A new report has good news and bad news for Massachusetts’ housing goals
Earlier this year, Gov. Maura Healey’s administration set a goal for Massachusetts: 222,000 new homes by 2035. That’s what Healey’s office estimates it will take to get out of the current housing shortage that is making it so expensive to live here. In a preview released yesterday of its annual Greater Boston Housing Report Card, think tank Boston Indicators dug into recent home address and permitting data and found a mix of good news and bad news when it comes to our chances of hitting that goal.
District 7 needs a new city councilor. Who can take on its challenges?
With just days to go until the 2025 General Municipal Election, Boston’s District 7 is once again ready to pick a new City Councilor. Eleven candidates competed in September’s preliminary election to replace former Councilor Tania Fernandes Anderson. Now, finalists Said Ahmed and Rev. Miniard Culpepper are looking to represent the historically Black and politically active district.
Why the path to the mayor’s office runs through southwest Minneapolis
In Minneapolis’ odd-year city elections, a small set of deeply engaged voters can play kingmaker. Turnout data from the last three mayoral races indicate that as residents of Ward 13 vote, so goes the city’s highest office.
It’s a new era for lifestyle pioneer W Hotels
It’s a maximalist and multilayered aesthetic, and a far cry from what the hotel looked like when it opened in 2000. The 256-room hotel’s transformation is the result of a $100 million, four-year renovation following Marriott International’s purchase of the property in 2019. It’s also reflective of the lifestyle brand’s efforts to re-establish its relevance as part of an ongoing, multiyear brand refresh.
Reducing homelessness in the US: A solutions-focused, research-based explainer
In any municipality trying to serve and shelter homeless people in the U.S., journalists are likely to find a patchwork, decentralized support system, along with federal dollars being directed by state officials toward local governments and nonprofit organizations.There is no single model or method for governments to provide services to homeless people, according to the authors of a 2024 analysis published in the Public Administration Review.
Prison oversight office sets course as advocates hope for ‘tangible’ results
It’s been about a year since Andrea Sapone was hired as the state’s first corrections ombudsman, monitoring the Virginia Department of Corrections. The office recently issued its first strategic plan — a two-page document sketching out both short- and long-term goals for the office.
“I don’t have an impression. I haven’t seen enough,” Kenneth Hunter said about the office’s work while sitting at a conference table in Richmond’s Shockoe Bottom neighborhood during late September.
At Brookline event, Attorney General Campbell, organizers urge community action against immigration enforcement
Massachusetts Attorney General Andrea Joy Campbell and leaders of Greater Boston organizations fighting federal immigration crackdowns are calling on Brookline for collective action and solidarity.
New Hampshire’s snowpack is shrinking. Researchers are still uncovering the scope of what it means.
New England residents know that snow is disappearing from our landscape, and scientists have proven that climate change is to blame. But the effects of snowpack decline go far beyond what’s visible, and researchers working in the forests of New Hampshire and the Northeast are learning more about just how far the phenomenon stretches across seasons and landscapes. Their findings reveal how much tracking snow can tell us about the health of our forests and our world, and what is still to learn.
Kaine, Schiff, & Peters Introduce Bill to Protect Veterans and Low-Income Families from Housing Discrimination
Today, U.S. Senators Tim Kaine (D-VA), a former fair housing attorney, and Adam Schiff (D-CA), alongside U.S. Representative Scott Peters (D-CA-50), introduced the bicameral Fair Housing Improvement Act of 2025 to protect veterans and low-income families from housing discrimination. This legislation would expand protections to all veterans and low-income individuals by adding source of income (SOI) and veteran and military status to the list of protected classes under the Fair Housing Act of 1968, giving more people access to affordable housing.
Healey wants to speed up state review to encourage housing. Will it work?
Gov. Maura Healey unveiled plans last week to slash environmental review requirements for certain developments, a move aimed at accelerating housing construction across Massachusetts. Experts say the proposal is unlikely to immediately ease the state’s deepening housing crisis. But it’s a step in the right direction.