Chelsea
Click the map to zoom in on the district.
Please note: accuracy not verified.
Teen Parent Lobby Day
Teen Parents from Chelsea High School stopped by the
State House for the annual Teen Parent Lobby Day.
From Left to Right: Natali Iraheta, Sara Aleman, Suzanne
Pregot, Margaret Levy, Health Care Policy Analyst for Senator Barrios,
Nayeli Carrasco, Estella Hernandez, Jordan Hampton, Raquel DeJesus
Chelsea Power Plant Update
On January 11, 2007, I attended the
Massachusetts Environmental Protection Agency (MEPA) public meeting at
Chelsea High School to express my opposition on Chelsea Energy, LLC’s
proposal to develop a peak power plant on Eastern Avenue in Chelsea. At
that meeting, I submitted written comments to the Executive Office of
Environmental Affairs stating that Chelsea, Everett and Revere are
already burdened with a grossly disproportionate share of the power
plant industry and its resultant pollutants. In addition, Chelsea is
home to the storage facility for all the jet fuel used at Logan
International Airport, 80% of the region’s heating fuel and road salt
for hundreds of cities and towns.
A January 29th Boston Globe editorial reaches the same conclusion;
Chelsea is already overburdened with environmentally hazardous
industries. Read the story.
The City of Chelsea has one of the highest incidences of asthma,
hypertension and heart disease in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.
With that in mind, the proposed facility which would be located directly
across the street from Chelsea’s only elementary school complex housing
over 1,300 students, age 4 thru14, would have an adverse affect on a
population that is already overburdened.
I will continue to keep everyone updated of this evolving situation.
Senator Barrios' Health Care Aide, Margaret
Levy meets with students and staff representing the Chelsea High School
Student Health Center.
Back row: Margaret Levy, Jordan Hampton, Salome Masudi,
Jimmy Vidal,
Jenny Pereira, and Jhana Wallace.
Front row: Renoldine Elien, Lilian Pereira, Latisha Little
Fighting Crime and Reducing Gang Violence
Senator Barrios has worked with police and community
groups – like ROCA, Inc. -- to get tough on crime and the causes of
crime. As Chair of the Public Safety and Homeland Security Committee he
created and passed an $11 million Charles E. Shannon Gang Prevent Grant
program to give youth leadership opportunities and after-school programs
to protect them from the allure of gangs. In Chelsea, he is working with
ROCA, Inc. to support their innovative youth outreach and job training
programs. The gang law he wrote and passed also includes tougher
penalties for gang activity and witness intimidation.
Senator Barrios received an award from the Chelsea Domestic Violence
Taskforce on October 19 for his leadership in working to find solutions
to end domestic violence.
Clean and Healthy Chelsea
Senator Barrios has worked
closely with the Chelsea Greenspace Committee, local officials and
residents to make Chelsea a cleaner and healthier community to live. He
has pushed state environmental officials to cite the Eastern Minerals
salt pile for failure to live up to the state’s environmental laws
protecting clean water and is working with the company and community to
reduce the salt pile’s impact on the community.
Barrios is the chief sponsor of an environmental justice bill that would
increase public participation and encourage redevelopment of abandoned
properties in communities like Chelsea that has long been overburdened
by pollution. The bill would also force state officials to focus more
environmental enforcement in communities like Chelsea.
Transportation
Senator Barrios has long been an advocate for better transportation in
Chelsea. In 2006, he worked with local officials and residents to
protect the Route 112 bus route from reductions and to increase the
number of buses on Route 111. In a big victory, he worked with the
Chelsea T-Riders Union to win bike racks on the Route 111 bus and
personally asked the MBTA to add additional stop times at the commuter
rail stop during the morning commute. He has also worked with the
community and MassHighway to crack down on trucks improperly using
Chelsea city streets.
Increasing Access to the Mystic River
Senator Barrios has long been an advocate for the
Mystic River, promoting increased awareness and access for residents who
live along the river. In 2006, he was honored as a “Mystic River Mover
and Shaker” by the Mystic River Watershed Association for his work to
protect the Mystic River. He is now leading the effort to create a
Mystic River Legislative Caucus to help push advocate for the Mystic
River in the State House.
