Empty apartments

Also: Pro women's soccer returns to Boston; 12 new books to read this fall [Donate ❤️]( [View in Browser](  September 19, 2023 ☀️ Mostly sunny, with a high near 73. Good Morning Boston, Maybe you've heard, but Massachusetts [isn't exactly swimming in available housing lately](. Affordable housing is even harder to come by. And yet, [a new investigation from WBUR and ProPublica]( found that a surprisingly large — and growing — number of the state's subsidized housing units are sitting vacant. Hundreds of units are empty as they wait for needed repairs; others are perfectly fine but officials can't find anyone to fill them. And the implementation of a centralized, statewide online waitlist in 2019 exacerbated the problem, making it harder for local housing agencies to fill those coveted empty units. “I think it’s criminal," said Maureen Cayer, the executive director of the Agawam Housing Authority. "Criminal." You can [read the full story online](. Here's a snapshot, by the numbers: - 184,283: The number of people in Massachusetts on the waitlist for state-subsidized housing. - 41,500: The total number of state-subsidized apartments. - 2,291: The number of vacant apartments as of the end of July. - 1,783: The number of units that were vacant for more than 60 days (the legal limit the state sets for local housing authorities to fill a vacancy). - 731: The number of units that have been vacant for over a year. - 57 years: The average age of the state's public housing units. - $3.2 billion: The estimated amount needed to address a backlog of public housing renovations in Massachusetts. - 6: The number of maintenance workers Watertown's public housing agency has to care for its 589 units. - 500: The number of people that officials contacted who were on the waitlist for a three-bedroom apartment in Chelmsford before they found one who responded and qualified for the unit. - 7,053: The number of waivers filed in 2022 by local housing officials to keep a unit empty because they couldn't fill it in the 60-day window — compared to 2,048 in 2018. - 6,386: The number of families now in the state's emergency family shelters. Click above to search and view the full, interactive map. Now, for some other quick-hit local news stories you should know: - It's election day — again! A [baker's dozen of Massachusetts communities]( are holding preliminary elections today. The contests include open mayoral races in Revere and Pittsfield. There are also incumbent mayors in Brockton and Fall River trying to fend off challenges from high-profile opponents. [Click here]( for the details. - On the agenda: The state's Board of Elementary and Secondary Education is also slated to vote today on Gov. Maura Healey's [proposed update to the state's sex-education standards]( for public schools. The changes — which include greater coverage of LGBTQ+ issues, sexually transmitted infections and dating safety — would be the first major sex-ed curriculum updates in nearly 25 years. (State officials received over 5,000 public comments on the proposal.) - Also today: The board is set to publicly release the scores for the 2023 MCAS — the first time the high school test was fully conducted after the pandemic. The release of scores comes as critics [renew efforts to end the MCAS graduation requirement](. - Coming in 2026: It looks like women's professional soccer is coming back to Boston [for the first time since 2018](. The National Women's Soccer League has reportedly awarded an expansion franchise to a local women-led ownership group. A "major announcement" is scheduled this afternoon at City Hall featuring Mayor Michelle Wu, the NWSL commissioner and the new owners, Boston Unity Soccer Partners. - What we know: Boston Unity Soccer Partners [has proposed $30 million in upgrades to Franklin Park's White Stadium]( where the team will call home when they begin playing in 2026. The ownership group is led by Jennifer Epstein, the leader of a local investment firm and the daughter of Celtics co-owner Robert Epstein. - What we don't know: We'll have to wait until 2024 to learn the team's official name. But they already have a green-and-black crest, inspired by the Zakim Bridge, which [you can see here](. P.S.— Better book your reservations fast. Two local eateries just made Bon Appétit's [national list of the best new restaurants]( of 2023: Cambridge's seafood-forward [Moëca]( and [Rubato]( a Hong Kong–style café in Quincy. (And it's worth noting, [you can get Rubato delivered]( Nik DeCosta-Klipa Editor, Newsletters [Follow](  Support the news  The Rundown [Conn. resident is among 5 freed in US prisoner swap with Iran]( Morad Tahbaz, a Connecticut resident who was detained in Iran for more than five years, is among five people freed in a U.S. prisoner swap. The British-American environmental activist of Iranian descent was arrested in 2018 and received a 10-year sentence. [Read more.]