City Council - Environmental Justice, Resiliency, & Parks Committee Hearing on Docket #1850

November 14, 2025
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City Council - Environmental Justice, Resiliency, & Parks Committee Hearing on Docket #1850

Meeting Date: November 14, 2025 Governing Body: Boston City Council - Environmental Justice, Resiliency, & Parks Committee Type of Meeting: Committee Hearing Attendees:

  • Councilors: Gabriela Coletta Zapata (Chair), Edward Flynn, Ruthzee Louijeune (briefly), John Fitzgerald, Benjamin Weber
  • Administration: Brian Sweat (Chief Climate Officer), Christopher Osgood (Director, Office of Climate Resilience), Oliver Sellers-Garcia (Commissioner, Environment Department & Green New Deal Director)
  • Community Panelists: Matt O'Malley (Chief Sustainability Officer, Vicinity Energy), Lindsey Butler (Executive Director, Green Ribbon Commission), Rebecca Hurst (Associate Director for Resilience, Green Ribbon Commission), Hasan Faruqi (Executive Director, Boston Climate Action Network), Emmanuel de Barros (Director of Development and Community Engagement, ACE), Jason Rundle (Senior Manager, Harborwalk Access and Resilience, Boston Harbor Now)
  • Public Testimony: Zachary Cutler, Michelle Brooks (Senior Organizer, Massachusetts Sierra Club & Co-coordinator, Boston Green New Deal Coalition), Hayden Seeger (Boston Resident), Libby McLaughlin (Environmental Policy Manager, Save the Harbor, Save the Bay), Lydia Lowe (Director, Chinatown Community Land Trust), Sarah McCammond (Executive Director, Harborfront Neighborhood Alliance), Sarah Freeman (JP Resident & Member, Green New Deal Coalition, representing Arborway Coalition)

Executive Summary: The City Council's Environmental Justice, Resiliency, & Parks Committee convened a hearing on Docket #1850 to discuss the City of Boston's 2030 Climate Action Plan. The administration presented an overview of the plan, emphasizing its focus on 2030 targets for greenhouse gas mitigation and climate resilience, with climate justice as a foundational principle. Key discussions revolved around the plan's implementation structure, budgeting alignment, and the integration of community feedback. Panelists and public commenters provided insights on building decarbonization, coastal resilience funding, nature-based solutions, and equitable access to climate benefits, highlighting the need for robust funding mechanisms, streamlined processes, and continued community engagement.

I. Call to Order and Meeting Logistics

  • Meeting Called to Order: 10:03 a.m.
  • Virtual Meeting: Conducted virtually via Zoom in accordance with Chapter 2 of the Laws of 2025.
  • Recording and Live Streaming: Meeting recorded and live-streamed at boston.gov/city-council-tv and broadcast on Xfinity channel 8, RCN channel 82, and Fios channel 964.
  • Written Comments: Accepted via email at ccc.ep@boston.gov.
  • Public Testimony: Scheduled for the end of the hearing, with individuals allotted two minutes to testify. Sign-up via email to Ron Cobb at roncobb@boston.gov.

II. Docket #1850: Hearing to Discuss the City of Boston's 2030 Climate Action Plan

  • Sponsor: Councilor Gabriela Coletta Zapata
  • Referral Date: October 22, 2025
  • Purpose: To discuss the City of Boston's 2030 Climate Action Plan, a roadmap for the city's climate priorities over the next five years, aligning with Boston's Green New Deal and carbon neutrality by 2050.

