Just-A-Start, a Cambridge nonprofit developer, has launched a free remote version of its tax preparation services to help income-qualified taxpayers file returns during the pandemic.

After being told repeatedly of an “anti-aid amendment” that prevents the city from giving direct financial help to residents and businesses, on Monday city councillors demanded specifics.

Let’s preserve Carole Johnson’s classic design at Lechmere Canal Park for all who live in or visit our beloved city.

We as a City Council pride ourselves on being regional leaders on issues such as affordable housing, immigrant rights and environmental protections, but we are falling woefully behind our regional allies on real estate transfer fees. I am reintroducing the fee to the council a third time March 16.

The clear majority of the East Cambridge Planning Team realizes that New England Development’s proposal will transform CambridgeSide into a beautifully designed mixed-use retail center while maintaining the Lechmere Canal and access to the river.

In doing financial due diligence before allowing a proposed giant upzoning at the CambridgeSide mall, city councillors wisely voted to get an outside analysis. But it is unclear – and absolutely crucial – which pro formas will be looked at and how.

Some seem to believe that if we stop building here, Cambridge’s housing crisis will go away. But we don’t live in a bubble. Freezing Cambridge’s housing stock is fine only for those who are secure in their housing – homeowners and the wealthy.

The pro-development playbook that we’ve been following has turned Cambridge into a cash cow for real estate investors, jeopardizing the city’s soul and social fabric in the process. The fight over an Affordable Housing Overlay zoning petition was a prime example.

What might look like travelers fleeing an impending hurricane is just rush-hour traffic on a drizzly Monday in front of the CambridgeSide mall – where developers want to add housing, office and lab space in buildings up to 82 percent above current zoning limits.

It would be impossible to imagine East Cambridge without CambridgeSide, which provides retail outlets, cafes, restaurants, recreational opportunities and a place to create and foster community. But times change, and this area must be redesigned.