèt, pak ak estasyon tren. Nou vle ou wè kolaborasyon ant atizay, san bi likratif ak fondasyon antrepriz. Nou vle ti konpayi yo ap boujonnen ak sante piblik pou kenbe moun vivan. Yon mouvman pwogresif ak konsyans tradisyonèl ka aktive ignisyon an nan motè a kòm sitwayen lite yo rezoud pwoblèm ak ranplase urleman yo enèvan. Diskisyon reyèl sou ras ak rezon, ni pè nan romans, trayizon, nouvo lekòl ki gen done ak prèv, ak yon angajman nan sans komen nan lekòl fin vye granmoun. Sa a rete pi gran espwa nou an pou gouvènans lan nan yon sijè ki abòde ki gen eksperyans, ki satisfè bezwen yo nan chak nanm, ki ranfòse tout nou an, ki pa antreprann vòt la, men respekte grenn yo plante pa zansèt nou yo. Sa a montre konfyans piblik ak yon solisyon ki gen bon konprann ak jis. Sa yo rim senp eksprime deklarasyon vil la nan ilistrasyon. Travay ansanm, kenbe men, tankou gwoup la mizik nan Medford Mustang. Travayè yo ka negosye ak jwenn lafwa nan kote san yo pa rayi. Premye repons lan se kote yo resevwa respè, men yo toujou sèvi ak pwoteje. Ki kote bòs mason konsyans li kondisyon ki nan kontra a, wè egzèsis yo ak mòn yo, epi tou koute vwa yo nan rezon komen. Kote fyète ark konplètman chape ak diferans lan se pa bezwen pè. Legliz la adore lapè ki enpòtan ak disip fidèl yo. Lanse zanmitay, materyèl lavi nwa se debaz, nou panse tout bagay ap fè fas a jantiyès ak jantiyès, nou louvri je nou yo ak anseye leson nan tout, pwofesè yo ka anseye, timoun yo ka aprann, pa gen okenn sorcier oswa liv yo boule, nou pral resevwa nouvo zanmi nan divès peyi, Bengals, Laten, Laten ak Ayiti, Inovasyon koupe desann sou tradisyon ki fòme nouvo kondisyon ak amelyore eritaj ak fè dans yon dans bèl bagay ak transfòmasyon fonse ak devlopman. Sa a se kriye anndan vil la. Nouvo sezon sa a se kote nou kòmanse. Montre pwogrè sante ak entèlijans, pa gen okenn separasyon. Ki kote jistis sosyal rezon, moun ki patisipe nan deba an sante, ak jan vwazen pase nan pòt yo louvri, bon gou manje plen asyèt chak fanmi an. Kounye a se tan a pou tout moun tande yon mesaj fò ak klè, pandan ke lòt moun ka defann kòlè ak dezakò ak fè tou sa li kapab. Objektif la nan jesyon serye se kominike klèman ak transparan. Nan laj sa a nan video a fin vye granmoun, nou toujou gen mande lidè yo elimine mask san danje. Reyalite a senp nan lavil la se ke gen moun ki vle wè plis prèv. Lidè ki kapab dirije bato a epi kenbe yon priz fò ak kontinyèl. Kòm bon konprann se vide soti, aktè ki fèrmante kòm istwa a se pwofon ak fèrmante yo pral voye jete deyò epi yo pral ranvwaye lè pwogrè bezwen yo dwe fè. Ki sa ki solisyon yo kòrèk ak solid ki mennen nan ekzekisyon pafè ki mennen nan pèsekisyon, ki entèwonp tandans nan rekonpans? Pa konfime, sa yo rim senp rekonèt katye jeneral aktivasyon nou an, rekonèt rechèch nou an pou pi bon rechèch la kolaborasyon Medford. Se konsa, powèt la li zetwal tankou espas ki la vid nan yon bokal vè klè - plisman bay yon bagay pwomèt pou 2023. Mikè a misterye ap aplodi ak doub. Men, li se moman sa a Medford mete konfyans nan Bondye nan zafè piblik nou yo pou fè reparasyon pou tren kase sou eskalye sitwayen nou yo '. Sa a rete pi gran espwa nou an pou lidèchip ranje ki gen eksperyans, ki satisfè bezwen yo nan chak nanm e konsa ranfòse an jeneral nou an. Sa a se lòd mwen, bon Medford. Koulye a, powèt la te di bonswa.
[Carter]: Mèsi. Mèsi. Mèsi. Koulye a, li se onè mwen. Mèsi. Koulye a, li se yon onè prezante Jenny Graham, vis pwezidan nan komite lekòl la.
