Voting on Cambridge’s New Participatory Budgeting Projects Runs March 5 – 15

As part of its 12th Participatory Budgeting (PB) Cycle, the City of Cambridge invites the community to vote on projects to improve the City. Voting will be open to all Cambridge residents aged 12 and older (and all 6th graders) regardless of citizenship status, including university students, between March 5-15, 2026. Capital and operating projects for up to three years are eligible for up to $1 million in funding for this year’s PB12 process.

From September through October 2025, Cambridge community members submitted over 1,100 ideas in support of this Participatory Budgeting cycle. From October 2025 to February 2026, nearly 80 volunteer PB Delegates researched and developed those ideas into the 20 final proposals for the PB ballot. Proposals were grouped into four categories: Community Resources; Environment; Facilities, Parks and Recreation; and Transportation, Streets & Sidewalks.

Residents are encouraged to learn about the 20 ballot project proposals at pb.cambridgema.gov.

Beginning on March 5, 2026, community members can vote in one of three ways:

• Online: Vote at pb.cambridgema.gov
• Phone: Call the City of Cambridge Budget Office at (617)-349-4270. Regular business hours are Monday 8:30 a.m. – 8 p.m., Tuesday – Thursday 8:30 a.m. – 5 p.m., Friday 8:30 a.m. – 12 p.m.
• In-person: Visit PB12 voting locations. See the full schedule at pb.cambridgema.gov

Paper ballots are also available through the Budget Office during regular business hours. Online and paper ballots are available in English, Amharic, Arabic, Bangla, Chinese, Haitian Creole, Hindi, French, Spanish, and Portuguese.

After voting closes, the City invites community members to attend the PB12 vote results party on March 18, 2026, from 6-7:30 p.m. in the Sullivan Chamber at Cambridge City Hall (795 Massachusetts Avenue) where the winning projects will be announced. This event is open to members of the community, and food and drinks will be provided.

Participatory Budgeting is a democratic process where community members can vote to decide how to spend part of a public budget. In Cambridge, Participatory Budgeting 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.

Projects are eligible for Participatory Budgeting funding if they:

• Benefit the public
• Cost $1 million or less
• Are either a capital project with a one-time expenditure on City property, or an operating project with a fixed duration of up to three years
• Are implemented by the City of Cambridge on City property (streets, sidewalks, parks, libraries, schools, youth centers, senior centers, municipal buildings, etc.)
• Are consistent with existing City policies

Past winning PB projects have included baby boxes for new parents, shaded seating on City streets, laundry access in Cambridge Public Schools, pedestrian-controlled crosswalk lights, accessible swings in City parks, and many others.

Last cycle marked the second consecutive year where over 10,000 Cambridge residents aged 12 and older voted to decide how to allocate Participatory Budgeting funding to address community needs. Since the inaugural process in 2014, the City of Cambridge has collected more than 11,000 ideas and committed over $10.5 million to Participatory Budgeting projects across eleven cycles.

For more information about PB and how you can vote, please visit pb.cambridgema.gov, contact the City of Cambridge Budget Office at 617-349-4270, or email pb@cambridgema.gov.