Boston Policy Institute, Inc

Boston Policy Institute, Inc BPI is providing non-partisan original research, expert analysis, and important resources on the most pressing challenges facing MA & Boston.

Make your election predictions in 14 primaries being held on September 1 with BPI: the link is in our story & thru the...
08/25/2026

Make your election predictions in 14 primaries being held on September 1 with BPI: the link is in our story & thru the link in our bio!

The prediction markets are not helpful for figuring out what will happen in most of those races, because the offices on the ballot this year most important for the policy is BPI focused on - District Attorney and state legislature - are not on either Polymarket or Kalshi. Contests in Massachusetts higher on the ballot - for Governor, Senator, and Congress - are on the prediction markets, and it is worth watching how those platforms’ predictions stack up against the final results.

For those who still want the thrill of picking their expected winners, BPI can’t offer financial rewards, but you can compete for bragging rights!

On Thursday and Friday it appeared that Councilor Flynn had been removed from position as Vice Chair of the Veterans Com...
08/24/2026

On Thursday and Friday it appeared that Councilor Flynn had been removed from position as Vice Chair of the Veterans Committee, based on a social media post from that committee’s chair Henry Santana. It eventually turned out Flynn wasn’t removed from the leadership position and the post was called a “typo”.

BPI’s Executive Director Gregory Maynard spoke to the Boston Herald about why such a move was unusual: the 2 Councilors to have their chairmanships pulled recently - Ricardo Arroyo and Tania Fernandes Anderson - only saw that action taken after serious issues became public.

08/23/2026

The other major supporter of the Public Improvement Commission’s vote on Thursday to replace the Bennington St bikeway with parking, in addition to Mayor Wu’s East Boston liaison from ONS Carlos Garcia, was D1 Councilor Gabriela Coletta Zapata office. They were represented at this meeting by a council aide Stephen Marin, who is testifying in this clip. Coletta Zapata‘s thinking on street safety beyond a short statement in July shortly after Gag’s death has not been clear because has been out on maternity leave, and as a result hasn’t been present at recent Council meetings to speak on any of the various streets safety dockets that the Council offered in July and August. That means the testimony Marin offered at Thursday’s meeting takes on outside importance in determining where Coletta Zapata stands in the street safety conversation.

08/23/2026

Mayor Wu committed to serious street safety changes in July, but her rhetoric in recent press interviews and now this move by the Public Improvement Commission, led by the recently demoted ex-Streets Chief Nick Gove, to kill a previously approved bikeway has seen activists and transit advocacy orgs like Boston Cyclists Union question Wu. Here is the testimony of Carlos Garcia, the East Boston liaison for the Mayor’s Office of Neighborhood Services, laying out the case for why the Bennington St Bikeway - negotiated by the Planning Dept in 2022 and approved by PIC in 2023 - needed to be eliminated.

For a late summer week, there was a lot of action:🏟️ The White Stadium lawsuit might be over, but there are still hurdle...
08/22/2026

For a late summer week, there was a lot of action:
🏟️ The White Stadium lawsuit might be over, but there are still hurdles before the project can be completed, including striking a deal on shuttle buses with the MBTA & navigating a state law against liquor sales on school grounds.
💰 The most important lawsuit to face Mayor Wu - which alleges a City Hall scheme to overtax commercial landlords who appeals their assessments - is 2.5x larger than previously estimated.
🚲 A unanimous vote to eliminate a previously-approved bikeway in East Boston could mean Mayor Wu and activists are headed for a clash over street safety.

Read the whole thing thru our story!

08/20/2026

While the White Stadium lawsuit was decided in favor of the City this clip from the oral argument held back on April 8, 2026 captures why ​⁠the plaintiffs thought the law was on their side. This is Alan Lipkind, the plaintiffs attorney, explaining why he believed the Boston/NWSL deal triggered Article 97 while answering questions from 2 SJC justices.

08/19/2026

This morning the SJC decision in the White Stadium lawsuit came out and Boston won: the project is allowed to go forward as planned. BPI published an analysis of the decision, which went out to folks that get our newsletter. This isn’t the end of White Stadium talk: issues with the transportation plan, the sale of liquor on BPS property, and the impact of the stadium on the surrounding neighborhood still need to be worked through.

08/18/2026

During the hearing on a proposal to expand a property tax break for low-income seniors back on June 15, Interim Assessing Commissioner Hinlan Wong and Age Strong Commissioner Emily Shea weren’t able to provide info about either the fiscal impact or expected number of recipients of the proposed changes. Despite the lack of info, the Council approved this expansion, and Mayor Wu signed it into law.

08/17/2026

Last week the Boston Herald talked to BPI’s executive director Gregory Maynard about the delay in a decision on the White Stadium lawsuit and what the fallout will be if the City loses the lawsuit. TL;DR: After all the money, time, and effort that Mayor Wu and her administration put into this project, a loss would be disastrous.

08/17/2026

As Council President in 24-25 Ruthzee Louijeune exercised control over Rule 15 decisions that neither of her immediate colleagues - Flynn in 22-23 or Breadon in 26-27 - were able to. That was a major revelation in Thursday’s Rules Cmte on Rule 15, where City Clerk Alex Geourntas was the expert panelist.

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