[Jenny Graham]: 祝大家晚安。 感谢Lungo-Koehn市长要求我今晚讲话。 我很荣幸能来到这里，成为学校委员会的副主席，也许比梅德福市公民更荣幸地教我他们的信仰将近四年。 在过去的四年中，他感到有些生活。 当我想到这一年的大修时，看来每年都在审查中，我想我进入了学校委员会。 因此，每年，学校委员会与我们学校的政府进行了很多工作，以前进。 而且，每年也很清楚，我们的学生应得的进展更多。 因此，当我考虑一下时，我经常给我留下深刻的印象，但是我将从一些非凡的方面开始。 因此，去年，我们为学生投资了许多简历。 这很晚。 这包括许多高中课程的教科书。 它为我们的高中生提供了新的数学课程，并为我们的小学提供了新的数学课程。 在迫害的同时，我们还将在我们的编程中灌输语音计划计划计划，以灌输语音计划计划计划。 更全面地替代了我们的扫盲课程。 这种基于语音的方法很清楚，科学告诉我们的是支持所有读者和改变生活的方式。 因此，我非常感谢学校行政部门的韧性，因为当我们谈论最基本的事情时，他们在小学级别上进行了教学和学习的方式，即学习阅读。 尽管我们希望，但我也很高兴看到我们已经聚集了一群梅德福居民来看看我们的健康简历，并确保将来我们的健康履历是基于科学的全面，并努力避免对我们的学生造成恐吓和暴力。 我们收集的团队真的很棒。 他们是如此认可。 我只是喜欢不相信所有这些才能的生活 在这个小的空间中要小心，我们称为梅德福。 除了我们在课程方面所做的所有出色工作之外，我们花了很多时间工作的另一件事，我感到非常自豪的是，我们为加强对我们所影响他们的学生的心理健康支持所做的工作。 因此，我很高兴能够加强这一支持，而我们在那里所做的工作 这很困难且非常重要。 当我们与11个谈判伙伴进行谈判时，去年很棒。 我们在梅德福公立学校有11个工会。 通过这项工作，我们感谢我们的老师在大流行期间及以后的辛勤工作，之后。 我们建立了最有利的合同 几十年来，对于我们的老师来说，这可能永远不会。 我们还在梅德福公立学校任职，应该获得不错的薪水，并找到一种方法来确保我们的石皮获得赔偿，这不仅是体面的薪水，而且对我们的团队和他们应得的学生来说是一个了不起的一步。 我们还与护士，学校秘书和我们的木匠建立了联系。 而且我们仍然有工作要签订剩余合同，但是我们致力于确保我们的团队为他们为学生提供的服务获得不错的薪水。 我要感谢社区保护委员会对梅德福公立学校的持续支持。 最近，我们能够聚集一个咨询委员会，以支持其支持麦格林小学娱乐庭。 设计令人印象深刻。 认识到游戏正在学习，这真是太神奇了。 这是梅德福市第一个真正的包容性娱乐庭院，或者它将是。 咨询委员会实际上已经努力工作，以确保我们听到各种各样的利益相关者。 我们听到了孩子，听到建筑物中的老师并听到社区的声音，因为这个空间也将是一个社区空间。 我们可以找到一种以可持续性，包容性和娱乐为目的的设计。 感谢CPC的持续支持。 我们有承诺为建筑和市长提供资金供资金捐款 实现休闲庭院。 我很荣幸能与学校委员会的妻子Melanie McLaughlin一起在咨询委员会本身担任该委员会。 而且我认为这肯定会说，整个学校委员会迫不及待地想在最后的休闲庭院里剪下录音带。 去年，他提出了挑战的一部分。 我确定您已经听说过所有这些。 而且我认为您肯定会说，没有比梅德福高中更具挑战性的挑战。 近几个月来，我们采取了措施，以确保我们的高中安全和有利于学习所有学生的学习。 创造一种应有梅德福（Medford）自豪感的气候和文化无疑是一项正在进行的工作，这是我们所有人都致力于的工作。 我的内心和工作是与那些感受到我们历史的痛苦的家庭，这是由于这些声音所致，并且由于这是正确的事情，我们深入分析了它是什么，最重要的是，您需要改变什么。 我致力于进行这些更改，无论它们是多少，因为我们的学生应得的。 最后，我们的高中生还应该得到一栋可以支持现代教育和前卫 - garde的建筑，并为我们的专业学生提供足够的空间。 我为去年发送给马萨诸塞州学校建设管理局的要求感到自豪，我们不鼓励我们没有被邀请进入下一阶段，这主要是由于建筑项目，整个州的学校建设项目所付出的费用。 我要求我们的州代表团竭尽所能，以确保我们明年和未来几年增加MSBA的州级融资。 我很高兴地宣布，我们将在四月再次发送注册 按照建筑管理局的描述和建议添加，我们还将开始讨论我们可以拥有哪些其他选择，并开始探索我们如何在梅德福高中进行重建或替代。 我也希望与市长合作，意识到它已经重新构想了梅德福。 我将对所有的百万富翁和观众的亿万富翁说这句话， 如果您想知道如何对周围人的生活产生影响，请给我打电话。 我们可以谈论Medford High重塑对我们的学生和我们的城市产生的影响。 这样，很高兴介绍我的朋友妮可·莫雷尔（Nicole Morell），他是市议会主席。 谢谢。
[Nicole Morell]: Mèsi poutèt ou, entwodiksyon Vis Prezidan Graham a ak travay la kòlèg li yo te fè nan dènye ane yo. Mwen konnen gen kèk moun ki di ke komite lekòl yo se vre travay la pi di politik, ak mwen ap pale ak nou tout. Mwen dakò. Nou remèsye Majistra Long Cohn pou envite m 'pou pale ak mwen aswè a epi pataje kèk aspè enpòtan nan konsèy vil la. Si li ap kriye pandan li, li se pitit gason m 'yo. Se konsa, sa a se totalman bon. Mwen onore yo dwe prezidan an nan Medford. Mwen fyè de travay ki te fèt pa plis pase 100 reyinyon depi janvye 2022. Nou te kreye nouvo règleman, nou te vote pou deside sou yon kat, ki te apwouve finansman pou kèk pwojè transfòmasyon, epi li te konplete recoding nan kòd la patisyon, tout sipòte yon Medford