Waltham sends Northland packing, the Common is saved! (For now)

This news brings a smile to Borderline: The Northland Invesment Corporation was told by the City of Waltham that there's no way its ridiculous plan to build a hulking, snooty development at the northern end of Moody Street will be allowed to move forward in its current form. Northland was able to muster support from pro-development Councilor Gary Marchese, but everyone else on the council who took part in the vote rightly recognized that residents are fed up developers and the special benefits and zoning variances sent their way. From the News Tribune article:

"I have never in 18 years on the council, seen more opposition to a proposal," Councilor Robert G. Logan said. Indeed, before the meeting began, protesters lined the front of City Hall bearing signs that read "Save Our Common, Say NO to Northland."

You may also remember that Borderline wrote about Northland's development demands late last year, which actually drew criticism from a fan of the proposal, a reader named James. Good for James for putting forward an unpopular, contrarian view, but I have to ask, what made you think other residents of Waltham wanted this?

Thank you city councilors, for recognizing what a mistake this project would be, and not going along with the developers, as you have in past cases.

I would also like to give thanks to the News Tribune and the Boston Globe for attempting to cover both sides of this development-related issue. I've given the Globe a lot of crap lately, and have hammered both papers for sucking up to developers and big corporations (see " Boston Globe's news pages become free advertising for Verizon", Blackout, part II. Media misses the story at first, then gets it wrong", "Sloppy reporting on Waltham development", and "News-Tribune sucks up to the realtors ... again"). But this time reporters and editors at both papers showed some backbone, and made a point of covering the real grassroots anger over at out-of-control development in Waltham.

Now it's time to see if Northland comes back with something else. Larry G. and co., we're watching you, and we'll bite back again if you try to ram another monster development down our throats!

Borderline interviews Newton Alderman Ken Parker: Mayor Cohen, Newton North, CPA, Hannon, Verizon discussed

Borderline from time to time interviews local residents and pols on the weighty issues of the day. Well, actually only one time -- with Guive Mirfendereski, back in April of 2006. But I have invited other people to participate in the interviews, anyone who wants to talk about life and issues in Newton or Waltham (email Borderline at borderlineblog@gmail.com if you are interested), and someone recently responded: Newton Alderman Ken Parker.

Parker agreed to the ground rules of the Borderline interview format, which are as follows:

1. I choose the questions.

2. I will publish everything you have to say in your reply, and it
will not be edited down for space considerations, like a newspaper. It
may be spread into multiple posts if it is long, however.

3. There is one exception to No. 2: If your reply contains something
that could get me into legal trouble (i.e., plagiarism, defamation) I
will send the reply back and ask you to revise before printing.
Otherwise I won't print that reply.

4. You can choose not to answer a question, but that will be noted in
the transcript.

Parker generously agreed, so here is the complete transcript of the interview. Note that Borderline sent the questions on Dec 4, 2006 and he replied on January 9, 2007.

Borderline: In the most recent issue [Nov. 29, 2006] of the Newton Tab, you've reacted to Mayor Cohen's budget plans as failing to take into account critical expenditures. In your opinion, what are the three issues that will cause the most grief for Newton's budget in the next five years?

Parker: Mayor Cohen’s budget practices are irresponsible and unrealistic. He has been diverting funds from the operating budget for years to set aside for the NNHS project, while cutting teachers and other city staff. In his budget forecast, he predicts that at the end of five years the City will have a $9 million budget deficit. The Blue Ribbon Commission’s draft report on budget forecasting predicts that the deficit will be $36 million if Mayor Cohen’s practices continue. You can read their draft report here:
http://util.wickedlocal.com/multimedia/newton/Draft.pdf

In addition, the Blue Ribbon Commission chides Mayor Cohen for neglecting infrastructure. Was this neglect forced upon the Mayor? No, he had better choices available to him. For the past few years, Mayor Cohen has been setting aside millions of dollars each year in a fund for the Newton North High School Project, while cutting teachers, firefighters and police.

