Community Leaders Discuss Census 2010 Preparation
Community leaders and activists discussed the upcoming 2010 Census and how to ensure an accurate count in Massachusetts at a Commonwealth Seminar event on October 6th. Representative Jeffrey Sanchez, who served as Boston's Census Director in 2000, and Marc Draisen and Holly St. Clair from the Metropolitan Area Planning Council described the importance of the census to determine the state's congressional representation and ensure our fair share of federal funds.

Pointing out the census is only 18 months away, Regional Census Director Kathy Ludgate outlined the Census Bureau's plans. The agency will open several offices throughout the state and hire census takers to verify addresses. In March 2010, census forms will be mailed to every household. In April 2010, census takers will visit households who do not return the form. The Census counts every living person in the state, regardless of where they live or their citizenship status. Census information is tightly protected by federal law, and is not shared with any other government agency.

Historically some communities are undercounted, including student, low income, and immigrant communities. State and local leaders can work with the census to ensure an accurate and complete count in 2010. For more information on this topic, see this recent U.S. Senate hearing on Reducing the Undercount in the 2010 Census.

User Profile - Professor Michael Stone
A nationally recognized housing expert, Professor Michael Stone has analyzed housing issues for over 30 years. He teaches a Community Portraits class at the University of Massachusetts Boston, required of all students in the College of Public and Community Service. In the course, students complete detailed portraits of communities in the Metropolitan Boston Region.

"We believe having access to information, and knowing how to find it, use it, and understand it, is part of the process of participating in government," Professor Stone said. "Information is not only relevant for people working in the field of community service but also required to be effective citizens."

Last Wednesday, DataCommon staff visited the class for an in-depth tutorial on the DataMap Tool. Students explored subprime mortgage lending patterns in the Boston region through a newly added dataset, the 2006 Home Mortgage Disclosure Act offered in cooperation with the Urban Institute’s National Neighborhood Indicators Partnership. Analyzing neighborhoods in Lawrence, Gloucester, and Boston, the students used the DataMap Tool to create detailed custom maps.

Professor Stone observed the DataMap Tool contains a rich collection of data, and the training helped his students fully utilize its functionality to better understand their communities. "Lots of claims are made about policies and proposals– some are well supported and some are not," Stone said, pointing out that information helps his students "bring a critical awareness and perspective to civic life." To inquire about arranging a MetroBoston DataCommon training for your class, community organization or other group, please contact us.

New Data - Home Mortgage Disclosure Act Data, 2006
In cooperation with the Urban Institute as part of the National Neighborhood Indicators Partnership, MAPC offers this dataset collected under the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (HMDA). The dataset contains information on home mortgage lending practices in the Boston metropolitan area in 2006, including the total number of loan applications, demographic information about loan applicants, and the proportion of loans issued to various demographic groups. Other indicators of interest include percent of all loans originated (issued) by subprime lending specialists, and loan denial rates. The image to the right is a detail of the quick map showing the percentage of subprime loans in 2006 by census tract, available in the housing folder.

New Data - Earned Income Tax Credit and Child Tax Credit Information
Thanks to its participation in the National Neighborhood Indicators Partnership and the help of the Urban Institute, MAPC is pleased to offer these two datalayers on federal income tax credits. The Earned Income Tax Credit lowers the income tax burden for workers with low wages. It is the largest anti-poverty tax program designed especially to help low-income families with children. The Child Tax Credit has more lenient income restrictions and provides tax relief for most families with children, excluding only those with very high-income. These two new datalayers help you explore how Massachusetts residents have taken advantage of these two programs from 1997 – 2005.

New Data - Community Preservation Act Municipalities, 2008
The Community Preservation Act (CPA) helps cities and towns address three core community concerns: acquring and preserving open space and recreational resources, protecting historic assets, and creating affordable housing. As of May 2008, 133 Massachusetts communities have adopted the CPA - over one third of all the cities and towns in the Commonwealth. Check out the CPA layer to see a list of all CPA ballot elections that have been held, both successful and unsuccessful, along with information about surcharge, exemption, and voting date. This layer is continuously updated.

New Data - Environmental Justice Populations
The Environmental Justice (EJ) Populations layer represents neighborhoods across the state with high minority, non-English speaking, low-income, and foreign-born populations. Data in this layer were derived from 2000 U.S. Census data. Such areas are the focus of EOEEA's EJ Policy, which was developed to use state resources to ensure that EJ populations receive a strong voice in environmental decision-making.

New Data - Energy Star Buildings
Reducing the amount of energy used by our commercial and industrial buildings fights climate change, reduces our dependence on fossil fuels, and helps businesses in the face of rising energy costs. US Environmental Protection agency has created a program that identifies facilities that measurably cost less to operate and improve the quality of our environment. Facilities that have earned the ENERGY STAR generate about one third less carbon dioxide and use about 35% less energy than similar non-ENERGY STAR buildings. Check this map out to find ENERGY STAR labeled buildings in Massachusetts.

