Actions!: Support Classified Staff and Dorchester!

5/9/2022

Dear FSU Members,

Two quick actions for today and tomorrow:

First, the Classified Staff Union has not settled their contract yet.  Please consider signing their petition asking the Administration to Settle a fair contract with CSU now!

Second, Are you concerned about the Dorchester Bay City Project and how it will affect our community and many students? Help slow down and re-shape the project.  Call Mayor Wu’s office tomorrow – info below.

YOU CAN HELP AMPLIFY THE VOICES OF OUR COMMUNITY DELEGATION TO CITY HALL.  Please make a call to Mayor Wu's office at 617-635-4500 any time between 9am and 5pm on Tuesday May 10th to share your concerns about the Dorchester Bay City project in its present form. That is the day that we will deliver a petition with hundreds of signatures asking Mayor Wu to slow down the review and approval process for the Dorchester Bay City project so we can get real community feedback from the residents who will be most impacted. 

The UMB Coalition Against Gentrification and our community partners need to see stronger commitments by the developer to real affordable housing, displacement prevention, pipelines for residents into good-paying, quality jobs, and climate justice. This is a very large project, on public land owned by UMass Boston, so it is especially important that the development meet community needs and promote racial justice.

Here's a sample script for your call:

I am [name] and I [live, study, and/or work] in Dorchester. Along with many Dorchester residents and concerned UMass Boston community members, I am writing to request that you take immediate action to extend the public process for the proposed Dorchester Bay City development by six months to ensure meaningful community input.  I *OPPOSE* the project in its current form because [say why].

Some other talking points you might want to include:

• Mayor Wu, we appreciate your commitment to housing justice and the bold action you’ve been willing to take so far. However, Dorchester Bay City is one of the largest development projects currently under consideration, and it will shape the surrounding communities and the City of Boston for generations. 
• The process is moving ahead too quickly, particularly during an ongoing pandemic, leaving residents most impacted without adequate time to contribute feedback, particularly in languages other than English. 
• While UMass will profit from the project, the 3000 UMass Boston students, staff and faculty who are also Dorchester residents will be hurt by rising rents, and DBC's other negative impacts.
•  Especially for a development on public land, this could be an opportunity to develop something that meets our communities’ needs, with affordability, good jobs, and climate justice at the center, not another Seaport that caters to the wealthy. 
• This can only happen if the current project is slowed down significantly, for at least six months, in order to create an equitable and robust community participatory process. 

FSU

For information on the FSU, links to our contract and bargaining updates, and a calendar of events, see the FSU webpage