During the most recent budget process this past spring, Mayor Cohen cut the funds for preventive maintenance of City Buildings by 37.7%. Even after the Board of Aldermen passed a unanimous resolution asking him to restore the $70 thousand he had cut, he maintained that he did not have the funds to do so. Only after members of the Board of Aldermen wrote to him and continued to highlight the issue publicly did he relent and restore the cut.

If the Mayor goes ahead with his borrowing plan for Newton North High School, we can expect further cuts in teachers firefighters and police, as well as continued neglect of City infrastructure.

Borderline: What do you find most encouraging about the plans for the new Newton North High School?

Parker: I am encouraged that after years of insisting on a hybrid renovation of the existing building, the Mayor finally came around to the position that many of us have long held in favor of building a new school. Of course, the problem is that that Mayor’s plan for a new school is overpriced and fails to address serious educational, financing, environmental and safety concerns, but since he changed his position on whether to build a new school, I am hopeful that he may yet end his refusal to compromise regarding the site plan and financing plan.

Borderline: What worries you most about the NNHS rebuilding project?

Parker: Paying for it. The Mayor wants to build an overpriced school with a sprawled-out design that requires additional foundation work, specialized construction to build irregular corners, demolition and reconstruction of the existing stadium, and depression of the stadium below grade. The bottom line is that the Mayor’s plan will cost more than $325 per square foot to construct. When you add $20 million in soft costs, you get a total project cost of $375 per square foot. Compare this price tag with the cost of the last six public high schools built in Massachusetts. Their construction costs ranged from $146 to $189 per square foot. Adjusted to inflation to the midpoint of the NNHS project (2008), those six schools would cost an average of $229 per square foot to build.

The problem with the Mayor’s financing plan is that he uses more than 94% of new school-related borrowing over the next five years on this one project, leaving us less than 6% to deal with the pressing needs at many of our elementary and middle schools. In fact, the Mayor’s financing plan for NNHS uses up 88% of all new borrowing for the next five years. That leaves very little for renovating our fire stations and other crumbling infrastructure let alone the estimated $100 million of work needed on our other schools.

Borderline: Why should or shouldn't the Newton South athletic fields be "astroturfed" using CPA funds, as opposed to School or City funds, which have been used to tend the fields in the past?

Parker: First, please allow me to make a comment on the phrasing of your question. "Astroturf" is like a green rug placed over concrete. It is a terrible, unsafe playing surface and is not being considered in Newton (or anywhere else these days). The surface being considered for Newton South High School’s fields is in-filled synthetic turf, which is a soft, multi-layered playing surface being used at many municipal, university, and professional playing fields around the country.

That correction having been stipulated, I’ll proceed to answer your question. I have been pointing out to the Mayor for years that the fields at Newton South High School are unusable most of the time. In fact, I have proposed repeated budget resolutions to that effect, several of which passed the Board of Aldermen unanimously. For years, the Mayor ignored this problem, but, to his credit, he endorsed the proposal of the NEWTURF group, led by Ted Tye, to create new in-filled synthetic turf fields at Newton South High School.

I strongly support creating playable new fields at Newton South by approving the NEWTURF initiative.

So that bring us to the question of how to pay for the new fields. While my preference would have been to see the fields included in the NSHS renovation project (which I advocated at the time) or paid for out of our Capital Improvement Plan and Supplemental Capital Budget (which I proposed repeatedly with unanimous support from my colleagues on the Board of Aldermen), I was not in a position to dictate terms, so I accepted the Mayor’s preferred funding source (CPA funds).

That having been said, as soon as I realized that my colleagues on the Board of Aldermen were not comfortable appropriating CPA funds for this purpose, I asked the Mayor to switch the funding source to general-fund backed borrowing, which I have been told (through an intermediary) that he has agreed to do.

Borderline: What have residents been telling you about their feelings concerning use of the CPA funds for NSHS astroturf?

Parker: Most of my calls and emails have been in favor of the NEWTURF initiative. People point out that the current fields are unusable and that on such a wet site, a natural grass field is not a viable option, since even with an expensive new drainage system, it would turn to mud for a considerable period of time after we get much rain, where as in-filled synthetic turf can be playable right after it rains.

