New England car sales mogul Herb Chambers gave $100 million to Mass General Hospital for one of the new towers under construction on MGH's West End campus.

• The tower will house cancer units and is scheduled to open in 2027.

Why it matters: The gift comes as the Mass General Brigham chain revamps its approach to cancer care and prepares to lose the partnership of the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in 2028.

Zoom in: The tower will integrate MGH's cancer services, with consultations, labs and imaging, surgical spaces, urgent care, inpatient care and the ICU all under one roof.

What they're saying: "My motivation in extending this gift is that the Herb Chambers Tower will shine as a beacon of hope for everyone touched by this awful disease," Chambers said in a release from the hospital chain.

• Chambers said he and members of his family have received cancer care from MGH.

Catch up quick: Chambers, 83, is a Dorchester native who built one of New England's largest automobile dealership empires from a single location in 1985.

• He's now worth an estimated $2.6 billion, according to Forbes.

By the numbers: The Chambers tower will span nearly 1 million square feet and provide:

• 228 acute care inpatient beds
• 32 intensive care unit beds
• an 8,000-square-foot rooftop garden

State of play: Dana-Farber's planned withdrawal from its longtime partnership with the Mass General Brigham-owned Brigham and Women's Hospital has forced the chain to retool its cancer care strategy.

Between the lines: The oncology landscape in New England is undergoing a dramatic shift as Dana-Farber moves to partner with Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in the Longwood Medical Area.

Zoom out: Chambers' namesake tower will be part of the larger Phillip and Susan Ragon Building complex, the $1.9 billion MGH expansion project underway along Cambridge Street.

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The median home price was 6.3 times the median income in Boston last year, more than a percentage point above the national average, according to a Harvard analysis.

Why it matters: It's more proof that homeownership in Boston is unaffordable for many.

The big picture: In 2023, the national median sales price for existing single-family homes was 4.9 times the median household income, Harvard researchers from the Joint Center for Housing Studies found.

• That ratio dipped slightly from 2022 as home price growth slowed, but it remains historically high, per the analysis.

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Albertsons — the parent company of Star Market and Shaw's — is giving up plans to merge with Kroger and is instead suing the competing grocery chain. (Axios)

In other philanthropic news, the New Balance Foundation donated $5 million for the Boys & Girls Clubs of Dorchester's fieldhouse dedicated to Marathon bombing victim Martin Richard. (WCVB)

The "feel good" Celtics were named Bostonians of the Year by the Boston Globe.

• The championship-winning team got the honor for their commitment to the local community on and off the court.

David Bonderman, the founder of private equity firm TPG, owner of the NHL's Seattle Kraken and a minority owner of the Celtics, died on Wednesday at the age of 82. (Axios)

The Animal Rescue League of Boston is looking for a new home for an unlikely pair: Karma, a 5-year-old American Bulldog, and Gigi, a 1-year-old Chihuahua.

How it works: The female dogs were surrendered separately in November and formed such a strong bond at the shelter that they're now a package deal.

• The pair are inseparable, even though Karma is several times the size of Gigi.
• Karma is the introvert which compliments Gigi's "social butterfly" personality, according to the shelter.

If there's room in your life for two new best friends, check them out here.

Send us your pet pics, wild animal sightings, weird bird nests or anything else animal-related.

• You might get a shoutout!

The State Department unveiled a portrait of former Secretary of State John Kerry Monday.

• Kerry represented Massachusetts in the U.S. Senate from 1985 to 2013, the high point coming when he was nominated for president at the 2004 DNC at TD Garden.
• Kerry lost that race to George W. Bush but returned to the national spotlight as President Obama's top diplomat.

"In myriad ways, Kerry overcame political humiliation to wage a noteworthy second act," our former Axios colleague Glen Johnson, who was a top aide to Kerry at the State Department, wrote in an opinion piece for The Boston Globe.

The Boston skyline is seen through branches in this sunset captured by Axios Finish Line reader Sreejit Mohan from his hometown of Arlington.