III. Opening Remarks - Councilors

  • Councilor Edward Flynn: Expressed gratitude to the administration team (Chris Osgood, Brian Sweat) and colleagues, emphasizing a desire to learn from the presentation.
  • Councilor Gabriela Coletta Zapata:
    • As lead sponsor, thanked the administration, environmental and community partners, and residents for their contributions to a just, resilient, and sustainable future.
    • Highlighted Boston's leadership in climate action and the importance of climate justice.
    • Noted the 2030 Climate Action Plan as a roadmap for the next five years, setting measurable indicators for carbon neutrality by 2050.
    • Emphasized the need to ensure neighborhoods like East Boston, South Boston, and Dorchester are centered as beneficiaries of climate investments.
    • Stated the hearing's goal: to examine the plan, understand implementation strategies, and ensure efforts are coordinated, measurable, transparent, and equitable.
  • Council President Ruthzee Louijeune: Thanked the Chair for leadership in coastal resilience and expressed interest in the administration's progress, noting frequent community inquiries on the topic.
  • Councilor John Fitzgerald:
    • Referenced his past involvement with "Imagine Boston 2030" and related plans (Climate Resiliency, Go Boston 2030).
    • Expressed focus on the Dorchester coastline (seven-plus miles) and urban tree canopy as key climate issues.

IV. Administration Presentation: City of Boston's 2030 Climate Action Plan

  • Presenters: Brian Sweat (Chief Climate Officer), Oliver Sellers-Garcia (Commissioner, Environment Department & Green New Deal Director), Christopher Osgood (Director, Office of Climate Resilience).
  • Key Points from Brian Sweat:
    • Fifth Climate Action Plan: Builds on previous robust planning, with the most recent formal update in 2019.
    • Focus on 2030: Reinforces long-term goals (net carbon neutral by mid-century, resilient to future climate) but focuses on 2030 success for mitigation (reducing greenhouse gas emissions) and climate resilience.
    • Office of Climate Resilience: Created to institutionalize government structures for delivering a climate-resilient Boston.
    • Climate Justice: Foundationally embedded, not a separate pillar, with Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) throughout the plan. Prioritizes investments in environmental justice communities for highest return on investment (health, economic opportunities).
    • Climate Plan vs. Sustainability Plan: Narrowly focused on greenhouse gas mitigation, climate resilience, and climate justice. Does not repeat other sustainability plans (e.g., Open Space and Recreation Plan, food policy, waste removal).
    • Citywide Plan: Not a "City Hall plan"; requires community partners (non-profits, institutions, corporates) for co-delivery.
  • Key Points from Oliver Sellers-Garcia:
    • Midway Point: The plan is in development, with ongoing public engagement and input.
    • Closer Endpoint (2030): Focuses on actions achievable in the next five years.
    • Metrics: Developing metrics for annual or more frequent progress tracking.
    • Climate Justice: Central to the plan, creating tools for implementation and ensuring equitable distribution of costs and benefits.
    • Combined Scope: First Boston climate action plan to combine greenhouse gas reductions with climate resilience.
    • Drafting Process:
      • Draft 1 (August): Based on community prioritization (heat resilience, building decarbonization for renters/small buildings, equitable transportation) and internal expert input.
      • Current Stage (Star on timeline): Developing Draft 2, incorporating feedback from workshops (constituents like youth, seniors, businesses) and surveys.
      • Draft 2 (February): Will include metrics, delivery partners, and impact measurements.
