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OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD

Record of Proceedings

Boston City Council Committee on City Services Hearing on Grants and HVAC Gift — September 21, 2026

City Council — Monday, September 21, 2026

BodyBoston, Massachusetts

SessionCity Council

DateMonday, September 21, 2026

StatusFILED

Video Record

0:00 / 1:16:04

Transcript — VerbatimClick a timed line to jump · ⧉ to share it

3:16

Good morning.

3:19

My name is Ed Flynn, District Two City Council.

3:23

I am chair of the City Council Committee on City Services.

3:29

Today is September twenty first.

3:31

The exact time is ten zero three.gov slash city council.

3:47

Broadcast on Xfinity Channel Eight.gov and will be made part of the record and available to all city councillors.

4:40

If you are interested in testifying in person, please add your name to the sign up sheet near the entrance of the chamber when you walk in.gov for the link in your name will be added to the list.

5:00

If you are looking to testify virtually, please email our central staff liaison Ryan Pratt at Ryan R Y A N dot Pratt P R A T T at Boston.gov for the link in your name will be added to the list.

5:10

Today's hearing is on docket 1085, which it which is a message in order authorizing the city of Boston to accept, expend the amount of 20, 930 in the form of a grant, the El Centro Fellowship Grant, ordered to Catholic Charities, Archdiocese of Boston to be administered by the Department of Innovation and Technology.

5:39

Do it.

5:40

The grant would fund the fellowship program for El Centro IT program graduates.

5:46

This matter was sponsored by Mayor Wu.

5:49

It was referred to the committee on June 3rd, 2026.

5:53

Docket 1395 message in order authorizing the city of Boston to accept and expend the amount of 225, 125 11 cents in the form of a grant, the MBI Digital Equity Partnership Program awarded by the U.S.

6:14

Department of Treasury passed through the Massachusetts Technology Collaborative to administered to be administered by the Department of Innovation and Technology.

6:23

The grant would fund services and support for residents of the Commonwealth who cannot afford broadband service and or internet connected devices or lack the digital skills needed to utilize the internet.

6:40

The following the last docket, which is docket 1397, message in order authorizing the city of Boston to accept and expand a gift of 43 heating, ventilation, air conditioned units, HVAC of various types valued at 84,210 from FWC 2026 U.S.

7:05

Inc.

7:06

This gift is awarded to the City of Boston at the Mayor's office for the use in the public facilities of various departments across the city, including police stations, schools, and municipal offices.

7:18

These matters were sponsored by Mayor Wu.

7:21

They were referred to the committee on July 22nd 2026.

7:30

I want to say thank you to the administration team for being here this morning.

7:35

And we have present with us Brian Dunahu, the Chief Digital Equity Officer, Director of Broadband and Cable Department Department of Innovation and Technology.

7:46

Do it.

7:47

Sheila Lee, the Senior Director of Operations, Department of Innovation Technology.

7:53

Trish Kafsky.

7:58

Kafferski.

8:00

Okay, Caferty.

8:02

I'm so sorry about the pronunciation.

8:04

The Deputy Chief of Operations, Real Estate and Capital Strateg Strategies, the Mayor's Office.

8:11

And Peter Favorito.

8:15

Okay.

8:16

I got that one right, Peter.

8:19

Broadband and Digital Equity Advocacy.

8:21

Department of Inf Innovation and Technology.

8:28

Would the panel like to speak on all dockets at the same time, or do you want to break them down?

8:35

Or what is best for you?

8:39

I would say we probably need to separate the air conditioning docket from the other two, but happy to speak to whichever of them in whichever order you'd prefer.

8:50

Okay.

8:50

Why don't we do one dock at a time?

8:53

Okay.

8:53

Okay.

8:54

Let's start with the um, let's start with the first one.

8:59

Um that's that's on that's on the agenda, which is 1085, which is the 20,000 um grant for El Centro.

9:10

Yep, absolutely.

9:11

Okay.

9:12

Uh and thank you, uh Chair in General for asking us to come here and speak to some of these programs.

9:17

We're we're really excited for this uh opportunity to have additional resources for these types of programs funded uh for the El Centro grant.

9:26

We had been working with this organization in the past.

9:29

They are a subsidiary of the Catholic charities.

9:32

Um the funding from El Centro is for an additional fellow.

9:36

These uh these folks are coming to us from non-traditional backgrounds, learning technology skills, uh doing on job on on-site job training, and we've been thrilled to be able to uh have five fellows work with us previously and hire two of them into full-time roles.

9:54

So it's really exciting.

