Somerville Finance Committee Budget Priorities Meeting – March 25, 2026

The Somerville City Council Finance Committee of the Whole met remotely on March 25, 2026, at 6:04 PM, chaired by Councillor Ben Wheeler. All 11 councillors participated, with a quorum established. The meeting approved several consent agenda items and conducted a comprehensive budget priorities discussion, focusing on new or expanded spending, maintaining existing funding, and potential cuts amid a projected $5.5–$5.9 million shortfall.

Consent Calendar

• Item 1 (ID 26-0375): Approval of March 10, 2026, minutes – recommended for approval.
• Item 2 (ID 26-0325): $15,000 transfer from Veterans Services grounds maintenance to Special Items account for a MA General Court and State Historical Records Advisory Board grant match. Director of Veterans Services Jerome Thomas confirmed this is a continuation of a previously approved grant for digitizing memorials and monuments.
• Item 3 (ID 26-0202): Appropriation of $75,000 from the bike share stabilization fund for installation and startup costs of a Bluebikes station at 16–20 Medford Street Development. Director of Finance and Administration Alan Inacio noted the funds were previously donated and the city is purchasing the equipment.
• Item 4 (ID 26-0163): Appropriation of $430,965 from unreserved fund balance (free cash) to the special education reserve fund. Director of Finance Edward Bean and School CFO Robert Beretta explained the funds were late-arriving FY2024 circuit breaker money that closed to free cash and are being restored for special education. Councillors Davis, Klingon, and Chair Wheeler recused themselves from the vote.
• Items 5–9 (CPA appropriations):
  • Item 5: $100,766 from CPA Historic Preservation Reserve to Somerville Museum for artifact conservation.
  • Item 6: $200,000 from CPA Open Space Reserve to Open Space Land Acquisition Fund.
  • Item 7: $1,167,395 from CPA Community Housing Reserve to Affordable Housing Trust.
  • Item 8: $399,255 from CPA undesignated fund balance to CPA community housing reserve.
  • Item 9: $50,000 from CPA budgeted reserve to housing authority for open space improvements at Mystic River and View Developments.
  • Director Inacio explained these appropriations are a mid-year true-up to maintain the 55% pre-voted CPA allocation to the housing trust, after the recent CPA surcharge increase took effect.

All consent items were approved by roll call vote (Item 4 was voted separately with recusals noted).

Budget Priorities Discussion

Chair Wheeler outlined a four-round discussion: each councillor’s priorities, new/expanded spending items, items to maintain funding, and areas to possibly cut. He recused himself from discussions on the Racial and Social Justice Department and its teen program, as his child receives a stipend from that program. Vice Chair Scott took over during that period; no councillor raised those topics.

Priorities Expressed by Councillors (summary of positions):