      • Final Draft (Spring): Public comment period before completion.
    • Engagement Process:
      • Internal: Climate Council (13 chiefs/directors), subject matter and delivery teams.
      • External: General public (meetings, surveys), community-based organizations (feedback, outreach partners), key delivery partners (organizations with implementation responsibility).
    • Plan Structure (Thematic Categories):
      • City Operations
      • Buildings and Energy (major source of GHG emissions, focus on affordability)
      • Transportation (strong climate nexus)
  • Key Points from Christopher Osgood:
    • Resilience Focus: Addressing climate risks to ensure Boston remains a great city.
    • Three Principal Climate Risks: Extreme heat, stormwater flooding, coastal flooding.
    • Extreme Heat:
      • Number one weather-related cause of death.
      • Strategies: supporting residents during heat emergencies, creating more comfortable climates, tailoring programs for vulnerable residents.
      • Progress: Parks Department shifting tree planting (40% in 20% lowest canopy areas like South Boston, East Boston); largest rollout of green roofs on bus shelters.
      • Plan Strategies: expanding toolkit of interventions (outdoor spaces, streets, parks), transforming indoor spaces, new policies for vulnerable workers (e.g., protection of outdoor workers during heat emergencies).
    • Stormwater Flooding:
      • Protecting residents, property, and neighborhoods from intense rainstorms.
      • Work: managing 600 miles of storm drain infrastructure, transforming public property (800 miles of roadway).
      • Progress: Boston Water and Sewer Commission implementing new stormwater program, creating Office of Green Infrastructure.
      • Plan Strategies: refining stormwater program, extending green infrastructure standards to city-owned assets, updating stormwater model for capital planning.
    • Coastal Flooding:
      • City experiences sunny day flooding; projected 40 inches of sea level rise by 2070s.
      • Progress: Largest capital funding allocation for coastal resilience projects (e.g., Ryan Playground in Charlestown); planning completed across 47 miles of coastline, now focused on implementation.
      • Plan Strategies: continued focus on long-term projects (e.g., partnership with U.S. Army Corps of Engineers), accelerating near-term work (deployable flood barriers, home retrofits).
    • Cross-Hazard Climate Risk:
      • Strategies supporting all risk categories.
      • Data Collection: real-time understanding, near-term forecasting, long-term modeling for infrastructure investments.
      • Resilience Hubs: expanding Office of Emergency Management's work.
    • Accelerating Implementation:
      • Developing financing tools.
      • Engaging innovators, entrepreneurs, and researchers.
      • Workforce development for green jobs.
  • Key Points from Oliver Sellers-Garcia (continued):
    • Workforce Goals: Climate plan recognizes alignment with workforce development.
    • Funding and Financing: Critical to figure out now, not later.
    • Work Stream Categories:
      • Continue, Grow, Scale: Building on existing successes (e.g., BERDO for GHG emissions reduction).
      • Start: New initiatives that are on the radar and have stakeholder support.
      • Evaluate and Explore: Cutting-edge ideas requiring further investigation.
    • Timeline: Fall 2025 (engagement complete, working on Draft 2); February (release Draft 2 with metrics, delivery partners, impact measurements); Spring (public comment, plan completion).
    • Metrics: Under development, will build on Green New Deal dashboard, focusing on usable and intuitive metrics (e.g., health impacts, neighborhood-specific progress, Boston Energy Saver targets).

