Tag: Mayor Wu

  • Work starts on Grove Hall’s full-service community center

    By Madyline Swearing

    Construction of Dorchester’s first stand-alone community center officially began last Wednesday (Oct. 15), three years after the location in Grove Hall was selected. Elected officials and community members celebrated the center’s planning, viewed building designs, and listened to a DJ play Michael Jackson and Prince on the site’s vacant lot.

    Part of the Boston Centers for Youth and Families, the Grove Hall Community Center will be Dorchester’s first full-service city-run center outside of a school building. The building will occupy a city-owned lot that sits across the street from the Grove Hall Library and Senior Center. 

    “For too long, Dorchester’s BCYF centers have been makeshift, shoehorned into leftover space,” said Mayor Wu. “With today’s groundbreaking, we’re making it clear that every neighborhood deserves a state-of-the-art community center that they can be proud of. It’s time to offer the level of programming that the families of Dorchester and Grove Hall deserve.” 

    The 41,000-square-foot facility will feature a pool, a technology lab, a teaching kitchen, and separate teen and senior centers. The $65 million project is funded through the city’s five-year capital plan.

    Because it’s a stand-alone facility, visitors and resources will not be restricted to school hours, allowing for more programming through BCYF. The center can also double as a temporary emergency shelter and a heating and cooling station.

    Designs for the center were finalized through a series of community meetings and feedback forums, including a 3D model viewing at the library. BCYF Commissioner Marta Rivera said the “historic” day would not have been possible without the continuous input from participants at the senior center and students from Dr. Albert D. Holland High School of Technology.

    High school junior Kingston Mills was chosen to represent the school at the groundbreaking ceremony. A Roxbury-Dorchester native, Mills said growing up in the neighborhood instilled a sense of resilience and community in him, which he says will continue to be fostered at the center.

    “Our youth may be 30 percent of the city’s population, but we’re 100 percent of the future,” Mills said. “Continue to invest in us. We’re worth it.” 

    Michael Kozu, co-director of Project RIGHT — which promotes neighborhood stability and economic growth within Grove Hall — said the development of the center can serve as a lesson to young people on how to push back against the status quo and work for what you believe in, despite roadblocks. 

    “Our job is not finished,” Kozu said. “We still have to fill the void for the next two or three years, developing prevention activities until the community center is built.”

    Cynthia Grant-Carter, a Dorchester resident of 30 years, says she is excited to have a space where community members can gather with their friends and family, without having to travel elsewhere.  

    Connie Forbes, a Grove Hall resident, said establishing the center has been an “uphill battle,” but she’s excited that the moment is finally here. “Finally,” she said. “We’ve fought so hard to have this for the community.”

    This story is part of a partnership between the Dorchester Reporter and the Boston University Department of Journalism.

    This article was originally published on October 22, 2025.

  • What to know about Bluebikes’ expansion in Dot, Mattapan, Roxbury, Jamaica Plain

    By Madyline Swearing

    Boston’s bike share system is expanding throughout Dorchester, Mattapan, Roxbury and Jamaica Plain, with 20 new Bluebikes stations to be installed in those neighborhoods. City officials hosted an open house on Oct. 1 at the Marshall Community Center, where residents reviewed proposed site maps and offered feedback on potential station sites (see map below for specific locations).

    Here’s a look at the details of the initiative.

    What is Bluebikes, and how does it work?

    Bluebikes is a publicly owned bike share system that lets anyone rent bikes from docking stations. The system operates in 13 municipalities and has 337 stations in Boston.

    Payment plans include 30-minute rides for $2.95, $10 day passes, monthly and annual memberships. Passes and memberships can be bought on the Bluebikes app and website, or at a station kiosk.

    Boston saw 2.6 million Bluebikes trips in 2024, 11 percent of which started in Dorchester, Mattapan, Roxbury, and Jamaica Plain.

    What is the Bluebikes expansion plan?

    Last year, Mayor Wu and the Boston Streets Cabinet — consisting of the Public Works and Transportation departments — announced plans to add 100 new Bluebikes stations throughout Boston’s neighborhoods to meet a rising demand.

