Okay Peppin, District 5, Boston City Councilor, and I am the chair of the Boston City Council Committee on Housing and Community Development.

Today is Friday, June 12th, 2026, and it is exactly 1005 a.m.

In accordance with chapter two of the acts of the 2025 modifying certain requirements of the open meeting law and relieving public bodies of certain requirements, including the requirement that public bodies conduct its meeting in a public space that is open and physically accessible to the public.

The city council will be conducting this hearing virtually via Zoom.

This hearing is being recorded.

It is also being live streamed at Boston.gov-City-Council-TV and broadcast on its finity channel A, RCN Channel 82, and files channel 964.

Writing comments may be sent to the committee.housing at Boston.gov.

It will be made a part of the record and available to all counselors.

Public testimony will be taken at the end of this hearing.

Individuals will be called on in the order in which they signed up and will have two minutes to testify.

If you wish to sign up for public testimony and have not done so, please email our central staff liaison, Ryan Pratt at Ryan.gov for the student link and your name will be added to the list.

Today's hearing is on docket number 0792.

Message in order to authorizing the city of Boston acting through its mayor's office of housing to apply for and accept and expand the federal fiscal year two thousand twenty-five continuum of care grants funds of the U.S.

Department of Housing and Urban Development in an amount not to exceed $50 million.

These funds will be used to support programs that provide services and housing persons experiencing homelessness.

This matter was sponsored by Mayor Michelle Lou and was referred to the committee on April 15, 2026.

We will also hear on docket number 0913 message in order authorizing the city of Boston to accept and expand the amount of 16,834, 742 dollars in the form of a grant.

The federal FY26 Community Development Block Grant awarded by the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development will be administered by the Mayor's Office of Housing.

The grant will fund housing, economic development, and social service programs.

The award amount is estimated from prior years.

We will also hear on docket number 0914, message in order authorizing the city of Boston to accept and expand the amount of $4,825, $132.90 in the form of a grant.

In the form of the grant, the federal FY26 Home Investment Partnerships Program Grant awarded by the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development to be administered by the Mayor's Office of Housing.

The grant would fund the production of new affordable rental and home ownership housing and also provide operating support for community development corporations.

The award amount is estimated from prior years.

In the form of a grant.

The award amount is estimated from prior years.

Docket number 0916, a message in order authorizing the city of Boston to accept and expend the amount of $1,489,61600 in the form of a grant.

The federal FY26 emergency solutions grant awarded by the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development to be administered by the Mayor's Office of Housing.

The grant would fund street outreach, emergency shelter, homelessness prevention, rapid rehousing assistance, and shelter services.

The award is estimated from prior years.

These matters were sponsored by Mayor Michelle Wu and were referred to the committee on May 6, 2026.

Today, I am joined by my colleague in order of arrival, Counselor Aaron Murphy.

I think Councillor Braden, do you want to?

Okay.

I'm sure I'm seeing everyone.

I don't see her on yet, but once she goes on, I will acknowledge her.

Okay.

I'm going to waive the opening remarks for today, just because we can go straight to the presentation.

And now I would like to introduce today's panelists.

We have Rick Wilson, who's a director of administration and finance.

We have Christina O'Keefe, Director of Neighborhood Housing Development.

Katie Cahill Holloway, who's the director of supportive housing, Daniel Johnson, director for the Office of Housing Stability.

We have Donald Wright, interim chief of the Office of Economic Opportunity and Inclusion.

Alicia Porcina, Director of Small Businesses, and I believe we should have Katie Gal as well, Director of Workforce Grant Making.

So with that, I want to pass it over to today's panelist.

Thank you, Counselors.

Okay, so Ryan, I'm sharing my screen, right?

Yes, that works.

All right.

That work?

I think it worked.

Okay.

Good morning, counselors.

For the record, my name is Rick Wilson, and I'm the Director of Administration and Finance at the Mayor's Office of Housing.

I'm joined today by senior staff from MOH as well as interim chief Donald Wright from the Office of Economic Opportunity and Inclusion, and another senior staff from the Office of Economic Opportunity and Inclusion and the Office of Workforce Development.

We're here today to request approval to accept and extend our annual grants from the U.S.

Department of Housing and Urban Development or HUD for the upcoming fiscal year.

Today's hearing covers uh funding from five HUD programs, our four entitlement grants, our community development block grant, home investment partnerships initiative, housing opportunities for persons with AIDS, emergency solutions grant, uh, and the continuum of care program.

Um, combined these grants total over $79 million, which will primarily be used during the city's upcoming fiscal year 2027.

Um, as you will hear, these are extremely important sources of funding for the city that support uh a number of programs for low and moderate income Bostonians and formerly homeless individuals and families.