[{"_1":2,"_87":-5,"_88":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,75],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},"mediaId",6376350,"mediaKeyId","2140415-49fcfd14628ddf11c361df2961e29d9e","parentId",2140415,"title","Council hearing also presses city on Madison Park redevelopment, MSBA application and community input","audioSeconds",2812,"startMs",3444000,"endMs",6256000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=2140415-49fcfd14628ddf11c361df2961e29d9e&start=3444&end=6256","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2140415-49fcfd14628ddf11c361df2961e29d9e/thumbnail_3444000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6376350/Boston-City/Suffolk-County/Massachusetts/Council-hearing-also-presses-city-on-Madison-Park-redevelopment-MSBA-application-and-community-input","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6376350-414babfb76ca4213ae692caf025a547f/orig.mp4?Expires=1770447780&Signature=dSzjWZdqTWldsCFdNn-x6GdBlGdSqg99hn2Ot98vA6QY-Yd1mlE0xUiCNEfIw-Llgz-LZhG1~7D7TYPl9xrVYkbzS6Z50rClB-7XEUPCMGjE-R8Yxss4Cg11iTpGQpy3R41Z7-FIic6Ln~ApeO9jZGoUhg--n-bsULms9FYPCxc8YjrLDh0Jsj8OklUJUwIqzmiwAXa5-jMeSMcxVXnDBnVwpX1LBCD3mSSdLvt6TJC69hvogEmfKKADny431lZYCR55frnRTGTKfCDyxWGPUkypNT4iMczAIXXlRDxnyR9Orc26Y88luZe-099SWaasix~FMJ2vX6fInzwFKf0TDA__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","Boston City, MA","date","2025-01-22T00:00:00Z","article","Boston officials and community members spent substantial time Jan. 22 discussing the future of Madison Park Vocational Technical High School and how the city is handling community engagement for that project.

Why it matters: Madison Park is the city's only comprehensive vocational-technical high school. Alumni, school leaders, labor advocates and education experts said investing in the school is critical to fill local workforce needs in trades and technical fields.

Alumni and parents said the long-running project has been opaque and that critical decisions had been made without sufficient advance notice to families, teachers and students. Robert Jenkins, president of the Madison Park Alumni Association and a member of the Independent Advisory Group (IAG) for White Stadium, told the committee the school community wants a sustained, inclusive planning process that brings students, teachers, parents, alumni and neighborhood organizations into decision-making.

Barry Bluestone, an academic who said he leads a business-labor coalition that supports Madison Park, described workforce demand data he assembled showing large numbers of openings over the next decade for trades and technical occupations (electricians, carpenters, HVAC, culinary, dental assistants). He urged accelerating work at Madison Park to produce career-ready graduates.

City officials described a programmatic feasibility study and a series of stakeholder sessions that informed educational programming and design options. They said they have been discussing both renovation and new-build options and that the community largely prefers a new-build solution to avoid displacing students into temporary \"swing space.\" The administration told the committee it intends to submit an application to the Massachusetts School Building Authority; community meetings and a school-based meeting schedule are planned to discuss the application and the project's next steps.

Some community leaders urged the city not to delay work while waiting on state funding. \"We should not be waiting on the results of the MSBA application,\" said the director of a statewide parent advocacy group, urging the city to pursue both local construction plans and state funds in parallel.

What\u0000happens next: The administration said the MSBA application window closes in April and that local approvals (school committee and city council) are part of the path forward. Council leaders said they will file formal information requests and consider council action to clarify priorities and timelines.