V. Councilor Questions to Administration

  • Councilor Coletta Zapata:
    • Internal Coordination: How will coordination function in practice to ensure alignment and accountability across departments (Public Works, ISD, Public Health, etc.)?
      • Brian Sweat: Mayor's Executive Order (September 2024) created the Climate Council (13 cabinet chiefs) to meet monthly, discuss planning, pain points, budget prioritization, and cohesive asks. This structure ensures capacity and unified direction.
    • Budgeting Process: How will the plan inform the city's budgeting process (annual operating and capital budgets)?
      • Brian Sweat: Primarily through the Climate Council. Climate resilience infrastructure (e.g., shoreline protection) will be new capital plan items. Emissions reduction largely relies on policy and support mechanisms (e.g., MassSave, heat pump incentives). The Climate Council will steer efficient and effective delivery.
      • Oliver Sellers-Garcia: The CAP dashboard will be more closely tied to specific strategy progress than the Green New Deal dashboard, with more metrics. Annual review of metrics by the Climate Council will align work.
  • Councilor Edward Flynn:
    • Tree Canopy in Chinatown: What is the plan to support residents in Chinatown with more tree canopy, given its low percentage?
      • Christopher Osgood:
        1. Street Tree Planting: Parks Department increased planting and maintenance, shifting to areas with historically fewer trees (Chinatown, South Boston).
        2. Boston Tree Alliance: Collaboration with Mass Audubon for tree planting on private property in low canopy areas.
        3. Chinatown Specific Pilots: Exploring large-scale mobile tree planters on Harrison Ave due to subsurface infrastructure challenges.
      • Brian Sweat: 1,800-2,000 street trees planted annually (5% of 40,000 total). 40% of street trees planted in 20% of climate justice neighborhoods. Acknowledged below-grade infrastructure challenges in Chinatown, piloting mobile planters. Broadly considering other green infrastructure, shade structures, and water features.
    • Fort Point Neighborhood/Wharf District Funding: What are the short-term and long-term plans for flood protection given federal funding cuts?
      • Christopher Osgood: City is using its own capital plan funding to protect Fort Point with a city-funded, city-led implementation, potentially on a faster timeline.
    • Ruth Barkley BHA Development: How can the city support residents with a healthier environment, especially outside buildings?
      • Brian Sweat: Boston Housing Authority (BHA) is a key partner. Mayor's goal: public housing off fossil fuels by 2030. Piloting replacement of gas cooktops with electric induction ranges (100 units in another development) to improve indoor air quality and reduce asthma.
      • Oliver Sellers-Garcia: BHA's fossil fuel-free goal is ambitious and direction-setting. Gas stove replacement project also at Codman Square NDCC and Franklin Field. BHA piloting window Air Source Heat Pumps for cooling (first in state). BHA collaborates with PowerCore for green workforce development.
  • Councilor John Fitzgerald:
    • 2030 Emissions Goals & New Builds: Given current low construction rates, how realistic are 2030 emissions goals, especially if many initiatives are for new builds?
      • Brian Sweat:
        • Net Zero Carbon Zoning: Mayor passed net zero carbon zoning (less than a year ago) for all new major developments to be operationally emissions-free.
        • Existing Buildings: 85-90% of 2050 buildings already exist. Focus is on existing stock.
        • Boston Energy Saver: Launched last month for non-BERDO buildings (smaller buildings). Encourages electric heat pumps with incentives and lower rates.