10:00

These the fellows are getting hands-on experience in cybersecurity and technology programs, uh, and the most recent projects that have been worked on are an asset inventory for uh computer replacement, uh vulnerable vulnerability uh notifications from a sort of uh cybersecurity standpoint, and uh cyber security training and content creation for uh those types of uh offers that you probably get in your email every once in a while to uh get your cybersecurity skills uh upgraded.

10:26

So uh we're thrilled to have this opportunity to uh add another fellow to the program, and we'll be happy to answer any questions that you might have.

10:36

Excellent.

10:37

Thank you.

10:46

Well, as you can see, I was I wanted to have the hearing to give my council colleagues the opportunity to learn more about the important work you're doing.

10:57

Yes, sir.

10:59

I apologize that no one no one is here.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting

Digital Equity███████████████████████████████████35%

Technology and Innovation████████████████████20%

Public Housing██████████████████18%

Cybersecurity██████6%

Workforce Development█████5%

Procedural████4%

Public Education████4%

Affordable Housing████4%

Language Access██2%

Summary of Proceedings

Boston City Council Committee on City Services Hearing — September 21, 2026

The Committee on City Services, chaired by District 2 Councilor Ed Flynn, met on Monday, September 21, 2026, to hear three dockets: two grant acceptance and expenditure orders and one in-kind gift of HVAC units. Councilor Flynn opened the hearing at 10:03 a.m. per his announcement, though the meeting record's timestamp of 15:00 UTC corresponds to 11:00 a.m. EDT; the discrepancy is noted here as it appears in the record. No public testimony was offered, and no votes were taken during the hearing. Councilor Flynn stated his intent to bring the three dockets to the full Council on Wednesday, September 23, 2026, for a formal vote.

Public Comments & Testimony

No members of the public provided testimony in person or virtually, and no signed-up speakers were noted.

Discussion Items

Docket 1085 — El Centro Fellowship Grant ($20,930)

This is a message and order authorizing the City of Boston to accept and expend $20,930 in grant funds under the El Centro Fellowship Grant, ordered to Catholic Charities. It was referred to the committee on June 3, 2026.
Administration representatives (including Sheila and Peter) described the program's core idea: participants complete IT training and then receive on-the-job training through a fellowship with the City's IT department, with Catholic Charities' El Centro providing space and support.
The City has hired two program participants into full-time entry-level IT positions, and El Centro also helps participants who do not stay with the City find employment pathways elsewhere.
Councilor Flynn expressed appreciation for the program's important work and its results, and apologized that no other members of the public or Council were present.

Docket 1395 — MBI Digital Equity Partnership Program ($225,125.11)

This is a message and order authorizing the City of Boston to accept and expend $225,125.11 under the MBI Digital Equity Partnership Program. It was referred to the committee on July 22, 2026.
Administration representatives said these digital equity projects have taken place across every Boston neighborhood, and stated they were very proud of that record.
The new round will fund free service for housing residents at the West Broadway and Archdale properties, and the administration hopes to use this exact funding source to reach at least one more property once the model is proven.
Statistics cited during the hearing: the program's outreach reaches at least 50–100 organizations, the broader network includes well over 500 organizations, recent sessions had about 70 attendees, and 85–95% of participants reported learning something new and being interested in sharing it with others.
Digital literacy office hours cover affordable internet access, résumé help, Gmail, and other basics; this past summer, the program added graphic design and coding sessions for youth and held sessions beyond City Hall, including in housing settings.
The program also supports returning citizens with devices and connectivity to aid re-entry, and works to ensure that having a device and internet access leads to positive outcomes.
Councilor Flynn asked how the program serves elderly residents with limited computer skills and limited English, particularly Mandarin-speaking seniors in Chinatown, the Leather District, and Bay Village. He also asked for more multilingual public-awareness messaging so that new internet users, especially seniors, understand that government agencies will not ask for Social Security or banking information over the telephone.
Administration representatives described translation options, coordination with the City's language and communication access office, and community-based partners who meet residents where they are to gauge what they know and what they fear, and to provide scam-prevention education such as password safety and avoiding sharing personal information over the phone.
Councilor Flynn requested the schedule of upcoming digital-equity office hours so he could attend and observe.
On public housing, administration representatives acknowledged that many Boston Housing Authority (BHA) residents earn around $20,000 per year and face infrastructure-related barriers; a connectivity project at two BHA campuses requires remediation of older-building issues before it can move forward.

