Delays, anxiety, even rats: Inside Steward’s hospitals

Also: What the green bank can do for you; MBTA riders share their thoughts on Eng's first year [Donate ❤️]( [View in Browser](  April 30, 2024 🌧️ Mostly cloudy, with a high near 53. Good Morning Boston, The Celtics now have a 3-1 lead in their first-round playoff series, but no one is celebrating too much until we learn more about [Kristaps Porzingis' injury last night](. (FWIW, the big man [is downplaying the severity]( Let's cross our fingers and get to the news: - Easier being green: [Massachusetts' "green bank"]( is now open for business. As WBUR's Barbara Moran reports, the state's budding Community Climate Bank launched [a new program]( yesterday offering loans to help low- and moderate-income homeowners make clean energy improvements to their homes. The $20 million program — the bank's first consumer offering — will hand out low-interest loans of up to $100,000 for eligible projects. - What kind of projects? The loans are good for anything from home weatherization to heat pumps to electric ovens to solar panels to EV charging stations. "The home loan program covers almost any energy-related improvement you can think of — so long as the combined project helps that customer save at least 20% in total energy costs," Maggie Super Church, the green bank's policy director, told Barb. The bank will also help loan recipients navigate the maze of available clean energy rebates and tax credits. - Am I eligible? Homeowners earning up to 135% of the local [area median income]( can apply for the program, but the exact income limit varies by county (as much as $190,775 in the Boston area to $124,875 in the Berkshires). The loans can also only be used for projects on your primary home, including owner-occupied multifamily homes with as many as four residential units. - Terms and conditions: Loan interest rates run from 0.5% to 2%, depending on household income. They also have a 20-year term, which officials say should mean low monthly payments. - The big picture: The goal is to lend 1,000 loans over the next two years, as part of the state's push to reach net-zero emissions by 2050. Homes and buildings are the [second-largest source of greenhouse gas emissions in Massachusetts](. - In the zone: Andover is holding [a special town meeting tonight]( to vote on a rezoning plan that would bring the town into compliance with the MBTA Communities Act. It's the latest test of suburban residents' appetite for the state law encouraging denser housing. - What happens if voters say yes? The [zoning changes]( would allow multi-family housing to be built "as of right" by Andovers's [Ballardvale]( and [downtown]( commuter rail stations, as well as what's currently [a business district]( off I-93. In theory, the changes could bring over 2,000 new units of housing to the town (though experts say it's [unlikely that many will actually be built](. - What happens if voters say no? As a "[commuter rail community]( Andover has until the end of this year to comply with the law, so — [unlike Milton]( — they wouldn't immediately face any harsh state penalties or lawsuits. Andover officials [told The Eagle Tribune]( they would go back to the drawing board and draft a new plan if the current proposal is rejected tonight. - Cass 3.0: State officials are planning to make upgrades to the Roxbury recreational complex that's currently — and [controversially]( — being used as [a migrant overflow shelter](. When it reopens to the public, the Melnea Cass Center will get a new gym floor, better Wi-Fi, a digital entrance sign, tree plantings and solar panels, reports WBUR's Simón Rios. “We really appreciate the fact that the community was willing to share this valued facility with families that have been in need for the last several months," Department of Conservation and Recreation Commissioner Brian Arrigo told Simón. - What's next: The shelter is slated to close by May 31, and officials plan to reopen the center's pool in June. Arrigo says they're aiming to finish the improvement project by Labor Day. - Reach the beach: People planning to visit Wellfleet's popular Marconi Beach over the next few weeks will face a tricky trek. Cape Cod National Seashore is closing the gate to Marconi Beach Road today through May 23 so workers can [replace the stairs to the beach](. That means you'll have a two-mile walk each way from the nearest access point to get to the beach, [according to the Cape Cod Times](. P.S.— WBUR won first-place National Headliner Awards for our recent coverage of public housing and supervised consumption sites. [Read more]( about the winning stories and why they were recognized. Nik DeCosta-Klipa Editor, Newsletters  Support the news  The Rundown [Workers describe unpaid bills, delayed care and anxiety at Mass. Steward hospitals]( Interviews with several current employees — and complaints filed with the state Department of Public Health — paint a picture of flagging investment in facilities, administrative dysfunction and an alleged rat infestation. State officials are preparing for several scenarios, including a potential bankruptcy. [Read more.]