Ending: Madison Park advocates won repeated expressions of support from multiple councilors and outside experts during the hearing. The administration said it will present design concepts at a community meeting and work with the school committee and council on next steps; parents and alumni said they will press for a clear and accelerated schedule and for explicit commitments to keep in-school programs and CTE partnerships intact during construction.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","Boston City Council | Post-Audit: Government Accountability, Transparency and Accessibility on January 22, 2025 (2:00pm)","oneSentenceSummary","Boston officials and community members spent substantial time Jan. 22 discussing the future of Madison Park Vocational Technical High School and how the city is handling community engagement for that project.","taxTitle","Boston City, Suffolk County, Massachusetts","taxId",3381,"location","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":76,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":77,"_41":78,"_43":79,"_45":80,"_47":81,"_49":82,"_51":83,"_53":84,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":85,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":86,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},6376355,"Boston council hearing spotlights community concerns over White Stadium plan, park trees and traffic",8587,181000,8768000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2140415-49fcfd14628ddf11c361df2961e29d9e&start=181&end=8768","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2140415-49fcfd14628ddf11c361df2961e29d9e/thumbnail_181000.jpg","/articles/6376355/Boston-City/Suffolk-County/Massachusetts/Boston-council-hearing-spotlights-community-concerns-over-White-Stadium-plan-park-trees-and-traffic","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6376355-b7a1ba1b4d285ef4cb4c284c2efbf8d8/orig.mp4?Expires=1770447780&Signature=f32dCcO9oUbXtvIV9r7PYl3eYtz0FuCpojpamR~NwX-Uu1jBn9M8ddwTHpUxlBRidJllITEAbwh09jYWcS1aVABpUGndvuHOXamuK5ToTKMT9jCDL9Sl8SR0QMJt~Lt~3lQUC3L9J7l9z-4NOlwIdTPqtheU3lQN6HcI4nS~yU36RzpOdUX5j3hir4lZCZk4Q8yRCg5RfT4vRKJuqezrW0rzgV-l2s6DoVeHgNnnaJXVUA~AIZ~QYCkGt3s4mhIJ39fG-mQsTIug6OyO2aXfxxGZeN1Zt62-1z7mvVfRPKDOpO1YNXRiuFceNvVdNjdRlIt0-yzIPhCWC4UxrTa9CA__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","The Boston City Council\u0000Committee on Post Audit, Government Accountability, Transparency and Accessibility heard hours of testimony Jan. 22 about the proposed White Stadium renovation in Franklin Park, with many residents and park advocates saying the city and private partners rushed decisions, did not present alternatives and failed to conduct meaningful community engagement.

Why it matters: White Stadium sits inside Franklin Park, a 500-acre public landscape that many speakers called an \"irreplaceable\" park resource. Speakers raised concerns about removal of mature trees, traffic and emergency-access impacts on adjacent neighborhoods, and what opponents described as a privatized facility that could limit public access.

Residents and environmental advocates said the process felt presentation-driven rather than deliberative. \"This was presented to us as the only way to fix White Stadium, and it is not,\" said a resident who testified that alternative plans—most notably one from the Emerald Necklace Conservancy—had received little or no independent review. Multiple speakers said they learned too late that fences and pre-demolition work had begun.

Supporters and some neighborhood leaders said engagement did happen, but that the community is divided. Kevin Bott, a Parkside Neighborhood Association member and Franklin Park Coalition board member, said the Coalition\u0000survey found a range of views and that the city had addressed roughly 80% of the Coalition's concerns. He said the process has been \"exhausting,\" but added that decisions must ultimately be made.

City officials said they have held a mix of large public meetings, smaller stakeholder workshops and one-on-one briefings. A city official clarified a frequently cited detail: a proposed $1 ticket surcharge would be administered by the Parks Department to support the Franklin Park action plan, not the Emerald Necklace Conservancy.

Speakers pressed the city on operational details that affect neighbors: shuttle and parking plans, emergency-vehicle access, how many event hours BPS will retain for school teams, and how the park\u0000wide environment and tree canopy would be protected. Several people reported the process felt rushed: presentations were released on schedules that community members said left too little time for review and translation.

The hearing also surfaced disagreement among local civic groups. Some longtime Franklin Park volunteers urged caution and independent review before construction moves farther forward; others, including volunteers who ran a local survey, said the proposal had substantial neighborhood backing.

What\u0000happens next: The chair of the committee, Councilor Julia Mejia, said she would submit formal requests for information to the administration under the council's record-request procedure and explore a council vote to make the record clear. The Emerald Necklace Conservancy said it will hold a public presentation of its alternative plan on Feb. 6. The administration said it will continue community meetings and that Parks would administer the proposed ticket surcharge to fund the park action plan.

Ending: The hearing made clear the project has strong supporters and strong opponents; the committee said it would continue oversight work and seek written responses and documents from the administration to answer outstanding technical and procedural questions.","The Boston City Council\u0000Committee on Post Audit, Government Accountability, Transparency and Accessibility heard hours of testimony Jan. 22 about the proposed White Stadium renovation in Franklin Park, with many residents and park advocates saying the city and private partners rushed decisions, did not present alternatives and failed to conduct meaningful community engagement.","actionData","errors"]

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Council hearing also presses city on Madison Park redevelopment, MSBA application and community input

Boston council hearing spotlights community concerns over White Stadium plan, park trees and traffic