Docket 1397 — Gift of 43 HVAC Units ($84,210)

This is a message and order authorizing the City of Boston to accept a gift of 43 heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning (HVAC) units of various types, valued at $84,210, from FWC 2026 U.S. It was referred to the committee on July 22, 2026.
The units come in three sizes — 1 ton, 1.5 ton, and 2 ton — suitable for different-sized spaces.
A representative of the Public Facilities Department (Braden) said the donated units were not selected by the department and did not go through its specifications. No determination has been made on final distribution, and the administration has reached out to facility directors for all city departments that manage property.
Councilor Flynn noted that the previous week's hearing with the deputy superintendent covered heating and air conditioning in schools, including the three schools that still lack air conditioning. He expressed support for the donation, saying he thought the units going to Boston Public Schools would be a great addition to helping keep schools cool.

Additional Informal Discussion

Administration representatives mentioned a time-sensitive internet program that was not included in today's docket. Councilor Flynn said a separate hearing might not be necessary, and that he would relay preliminary conversations to his colleagues so they are aware of the proposal in the regular course of business.

Key Outcomes

No formal votes were taken during the hearing.
Councilor Flynn stated his plan to bring Dockets 1085, 1395, and 1397 forward to the Council floor on Wednesday, September 23, 2026, for a formal vote.
Flynn said he would relay that he had an important discussion with the administration's team and expressed confidence that they could proceed so the docket could get out the door.
No members of the public signed up to testify in person or virtually.
Flynn requested and expected to receive the upcoming schedules for digital-equity office hours.

Meeting Transcript

Good morning. My name is Ed Flynn, District Two City Council. I am chair of the City Council Committee on City Services. Today is September twenty first. The exact time is ten zero three.gov slash city council. Broadcast on Xfinity Channel Eight.gov and will be made part of the record and available to all city councillors. If you are interested in testifying in person, please add your name to the sign up sheet near the entrance of the chamber when you walk in.gov for the link in your name will be added to the list. If you are looking to testify virtually, please email our central staff liaison Ryan Pratt at Ryan R Y A N dot Pratt P R A T T at Boston.gov for the link in your name will be added to the list. Today's hearing is on docket 1085, which it which is a message in order authorizing the city of Boston to accept, expend the amount of 20, 930 in the form of a grant, the El Centro Fellowship Grant, ordered to Catholic Charities, Archdiocese of Boston to be administered by the Department of Innovation and Technology. Do it. The grant would fund the fellowship program for El Centro IT program graduates. This matter was sponsored by Mayor Wu. It was referred to the committee on June 3rd, 2026. Docket 1395 message in order authorizing the city of Boston to accept and expend the amount of 225, 125 11 cents in the form of a grant, the MBI Digital Equity Partnership Program awarded by the U.S. Department of Treasury passed through the Massachusetts Technology Collaborative to administered to be administered by the Department of Innovation and Technology. The grant would fund services and support for residents of the Commonwealth who cannot afford broadband service and or internet connected devices or lack the digital skills needed to utilize the internet. The following the last docket, which is docket 1397, message in order authorizing the city of Boston to accept and expand a gift of 43 heating, ventilation, air conditioned units, HVAC of various types valued at 84,210 from FWC 2026 U.S. Inc. This gift is awarded to the City of Boston at the Mayor's office for the use in the public facilities of various departments across the city, including police stations, schools, and municipal offices. These matters were sponsored by Mayor Wu. They were referred to the committee on July 22nd 2026. I want to say thank you to the administration team for being here this morning. And we have present with us Brian Dunahu, the Chief Digital Equity Officer, Director of Broadband and Cable Department Department of Innovation and Technology. Do it. Sheila Lee, the Senior Director of Operations, Department of Innovation Technology. Trish Kafsky. Kafferski. Okay, Caferty. I'm so sorry about the pronunciation. The Deputy Chief of Operations, Real Estate and Capital Strateg Strategies, the Mayor's Office. And Peter Favorito. Okay. I got that one right, Peter. Broadband and Digital Equity Advocacy. Department of Inf Innovation and Technology. Would the panel like to speak on all dockets at the same time, or do you want to break them down? Or what is best for you? I would say we probably need to separate the air conditioning docket from the other two, but happy to speak to whichever of them in whichever order you'd prefer. Okay. Why don't we do one dock at a time? Okay. Okay. Let's start with the um, let's start with the first one. Um that's that's on that's on the agenda, which is 1085, which is the 20,000 um grant for El Centro. Yep, absolutely. Okay. Uh and thank you, uh Chair in General for asking us to come here and speak to some of these programs. We're we're really excited for this uh opportunity to have additional resources for these types of programs funded uh for the El Centro grant. We had been working with this organization in the past. They are a subsidiary of the Catholic charities.

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