plis dirab, dinamik ak dirab. Pifò nan sa nou gen kòm sijesyon yo se travay kontinyèl, kòm bon travay pran tan. Kounye a se tan a yo konsantre sou konseye, mwen pral wè l 'isit la aswè a, Li se tan pou koute ak travay ak rezidan yo, li lè yo balanse pèspektiv yo nan konpetitè ak reponn a efò yo menmen nan depatman nou an, jwenti ak komisyon vil la. Pandan ane ki sot pase a, konsèy la te konsantre sou bati konfyans lojman piblik, konsèy plan konplè lavil yo, vote pou plan pwodiksyon lojman, ak travay yo etabli yon òdonans avi lojman ki gen pou objaktif pou bay opòtinite lojman ak sipò pou rezidan yo. Nan kòmansman ane pase a, konsèy la konkli ak te vote pou recap a dekoupaj an zòn, revizyon an premye ak refòm konplè nan dekoupaj an zòn nan Bedford nan deseni. Zonaj la mete ajou se klè ak kout, mete fondasyon an pou devlopman dirab ak opòtinite lojman. Mwen espere ke pou kapab fè dezyèm faz nan travay la dekoupaj an zòn ak remèsye Majistra a pou asiyen lajan pou sa a, nan ki nou ka ankò travay ak depatman vil la renouvle dekoupaj an zòn nou yo sipòte rezidan yo ak travay ak yon plan vil konplè. Anplis de efò dekoupaj an zòn nou yo, Komisyon Konsèy la angaje nan modènize òdonans la ak politik ki antoure manje ak kamyon manje deyò, reponn a kominote biznis nou yo ak rezidan nou yo nan sipò nan Medford la okipe yo. Nou entèdi polystyrène nan vil la, premyèman ki te dirije pa elèv ki soti nan Sitwayènte ak Sant Responsablite Sosyal. Kòm yon rezilta, Medford kontre ak kominote atravè eta a yo pran efè yo danjere nan polisyon sa a ak angajman nou nan dirab oserye. Komisyon Konsèy la tou te vote nan lyen ansyen pwopriyete ki jwe fwontyè a ak kredi fiskal pou vwayaj la granmoun aje yo, ki otomatikman agrandi kalifikasyon pwogram lan chak ane epi li ede granmoun aje rete nan kay la. Ane pase a, nou te mete ajou òdonans nèj la e nou te fè yon seri de rekòmandasyon politik bay gouvènman an pou rasyonalize nèj ak espere pou yon sèl jou a kondwi pwogram netwayaj nasyonal la nan Medford. Nou te fè li tout avèk èd nan rezidan nou yo ak, sa ki pi enpòtan, jwenti yo ak komisyon nan ekip yo nan lavil la ak bilding lan. Yo se patnè nan travay sa a epi yo bay eksperyans valab ak enfòmasyon. Mwen remèsye ekip vil la pou sipòte travay sa a. Nou toujou gen yon anpil nan travay reyalize ak mwen si ke nou ka travay ansanm sou konsèy vil la fè dènye zonaj pou avanse pou pi ak yon Medford plis dirab ak fleksib ak asire w ke li reflete lavil nou an jodi a. Mwen vle remèsye tout moun pou tan yo epi kite m 'pataje kèk nan aspè ki pi enpòtan nan sa nou travay ansanm kòm ògàn ak travay ak moun ki nan bilding lan menm. Se konsa, mwen ta renmen prezante Brianna Lundakarp, Majistra onorè nan Medford.
[Breanna 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]: Ok