Cleaning Up Vacant Lots- Lets Work    

Vacant lots in our neighborhoods are a very serious concern that has only gotten worse in light of the recent economic crisis. When low income communities become overwhelmed with vacant lots it creates a chain reaction of negative effects on the well being of residents in our communities.

• Decreased Home Values & Loss of Income: Having one or several vacant lots near a home can affect the value of that home. Since homeownership still remains a vital source of real income for working families, a decline in property value leads to a real decline in available income for a family
• Increased Crime: Vacant Lots often attract all manner of criminals. Lots can become hide out spots for guns, drugs and other crime related items.  Overgrown weeds are at times so tall in the vacant lots; it makes a perfect location for robbers to jump out and mug someone in the neighborhood.  All of these practices can have a very negative impact on the community.
• Health Issues: Vacant lots attract garbage, and garbage attracts all manner of pests like rats, raccoons and other creatures.  Also, when properties aren’t maintained than dust and pollen can make breathing more difficult and potentially contaminate the soil.
• Environmental Impacts: More and more vacant properties become overwhelmed with broken TV's, glass, bottles, oil containers and more.  The environmental concerns adds to the increase of lead and mercury in our soil, respiratory issues in the community and the lack of respect for our neighborhoods.

The Vision for 2010 in Clean Up of Vacant Lots

Our membership wants to work with the city on indentifying 30 to 40 publicly and privately owned lots in our neighborhoods that are causing concern to local residents. We especially want to focus on those properties that may not be on the city radar as problem lots in our communities.  Due to the policy issues around the lots and funding decreases, our members want to support the city in directing where the attention and funds need to go in our neighborhoods so that we may be able to get the most benefit from the limited resources available.

Our members have also elected to clean up 10 vacant lots so that local residents can join forces with the city in cleaning up lots that are privately owned or that the city simply cannot clean up due to a lack of resources in our neighborhoods. 

As we work at taking these real concrete steps of cleaning up these lots and focusing the city’s attention on those that are causing the most problems, we will also  work together to build a larger vision on addressing the reasons behind why so many vacant lots exist in our communities today.

Repairing Roads and Sidewalks

Sidewalk and Street Conditions are also a major concern in that affects everyone in the neighborhood that is often overlooked.  If we do not have safe streets to drive on or sidewalks to walk on how can people take advantage of our libraries, local businesses, and travel to work and school? This can cause a barrier around access to the community services and programs our neighborhoods need on a day to day basis. 

This issue is a matter of respect in our neighborhoods but that can also be tied into job opportunities in our community as it relates to neighborhood development.

Our streets are filled with pot holes.  When the city patches potholes this is not enough to eliminate the issue of re-paving an entire street.  Pot holes can be the cause of accidents and unnecessary repairs on our vehicles that can lead to expensive financial burdens for local residents in low income neighborhoods as well as the city.  Blown out ties, bent rims and other vehicle damage can affect drivers on a daily basis in our community as a result of driving over a pot hole.  School busses, meals on wheels and other public transportation services can also be affected by damages related to pot holes and streets conditions.  This is an issue that consistently is a problem in our communities and a matter of maintenance on a yearly basis. 

Sidewalks are another area of concern as parents with strollers and the elderly walk through the neighborhood to access local shops, train stations, bus routes, health facilities and more. When sidewalks are not re-paved or when there is an issue with the condition of our sidewalks, local residents are often forced to walk in the streets in areas where traffic and or speeding cars can be a concern.  It is a safety issue with our children who walk to and from school, the park or their youth programs. 

Repainting our crosswalks and street lines is also a concern to local residents, especially residents with children.  At times when our roads are repaved, cross walks and street lines seem to be an area that is overlooked in our communities.  We cannot expect local residents to follow the laws around cross walks and speeding issues if we they cannot see the lines and signs that may or may not have been put on our roads.  We want to work with the city on identifying problem areas in these development issues and create a community voice and process to addressing these issues.

Our leaders see this as an organizing opportunity that ties into education around the city budget and how the funds flow into our neighborhoods for this kind of development, as well as capitalize on any potential job opportunities for local Boston residents on repaving streets and sidewalks.  Leaders also see this as a path in working with local residents on influencing where and how funds are spent within our neighborhoods.

If you see a street or sidewalk repair that needs to be addressed, give us a call 617-265-7100

We Can't Just Talk About It, Local Residents Are Getting Organized!

Neighborhood and Leadership Development is a core part of the focus we have in low income communities.

If we cannot address the smaller issues in our neighborhoods,

how will we ever have success in the dealing with larger issues impacting our communities?

We Believe in Having a Community Voice

We work to improve neighborhood issue areas of concern through a very strategic organizing drive process that allows local residents to become engaged and introduced to organizing at a level they are comfortable with.  Through door to door outreach and one on one conversations with neighbors and local residents, community people are able to talk about local issues and engage in a conversation around their vision to improve local concerns, how we could get others in the community involved and are able to talk about the importance of leadership in order to address local issues in the neighborhood.