    This is all part of Go Boston 2030, the city’s transportation plan to improve safety, expand access, and reduce emissions. Launched in 2017, the project’s initiatives have included extending MBTA service hours, building neighborhood “slow streets,” and ensuring each household in Boston is within a 10-minute walk of a public bike share station. About 89 percent of households meet that criteria, according to the Streets Cabinet.

    “The objective is to make it convenient and reliable for people to get around the city by bike,” said Boston Bikes Director Kim Foltz. “Biking is a sustainable and affordable form of transportation and is a good connection to other transit.”

    What has already been done?

    The expansion has been implemented in phases, beginning with the MBTA Red Line diversion in 2023. The first phase involved the addition of eight new bike stations in Dorchester and Mattapan, and 31 docks were added to existing stations.

    Since last year, the city has received more than 2,600 comments offering feedback on proposed bike station sites, compiled from open houses, emails, and survey responses. So far, nearly 80 of the 100 new stations have been installed across the Beacon Hill, Downtown, South Boston and Allston neighborhoods, to name a few.

    Where is the project now?

    The initiative is in its fourth phase, focused on adding 20 new Bluebikes stations throughout Dorchester, Mattapan, Roxbury and Jamaica Plain. The Streets Cabinet aims to install two to four stations in Dorchester, two to four in Jamaica Plain, two to five in Mattapan, and four to seven in Roxbury.

    Boston Bike Share Planner Louisa Gag said proposed sites were chosen for their visibility, clearance of utilities, and potential accessibility for a Bluebikes service van. Gag said it is a priority to put docking sites within half a mile of an MBTA station.

    Other requirements include access to at least four hours of sunlight each day, to charge the sun-powered docking computers, and ensuring sites leave at least 5 feet of sidewalk space for pedestrians and 1.5 feet of clearance from the street curb. Off-street sites were favored overall, as they don’t disturb parking and don’t need to be removed for snowplows in the winter.

    Sites may be installed on public or private property, which can include plazas, residential neighborhoods, sidewalks, parking lanes, and libraries.

    Residents are invited to attend open houses where they can review maps of potential docking locations, offer feedback and ask questions. There will be two events in Mattapan this month, on Oct. 28 at the Mattapan Library and on Oct. 30 via Zoom.

    Feedback forms will be offered in person at each open house or can be accessed on the city website until Oct. 31.

    What is the timeline for the project?

    The Streets Cabinet will accept suggestions for new bike stations until Oct. 31. They will be reviewed and considered over four weeks. Site lists will be narrowed, and permits will be filed. Installation is expected to begin in January.

    What other programs does Boston Bikes offer?

    Boston Bikes offers community workshops like adult bike lessons, youth biking programs, and community ride events. Cyclists can arrange to have their bikes repaired at no cost or learn how to fix them independently during community workshop events.

    Discounted bike passes and e-bikes are available for residents, new riders and those who are income-eligible.


    This story is part of a partnership between the Dorchester Reporter and the Boston University Department of Journalism.

    This article was originally published on October 17, 2025.

  • Domingos DaRosa eschews funds in his long-shot mayoral challenge

    Domingos DaRosa stands on the corner of Dudley and Burrell streets, and it seems as if everybody in Roxbury knows him. Friends, family, and strangers yell to him on the sidewalk, across the street and even from their cars. “They love you, Domingos,” said a passerby standing outside Ideal Sub Shop.

    DaRosa is hoping to convert that goodwill into votes for his first bid for mayor of Boston. 

    A near-lifelong Boston resident, the 47-year-old DaRosa moved from Cape Verde to Boston with his family when he was 10 months old and grew up with part of his home in Dorchester and the other in Roxbury. 

    “Growing up here, we had nothing,” he said, “so we built a community with the community. Being Cape Verdean in a community, we were so diverse. Spanish, Black, Cape Verdeans, you name it…all the kids in the neighborhood, we all hung out together.”

    DaRosa, the father of four, owns a landscaping business and volunteers as a coach with the Boston Bengals Pop Warner football program. He launched his campaign on Feb. 2 of this year with a simple post to his Facebook account: “I’ll be running for the mayor seat in Boston.”

    This is not his first city campaign. He ran unsuccessfully for City Council at-large seats in 2017, 2019 and 2021.