        • Goal: Current programs projected 41% reduction by 2030; plan aims for an additional 9% to reach 50%. Focus for next five years is on existing building stock.
    • Coastal Resiliency (Dorchester Coastline): How far behind is the city, and what is the financial stability for achieving goals by 2030/2050?
      • Christopher Osgood: Many areas in Dorchester (Tenean Beach, Ponkapoag, Morrissey, Harborwalk at Harbor Point) require state collaboration as they are state assets. State's environmental bond bill (largest in history, focused on resilience) presents an opportunity for funding.
      • Brian Sweat: Boston is a leader in planning and action, especially after Superstorm Sandy near-miss. Challenge: only 16% of Boston's shoreline is city-controlled (50% state, 30% private). Need public-public and public-private partnerships.
  • Councilor Benjamin Weber:
    • Impact of 2.6°C Global Temperature Increase on Boston: What does this look like if nothing is done?
      • Brian Sweat: Scenario planning shows increasing negative trends. Above 2°C, reinforcing cycles lead to snowballing temperature changes. Summers with 90+ days above 90°F. Sea level rise at higher ends (4-6 feet by end of century). Boston controls its own destiny for resilience. District-scale solutions (seawalls, dams, outer harbor solutions) become viable for 4-6 feet sea level rise.
      • Christopher Osgood: Infrastructure built to be adaptable, not just for 2050/2070 milestones. Climate Action Plan focuses on structures, policies, and tools for quicker action. Engaging research and innovation communities for affordable and effective solutions.
      • Oliver Sellers-Garcia: Plan addresses quality of life, affordability, and safety issues. Focus on housing instability, utility bills, and air quality.
    • Geothermal Pilot (JFK Elementary School): Is this the right approach given the emissions from drilling and dehumidifiers?
      • Lindsey Butler: Renewable energy sources (thermal, offshore wind, solar) have significantly more energy output than input compared to fossil fuels over their lifecycle.
      • Rebecca Hurst: It's a gradient; every emissions reduction reduces harm. Focus on making things "less bad" and "better."
      • Matt O'Malley: Geothermal is part of a fabric of solutions.
    • BERDO Monitors: Are monitors in place for buildings to ensure emissions targets are met?
      • Hasan Faruqi: BERDO requires annual reporting of energy use, which is used to calculate emissions. BERDO 2.0 requires third-party verification every five years. Additional air quality monitors exist.
      • Rebecca Hurst: BERDO 2.0 requires embodied carbon reports for new large buildings, with future standards to reduce these emissions. Boston Community Choice Electricity (BCCE) is a tool for investing in New England renewable energy. Plan aims to lift BCCE cap and pilot options for larger buildings.
  • Councilor Coletta Zapata (continued):
    • Funding Long-Term Resilience Projects: What tools is the administration considering for funding large-scale resilience projects across the 47 miles of coastline?
      • Brian Sweat: More communication on climate budget as part of the budgeting process. Transparency and dialogue with City Council and public on investment scale and benefits. Big decisions in next few years on revenue streams (state, federal, private sector) to protect critical infrastructure.
    • Council Information & Budget Decisions: How will the Council be kept informed, and how will climate considerations be integrated into budget decisions, especially with potential financial difficulties?
      • Brian Sweat: Available for updates on demand. Climate budget will be integrated into the annual budget process for transparency and dialogue. Creative public-private partnerships needed for mid- to long-term investments.