Many people have also pointed out to me that synthetic turf can be played on three-times as much as natural grass (it won’t die if you abuse it) and that it costs much less to maintain (no need for watering, re-seeding, or mowing).

There is also some people who just hate the idea of synthetic sports fields. Some of these people have indicated to me that they hate sports fields, period. They want to see fields kept pure and natural without teams of kids running around on them. To be fair, others of this group don’t hate sports, just synthetic turf.

Also, a small group of neighbors has expressed opposition to the project, but some of them say they will be okay with it if there are no lights (there aren’t) and if concerns about noise and screening are addressed. There may be one or two of them who will not be happy with any playing field in their backyard.

Finally, there is a small but very vocal group of people who object to the use of CPA funds, but say they have no problem with the artificial surface itself. I wonder what will happen when CPA funds are no longer the proposed funding source for the project—will these people drop their opposition to NEWTURF or will they come up with new reasons to oppose it?

Borderline: You talk of supporting the Municipal WiFi for Newton. Considering most households already have high-speed access, what's the point?

Parker: I don’t just talk of supporting Municipal WiFi, I have been working on bringing it to Newton for more than three years, and it looks like we are close to success! I assume that Borderline is joking when asking what the point is, since comparing municipal WiFi to wired high-speed access is like comparing an airplane to a train. Depending on where you’re going, the train may get you there just as fast, but there are many places the train just won’t work and many things it just can’t do.

If all you are interested in is getting on the Internet while sitting at your desk at home, then RCN or Comcast or even your buddies at Verizon may meet your needs (for a pretty penny). But what if you want to surf the web in a public park? Or check your email at a store? Or watch a movie on your laptop at a friend’s house (who doesn’t have a high-speed connection). Then, you want municipal WiFi.

And for folks who are dependent on Internet access for their work, WiFi provides a great backup to your wired connection. RCN down? No problem, you can still download the presentation before rushing off to an important meeting or conference. Just log on to the free WiFi service (one free hour per day anywhere in Newton).

Another advantage for Newton residents, is that municipal WiFi offers another choice for high-speed residential Internet access. A choice that is expected to cost about half what folks are paying now for Comcast, RCN, and Verizon. That not only benefits people who make the switch, it also helps to keep prices low for the other service providers who want to keep their existing customers.

But the most important reason to have Municipal WiFi is that it gives access to City Departments to improve services and public safety. With municipal WiFi, the Fire Department will be able to download building plans from the scene of a fire, getting people out more quickly with less chance of loss of life. They will also be able to locate an address more quickly. By a similar token, the police will be better able to send a picture of a suspect to their colleagues in another community, before that suspect gets away or commits another crime. The Public Works Department will be able to read water meters remotely, saving the time and expense of sending an employee to your home. Better yet, if one of your pipes springs a leak while you are on vacation, you can be notified by a message to your cell phone, so that you can have a neighbor turn off your water service before your house floods.

And municipal WiFi will not only improve City services, it will also save a great deal of money. Free WiFi access will allow us to replace cell phones with wireless Voice-Over IP phones. It will allow us to use employee time more efficiently by directing parking meter enforcement officers to meters that are actually expired, so that they don’t waste their time wandering around looking at meters with plenty of time remaining.

It can also help to clean up our parks, as smart trash cans can signal our Parks and Recreation Department when they are nearly full, so that they do not overflow.

There are a great many more advantages to municipal WiFi. You can read about them in my recent Newton TAB column, which you can find here:
http://www.kenparker.org/WiFi_TAB_112906.html

You can also find the terms of the agreement I negotiated with Galaxy Internet here:
http://www.kenparker.org/GIS_WiFi_Offer_062106.pdf

Borderline: What's your stance on Verizon to get access to the Newton cable market? Considering some of their underhanded lobbying efforts (see http://borderlinenewtonwaltham.blogspot.com/2006/11/despite-hynesnew-media-strategics.html), is this the type of company that should be allowed to do business in Newton?

