Mayor Walsh reflects on his first 101 days in office

Today Mayor Martin J. Walsh reflected on his first 101 days in office, outlining the work of his new administration and the transition from the campaign trail to a series of initiatives and plans for Boston that will drive policies and neighborhood investments of the next several years.

Today’s event was held in the gym at the BCYF Paris Street Community Center in East Boston, which will undergo a $10 million renovation as laid out in Mayor Walsh’s FY 15-19 budget. Neighborhood investments like these are core to shaping the vision of Boston moving forward.

“I’m energized by the work that has been done and the support we have received in my first 101 days,” said Mayor Walsh. “This is only the beginning of a partnership between my administration and the citizens of Boston, as we work to make Boston a city where everyone can succeed.  In the past 101 days, we spent time listening and we learned peoples’ values and their needs.  And now, we lead, invested with the confidence that comes from having the right facts and a great plan.”

In his first 101 days Mayor Walsh and his administration began work to fulfill campaign promises, and identified five priority areas for his administration, including strengthening the economy, improving public safety, ensuring that Boston Public Schools enable every child to succeed, increasing accessibility and transparency in city government, and serving all of Boston’s neighborhoods and residents. The 101 Day report is available at: http://www.cityofboston.gov/mayor/

A social media campaign reviewing the first 101 days of the Walsh Administration launches today on next.cityofboston.gov, and will feature multimedia posts over the next two weeks.  Follow hashtag #walsh101 for updates. 

Today’s event also marked the release of 12 Transition Committee reports, which were prepared by hundreds of experts and community leaders called on by Mayor Walsh to collaborate and develop policy recommendations in a dozen crucial areas, including Arts and Culture, Basic City Services, Economic Development, Education, Energy, Environment, and Open Space, Housing, Human Services, Inspectional Services, Intergovernmental Relations, Public Safety, Transportation and Infrastructure, and Youth. Several public hearings, drawing hundreds of attendees, were held to solicit community feedback for the reports. The Transition Committee findings were presented to Mayor Walsh, his relevant cabinet and departmental leadership, and his mayoral policy team. The 12 Transition Committee Reports are prepared and available online at: http://www.cityofboston.gov/mayor/

The results of the first 101 days of the administration were recently demonstrated as Mayor Walsh delivered a $2.7 billion Operating Budget for Fiscal Year 2015 and a five-year, $1.9 billion capital plan on April 7. The capital plan, highlighted at today’s event, identifies 319 new and continuing projects and proposes $286.8 million in new project authorizations. These investments are core to funding possibility and the future of Boston.

This year, East Boston will see more than $35M of investment. In addition to the BCYF Paris Street Community Center, other construction projects scheduled to start this year include renovations at the Paris Street Playground, a reconstruction of Central Square, the construction of the final segment of the East Boston Greenway, a full replacement of the East Boston Stadium Field turf, repairs to the Engine 5 Fire station, and the replacement of the roof at the Umana School. Construction is already underway to reopen the Alighieri School Building, and to renovate both the American Legion Playground and LoPresti Playground.