VI. Community Panelist Testimony

  • Matt O'Malley (Chief Sustainability Officer, Vicinity Energy):
    • Background: Former City Councilor, now implementing solutions at Vicinity Energy (nation's largest owner/operator of district energy systems).
    • Vicinity's Mission: Decarbonize, scale renewable thermal technologies, deliver carbon-free e-steam.
    • Boston/Cambridge Operations: 29 miles of underground pipe serving 260 buildings (70M sq ft).
    • Innovations: Largest electric boiler in the country (42 MW) in Cambridge; industrial-scale heat pump on Charles River (turning it into renewable energy source); exploring seawater heat pump in Boston Harbor.
    • Impact: Committed to net zero by 2050 (likely 2040/2045 for Boston/Cambridge). Heat pumps have high Coefficient of Performance (COP).
    • Drivers: Internal ESG goals of customers; local ordinances (BERDO, Net Zero Carbon Zoning).
    • Call to Action: Cities must continue to lead in climate action.
  • Lindsey Butler (Executive Director, Green Ribbon Commission):
    • GRC Role: Formed 15 years ago to bring public and private sectors together for climate action. 41 members, 60 institutions through 6 working groups (healthcare, higher ed, cultural, commercial real estate, coastal resilience, grid modernization).
    • Contribution: Provided feedback to the city on the CAP.
    • Key Projects: Examining feasibility of thermal energy networks; funding and financing coastal resilience.
    • Appreciation: Commended the administration for early and extensive community engagement.
  • Rebecca Hurst (Associate Director for Resilience, Green Ribbon Commission):
    • Coastal Resilience Working Group: Convenes public, private, non-profit sectors to share best practices and advance resilience. Partners with Boston Harbor Now.
    • History: GRC helped initiate, fundraise, and partner on the first Climate Ready Boston plan after Superstorm Sandy.
    • Current Work: Releasing an RFP for a funding and financing blueprint for coastal resilience.
      • Cost Estimate: $4-10 billion to protect the city over decades.
      • Benefits: Prevents $1.4 billion in losses annually by 2070s.
      • Goal: Develop broad consensus, create blueprint with recommendations for funding (city, state, federal, private) and governance.
      • Regional Collaboration: Essential, but challenging due to home rule and varying timelines/risk tolerance among institutions. MVP program helps, but more is needed.
  • Hasan Faruqi (Executive Director, Boston Climate Action Network - BCAN):
    • Engagement: Engaged over 1,000 residents on the plan.
    • Resident Feedback: Excited about affordable climate action; love programs like Boston Community Choice Electricity and fare-free bus pilots (73% more likely to use buses if free).
    • Partnership: Delivery partner for Boston Energy Saver program.
    • Financial Momentum: Supports GRC and Global Center for Climate Justice studies on funding mechanisms.
    • Resilience: Expand green space for heat and flooding protection; building-level infrastructure to prevent basement flooding (critical for safety and financial stability).
    • Boston Green New Deal Coalition: Supports recommendations from the coalition.
    • Boards & Commissions: Important for resident voices (e.g., BERDO Review Board).
    • Pace of Decarbonization: Frustration over offshore wind setbacks. Residents excited about in-city renewable energy (geothermal, heat pumps). Emphasized bringing resident priorities upfront in development.
  • Emmanuel de Barros (Director of Development and Community Engagement, ACE):
    • ACE Background: 30 years in Roxbury, advocating for environmental justice, transit-oriented development. Partners on BERDO.
    • Boston Green New Deal Coalition: Co-chair of Trans Am Mobility Justice Working Group.
    • Partnerships & Metrics:
      • Transit: Address Boston's congestion by working with MassDOT and MBTA, and transportation justice groups.
      • Policy: Massachusetts is slow to pass bills; partnerships are valuable.
      • Local Institutions: Engage educational institutions and healthcare partners.
      • Air Quality: ACE's work with Olin College and Air Partners on sensors in Roxbury informed state indoor/outdoor air quality bills. Highlighted high PM and nitrogen oxide levels near transportation hubs.
      • Energy Infrastructure: Focus on homeowner costs, transitioning from fossil fuels.
      • Workforce: Invest in programs like PowerCore.
    • Boston Energy Saver: Praised as a step forward.
  • Jason Rundle (Senior Manager, Harborwalk Access and Resilience, Boston Harbor Now & Stone Living Lab):
    • Affiliation: Boston Harbor Now (regional organization for coastal resilience, equitable access), Stone Living Lab (innovative partnership for nature-based solutions), Nature-Based Solutions Working Group (Boston Green New Deal Coalition).
    • Focus: Streamlining permitting for nature-based solutions. Oversees Boston Harbor Walk (43 of 47 miles of coastline).
    • Nature-Based Solutions:
      • Hard Edge: How to build on existing hard edges to increase habitat and open spaces.
      • Living Seawalls: Enhance hardened infrastructure, create green infrastructure design guidelines.
      • Public Access: Combine industrial waterfronts with public access (e.g., Waterfront Edge Design Guidelines in New York).
    • Funding: Mass Ready Act (state-level environmental bond bill) is crucial for district-wide solutions and supporting landowners.
    • Challenge: Landowners need cost-effective solutions and streamlined permitting.
  • Discussion on Priorities (Councilor Fitzgerald's Question):
    • Matt O'Malley:
      1. Emissions: Buildings account for 70% of Boston's emissions (BERDO is critical).
      2. Resiliency: Coastal city, vulnerable to flooding (Superstorm Sandy near-miss).
      3. Economic Case: Sustainable solutions save money; need to make the economic case for environmentalism.
    • Rebecca Hurst: Agreed with O'Malley. BERDO is critical for large buildings (40-50% of city emissions). Funding gap ($5-7 billion) for small building decarbonization even with incentives.
    • Lindsey Butler: Agreed. Balance mitigation vs. adaptation. Building emissions are key; cost savings from emissions reduction can fund resilience. Grid optimization and substations are critical.
    • Hasan Faruqi: Agreed.
    • Jason Rundle: Agreed.

