What does the Trump Era mean for Spare Change News? In the simplest terms, it means that we as an organization feel called to think bigger. The original vision of the Spare Change founders to “build a bridge between the haves and the have nots” takes on a new urgency today as current events suggest…
Cambridge Might Increase Housing Stock to 20 Percent Affordable
Cambridge has created 100 units of affordable housing over the past year, a trend it’s looking to build on in 2017. The Cambridge City Council hopes to increase the percentage of affordable housing to 20 percent of the city’s total residential housing units by June of this year. Cambridge implemented inclusionary zoning, a tool utilized…
Cold Weather, Colder Reality
Quincy COPE has been serving food and love at South Station for years with little or no complaints, that is until now. Apparently one of the Station’s security guards probably with nothing better to do approached Suzanne Featherstone (who is seen by many as the leader of the Quincy contingent) and the other volunteers and…
Bitter Sleep: An Incident at the Boston Public Library
On Wednesday Dec. 27 the National Weather Service has issued its first wind chill advisory in Boston where temperatures are expected to range between five above zero to twenty below zero degrees. Frostbite conditions like this can kill people, and at the Boston Central Library on that day a man was tossed out into them…
HUD Delays Obama-era Policy on Fair Housing
Fair Housing Act (FHA) requirements for funding have now been put on hold by the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) until 2020, leaving housing advocates across the country worried about unaddressed inequities. Under President Barack Obama HUD began requiring communities to provide data on how they address segregation issues and other concerns under…
Minimum Wage Increase Would Be Boon For Families that Depend on Teens’ Paychecks
A new study from the Massachusetts Budget and Policy Center says raising the minimum wage has little impact on teen unemployment, but can have a big impact on teens and their families. On Monday, 18 states saw their minimum wages increase, but Massachusetts wasn’t among them. A bill in the state legislature would raise the…
Homeless Memorial Service 2017
The pews at Church on the Hill were filled with friends, advocates, and members of the homeless community on Thursday to pay tribute to over 100 people who died this past year. The interfaith service marked the 28th anniversary of the National Homeless Person’s Memorial Day, though the Boston community has seen a similar event…
Affordable Housing Survives GOP Tax Bill’s Final Edit
The Republicans of the House and Senate released the final version of their tax bill on Friday, Dec. 15, with the intention of voting it into law before the new year. The bill—titled the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act—has received numerous edits since it was originally introduced by House Means and Ways Committee Chairman Kevin…
Memories of Thanksgiving on the Street
I enjoyed this past Thanksgiving, probably more than I’ve enjoyed Thanksgiving in quite some time. I got to spend a nice, quiet holiday in my adopted hometown with friends. It was quiet, and I caught up on a lot of sleep and watched movies. I wish I could say that nothing bothered me at all,…
Triage Tool Uses Health Care Info to House Homeless With Better Support Systems
Mathematica Policy Research released a study demonstrating that a triage assessment tool used by the Massachusetts Shelter and Housing Alliance (MHSA) can successfully predict the emergency resource utilization of chronically homeless individuals. The MHSA partners with organizations and service providers in the state to place chronically homeless people in housing with appropriate supportive services. Since…