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Cambridge

PB Winning Projects Map

Explore all winning PB projects with the new Participatory Budgeting Winning Projects Map!
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Submit Your Idea for PB11!

Submit your idea for how we can spend $1 million to better Cambridge!
Learn More

Volunteer as a PB Delegate!

Volunteers make Participatory Budgeting work, sign up as a delegate today!
Learn More

The City of Cambridge has launched the 11th cycle of Participatory Budgeting (PB11) and is seeking ideas from the community on how to spend $1 million on projects to improve Cambridge. The Idea Collection phase will be open from August 26, 2024 – October 1, 2024.

Winning projects from past PB cycles have included youth center upgrades, home essentials for newly housed residents, pollinator gardens, laundry access in public schools, and many others. Projects are eligible for funding if they meet the following criteria:

  • Benefit the public
  • Cost $1 million or less
  • If capital project:
    • One-time expenditure
    • On City-owned property
      • Projects on CHA, DCR, and MBTA property are not eligible.
  • If operating project:
    • Fixed project duration (up to 3 years)
  • Consistent with existing City policies
  • Implemented by the City of Cambridge
  • Implemented after July 1, 2025 (the start of the next fiscal year)

Submit your ideas here!

Community members can also submit their ideas by emailing pb@cambridgema.gov; by calling the City’s Budget Office at 617-349-4270; dropping written ideas in the Payment Drop Box behind City Hall; or by mailing them to City of Cambridge Budget Office, 795 Massachusetts Ave., Cambridge MA  02139.

 

What is Participatory Budgeting?

Participatory Budgeting (PB) is a democratic process that empowers community members through civic engagement to decide how to spend part of a public budget. PB was first developed in Brazil in 1989 and is now used in over 1,500 cities around the world.

In Cambridge, PB aims to directly involve residents in the budgeting and city-building process, foster civic engagement and community spirit, and help ensure that the City’s budget reflects the priorities of Cambridge residents and local partners. Cambridge residents have allocated more than $9.5 million to PB projects since 2014.

Cambridge has launched its eleventh PB process in the fall of 2024! From September through October, community members will be invited to submit ideas for how to spend $1 million of the City's FY26 budget to improve Cambridge. The City is also calling for volunteer Participatory Budgeting Delegates, to join the PB process in working alongside other Cambridge residents and City staff to review and develop all submitted ideas into 20 project proposals to meet community needs. Visit the Volunteer page for more information on volunteering as a PB Delegate.

The vote for the PB11 cycle will take place in March 2025, where 20 project proposals will be turned back to Cambridge residents for a city-wide vote.

Join the PB Newsletter to receive the latest updates and information on the PB11 cycle!

 

Some website images are provided by the Participatory Budgeting Project.

Coming Up

  • Sep
    13 Fri

    PB at Paint the Square PINK!

    Join the Participatory Budgeting team at the Paint the Square PINK! block party in Harvard Square to tell us how you'd spend $1 million dollars in Cambridge

  • Sep
    21 Sat

    PB at Danehy Park Family Day

    Come submit your idea for how you'd spend $1 million to improve Cambridge at the Participatory Budgeting booth at Danehy Park Family Day! This is a free event for all ages, with food, entertainment, arts and crafts, and many other community activities!

  • Sep
    23 Mon

    PB at Smoke This Rib Fest

    Visit the Participatory Budgeting booth as you munch on delicious food at the annual 2024 Smoke This Rib Fest on Cambridge Street! Stop by the bright orange PB table to ask any questions you may have, learn more about PB, and submit your idea!

View All

FAQs

How much money is Cambridge setting aside and what can it be used for?

The City is setting aside $1 million of the FY26 budget for the 11th PB cycle. Projects are eligible for funding if they meet the following criteria:

  • Benefit the public.
  • Cost $1 million or less.
  • If capital project:
    • One-time expenditure
    • On City-owned property
      • Projects on CHA, DCR, and MBTA property are not eligible.
  • If operating project:
    • Fixed project duration (up to 3 years)
  • Consistent with existing City policies
  • Implemented by the City of Cambridge
  • Implemented after July 1, 2025 (the start of the next fiscal year)

Before being submitted to the public vote, all projects must be approved by City staff to ensure they meet the requisite need, impact, and feasibility criteria, and that they meet all legal requirements of capital and operating projects.

What is a capital project and what is an operating project?

Operating Projects fund programs and services, including salaries. Multi-year operating PB projects can win funding for a maximum duration of three years. Once PB project funds are spent, the project will end. Cambridge’s 10th PB cycle was the first year operating projects were eligible for PB funding consideration. Many City services like trash and recycling collection, animal control, the Fire Department, and Cambridge Public Schools, involve operating funds.

Learn more about the City’s FY25 Operating Budget.

Capital Projects fund infrastructure improvements, typically things that are bought or built. Most capital projects have some sort of associated operating cost, like the ongoing cost to maintain and clean a public bathroom. Capital projects could include open space amenities, transportation infrastructure, vehicle purchases, technological materials, and much more. Examples of previous PB capital projects include youth center upgrades, electric vehicle charging stations, basketball court upgrades, water bottle filling stations, and tree plantings.

Learn more about the City’s FY25 Capital Budget.

How does PB work in Cambridge? What happens when?

The 11th PB cycle will run from August 2024 - March 2025 and include the following key phases:

  • Community members brainstorm and submit ideas about how to spend $1 million of the City's FY26 Budget on projects to improve Cambridge (August 26 - October 1, 2024)
  • Volunteer Participatory Budgeting Delegates research and prioritize ideas, ultimately developing final proposals for the PB Ballot (October 2024 - January 2025)
  • City staff review proposals for need, impact, feasibility, and cost (January 2025)
  • Residents vote on which projects they’d like the City to fund (March 2025)
  • Results are announced and winning projects are included in the City’s FY26 Budget (March 2025)
  • Winning projects are implemented (July 2025 onward)

What are PB Delegates and how does proposal development work?

PB Delegates are volunteer Cambridge residents who work in teams to research, evaluate, and prioritize the project ideas submitted by community members during idea collection. PB Delegates work for three months to develop and choose the final project proposals for the PB vote in March. The proposal development process involves site visits, community assessments, and consultations with City staff to evaluate a project's need, impact, feasibility, and cost.

During the PB10 process, 70+ PB Delegates worked in the following four committees to narrow down over 1,000 submitted PB ideas into 20 final project proposals for the ballot: Community Resources, Environment, Parks & Recreation, and Transportation Streets & Sidewalks.

If you are interested in volunteering as a PB Delegate, please visit the Volunteer page for more information and the sign up form.


How will voting work? Who is eligible to vote?

The PB11 vote will be held in March. Cambridge residents who are at least 12 years old (as well as students in the 6th grade), regardless of citizenship status, are eligible to vote in Participatory Budgeting. College/university students whose dorm/apartments are in Cambridge are also eligible to vote. Voters will be able to choose up to 5 of the 20 projects on the PB10 ballot. They do not need to rank their choices or do any math.

The PB10 online ballot was available in English, Amharic, Arabic, Bengali, Chinese, Haitian Creole, Portuguese, and Spanish.

Residents can also vote over the phone in English at (617) 349-4270 and in-person at multiple events around Cambridge. Paper ballots at in-person events last year were available in English, Amharic, Arabic, Bengali, Chinese, Haitian Creole, Portuguese, and Spanish.

Winning projects will be announced at a PB vote results party in March. Read about winning projects from the last PB cycle.

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