New Data - Renewable Energy in Massachusetts, MTC
This data layer shows renewable energy initiatives funded by the Massachusetts Technology Collaborative’s Renewable Energy Trust from 2001 through October 2007. There are over 600 clean power projects funded statewide. Projects range from the installation of, to research on, the following technologies: advanced biomass power conversion, biodiesel cogeneration, fuel cell, geothermal, hydroelectric, landfill gas, photovoltaic, wind, and other (including hydrogen, storage and controls). This is a thematic data layer by municipality; location of the points are representative and do not necessarily impart an actual location.

RSVP Now for Counting Our Communities: A Conversation with Census Director Kathy Ludgate
Join DataCommon staff for an informative discussion of the 2010 Census with Regional Census Director Kathy Ludgate on Monday, October 6th, 2008 from 4:00 to 6:00 p.m. at the China Pearl Restaurant. The event is co-hosted by Representative Jeffrey Sanchez, who served as Boston's Census Director in 2000, and the Metropolitan Area Planning Council. Representative Sanchez and Holly St. Clair from MAPC will make introductory remarks. Census 2010 will determine our political representation in Washington, D.C. and we are in danger of losing up to two seats in Congress. More importantly, many federal programs rely on Census figures to determine the distribution of federal funds to our states and our local communities.

Come on October 6 to hear Director Ludgate talk about their plains to organize the 2010 Census, outreach plans to historically undercounted communities, and job opportunities for diverse applicants as they staff up exponentially over the next year. RSVP on the Commonwealth Seminar website.

Metropolitan Perspectives 2008, MAPC's Calendar and Annual Report
Metropolitan Perspectives 2008, the Metropolitan Area Planning Council Calendar and Annual Report, has arrived! This colorful publication features maps and charts that describe issues, ideas and plans of regional significance in the Boston Metropolitan region. Highlights from this year’s calendar include clean energy technologies, the Community Preservation Act, impervious surfaces, earthquake locations, housing unit permits and comprehensive permits. The calendar is available by request or can be downloaded from the Regional Map Gallery.

Updated Community Snapshots!
The Community Snapshots have been updated. New data on jobs, unemployment, building permits, crime, water use, and MCAS have been added to these useful four page reports. These profiles track trends and current conditions for all 101 cities and towns in the MAPC region. Just select the city or town you would like to explore in “snapshot” mode (Adobe pdf) from the drop-down menu on the left.

New Data - Population Projections, 2000-2030
The MBDC now has population and employment projections to year 2030 for 164 eastern Massachusetts communities posted on the mapping tool. The Metropolitan Area Planning Council (MAPC) creates population and employment projections as a part of the Boston Region Metropolitan Planning Organization's 25 year transportation plan, where future transportation improvements are identified. These figures demonstrate likely growth patterns in the region if past trends continue into the future.Key findings indicate that the region is expected to add 465,000 people and 240,000 jobs between the years 2000 and 2030.

Communities can use these numbers in a variety of ways, including as a way to estimate likely traffic and water impacts over time, and to help communities to plan for where and how to site development.

As part of the MetroFuture initiative, MAPC is using the projections for its 101 communities to develop a picture of the region's likely future if current trends continue.

For more information about the projection methodology or additional spreadsheets,click here.

Suburban Mobility/TDM Special Datasets
Wish your town had more public transit options? The Boston Region Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) has made $650,000 available to suburban municipalities, unserved or underserved by public transit to develop suburban mobility programs. Indicators to help communities think about whether a suburban mobility project makes sense for them are based on best practices and reported in the region-wide Suburban Transit Opportunities Study, Phase I. These indicators help identify potential markets for transit. The MetroBoston DataCommon has assembled map layers in the DataMap tool to help communities use these indicators to determine their potential for funding under this program. Data layers can be found in the DataMap tool under the Special Datasets folder, Suburban Mobility/TDM. Letters of interest must be submitted by May 16th. Click here for more details on the program and successful demand-responsive transit service contributing factors.

MAPC’s Traffic and Air Pollution Map Helps State Rep’s Pitch for Two Bills
Rep. Denise Provost recently used a map from MAPC’s 2007 calendar to pitch two bills to reduce health concerns for people living near high-traffic areas. The September map “Heavy Traffic Affects Air Quality and Health” shows areas in the Metro Boston region where more than 100,000 vehicles travel per day, and where populations living within 100 yards of roadways or intersections would be at an increased risk for cardiac or pulmonary disease. Click here to read the article from the State House News.

To download the map the “Heavy Traffic Affects Air Quality and Health” map and see other maps highlighted in the Map Gallery click here.