    His campaign manager, Sharon Hinton, said she was surprised with DaRosa’s decision to run for mayor.

    “I’m not going to lie. When I first thought about it, I was like, ‘Seriously, mayor?’” said Hinton, who campaigned for DaRosa during his 2021 venture. “I was thinking about who he was coming up against.”

    DaRosa is one of three challengers who made the ballot to challenge Mayor Wu, with Josh Kraft, son of Patriots owner Robert Kraft, and East Boston resident Robert Capucci being the other two. The four will face off in the preliminary municipal election Sept. 9 to determine which two candidates appear on the Nov. 4 ballot.

    Hinton was initially deterred by the lack of funding for DaRosa’s campaign, noting his disadvantage in that respect compared to some of the other candidates. But, that helped to inspire his campaign slogan, “For the people — not the money.”

    Said DaRosa: “I have no money, and I don’t want it, I don’t need it, I don’t care for it, and I don’t think I need it to be able to achieve my goal.”

    While he is raising small dollar donations, he mainly depends on volunteer labor. Hinton isn’t paid for her efforts; one of the students he coaches in the Pop Warner program designed his campaign website; and friends and family members helped to gather the 3,000 signatures necessary to get his name on on the ballot. 

    Natalya Bethel, a DaRosa supporter, used to pick up needles with DaRosa at Massachusetts Avenue and Melnea Cass Boulevard, an area with a history of rampant substance abuse.

    “You have to get a mayor that really cares about the city for the city to improve,” Bethel said, “to clean up that mess, to clean up the violence.”

    For DaRosa, substance abuse in the Mass. and Cass area has long been a problem for him and his Pop Warner program. “I had 300 kids on my football program, and the last season I had, I was barely able to get 30 kids on the field,” he said, citing parents’ concerns with substance abuse on the Clifford Park field in Roxbury. 

    He noted that a 9-year-old player from the Pop Warner program was pricked by a hypodermic needle while running laps in 2022.

    For 15 years, DaRosa has tried in his own way to alleviate the issue by picking up needles throughout Clifford Park and in and around Mass. and Cass.

    In 2020, he moved to raise awareness about the issue by dumping used hypodermic needles outside former Gov. Charlie Baker’s home in Swampscott, which resulted in a court order forbidding him to be within 100 yards of Baker’s residence thereafter.

    As mayor, DaRosa says he’d reopen Long Island, a city-owned facility that housed homeless people and offered addiction treatments until 2014, when the bridge to the harbor island was deemed unsafe. A prolonged and ongoing legal battle between Quincy and Boston has been one major reason that the island — which is owned by Boston— has not been re-used.

    DaRosa says he doesn’t want to rebuild the bridge. He wants to use boats to ferry people and supplies to the island. “Once someone is on the island,” he said, “there’s no way for them to go get the drugs or the paraphernalia they need.”

    He is also against consumption sites in Boston — except for those on Long Island. 

    Some of his other priorities, DaRosa says, include affordable housing, after-school programs and resources for students, public safety initiatives that address illegal substance distribution and gun violence, and direct communication with Immigration Customs and Enforcement. 

    “Wu has no input on how ICE comes into the city,” he said. “They just do what they want to do, and who suffers? Everybody.”

    DaRosa said he wants a more humane detention process for undocumented immigrants. At the same time, he said he believes in prioritizing legal residents and undocumented individuals who are making an effort to obtain legal status.

    “For those who come illegally, we will aid you in finding a way of becoming legal,” he said, “but we’re not going to harbor you, to say, ‘We’re going to hide you among the rest of the people,’ while the rest of the people are the ones taking the collateral damage. That’s not fair to the greater good.”  

    He also offered another point: “I’m the only one on stage that’s an immigrant, remember that. I’m the only one that’s a survivor of BPS. I’m the only one that’s a survivor of gun violence, I’m the only one that has been fighting Mass. and Cass without a political view, just to help the human who’s struggling.”