VII. Public Testimony

  • Zachary Cutler (Adaptation Anthropologist):
    • Mapping Data: Difficulty finding complete data for environmental justice neighborhoods (Bunker Hill redevelopment). Asked for sources.
    • Green Layer on Maps: Suggested differentiating between non-permeable open space and actual green/permeable surfaces on city/state maps for more accurate quantification of EJ factors.
  • Michelle Brooks (Senior Organizer, Massachusetts Sierra Club & Co-coordinator, Boston Green New Deal Coalition):
    • Governance & Transparency: Clarity on city's role and accountability for each strategy; identifying point people for customer protection against predatory practices.
    • Metrics: Implementable metrics for economics (household energy cost savings, job creation, municipal cost savings), health (indoor/outdoor air pollutants, heat exposure, asthma, green space access, noise), emissions, and process/equity (community participation, translated materials, co-design with EJ organizations).
    • Budget: Estimated budget allocations and funding sources for strategies.
    • Implementation: Moving beyond studies to demonstration projects; published data on progress (CAP dashboard); criteria for technology selection in holistic energy plan; identification of grid-constrained areas for distributed energy resources.
    • Equity & Energy Justice: Commitment of at least 60% of climate funding for BIPOC and low/moderate-income communities; integration of stakeholder mapping with trusted community partners.
  • Hayden Seeger (Boston Resident):
    • Emissions Reduction Pace: Plan projects 23% reduction from 2005 baseline without changes, increasing to 44% with strategies. This requires a 5x increase in reduction rate over four years, suggesting more is needed.
    • Parking Permits: Residential parking permits cost $0 in Boston, unlike other cities (Cambridge $30/year, Somerville $40/year). Suggested charging for permits to disincentivize car ownership and generate revenue for public transit (e.g., fare-free bus routes).
    • Congestion Pricing: Cited New York and London as examples.
    • Incentives: Use revenue to incentivize sustainable behavior (e.g., free e-pass for seniors who give up cars).
  • Libby McLaughlin (Environmental Policy Manager, Save the Harbor, Save the Bay):
    • Coastal Flooding: Appreciated city's prioritization of combating coastal flooding.
    • Support for Strategies: C4 (deployable flood strategies for neighborhoods), C5 (protecting/expanding coastal projects with shared government approach).
    • Boston Green New Deal Coalition: Boosted recommendations from the coalition.
    • Recommendation 20 (Nature-Based Solutions Working Group): Next draft should identify at-risk natural resources and evaluate managed retreat/land acquisition strategies.
    • State Collaboration: Recommended considering CZM's "Resilient Coasts Initiative" (Nov 6) and the Metropolitan Beaches Commission's work on vulnerable public beaches.
  • Lydia Lowe (Director, Chinatown Community Land Trust):
    • Commendation: Praised administration's proactive, all-government approach and focus on racial, economic, environmental justice.
    • Heat Resilience: Core focus for Chinatown (heat island effect). Need for cooling resources day and night. Supported advocacy for maximum indoor temperatures.
    • Small Building Decarbonization: CTLT implementing heat mitigation, decarbonization, resilience measures on affordable properties (cool roof, building envelope, electric service, air source heat pumps, induction stoves, solar/battery).
    • MassSave: Hopeful for MassSave Community First Partnership to address complications and silos (e.g., mixed-use buildings, 4-unit properties).
    • Solar: Chinatown limited by Eversource's downtown area network regulations. Urged city advocacy for updated regulations and community solar (e.g., city tow lot with solar canopies, credits for low-income residents; rooftop solar on institutions benefiting host communities).
    • Open Space: Chinatown is a heat island (10°F hotter). Prioritize green infrastructure, open space improvement. Community-led initiatives (Friends of Reggie Wong Park, Friends of Chinatown Library). Supported land acquisition strategy.
  • Sarah McCammond (Executive Director, Harborfront Neighborhood Alliance):
    • Mission: Ensure resident voices in growth, development, resilience of accessible/equitable Boston waterfront.
    • Support: Coastal resilience (flood protection from sea level rise, rainfall inundation, closing inland flood pathways), increased tree canopy, shade, cooling features, green infrastructure, nature-based solutions.
    • Resolution: Thanked City Council for resolution urging participation in National Flood Insurance Program Community Rating System.
    • Urgency: Emphasized budgetary and funding feasibility for prioritizing projects without pitting neighborhoods against each other.
    • Collaboration: Looks forward to working with Office of Climate Resilience, City Council, and partners.
  • Sarah Freeman (JP Resident & Member, Green New Deal Coalition, representing Arborway Coalition):
    • Open Space & Recreation Plan: Concerned that it feels "secondary" and is updated infrequently.
    • Green Infrastructure: Urged the city not to forget green infrastructure and open space in its climate action, despite focus on industrial solutions.

VIII. Closing Remarks

  • Councilor Gabriela Coletta Zapata: Thanked all presenters, partners, and advocates for their expertise and lived experience in shaping the conversation. Expressed gratitude for their leadership and commitment to equity, justice, and inclusion in climate action. Looked forward to continued collaboration, transparency, and shared problem-solving during implementation.
  • Councilor Benjamin Weber: Thanked the Chair and acknowledged the good minds in Boston working on climate issues.
  • Councilor John Fitzgerald: No additional closing remarks.
  • Meeting Adjourned.

Last updated: Nov 16, 2025

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