Cambridge Residents Can Vote on How to Spend $1 Million. Here’s What’s on the Ballot.

Voting for Cambridge’s Participatory Budgeting process opened Thursday, inviting residents aged 12 and older to decide how to allocate $1 million in city funding among a slate of proposed projects.

First introduced in Cambridge in 2014, Participatory Budgeting expands the pool of eligible voters by inviting input from groups often excluded from municipal elections — including university students, noncitizens, and children.

This year, residents will choose from 20 projects, ranging from community resource initiatives to infrastructure improvements, with costs spanning $5,000 to $275,000.

Residents submitted project ideas last fall, and a team of 80 volunteers developed them into the proposals now on the ballot. The five projects that receive the most votes will be implemented in the upcoming fiscal year.

This year’s ballot organizes projects into four categories: community resources; environment; facilities, parks, and recreation; and transportation, streets, and sidewalks.

Proposals in the community resources category range from funding artists’ studios to providing free transportation. Other initiatives include cold-weather gear kits for residents experiencing homelessness, tote bags promoting youth voter registration, and craft supplies for schools and libraries.

The youth voter project is the lowest-cost initiative in the category, requesting $5,000, while the proposal for artists’ studios asks for $120,000.

Environmental proposals center on green space and neighborhood improvements, from a $15,000 outdoor tool-lending program to a $275,000 community garden improvement project. Other proposals include building pollinator gardens across the city, increasing rat traps in residential areas, and installing planters around sidewalk trees.

Facilities and recreation projects range from $20,000 to $250,000 and aim to improve public spaces across Cambridge, including basketball courts, dog parks, and outdoor exercise equipment. Other proposals include adding new dryers to city pools and expanding open play hours at youth centers.

Projects focused on transportation and infrastructure largely prioritize bike lane improvements — a longstanding concern in resident surveys. Proposals include installing stations to collect data on bike usage, expanding the city’s free bike program for low-income residents, and building concrete barriers to protect bike lanes.

Other transportation proposals include $100,000 in repairs to sidewalks damaged by tree roots and improvements to intersections identified in the city’s 2020 Roadway Safety Audit. The bike data collection stations are the category’s most expensive proposal, requesting $209,000.

Participatory Budgeting aims to deepen civic engagement by giving residents a direct say in how public funds are allocated, City Manager Yi-An Huang ’05 wrote in a statement.

“Each year, it provides us with a vast array of opportunities to connect with community members, listen to their ideas, identify community needs, and help them better engage in our municipal budget process,” he wrote. “Ultimately, it helps us become more responsive to what’s most important to the community.”

City Councilor Timothy R. Flaherty encouraged residents to make their voices heard by submitting a ballot. College students, he said, in particular benefit from the program because many cannot vote in local elections.

“The participatory budget process is important for all residents of the City of Cambridge to weigh in on projects that are of importance to them,” Flaherty said. “This is especially true for our student population because they’re invested in our community and they should have a say in how dollars are appropriated.”

Residents can submit ballots in person, by calling the city budget office, or through the city’s website. Voting will remain open through March 15.

—Staff writer Risha Sinha can be reached at [email protected].