  • Two Mattapan businesses savor their Legacy Awards

    Nazir Ali, the founder of Ali’s Roti, inside his Blue Hill Avenue restaurant. A native of Trinidad and Tobago. He married into a Dot family and “followed love” to his current home. Sarah Khafif photo

    Ali’s Roti Restaurant has been serving Indian-Caribbean dishes in Mattapan for 35 years while Boulevard Cleaners has been providing laundry services in the neighborhood for 60 years.

    Now the two businesses, each started and run by immigrants, are among 30 honored this year with Boston Legacy Business Awards that Mayor Wu announced in late May. They were presented on Tuesday evening (June 3) at a reception in partnership with The Dorchester Reporter.

    In addition to plaques that they can hang in their shops, the businesses will receive technical assistance with focuses on succession planning and employee ownership as well as free legal consultation and advice for dealing with commercial leases.

    ALI’s ROTI

    Standing and greeting almost every customer who comes into his restaurant, Nazir Ali, the owner and founder of Ali’s Roti, has worked for more than three decades to make his dream come to life.

    He migrated from Trinidad and Tobago after living there with his wife, who was born and raised in Dorchester and wanted to return home, and children for a couple of years.

    “I followed love,” said Ali, who arrived in the United States with almost nothing. Back home, he had worked as a painting contractor, but when he converted his earnings to US dollars, it amounted to very little.

    “I’ve never worked so hard for so little in my life,” said Ali, remembering those early days.

    Initially, he planned to move to Florida and start a taxi business there, but his wife insisted on Boston. Although he had been a painting contractor for over 20 years in Trinidad and Tobago, that business thrived on networking, he said. Because he didn’t know anybody in Boston, he said, he pivoted to his second idea: a restaurant.

    Ali’s Roti began with him, his wife, and his in-laws, and with his children helping on weekends and during summers while they were growing up.

    Although none of his current employees are immediate family now, he says they are all “like children, brothers and sisters.” Some have been working there for more than 25 years.

    The restaurant’s signature dish, roti, is an Indian-Caribbean flatbread filled with different curry fillings such as curry potato, chicken, shrimp, and vegetables. The menu also includes chicken curry, beef curry, goat curry, and steamed cabbage.

    “I have a policy that I implemented: If a customer is wrong, we make them right,” he said. “If it costs us a meal, we’ll take the loss. We don’t want to lose a customer.”

    City Councillor Brian Worrell says he often eats there with his colleagues, craving not only the rotis but also the restaurant’s ambience.

    “It’s like a reunion, like you’re running into family, friends from school, people from work,” he said. “It’s just a special place.” From their seats in the restaurant’s red booths, diners have a direct view into the kitchen where they can watch the cooks make the rotis.

    Winning a Legacy Business award feels unnatural, Ali said. “I was an award giver,” he said, not the other way around, referring to the various times the restaurant has donated awards for church, clubs and carnivals in the neighborhood.

    His restaurant means everything to him, said Ali. “I do get emotional when I talk about it.”

    BOULEVARD CLEANERS

    Above, Peter Papadogiannis, co-owner of Boulevard Cleaners, is shown in the Blue Hill Avenue business last month. “I look at them as family,” he says of his longtime customers. Hannah Roderick photo

    Brothers Peter and Dimitrios Papadogiannis are the essence of Boulevard Cleaners & Tailors, a laundry service that has served customers from all over Massachusetts since the 1960s.

    “I look at them as family,” said Peter, the owner. “We love everybody here,” said Dimitrios, Peter’s right hand man.

    The moment you step inside Boulevard Cleaners, your eyes fix on a wall filled with photos that tell of the family’s odyssey to Mattapan. They start with scenic landscapes of Greece, including Athens, Santorini, and Ioannina, and end with images of the Boston skyline.

    The brothers’ late uncle opened Boulevard Cleaners after migrating from Greece during the political turmoil of the 1960s, seeking a better life in America. The brothers and their mother followed in 1977, and their father joined them two years later.

    When they first arrived, Dimitrios, who was 19, worked at a bakery in the Fenway to help pay the bills, while Peter, then 14, attended high school. After graduation, Peter started working in the laundry business with his uncle. Dimitrios joined later – he had opened his own business, but shut it down after the 9/11 attacks.

    Together, they’ve continued their uncle’s legacy, which has earned them a Legacy Business Award.

