Newsletter Released February 11th 2021

State of the City:

On January 28, 2021, I delivered my first State of the City address. In this, I both updated residents on what the City accomplished in 2020 and my plans for 2021. I spoke on issues such as responsiveness, progress, and diversity and inclusiveness in our City.

Since the pandemic set in, I have regular virtual meetings with local business leaders, hospitals, nursing homes, pastors, and our financial institutions. I have formed both regional and county task forces with other municipal executives to share resources and best practices with our neighboring communities to fight this pandemic.

I held town halls for our City and school employees and faith community leaders to answer questions and hear feedback. I have held multilingual town halls in Haitian and Cape Verdean. We needed to work together to coordinate effective responses, and we did that, working across departments, languages, faiths, and town lines. These meetings have been essential to ensure everyone is provided for in our COVID-19 response effort.

Harvard University students worked virtually with my office on researching process mapping helping citizens of Brockton navigate different departments and processes in City Hall, such as obtaining building permits and improving SeeClickFix (the website available to Brocktonians to report issues in their neighborhoods.) The School Department also worked with a student on preparing for virtual learning.

Under my administration, I have made it a top priority to highlight diversity throughout the City. I have been working with the Human Resource Office in City Hall and looking to hire a Diversity and Inclusion Manager that will focus on diversity issues within City Hall. Brockton has much to offer, and I look forward to making sure we become a City others can emulate.

To see the full address, watch it here.

COVID-19 Update and Vaccinations:

I continue to stay in daily contact with Brockton's Executive Health Officer for the Board of Health Dr. Eno Mondesir, the City's medical consultant Dr. Richard Herman, and BEMA Director Steve Hooke to plan and implement our COVID-19 response in the City. Our focus has shifted to planning to get vaccinations for eligible Brockton residents as quickly as possible. We have a site and staff ready, but we are waiting for doses. Brockton has been disproportionately impacted by COVID-19. I am working to ensure efficiency in the distribution that will benefit our City’s most vulnerable residents. On Tuesday, February 2, 2021, I wrote a letter to Governor Charlie Baker, requesting a state-designated mass vaccination site in the City as we have been disproportionately impacted by COVID-19. You can read the full letter here. Also, my office has created an online signup sheet for the COVID-19 vaccination information. Share your information with the City and we will contact you when vaccinations become available. Sign up for Covid and vaccine updates here.

School Opening:

On January 19, 2021, the School Committee’s Policy Subcommittee set a tentative date for reopening for Brockton’s special education students for Tuesday, February 23, 2021. Together with the Superintendent of Schools Michael Thomas and the School Committee, I am planning logistics that will keep our students safe as we continue to open back to the general student population. Additionally, I held a roundtable discussion with other school districts within the Commonwealth that educate Brockton students. The goal of this roundtable was to discuss school policies and whether learning should be a remote, hybrid, or in-person. I also discussed what has worked and what has not in an effort to identify best practices moving forward.

Holiday Season in Review:

My office coordinated several holiday outreach events to give back to Brocktonians going through difficult times to ensure families had hot meals and holiday gifts for their children. I am particularly proud of my first annual Toy Drive which collected over 300 gifts. Following all social distancing and CDC guidelines, I collaborated with community partners such as People Affecting Community Change (PACC), Copeland Toyota, Champion Plan, Brockton Police Department, Support the Soupman, and many others. Together we are able to make a difference for Brocktonians.

Grants:

-The City of Brockton has partnered with Bridgewater State University and Boston Medical Center to receive a federal grant of $1.3 million dollars to reduce deaths caused by opioid addiction.

-Through the Commonwealth’s Executive Office of Housing and Economic Development, (EOHED), the City secured a competitive grant worth $60,000. This grant helps with workforce and education in which the MassHire Greater Brockton Career Center will recruit participants for training, provide support, and assist with job placement services.

The City of Brockton has been awarded a $250,000 grant from the Commonwealth to remove toxic materials from the vacant Corcoran Building at 308 Montello Street. This is the first step toward redeveloping the property into new downtown housing. The grant will be used to address the contamination of soil, asbestos, and lead paint. Clearing these obstacles will help make way for the development of affordable housing.

The City was awarded a $600,000 grant from the Department of Justice, Office of Justice Programs-Comprehensive Opioid Abuse Site-Based Program (COAP) Grant Funds, to develop collaborative initiatives with Champion Plan to provide resources for individuals suffering from substance abuse and raise awareness to vulnerable populations about HIV/AIDS/STI.

Brockton was awarded a $300,000 grant from the Department of Public Health’s Bureau of Addiction Services-Substance Abuse Prevention Program (SAPC) to help prevent and reduce opioid overdoses in the City in the region.

Through a competitive grant, the City received $136,000 through the Community Compact IT grant to modernize our permitting system. Contractors and home-owners will soon be able to apply for and pay online for building permits. This new system will streamline home improvement and make the process for new construction less complicated. It will be accessible 24/7 and will allow filings from out of state be a reality.

I am proud to announce that thanks to a state Food Security Infrastructure Grant, Brockton High School will soon house an indoor farm to be cultivated and managed by our students. This hydroponic system will provide fresh produce to many BPS families, teach business skills to our youth, reduce food insecurity, and improve sustainability.
Hollywood Comes to Brockton!:

Netflix and AMC have come to Brockton to film some of their projects which include major motion pictures and TV shows. The Commonwealth’s film tax breaks have attracted more productions to Massachusetts and Brockton stands to benefit from these new jobs and business opportunities. Shots of Downtown Brockton will be on the big screen country-wide and globally showcasing all the City has to offer. I am excited to see film productions in Brockton in the future

UPCOMING EVENTS

In the wake of Mr. George Floyd’s murder by the hands of law enforcement, I created the Community Justice Task Force. This Task Force includes eight dedicated and engaged residents who are assessing the City of Brockton’s needs in the areas of housing, health, economic development, education, and police reform. Become part of the discussion by filling out their community needs survey by tomorrow. You can fill out here the survey here. It takes less than 10 minutes and can be translated into multiple languages. The Community Justice Task Force is hosting several roundtable discussions throughout the winter. Consult the chart below for more information. Please feel free to call the Mayor's Office at 508-580-7123 for additional information.