Category: Local
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HUD Cites Homeowner with Discriminatory Practices Against Families with Children
HUD Secretary Julian Castro is charging the owner of a Springfield rental property for violating the Fair Housing Act by refusing to rent an available unit to a family with a child. The Hernandez family had been residing in a unit with a relative at 27 Loring St. when they were denied the opportunity to…
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Second Chances: Colorful clothing bins help homeless and low-income citizens
Scattered throughout Somerville and Cambridge are colorful Second Chances clothing donation bins. For a decade, Second Chances has been providing free clothing to homeless and lower-income people in the community with very few hands on deck. “Over ten years, we have never had more than two days a week of staffing,” said founder and CEO…
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Homeless Advocates Express Disappointment over Senate State Budget
Photo: Emmanuel Huybrechts Homelessness service providers across the Commonwealth are concerned they could face a tough year ahead, as the state budget proposal cuts nearly $800,000 from funds for the assistance of homeless individuals. On Tuesday, the Senate Ways and Means Committee released its budget proposal for fiscal year 2017. The committee allocated about $44…
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Officials Announce State Police Sex Trafficking Unit
On April 5, state officials announced the creation of a new human trafficking unit within Massachusetts State Police that will focus on the sexual exploitation of children, according to a statement from the office of Gov. Charlie Baker and Lt. Gov. Karyn Polito. The four-person state-police team led by veteran detective Lt. Pi Downsbrough will…
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Workforce Housing Program Receives $100 Million MassHousing Investment
Governor Charlie Baker announced a $100 million MassHousing fund for a new Workforce Housing program, aimed at supporting families that fall in between the low class and middle classes May 11. The objective of the Workforce Housing program is to assist individuals and families between 61% to 120% of area median income (AMI) by providing…
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MHSA Honors Jerry Ray at 13th Annual Fundraising Event
The Massachusetts Housing and Shelter Alliance, or MHSA, held their 13th Annual Fundraising Event at the Hyatt Regency Hotel in Boston on Thursday, May 12, 2016. MHSA is a non-profit organization, founded in 1988, dedicated to ending homelessness in Massachusetts. The William Lloyd Garrison Lifetime Achievement Award was presented to Jerry Ray, the former Vice…
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Mayor Walsh Announces New Funding for Homelessness Services
Photo: Zengzhang Wang As part of his goal to end chronic homelessness in Boston, Mayor Martin J. Walsh pledged $1.3 million in his proposed budget for next year to fund homelessness services. The proposal includes $150,000 for “front-door triage,” which will allow staff at shelters around the city to find the best way to help…
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Boston Teams up with HUD, DOJ on Juvenile Reentry Program
The City of Boston, HUD and the Department of Justice are teaming up to help formerly incarcerated juveniles re-acclimate to society, Mayor Martin J. Walsh’s office said. Mayor Walsh announced the $100,000 program, funded through the DOJ’s Juvenile Reentry Assistance Program, in a press release on April 28. Funding will help Boston Housing Authority (BHA)…
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How Boston is trying to combat the effects of hunger
Those in poverty face many challenges, but one of the most devastating challenges is hunger. Although Massachusetts does its part by enforcing a minimum wage that’s almost $3 higher than the federal minimum wage, the reality is that the benefit of those increased earnings are diminished rather quickly by the high rents in the Boston…
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HUD awards Local Homeless and Service Programs $7.8 Million
Dozens of local Homeless housing and service programs received a boost from the Department of Housing and Urban Development recently as the agency continues to work towards President Barack Obama’s goals to prevent and end homelessness. HUD announced in a press release that 39 homeless housing and service programs in Massachusetts received $7.8 million in…