In 2006, he secured $250,000 to support a Mystic River Master Plan to
help guide the state’s activities along the Mystic River. Because of
Senator Barrios’ involvement he has secured a promise from the state’s
parks agency to include the lower Mystic communities of East Somerville,
Charlestown, Chelsea and Everett in the Master Plan.
Senator Barrios has been actively working to increase access to the
Mystic River by pushing the state to develop a bike and pedestrian
crossing across the Amelia Earhart Dam. The Mystic Crossing project
would connect Somerville to Everett and would allow residents in
northern communities with quick and easy access to Assembly Square and
Sullivan Square. Additionally, Senator Barrios has been actively pushing
the state to quickly design and create a bike and pedestrian path along
the Mystic River bordering the MBTA bus facility in Charlestown that
would link the Amelia Earhart Dam area with the Rte. 99 bridge.
MWRA Rate Relief
In 2006, Senator Barrios successfully worked with
other legislators to provide some relief for MWRA ratepayers. The
Legislature, rebuffing the Governor’s veto, moved to increase the MWRA
rate relief fund to $25 million, an increase that will directly
translate into savings to all residents in their water bills
Supported effort to increase education funding
Over the last five years public schools in the Commonwealth have
struggled to keep up with rising education costs. In its Fiscal Year
2007 budget the legislature acknowledged this reality and increased
education funding to cities and towns. While altering the formula that
provides Chapter 70 aid to localities, Senator Barrios and the State
Senate also drove the legislature’s efforts to increase overall funding
for education. In its Chapter 70 increases the legislature removed the
4.5% cap on inflation to better reflect the inflation rate of close to
6% for FY ’07; increased the English language learner per pupil
allotment by $50 and increased the low income student per pupil
allotment by $25. Under this new formula, Chelsea will get $44,127,092
in Chapter 70 funding in FY 2007, an increase of over $2 million from
the current formula.
"We were very pleased when Senator Barrios called to tell us about the
proposed funding level for the Chelsea Public Schools. Over the past
five years, school funding statewide has suffered because of economic
constraints within the state,” said Chelsea School Superintendent Tom
Kingston. “This year Senator Barrios and his legislative colleagues are
trying their best to restore as fairly as possible sufficient support
for all the state's school districts."
Additionally, both the Senate and final fiscal year
2007 budgets uncap the lottery aid to cities and towns which will
translate into an additional $1.18 million in discretionary funding for
the City of Chelsea this coming fiscal year. Click here to see my
budget presentation to the Chelsea
City Council earlier this year.
Chelsea Community Listings
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City of Chelsea website
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The
Centro
Latino de Chelsea is a non-profit Latino-directed human services
provider. It offers education and literacy programs, a computer literacy
program, HIV/AIDS testing, support groups, library, and referral
services and extensive immigration and citizenship assistance.
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The Chelsea Boys and Girls Club can be contacted by
phone at (617) 884-9435.
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The
North Suffolk Mental
Health Association offers programs and emergency services including
treatment for substance abuse, adult mental health & adult mental
retardation, in addition to research and training, for adults and
children with health problems.
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The
Chelsea Collaborative is an organization whose mission is to
empower Chelsea residents and Chelsea organizations to enhance the
social, environmental and economic health of the community and its
people. The Collaborative carries out its mission through community
organizing, technical assistance, program development and
information dissemination.
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 The
Chelsea
Fire Pipes and Drums is a band comprised of firefighters to provide
musical solace for the funerals of other firefighters; also play at
parades and other events; now accepting members.
Chelsea Fire Pipes and Drums – a band comprised of firefighters to
provide musical solace for funerals of other firefighters; also play at
parades and other events; accepting members.
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The
Seafarers' Friends are a non-denominational non-proselytizing
Christian program that visits sailors on ships in ports, run visitors'
centers for sailors, offers some services for fishermen that include
damage control kits, blessing of the fleet, and a Christmas tree
lighting, in addition to the distribution of necessities such as shampoo
and deodorant.
If you would like to see your listing on the website, please contact
webmaster@senatorbarrios.org.
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