• Councillor Klingon: Requested increasing the paving budget to repave 2% of roads per year (up from ~1%), citing a scoring system for fairness. He also noted the paving program currently covers about 1% of roads annually.
• Councillor Ewan Campen: Called for protecting core services—housing stability, safe streets, out-of-school time capacity, immigrant rights programs, and Gilman Square activation. He emphasized that the federal economic situation is creating budget pressure.
• Councillor McLaughlin: Requested an air filtration pilot near I-93/McGrath Highway, $100,000 additional immigration legal aid, completion of the Kensington Connector, funding for the East Somerville Library, and a municipal sidewalk snowplow program prioritizing seniors and people with disabilities.
• Councillor Mbaugh: Urged strategic prioritization: protect immigrant services, core services (schools, public safety, public health, infrastructure), and critical school infrastructure (e.g., Winter Hill school reconstruction). Suggested shifting affordable housing subsidies toward direct rental/homeowner assistance rather than development subsidies.
• Councillor Link: Prioritized housing stability (eviction protection, tenant support, permanent affordable housing), well-funded schools, safe walking/biking routes, immigrant protection with language access, climate commitments, and arts/culture funding.
• Councillor Said: Listed 13 priorities including continued funding for the Office of Immigrant Affairs, translation services, flexible rental assistance, citywide food waste collection, alternative emergency response (non-police), community path improvements, safe streets, food security, public education, school building decarbonization study, swing space plan for schools, activating the high school as a youth center, and repairing the Armory roof.
• Councillor Davis: Focused on retaining core services, the Davis Square neighborhood plan, supportive housing, and increasing support for community partners as an alternative to expanding city departments. He noted the budget shortfall is about $5.9 million.
• Councillor Hart: Called for investment in the Office of Housing Stability (flex rental assistance, municipal voucher, older adult bridge program), deeply affordable housing via early action acquisition fund, $100,000 additional for immigration legal aid through Greater Boston Legal Services to hire a paralegal dedicated to Somerville, continued funding for children/youth programs (schools, OST, vocational training, food access), and the senior taxi program.
• Councillor Strazo: Requested funding for Founders Rink (including a girls’ intramural hockey program), teen/kids’ out-of-school time spaces, patio furniture in City Hall concourse, weather-sturdy clothing for crossing guards, funding to implement MA Anti-Semitism Commission recommendations (implicit bias and anti-racist trainings), two quiet work pods in City Hall, sustaining Office of Housing Stability, a low-income/first-generation homeownership pilot, sustaining Office of Immigrant Affairs, a senior advocate liaison in the executive branch, $300 for Council on Aging t-shirts (not nametags), free menstrual products in all city-owned buildings, continued rat eradication, and the Neighborways street mural program.
• Vice Chair Scott: Endorsed multiple priorities: housing programs (especially Office of Housing Stability), safe streets, immigrant affairs, out-of-school time spaces, non-police alternative emergency response (not co-response). He also called for enforcement of the vacant properties ordinance (passed 2019 but never enforced), implementation of a rental registry, and increased funding for the Arts Council, libraries, and Council on Aging due to high value per dollar. He noted many councillors’ memos called for the same initiatives.
• Chair Wheeler: (discussing cuts) Urged examining police overtime, evaluating management layers for efficiency, and rethinking new roles (e.g., two full-time youth substance abuse prevention positions). He emphasized the need for careful analysis given the shortfall.

New/Expanded Spending Items (additional points):

• Immigration legal aid expansion (Councillors Hart, Scott, and others supported $100,000 for GBLS).
• Rental registry and vacant property enforcement (Councillors Scott, Mbaugh, and Hart).
• Alternative emergency response program (Councillors Said, Scott).
• Making housing stability programs permanent recurring budget items (Councillor Scott).
• Smart traffic lights (Councillor Scott).
• Homeless services coordinator and senior liaison (Councillor Strazo).
• Expanding after-school and preschool access (Councillor Scott).

Areas to Maintain Funding (no new cuts proposed):

• Councillor Link urged cutting contract/consultant costs before cutting resident services.
• Chair Wheeler stressed the need to sustain core services, especially given the tight budget.
• Several councillors emphasized protecting immigrant services, housing stability, schools, and public safety.

Areas to Deprioritize (proposed reductions/cuts):

• Councillor Link: Suggested reducing contract/consultant spending.
• Vice Chair Scott: Called for reducing reliance on outsourcing/contractors (which he said costs four times as much), cutting middle management that expanded significantly since 2009, and re-evaluating programs where allocated funds go unspent. He also suggested looking at the “negative space” in priority memos.
• Councillor Mbaugh: Proposed reassessing pandemic-era programs and phasing out underperforming programs.
• Chair Wheeler: Suggested analyzing police overtime, reviewing management layers, and reconsidering new positions (e.g., youth substance abuse prevention roles) to ensure cost-effectiveness.

Key Outcomes

• Consent items (1–9) were recommended for approval via roll call votes.
• The budget memos were placed on file as work completed.
• The meeting adjourned at 7:32 PM.
• The council will proceed to evaluate the mayor’s proposed budget (not yet presented) and will have further discussions in June for possible reallocations. Councillors stressed that the city council’s role is to review and amend the mayor’s proposal, not to create departments unilaterally.
• A $5.5–$5.9 million shortfall was acknowledged, attributed to federal economic policies, and councillors urged the administration to prioritize core resident services and cost-saving measures before cutting programs.