CommonWealth Beacon staff
Posted inCommonWealth Voices

How a 1940 electoral system reform in Cambridge made its 2025 housing breakthrough possible

by CommonWealth Beacon staff

Earlier this year, Cambridge quietly accomplished what few cities have dared: through an ambitious zoning reform, it legalized four-story buildings across nearly every neighborhood. The reform dramatically increases the city’s capacity for new housing, with projections that it could add 3,590 net new units by 2040.

This is more than just a housing “win.” It’s a triumph for Cambridge’s unique brand of representative democracy—one that balances citywide priorities with fair representation for diverse communities. 

Why did Cambridge succeed where other cities have failed? The answer lies not just in zoning, but in how Cambridge elects its city council.

Posted inThe Saturday Send

Everett’s new chapter and four more stories

by CommonWealth Beacon staff

This week, Hallie Claflin sits down with Everett’s incoming mayor, Robert Van Campen, following his upset defeat of incumbent Carlo DeMaria. Plus: a state audit zeroes in on the 2023 closure of a Leominster maternity unit and Jennifer Smith breaks down the legal, legislative, and political processes for Massachusetts ballot question campaigns.

Also, Michael Jonas and Jim Peyser discuss restoring civic discourse on The Codcast and Rhode Island Current’s Shauneen Miranda explains the latest developments in the ongoing legal battle against the Education Department’s restructuring plans.

Posted inCommonWealth Voices

On bail policy, Massachusetts must catch up

by CommonWealth Beacon staff

Massachusetts has positioned itself as a leader on a range of policy domains under attack by the Trump administration. But as a national conversation has arisen about cash bail and public safety, fueled by misinformation from the White House, Massachusetts is on the sidelines.  

At the same time, Massachusetts has been undergoing its own experiment with releasing people who would otherwise be detained pretrial this summer—people who were denied their right to counsel while bar advocates declined taking new appointed cases, holding out for a pay raise to continue serving as public defenders.

Posted inThe Saturday Send

Rent control splits progressives and four more stories

by CommonWealth Beacon staff

Chris Lisinski and Jennifer Smith delve into politics of the divisive rent control ballot question splitting progressive supporters. Plus: the House presses pause on its contentious energy policy bill, 11 ballot campaigns move ahead, new documents reveal state agencies never followed a 2017 rule to cut emissions, and Chris Lisinski breaks down how lawmakers concluded their final formal sessions for the year.

Posted inCommonWealth Voices

House climate bill is a huge step backward  

by CommonWealth Beacon staff

Massachusetts is known as a leader in clean energy and climate action. Our policies have lowered emissions, created jobs, and helped families save money on energy. But a bill currently under consideration in the House of Representatives on Beacon Hill threatens to undo that progress and would be a damaging mistake for our state.  

This bill, proposed by Rep. Mark Cusack, the co-chair of the Legislature’s Joint Committee on Telecommunications, Utilities, and Energy, is essentially a fossil fuel industry wish list. It rolls back the Commonwealth’s enforceable 2030 climate targets, weakens the Mass Save energy efficiency program, eliminates efforts designed to make energy efficiency more affordable for working families, and even resurrects the disastrous “pipeline tax” that would allow utilities to charge residents for unnecessary gas infrastructure. In short, it hands fossil fuel companies a gift while leaving Massachusetts households to foot the bill.

Posted inThe Saturday Send

House pivots on climate change and four more stories

by CommonWealth Beacon staff

After breaking the news that the House was considering a sweeping energy bill that would weaken the state’s 2030 climate goals, Jordan Wolman spent much of this week digging into the process and personalities behind this major policy change. Plus: the outlook for the state’s health care system continues to darken, a Springfield medical center announces a temporarily halt in maternity services, and State Auditor Diana DiZoglio donates $150k to the ballot campaign that would subject both the Legislature and the governor’s office to the state public records law.

Posted inThe Saturday Send

Healey floats buyout program and four more stories

by CommonWealth Beacon staff

The Healey administration began buyout talks that could affect thousands of public sector employees while the state’s top court heard arguments about charter school compliance with public records laws. Plus: towns and cities run into state caps on solar energy, incumbent mayors get ousted in Gloucester and Everett, and House leaders consider pulling back on the state’s ambitious climate goals.

Gift this article