By Michael Coughlin Jr.
During its April monthly meeting, the Community Alliance of Mission Hill (CAMH) hosted State Representative Chynah Tyler, who discussed several topics and took questions from attendees.
Tyler began her presentation by discussing some of the committees she is involved with, including her role as Vice Chair of the Joint Committee on State Administration and Regulatory Oversight.
She also mentioned that she is now part of the Ways and Means Committee, which, at the time of CAMH’s April meeting, had just completed a statewide tour and heard from state departments on how they would like to use money from the general fund.
Tyler is also a member of the Joint Committee on Health Care Financing and the Joint Committee on Telecommunications, Utilities and Energy.
“This is my fifth term in office, so officially my ninth year going on to year number 10 next year, and honestly, I am truly honored to be able to represent Mission Hill,” she said.
Tyler then shifted gears to discuss some of her ongoing work, including the Black Restaurant Challenge. The Black Restaurant Challenge is an initiative she created that encourages people to patronize black-owned restaurants during Black History Month.
“I remix it kind of throughout the 12 months, but for Black History Month, it’s particularly important to me,” said Tyler, who indicated restaurants that are highlighted during the challenge have gained a lot of revenue.
She also discussed a youth jobs webinar, the Student Opportunity Act, the need for support among many schools in the state, and how students are not competing to get into prominent colleges like Harvard.
“I use my platform to do whatever I can to make sure our students are competitive,” said Tyler.
Tyler explained that the Student Opportunity Act was the first reform to education in the state in the last 20 years. In addition to providing funding, it helps create rigorous curricula in schools, enabling students to compete when applying to college.
Regarding the youth jobs webinar, it offers students the opportunity to learn about summer jobs and camps.
Later, Tyler transitioned to providing information on some of the priority bills she has filed. A prominent aspect in some of the bills she shared was cannabis. For example, she talked about bills introduced that would encourage employing those who were formerly incarcerated in the cannabis industry and adding purchasing limits to help mom and pop establishments.
Bills focused on college and career pathways were also discussed. Tyler specifically spoke about loving dual enrollment and early college programs, which allow high school students to enroll in community college classes and earn their associate’s degree by the time they graduate.
“I love making sure that our students are able to succeed, and so we’re focusing on college access and return of investment to college and career pathway programs,” she said.
Tyler also expanded on a bill about equitable development, saying, “we recently went through a small conversation with the city, but for me it needs to be legislatively addressed to establish a commission to review equitable city planning and development.”
“Sometimes it feels like the city, for me, is acting as a broker on behalf of the developer rather than supporting constituents and their needs, and that’s of concern to me.”
Eventually, Tyler briefly touched on a few different topics, including mail delivery in Mission Hill. This topic has been a prominent issue, and many attendees noted during this meeting that they are only getting mail a few times a week.
Tyler indicated that the problem stems from postal service staffing issues, as it is challenging to secure a job there, and on top of that, it is not a popular industry.
She also mentioned trying to schedule a coffee hour or a meeting with Senator Ed Markey, who Tyler said is leading the charge on this issue federally.
Other topics broached included attempting to redirect money from the Department of Public Health, which used to go to Long Island but has since been dispersed elsewhere due to its closure, to help solve Mass and Cass-related issues, and potentially bringing traffic calming measures around Longwood Medical Center.
Following Tyler’s presentation, the floor was opened up to those in attendance to comment or ask questions.
One attendee praised Tyler and her office’s constituent service work, noting that Corey Jordan, an aide, attends every CAMH meeting.
“Above all electeds, he’s [Jordan] always here and he needs to be recognized for that,” said the attendee.
Another attendee had inquired about the Healthy Incentives Program (HIP), which provides money back on your EBT card when you use SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program; formerly known as food stamps) to purchase produce from HIP farm vendors.
This attendee wondered if HIP was not being funded this year because the legislature was allocating money to combat the theft of SNAP benefits.
However, Tyler indicated that HIP would continue and that new cards would be issued to help prevent fraud and stolen benefits.
The same resident inquired why a special election was not scheduled to take place if District 7 City Councilor Tania Fernandes Anderson, who pleaded guilty to federal public corruption charges, was to resign.
In response, Tyler said that a special election did not make sense, citing issues such as missing ballots in the last one and the lack of capacity to hold one.
“For me, personally, as your rep, it’s making sure folks have the opportunity to fully vet candidates, like why rush a process when you can give folks the full ability to be able to read up on folks and know who they are,” said Tyler.
However, a point was made that a special election was held in 2023 when current District 8 City Councilor Sharon Durkan won the seat vacated by Kenzie Bok, as a prolonged period without council representation for District 7 was feared.
It should be noted, however, that Tyler indicated that staff will be funded and that constituent services will continue.
Ultimately, the discussion began to wind down and eventually ended after a conversation about speed bumps arose following a resident’s request for one on Fisher Avenue.
For more information about CAMH, visit https://www.camh.boston/. According to CAMH’s website, its next monthly meeting is scheduled for May 21st.