People in the community are introduced to both our membership and opportunities to create a community action plan to begin to address issues that local residents identify they want to address. This very model allows our organization to use our organizing drives as a vehicle to move larger issues campaigns through both education and action.

Paid Sick Time Is Important:

Who Doesn't Get Sick?  It is hard to balance taking care of your health and the health of your family while balancing work, no one should be fired from their job to care for their health!

When workers go to work sick, their productivity is low....this is not healthy for workers or the business and who doesn't want to be 100% when at work?

Germs spread, this is a fact!  When workers are forced to go into work sick, they risk spreading germs to co-workers, clients and customers.  No one wins!

Businesses Lose Money!  We want to support businesses who value workers.  It costs less to offer the Sick Time than to rehire, retrain and start the process all over again.

Our Members Continue To Organize On This Issue!

Most of our members are low income working people in Massachusetts.  When you have a job that pays minimum wage, it is hard to tackle the financial support you and your family need to pay rent, buy food, clothing, transportation and more....does this sound like anyone YOU know?

Losing pay from your job or not having job security and being at risk of being fired from your job because you are sick or have to care of a sick family member is not fair and is not a healthy solution for anyone.

This is a Worker Rights effort that makes sense for everyone! 

Please click on the link below to learn more about the Mass Paid Leave Coalition and our work on Paid Sick Time

Tax Reform is Needed in Massachusetts

Over 240 residents in Boston came together to say enough is enough around budget cuts impacting schools, social services, youth programs and services, neighborhood development and more and came together in a strong show of solidarity to take action around the Budget Cuts.

Groups representing Labor, Community, Education, Youth, Social Services, Seniors and Peace came together on March 22, 2011 to show support for both State Legislation that could save the very programs at risk in our neighborhoods and to highlight the need to address what is happening at the National Level as another solution to Funding Our Future in Massachusetts.

The Act To Invest In Our Communities is a Legislative Solution:

THE PROBLEM:

We are just emerging from the deepest Recession of our lifetimes. With the end of federal stimulus funding, we have a nearly $2 Billion budget deficit. That means our schools, Local Aid, and emergency and health care services face deep cuts this spring. Meanwhile, wealthy investors and high-income households have had their Bush-era tax cuts extended, worsening deficits and economic inequality.

THE SOLUTION:

We need to invest in our communities and keep middle-class families working and earning! "An Act to Invest in Our Communities" (HD 2261/ SD 1012) does just that. While there will be substantial cuts in services this year, this bill takes a balanced approach to the fiscal crisis by raising revenue to maintain the services we need and value. By asking more from high income households and investors who received large windfalls from the Bush tax cuts, while raising the personal exemption as a way to hold down the tax increase for middle-class families, the bill raises needed revenue primarily from those who can best afford to pay. With that revenue, we can keep the quality schools and services that make our state a good place to live and do business.

WHAT THE BILL DOES:

1) Restores the income tax rate from 5.3% to 5.95%, but raises the personal exemption enough to hold down increases for middle-class families. 2) Raises the tax rate on wealthy investors, but provides a targeted exemption for middle-class seniors. 3) Raises revenue to maintain funding for our communities, schools and health care.

Some Action Steps You Can Take NOW To Be A Part Of This Effort:                                                                  

1) Contact your state officials to make sure they hear from you to SUPPORT this effort

2) Contact NEU4J to learn how YOU can be a member and join this campaign

3) Get your organization, church, business to show support for this effort by endorsing this campaign  

New England United for Justice wants to give a special thanks to:

Mass Senior Action, Boston Workers Alliance, 25% Coalition, Dorchester People for Peace, One Massachusetts and the Coalition for our Communities and to the many partners who support the on the ground work to make this event a success!

Understanding the State Budget and How Our Taxes Play A Role

Have you ever wondered where our city and state funding comes from?

Have you ever thought about how the funding flows from our city and state into our neighborhoods?

Have you ever really taken the time to understand the role of our government as it relates to the day to day needs of our communities?

Do you understand why taxes are KEY in funding our neighborhoods?

Education in the Key

Think about all of our needs as a community:

Schools, Public Transportation, Police, Fireman, Clinics and Health Services, Elderly Care, Side Walks, Streets, Clean Water and more.....

Without funding how can we have all of these systems?

Without funding how do we sustain all of our needs as a community?

Without funding who loses out in our community?  WE DO!

New England United 4 Justice is partnering up with One Massachusetts to Educate our Neighborhoods

One Massachusetts is a state wide organization working with a collective of organizations to combine the power of education and policy efforts in our state.  Click onto their website to learn more.

Our organization will be conducting trainings in low income neighborhoods throughout the year to be sure YOU have the power of knowledge in making important decisions that will impact our neighborhoods.

One Massachusetts

Do you want to get involved in a State or City Tax Budget Training - Contact Us 617-265-7100