Dear Editor,
Massachusetts is finally seeing a pivot in its emergency shelter policy, but for towns like Tewksbury, the “Compliance Paradox” remains a daily reality. While the administration has implemented a 4,000-family system cap for 2026, we must ensure this limit is a permanent guardrail, not a moving target.
For too long, the state’s “Right to Shelter” law has been used to bypass local sovereignty. In Tewksbury, we have seen the results: local hotels converted into long-term housing, placing an unfunded burden on our emergency services and classrooms. I applaud the state’s goal of closing these hotel-based sites by the end of this year. A hotel is not a home, and it is the least cost-effective way to manage a crisis.
However, real reform requires three more critical steps. First, we must institutionalize mandatory CORI and background checks for all adult applicants. Public safety in our community should never be secondary to administrative speed. Second, we must move from the current six-month stay limit toward a three-month intensive model. By shortening this window, we shift the focus from “warehousing” to rapid re-housing and workforce entry, ensuring the system remains a temporary bridge rather than a permanent destination.
Finally, we must enact a one-year residency requirement to ensure our finite resources are prioritized for the citizens who have built their lives in this Commonwealth. We cannot have an another “Law for Thee” approach that mandates towns to accommodate growth while the state ignores the common-sense safeguards our taxpayers demand.
Sincerely,
George Ferdinand
Tewksbury, MA
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