Boston Council Committee Advances Three Environmental and Animal Care Grants Worth $1.4 Million

BOSTON — April 7, 2025 — Boston's environmental committee advances nearly $1.4 million in grants covering animal care, urban forestry, and flood mapping. The City Council Committee on Environmental Justice, Resiliency and Parks, chaired by Councilor Gabriela Coletta Zapata, recommended three grant dockets to the full council at its April 7 hearing: a $150,000 private-donation accept-and-expend for the Boston Animal Shelter, an $800,000 USDA urban forestry grant funding the PowerCorps green-workforce pipeline for adults ages 18 to 30, and a $449,710 state MVP Action Grant for a crowdsourced flood-mapping database. The urban forestry grant drew urgent discussion after city officials disclosed they received a Friday notice from the CORPS network warning of a possible federal rescission effective April 2; Joseph Lee, Chief of Staff for the Worker Empowerment Cabinet, said the city is "still doing due diligence" and wants authorization in place so completed work can be reimbursed. The PowerCorps program's most recent 10-month cohort of 22 graduates planted 43 trees, removed 248 bags of invasive materials, and placed 77 percent of its members in jobs before the funding threat emerged.