( [Conn. resident is among 5 freed in US prisoner swap with Iran]( Morad Tahbaz, a Connecticut resident who was detained in Iran for more than five years, is among five people freed in a U.S. prisoner swap. The British-American environmental activist of Iranian descent was arrested in 2018 and received a 10-year sentence. [Read more.]( [Mass. will ban purchase by state of single-use plastic bottles, Healey announces]( Healey said the order will make Massachusetts the first state in the nation to enact such a procurement ban. [Read more.]( [Mass. will ban purchase by state of single-use plastic bottles, Healey announces]( Healey said the order will make Massachusetts the first state in the nation to enact such a procurement ban. [Read more.]( [Officials investigate after family says their 14-year-old found iPhone taped to a toilet seat on flight to Boston]( The family of a 14-year-old girl who allegedly discovered an iPhone taped to the back of a toilet seat on a recent flight from Charlotte, North Carolina, to Boston said they believe she was targeted by a member of the crew. [Read more.]( [Officials investigate after family says their 14-year-old found iPhone taped to a toilet seat on flight to Boston]( The family of a 14-year-old girl who allegedly discovered an iPhone taped to the back of a toilet seat on a recent flight from Charlotte, North Carolina, to Boston said they believe she was targeted by a member of the crew. [Read more.]( [Why the earliest galaxies are sparking drama and controversy among astronomers]( As they peer into the deep, distant history of the universe, scientists are shocked to find galaxies showed in our cosmic history much sooner than scientists ever expected.It's a galactic controversy that has astronomers around the world excited — and puzzled. [Read more.]( [Why the earliest galaxies are sparking drama and controversy among astronomers]( As they peer into the deep, distant history of the universe, scientists are shocked to find galaxies showed in our cosmic history much sooner than scientists ever expected.It's a galactic controversy that has astronomers around the world excited — and puzzled. [Read more.]( [Former Patriots player Sergio Brown missing; mother's body found in suburban Chicago]( Authorities are searching for a missing former NFL player after his 73-year-old mother’s body was found near a creek behind her suburban Chicago home. [Read more.]( [Former Patriots player Sergio Brown missing; mother's body found in suburban Chicago]( Authorities are searching for a missing former NFL player after his 73-year-old mother’s body was found near a creek behind her suburban Chicago home. [Read more.]( Anything Else? - Next up in our fall arts guide: [12 new books written by New England authors]( from historical novels that sound like the modern news cycle to nonfiction research that reads like science fiction. - In a series of essays detailing the profound influence the wilderness had on luminaries like Harriet Tubman and Louisa May Alcott, Harvard University history professor Tiya Miles' new book “Wild Girls" explores how the outdoors allows women and girls to exist in an unbound space. Read critic Michael Patrick Brady's review [here](. - As science has evolved, it has become clear that depression is not just a chemical imbalance. New evidence shows people who maintain a range of healthy habits are significantly less likely at risk. Here are [seven habits researchers say are key](. - Listen: What's ahead for Mayor Michelle Wu's plan to reform Boston's zoning code? While the effort doesn't need City Council or state approval, it could still run into a lot of opposition from neighborhood groups. Radio Boston [welcomed a panel of experts yesterday to discuss the uniquely complex code and the potential fight ahead](.  What We're Reading 📚 - On one of Vermont’s most idyllic roads, fed-up locals say no more to the leaf peepers ([The Boston Globe]( - Behold: New York City’s Trash Can of the Future ([The New York Times]( - Media’s political divide plays out in Maine ([Semafor](  🔎 Field Guide [Charlestown: A Boston neighborhood guide]( Charlestown is one of the city’s sweet spots if you dig that lamp-lit, cobblestone historical vibe. With an ample waterfront, Charlestown is across the Charles and Mystic rivers from the rest of Boston, connected to the North End by the Charlestown Bridge. [Read more.]( [Charlestown: A Boston neighborhood guide]( Charlestown is one of the city’s sweet spots if you dig that lamp-lit, cobblestone historical vibe. With an ample waterfront, Charlestown is across the Charles and Mystic rivers from the rest of Boston, connected to the North End by the Charlestown Bridge. [Read more.]( Listen: The Common talks to WBUR's Priyanka Dayal McCluskey about [what's ahead for public health this fall in Massachusetts]( with vaccines available for this first time for all three of Covid, flu and RSV. Play: [WBUR's daily mini crossword.]( Can you keep your streak going? Before you go: [I'm just Chaim, and I'm enough.]( 😎 Forward to a friend. 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