Boston Breaks CPA Records with 113 CPC Applicants
Nov. 17, 2017: Boston was among the many success stories from just over a year ago when the city's residents voted to adopt the Community Preservation Act by over 70%. Today, that excitement has yet to slow down, as over 100 people applied for a position on the city's local Community Preservation Committee.
In accordance with to the city's ordinance that was approved earlier this year, the Mayor and the City Council appointed nine members of the local Community Preservation Committee. Five of those members were appointed by the mayor from City commissions and agencies. The four remaining slots were selected by City Council from the general public. Because of the city's varied needs and diverse neighborhoods, the selection process for these at-large slots was designed to be a robust and far-reaching process.
After the application deadline passed on November 9th, the city received a total of 113 applications from residents willing to serve in one of the four at-large positions, breaking all previous records of local committee interest in CPA history. To narrow this list down, the Boston City Council appointed a special working group that included members of the original Yes for a Better Boston adoption campaign to assist in the selection process. This group narrowed the pool down to a selection of finalists. Then, on December 13th, Boston City Council made their final approval, appointing Madeligne Tena, Matthew Kiefer, Kannan Thiruvengadam, and Ying Wang to the Committee.
Despite the limited number of spaces on the CPC roster, the excitement surrounding the selection process is a testament to how important the local CPA program is to the city's interest in preserving its open space, affordable housing, and historic resources.