My initial instinct is to be repulsed by the kind of tactics you describe, but having read your blog entry, I’m still not sure which law Verizon has broken. Please send me more information on this topic and I will check with the City of Newton Law Department to see if Verizon’s franchise application (that was recently signed by Mayor Cohen) is legal. My big concern was that they tried (illegally, I am sure) to enter the Newton cable market without contributing to our public access station, NewTV. However, my understanding is that they finally agreed to honor their obligations under the Telecommunications Act of 1996 and pay a portion of their proceeds to support Newton public access television. If I have this wrong or am missing something, please fill me in.

Borderline: Why should or shouldn't the City of Newton buy Pat Hannon's property adjoining Crystal Lake?

Parker: I have been working on this issue for about as long as the Newton WiFi proposal. I strongly support acquiring this parcel (with CPA funds) as it is a perfect addition to the public swimming area on Crystal Lake and the upper portion of the site would make a great park.

That having been said, Mayor Cohen may have ended any chance of the deal going through by low-balling Pat Hannon with an offer half a million less than the property’s assessed value. My understanding is that Mr. Hannon has listed the property with a broker and indicated that he is no longer willing to sell his property to the City after the Mayor’s low offer.

Borderline: Are you interested in running for any other city or state office?

Parker: Yeah, sure. You have something in mind?

Another Newton niche blog about hating Brian Camenker

The Newton Tab blog pointed me to another Newton niche blog -- Hate Resistance, which seems to be focused on attacking Brian Camenker, the former Newton Taxpayers Association head who made quite a stir a few years back when he tried to videotape ToBGLADay activities at Newton North.

Even though Camenker has quieted down in the past few years -- or, as one post suggests, moved to Waltham -- the writer of "Hate Resistance" is not letting this stuff fade into memory. This author is pissed, and wants everyone to know about it.

Newton developers demand special zoning giveaway from Waltham

In the News-Tribune this morning, a story about how a Newton-based developer is getting ready to put a 7-story monstrosity at the intersection of Charles and Moody Street. It's going to block out light, dominate the small businesses and residences nearby, and make for more traffic. But hey, it will give the top floor tenants river views! Now the developer is asking for special treatment from the city. The article says:

Northland has asked the City Council to create a new zoning district, called Business D, to allow for the project. The proposed zone change is set for a City Council public hearing Monday.

The change would allow bigger buildings than those outlined in the developer’s informal proposal. Northland said it will build six stories on Main Street, and seven stories on Charles, where the ground slopes down toward the river, but the new zone would allow 90-foot-high buildings seven stories tall, across the block.

An artist’s rendering of the project, presented to the council this week, shows a building that appears smaller than the actual structure would stand at 77-plus feet. The new building appears to be just slightly larger than a building across the street that, at three stories, would be half the new building’s height.

A developer playing games, by trying to downplay the size of the building? Is anyone surprised?

Northland's chairman and CEO is Lawrence R. Gottesdiener. City councillors, please send Larry G a resounding message: NO WAY!

You can read the rest of the article at Building plan irks residents

Update

The Globe West has more information about the proposed project:

The plan calls for 350 luxury apartment units above 35,000 square feet of first-floor retail space on a 4 1/2-acre site at the corner of Main and Moody streets, opposite the common. ...

An underground parking garage. Plans call for 570 spaces.

Fast-food restaurants.

There's a public hearing at City Council tomorrow night (Monday, 8pm) to debate this project. Don't let it go forward!

Whittemore school rebuilding situation goes from bad to worse

Borderline has warned that problems with the Whittemore reconstruction process might lead to delays, and was greeted by resounding silence. No comments, no reaction -- perhaps because readers thought I was exaggerating the issue.

But now it looks like the South Side kids in this part of Waltham are being set up for an extra year in an inferior temporary facility, and more pain when they finally get their new school. The News Tribune reports that there was only one bid for the Whittemore reconstruction, and it came in at $5 million over budget. It's been rejected by the city. Now David King, chairman of the School Building Committee, realizes that there's a "problem of what to do next."

