😩💸 Why Boston is pinching pennies

It’s Wednesday, Boston.

👀  Nosy hive, rise up!  Boston.com compiled a roundup of locals who made Forbes’ “richest people in the world” list, including the Johnson fortune heir and, of course, Patriots owner and father to Josh Kraft, Robert Kraft.

👀 What’s on tap today:

• Josh Kraft’s big plans

• Fenway’s summer concerts

• The MBTA’s No. 1 fan

Up first…

POLITICS

Boston is on a budget

It’s everyone’s favorite time of year: Budget szn! On Monday, Mayor Michelle Wu shipped a letter to the Boston City Council outlining her $4.8 billion proposal for the city’s FY26 budget. 

And this morning, she’s presenting it, which you can watch here.

Here’s what we know so far:

🤑 “Fiscally responsible” is the name of the game. Wu’s $4.8 billion proposal is a modest 4.4% spending increase over the current year’s budget, compared to last year’s 8% budget bump. The overall strategy: Make “targeted reductions” and use existing resources to solve new problems.

📉 Why? Blame the vibecession. Wu emphasized that future uncertainty was top of mind while building the budget (see: President Trump's tariffs, federal funding cuts, and the recent stock market losses). Over $300 million of city services currently rely on now-uncertain federal funding, not to mention the still-unknown impact of tariffs on everything from international tourism to consumer confidence. Wu described the budgeting process as including a few “very hard decisions,” including cuts and reallocations to reign in spending. 

😅 That said, don’t panic. According to Wu, Boston is on pretty solid financial footing heading into this uncertainty, and is “resilient to short-term economic volatility.” Personnel (a.k.a. jobs) and city services (like sanitation, libraries, police and fire, etc.) didn’t take any major cuts. But she didn’t rule out the possibility in a worst case scenario situation.

💸 So where are the cuts? Vacant positions and non-personnel spending. Think: Unfilled job openings that have been listed for awhile and funding for some city departments, like the Planning Department, Equity and Inclusion Cabinet, and Office of Housing and Property Management. They all saw cuts for various reasons, but Wu noted this doesn’t mean the cabinets will lose resources. In fact, a lucky few did see increased spending: Public education got $45 million more, and the streets cabinet got $12.8 million.

🤔 What’s next? Wu will present the budget to the City Council today. They’ll look it over and have the ability to reject, reduce, or amend it based on what they think. Wu will sign off on the final version before July 1. So stay tuned!

POP QUIZ! 

🎤 As of this month, what’s Taylor Swift’s net worth?

CITY

Quick & dirty headlines

🧠 Tackling Boston’s stubborn opioid and homelessness crises? Josh Kraft says he has a plan for that. Kraft, who’s running against Mayor Michelle Wu, announced his plans to fix the “intolerable levels” of drug use and crime around Mass. and Cass and Downtown. The plans include things like adding a police substation in Downtown Crossing and a centralized booking facility for folks struggling with drug and mental health problems. Unsurprisingly, Wu pretty much dismissed his ideas. Here’s a breakdown of where Wu and Kraft stand on the issues.

🐶 Mass. just instituted some puppy protections. A couple of key new animal welfare rules that just took effect statewide will ban three problematic pet practices (say that three times fast), according to WBUR. The rules ban declawing cats, a generally unnecessary (and often painful) practice; the sale of puppies or kittens under eight weeks old (it’s much safer for the animals to be with their moms before then); and selling animals on the side of the road, or in public parks — a good rule for animals and consumers alike.

🌊 Clean that dirty water! Registration is officially open for the 26th annual Charles River Earth Day Clean Up, which is exactly what it sounds like: Spending the day volunteering to clean up a portion of the Charles. This year’s clean up will run on April 25 and 26, and there are options to volunteer through a bunch of different organizations depending on the location you’re aiming for, like the Charles River Conservancy or Esplanade Association. If you’re interested, sign up soon because spots tend to fill up quick.

🎸 This summer at Fenway is going to feel like Hozier’s yell. Because, he’ll literally be there as part of Fenway’s summer concert series! And the lineup only gets better: Shakira (May 29), Hozier (June 23 and 24), The Lumineers (July 17 and 18), the Jonas Brothers (Aug. 23), and My Chemical Romance (Sept. 7). And that isn’t even the whole list! As of Tuesday, all the artists still have tickets available through the Red Sox website (minus Hozier, though we found some $100-ish resale tickets). Keep your eyes peeled for more drops.

GIVEAWAY!

Together with Rock Spot Climbing

Enter to win a five-pack of climbing passes. To enter, just refer a friend and have them accept your invite by the end of the day on April 9, 2025. If you have already referred a friend to B-Side (and they’ve accepted), you're eligible! Full details below*

18+. NO PURCHASE NECESSARY. Limit one entry per person. See Official Rules & an additional entry option here.

ONE LAST THING

The MBTA’s biggest fan

If you aren’t watching this season of “Love on the Spectrum,” first of all, why are you depriving yourself of joy? And second, you’re missing out on meeting who we can only describe as the MBTA’s biggest fan … like ever. 

ICYMI: The show follows a group of people on the autism spectrum navigating the dating world, and Pari Kim is one of them. Kim’s special interest is the MBTA. Meaning, not only does she know everything about the MBTA, down to the types of train cars (the HSP46 model “screams power” to her), but she LOVES it. She brings a “T wand” everywhere she goes, and regularly meets up with friends just to ride the train. 

All we can say is, if we had as much love for the T as Pari, we’d probably be a LOT happier.

— Written by Gia Orsino and Emily Schario

🚉 Thanks for reading! We were going to say she’s gotta meet Phillip Eng, but turns out, she already has!

🌹 The results are in: 69% of readers say they would NEVER go on a social media dating show. One reader said: “Dating is a private matter, not a spectator sport.”

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