Tag: Blog Post

MCV's November Blog, The Economic Development Bill Chuck Anastas | November 6, 2022 The Economic Development Bill, H. 5374, passed by the Legislature last week, includes $100 million (out of a total of $175 million) for communities disenfranchised from the state park system bringing much-needed open space and recreation to historically ignored and underfunded neighborhoods. The $100 million targeted for new and existing open spaces includes $75 million for environmental justice communities and $25 million for neighborhoods “disproportionally impacted by the 2019 novel coronavirus.” The Legislature has heard from its constituents the importance of open spaces, which played a crucial role in helping all of us survive the impacts of the pandemic. Improving and expanding open spaces and pedestrian and bike trail connections for these neighborhoods must be a priority for our citizens' health, safety, and enjoyment. However, the bill is a mixed bag in other ways. While the $175 million may be spent rebuilding and expanding our state park system, they are not...

MCV's August Blog, A Mid-Year Parks Roundup Chuck Anastas | August 15, 2022 HEAT ISLANDS The dog days of summer are now behind us, and we’ve learned this year that extreme heat, like the impacts of the pandemic, can be mitigated by public open spaces. Although many of the most severe heat islands can be found in urban areas, they are also in dense mixed-use suburban downtowns. Many of the state’s existing land preservation efforts are primarily centered on adding to existing large tracts of state open space, which continue to be crucial for the state’s future ecological health and its efforts to combat climate change. Those efforts must continue. But we also need a new emphasis on assisting densely populated areas with the tools and funding to add to open space for residents’ health now and in the future. PRIVATE-PUBLIC PARTNERSHIPS A year ago, MCV noted an important milestone made by the DCR Stewardship Council - budget recommendations to the Administration for the department, making...

Much to be happy about in Senate Ways & Means proposed FY2023 budget Doug Pizzi, Executive Director | May 20, 2022 The Senate Ways & Means Committee’s FY2023 budget proposal, made public last week, contains some good operating budget and budget policy news. Ways & Means is seeking a healthy increase for the Department of Conservation and Recreation’s (DCR) parks and recreation operations account and, like the Governor and House before it, has replaced retained revenue, money from user fees, leases, other income, with general revenue tax dollars for DCR’s day-to-day operations. Mass Conservation Voters (MCV) would like to thank Senate Ways & Means Chair Michael Rodrigues and the rest of the committee for advancing DCR’s, and more importantly, park users’ interests in our state parks. The Senate will begin debating the budget on Tuesday, May 24th. Ways & Means is proposing to fund DCR’s Parks and Recreation Operations Account (2810-0100) at $85 million. Earlier this year, Gov. Baker’s proposed $73.5 million while the...

H. 4720. An Act investing in future opportunities for resiliency, workforce, and revitalized downtowns. (abridged) To download and view Bill H.4720 An Act investing in future opportunities for resiliency, workforce, and revitalized downtowns in its entirety, please click here. Lines 790-875 for state parks and trails $1,700,000 for the Hetland Rink Remediation; 310 Hathaway Blvd, New Bedford. $5,000,000 for improvements to Fort Andrew at Peddocks Island; Boston Harbor. $1,000,000 for the Lewis Chemical Remediation; 12 Fairmount Court, Boston (Hyde Park.) $1,500,000 for the rehabilitation of historic recreational towers including but not limited to: Bear Hill Tower, Stoneham, Middlesex Fells.Norumbega Tower, Norumbega Road Weston.Quabbin Tower, DCR Quabbin Park Middle Gate off Rt. 9, Belchertown, MA 01007.Myles Standish Monument, Crescent St, Duxbury, MA 02332.Chickatawbut Tower, Canton Avenue, Milton.Mt. Tom Tower, 125 Reservation Rd, Holyoke, MA 01040, Holyoke. $2,200,000 for the Spot Pond Brook flood control remediation, Melrose MA. $5,000,000 for the Brook Farm Historic Site, 670 Baker Street, West Roxbury. $2,400,000 for Hop Brook Flood Control Remediation, Northborough. $2,000,000 for the Nahant State...

80 (and counting!) State Representatives Co-Sponsor Amendment to Increase DCR Funding A quick note from our Executive Director, Doug Pizzi-- Dear MCV Members and State Representatives, Massachusetts Conservation Voters thanks you for contacting your state representatives to ask them to co-sponsor Amendment #13 to H.4700, the House's FY2023 proposed budget. If the House adopts the amendment, the Department of Conservation and Recreation’s (DCR) Parks and Recreation Operations line item (2810-0100) would jump to $83 million. While we appreciate that the House Ways & Means Committee increased the Governor’s proposed $73.5 million to $78.7 million, MCV thinks the higher figure is justifiable given the pandemic-driven exponential increase in use of our forests, parks, beaches and other DCR facilities. As of this writing, 80 of the 160 House members (list below) have signed on to the amendment offered by state Rep. William "Smitty" Pignatelli. MCV thanks Rep. Pignatelli for sponsoring the amendment, and those who have already signed on as co-sponsors. If your state representative is...

We need your help with House Ways & Means this month Doug Pizzi, Executive Director | April 5, 2022 State budget season, an annual rite of Spring, is upon us. The Legislature is now considering Gov. Charlie Baker’s proposed FY 2023 budget, which, when all is said and done, will go into effect when the new fiscal year begins on July 1. Last month, MCV submitted testimony on Baker’s proposed Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR) budget to the Legislature’s Joint Committee on Ways & Means. If you’ve been following along with us, you know there were some things we liked and things we didn’t like in Baker’s document. We liked getting rid of the growing dependence on park user fees, licenses, leases and other variable income, commonly called Retained Revenue, to run the parks on a day-to-day basis. We didn’t like the level of funding the governor proposed for the Parks and Recreation Operations account, which we think is about $10 million...

The “Park”ways We Need Guest Blog by Ellery Klein | April 5, 2022 "To protect, promote and enhance our common wealth of natural, cultural and recreational resources for the well-being of all." - DCR Mission Statement In 1968, the Cheonggye Creek in Seoul, Korea met its end. It was covered by an elevated freeway and its destruction labeled as “progress,” a sacrifice to the relentless pressure from the automobile industry.  But by the late ‘90’s, noise and particulate pollution was sky-high in the area surrounding the freeway’s speeding cars. Frustrated residents asked a radical question: does this highway even need to be here? In 2001, voters elected Mayor Lee Myung-bak to take it down. By 2005, the highway was dismantled. A nine-kilometer-long artificial creek now runs through the city. Quality of life is immensely better for residents. More than a  half-million tourists visit the creek each year. Temperatures are 3.3 degrees lower in the summer. Rainwater that could flood streets instead flows out safely via...