How would you spend a half a million dollars? If you live in the city of Cambridge, budget officials there would like to know how you’d answer that question. The city is trying a new budget experiment, and even young people get to have a say.
Kelly Dolan stands in front of a group of Cambridge residents, looking for their feedback.
“I wanted to come out here and get you guys to spend a half a million dollars that the city of Cambridge has given to us in terms of projects,” she told them.
Getting to vote directly on budget appropriations is unusual for residents, but it’s especially novel for this group, because they’re all 14 and 15 years old.
“A couple of you put your ideas into the website in December and then over the last few months we took all of the ideas, I think there were about 320 ideas, we culled them down, we went through them all to see which ones were viable, and we came up with a list of 20 ideas to vote for on how you’re going to spend a half a million dollars.”
It’s called participatory budgeting, and it’s a new trend in cities around the country, including last year in Boston for the first time. That vote funded playground upgrades, sidewalks, and security cameras at parks around the city. The idea is to foster civic engagement by asking for ideas from the public and allowing everybody, age 12 and up, to vote on what they want to fund.
The proposals in Cambridge include murals, library furniture and community gardens. At the Gately Youth Center, 14-year-old Jazlynn Mables asks Dolan and Angela Pierre of the city budget office about a proposal to fund bicycle repair stations.
“How do you plan on maintaining the tools, so that way they do work?" Mables asked. "Because snow could cover the tools and damage the tools and break the tools, and we could end up potentially spending a lot more than what the budget covers."
"That’s a good question, but I think it’s part of our maintenance," Dolan answered. "It is the city’s job to maintain all the facilities, the streets, sidewalks."
"And that’s why you have to get involved, to nag them, right?
"Exactly. We say advocate, that’s a nice way of saying nagging. And it’s part of just being involved in your community, that’s what it’s about.”
The young people sit down at computers and carefully consider the options before casting their votes. Several of them like a proposal for free wifi in six outdoor public spaces. Fourteen-year-old Nethanya Douyon voted for an amphitheater in a city park.
“I feel like it would bring our community more together instead of free wifi, which like, puts everybody more on their phones instead of bringing everybody together like the amphitheater would,” Douyon said.
Peaitou Fulweiler was impressed by how much money he has a say in spending.
“I tried to choose ones that not just specifically affect me, but affect the people around me, too,” he said.
Fulweiler voted for a free, 24-hour public bathroom in Central Square, and a tree planting program.
“That’s good for the environment and that’s good for everybody,” he said.
Fulweiler says he likes the power of casting a vote.
“It puts like a lot of responsibility on yourself," he said. " … And it feels good.”
Mables says the experience has changed the way she sees city government.
“Now it’s like, we are important," she said. "You know, it gives you that boost of confidence like, OK, now we can do this together. And it makes you think of other things as well. Because I know I got inspired by just like, her answering the questions, basically to just, if I ever see a problem in Cambridge, to call someone, to do something about it, you know? And that’s — I really liked that.”
Cambridge residents have through Saturday to cast their vote online. The winning projects will be announced April 7, and will be included in the next fiscal year’s budget.