    “It’s an honor,” Dimitrios said. “It’s not just for us. The award is for everybody.” 

    Peter said he has avoided the temptation to raise prices in difficult times because he wants to keep his customers. “I’d rather work a little harder instead of raising my prices.” 

    Some customers keep bringing their laundry to Boulevard even after moving out of town, the brothers said. Customers come from as far as Brockton, Framingham, and Martha’s Vineyard, they said.

    The brothers’ fun-filled ways and easygoing personalities have helped build long-lasting relationships with customers. “We joke all the time,” Peter said.

    That’s especially true on April Fool’s Day, when they have made a habit of pulling pranks on customers. This year, they said, a customer pulled up early in the morning and parked next to the curb. He stepped in to pick up his clothes and was faced with worrisome looks.

    “Did you notice you have a flat tire on the rear?” Peter recalled telling him. The customer turned around to check out his car and was greeted by laughter from behind the counter.

    “April Fools,” the brothers said.

  • Mayor Wu proposes $4.8 billion budget, girding for federal cuts

     Boston Mayor Michelle Wu announced her $4.8 billion budget for fiscal year 2026 Wednesday morning, one she said aims to provide stability while preparing for uncertainty in the future of federal funding.

    Boston relies on $300 million in federal funding each fiscal year. Wu said the city has never made a mid-year budget cut to staffing positions, except when it’s had to adjust for cuts at the state level.

    “So far, that has been relatively legally protected, but we know that right now the law is not seen as a boundary either,” Wu said of federal funding at the annual budget breakfast. “And so we need to be preparing for the worst in every case.”

    Wu said given the new federal climate, city layoffs could have to be considered in the future.

    The proposed budget marks a 4.4% increase from last year, adjusting for a one-time Housing Accelerator Program appropriation. It would eliminate nearly 500 city government positions that have been vacant for over a year; it does not call for any new positions and reduces spending on non-personnel items, such as equipment and supplies.

    The City Council must still approve the budget, which would take effect July 1.

    Wu also unveiled a five-year $4.5 billion capital plan to invest in essential services across the city, from roads and sidewalks to school renovations, parks and library buildings. The plan decreases slightly from the last one in size and number of projects; it includes 72 Boston Public Schools projects and aims to improve responsiveness to safety requests on the 311 line.

    Property taxes remain the primary revenue source for all city services. The mayor said her administration continues to “push for relief for residents who’ve had to bear the increased tax burden,” as the commercial tax burden has decreased.

    In comments after the speech, Wu emphasized the risks to local funding under the Trump administration: “We know this will still be a period of uncertainty that will last probably the next 4 years at least,” she said, noting she’s hearing from residents across the city who “really are struggling right now.”

    Josh Kraft, who’s running against Wu in the mayor’s race, has criticized her handling of the budget.  He told WBUR in an interview this week, “Nothing is more core than fiscal responsibility, and a budget that’s grown 20% in three years is something that I don’t think shows a lot of fiscal discipline.”

    City officials say this year’s budget was a more collaborative process between the mayor’s office and the City Council than in the past. City Councilor Brian Worrell said budget conversations began in November and have gone through working sessions and public hearings, which will continue until the council votes on the plan.

    The council’s recommendations include prioritizing housing and food insecurity, protecting diversity and inclusion amidst the Trump administration’s crackdown, and funding quality-of-life issues, including clean streets and better pest control.

    “The mayor’s proposed budget therefore reflects much of the Council’s advocacy, and much of what we’ve heard from community,” council President Ruthzee Louijeune said.

    One beneficiary is a community center in Allston-Brighton. The center is slated to get revitalization funding, Louijeune said, after longtime calls from the community.

    The city’s chief financial officer, Ashley Groffenberger, also highlighted programs such as downtown office conversions to create more dorms and workforce housing, and a partnership with Eversource and National Grid to help residents manage utility bills.

    “This year, we’re focusing on achieving that balance point: preparing for the worst case scenarios, given federal uncertainty and the larger economy,” Wu said, “while not jumping ahead to slash city services that we know are more critical than ever for our residents and businesses.”

    This story is part of a partnership between WBUR and the Boston University Department of Journalism. With additional reporting from WBUR’s Mira Donaldson.