( [Workers describe unpaid bills, delayed care and anxiety at Mass. Steward hospitals]( Interviews with several current employees — and complaints filed with the state Department of Public Health — paint a picture of flagging investment in facilities, administrative dysfunction and an alleged rat infestation. State officials are preparing for several scenarios, including a potential bankruptcy. [Read more.]( [How has Phil Eng's first year at the T gone? It depends on who you ask]( A year into MBTA General Manager Phil Eng's tenure, some transit advocates and lawmakers say they're encouraged by his performance, while many riders say they're still waiting for their commutes to improve. [Read more.]( [How has Phil Eng's first year at the T gone? It depends on who you ask]( A year into MBTA General Manager Phil Eng's tenure, some transit advocates and lawmakers say they're encouraged by his performance, while many riders say they're still waiting for their commutes to improve. [Read more.]( [Tufts administrators wait out campus protesters as graduation looms]( School officials say they won't meet with student protesters until some two dozen tents are removed from the quad. [Read more.]( [Tufts administrators wait out campus protesters as graduation looms]( School officials say they won't meet with student protesters until some two dozen tents are removed from the quad. [Read more.]( [4 law officers serving warrant are killed, 4 wounded in shootout at North Carolina home, police say]( Four officers trying to serve a warrant for a felon wanted for possessing a firearm were killed and four other officers were wounded in a shootout in North Carolina. Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Chief Johnny Jennings said the officers killed the suspect outside the Charlotte home Monday after he fired on them. [Read more.]( [4 law officers serving warrant are killed, 4 wounded in shootout at North Carolina home, police say]( Four officers trying to serve a warrant for a felon wanted for possessing a firearm were killed and four other officers were wounded in a shootout in North Carolina. Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Chief Johnny Jennings said the officers killed the suspect outside the Charlotte home Monday after he fired on them. [Read more.]( [State ends housing programs for those in 'Mass. and Cass' encampment]( The programs had seemed to help reduce the numbers of people living on the streets while facing mental health and substance use disorders, and address problems such as increasing violence in the encampment. [Read more.]( [State ends housing programs for those in 'Mass. and Cass' encampment]( The programs had seemed to help reduce the numbers of people living on the streets while facing mental health and substance use disorders, and address problems such as increasing violence in the encampment. [Read more.]( Anything Else? - Scientists say the sea off New England — already warming faster than most of the world's ocean water — had [its fifth-warmest year on record in 2023](. - PSA: The first case this year of the rare tick-borne Powassan virus has been reported in Massachusetts. [Click here for more]( on the virus and some simple tips to protect yourself from tick-borne diseases. - "Loveabye" — the first album of all-original compositions by local jazz saxophonist Gregory Groover Jr. — is likely to introduce one of Boston’s busiest jazz heroes to a much wider audience, [writes WBUR contributor Noah Schaffer](. And it features musicians heard on some of the most influential jazz records of the past few years. - A new project is celebrating the life of William Jones, [a Black Civil War veteran from Western Massachusetts](. Jones was one of 74 men from Berkshire County who served in the 54th regiment, one of the first African American regiments in the union army.  What We're Reading 📚 - How One Reaction to a Mural Tore a New England Town Apart ([The New York Times]( - Quincy Mayor Tom Koch’s salary could spike to $370,000; way higher than Boston and New York mayor salaries ([Boston Herald]( - The ‘fake news’-ification of local news—and what to do about it ([Columbia Journalism Review](  Tell Me Something Good [Franklin Park Zoo welcomes three new baby animals (MassLive)]( The Boston oo has welcomed three new baby animals so far this spring — a Hartmann’s mountain zebra, a yellow-billed stork and a wattled crane. Check out photos. [Read more.]( [Franklin Park Zoo welcomes three new baby animals (MassLive)]( The Boston oo has welcomed three new baby animals so far this spring — a Hartmann’s mountain zebra, a yellow-billed stork and a wattled crane. Check out photos. [Read more.]( Listen: The Common [breaks down the emergency family shelter spending bill that is now on Gov. Maura Healey's desk](. Play: [WBUR's daily mini crossword.]( Can you keep your streak going? Before you go: [We're gonna have to start calling it Sumnering.]( 😎 Forward to a friend. They can sign up [here](. 🔎 Explore [WBUR's Field Guide]( stories, events and more. 📣 Give us your feedback: newsletters@wbur.org 📧 Get more WBUR stories sent to your inbox. [Check out all of our newsletter offerings.]( Support the news    Want to change how you receive these emails? Stop getting this newsletter by [updating your preferences.](  I don't want to hear from WBUR anymore. 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