I'll say. Moreover, King's proposed solution to the problem is in itself a problem: Cut corners! I quote from the text of the News-Tribune article:

King described this as a process where costs could be cut without damaging the design of the building.

"The thought was that we could try to get some savings through value engineering without cheapening the building itself," King said.

"We agreed to not make Whittemore inferior and the goal is to make it comparable to other new schools," McCarthy said.

For example, King said mechanical rooftop units could be built with aluminum instead of steel. "We’re not sure if that’s appropriate, and some people probably feel it isn’t, but there could be substantial savings," he said.

Excuse me? The pols "agreed to not make Whittemore inferior" yet you're talking about cutting millions of dollars worth of corners? We got a little logic problem here, buddy. Or you're just blowing smoke.

The Whittemore community has a lot of other things to deal with besides the rebuilding issue, including lagging MCAS scores. The way things are shaping up, the school rebuilding project is going to be a lose-lose situation for the kids. The failure of the bidding process means the planned Sept. 2008 reopening of Whittemore is almost certainly going to be pushed into the future. How far remains to be seen. And, while the kids may be coming back to a new school, it will be inferior to what kids elsewhere in Waltham have received under the city-wide elementary school rebuilding plan.

One other thing that Borderline would like to say about this News Tribune article: The reporter really let residents down by not interviewing a single Whittemore parent. It's all about the spin put out by city officials. I expect this from the Globe (see Sloppy Reporting on Waltham Development), and am really disappointed to see this trend creeping into the News-Tribune. Don't forget your readers, Trib! For every minute you spend talking with or quoting the pols, you should spend at least one minute talking with the people impacted by their schemes.

Other Borderline rants about the Whittemore school:

What's up with Whittemore?

Whittemore budget problems, and a warning for Newton

Another reason to be worried about Whittemore

Plans for the Waltham Watch Factory: Worse than condos

Developers in Waltham. They just won't give up! From the Boston Globe:

Developers have applied for a special permit from the Waltham City Council that would allow them to create a 30-unit "apartment-hotel" at the site of the Waltham Watch factory complex on Crescent Street.

"It's kind of a new concept," said Andrew Albers, project manager for Colomba Brothers Development Corp. "It's for stays longer than in a hotel but shorter than a year's lease on an apartment."

Actually, Andrew, it's kind of an old concept, that Waltham has lots of experience with. Excecutive hotels, welfare hotels, long-term hotels, dormitories ... the type of facility aimed at people who have no intention of putting down roots here. Even condos would be better than this.

Borderline hopes our elected leaders don't suck up to the Waltham Watch Factory developers, like many of them did earlier this year to support development near Rte. 128.

Despite the Hynes/New Media Strategics fiasco, Verizon's master plan for Newton is working

Goal: Verizon wants to increase its business in Newton and other local cities where there are lots of rich people.

Problem: The law

Strategy 1: Get high-profile mainstream media outlets to parrot your PR and marketing lines, like this report from the Boston Globe does:

Verizon touts higher Internet speeds, more cable channels, a larger library of movies, and better quality -- all at prices that would be competitive with the town's only other cable provider, Comcast.

Strategy 2: Get high-profile municipal politicians on your side by using fake letter-writing campaigns, like this one, orchestrated by Verizon's Stephanie S. Lee and Santoro:

".... If you are interested in more competition, please send an email directly to Mayor Cohen to let him know you want cable choice. A sample letter is provided for your convenience. Please add personal information and comments to customize your letter, if you prefer. ...

Subject: Bring more cable choice to Newton

Dear [ Decision Maker ],

Verizon has invested millions of dollars in Newton by installing its advanced fiber optic network, which offers video, internet and phone services. Verizon not only offers us another alternative to cable, but will provide residents with a more robust channel line up, more HDTV offerings, and thousands of shows and movies on demand -- at lower prices than we are paying today.

The City of Newton has been a pioneer in fostering the spirit of cable competition. With the addition of Verizon's video service, we will be among the few municipalities in Massachusetts to provide consumers with three options for cable TV.

Today residents in nearly 20 Massachusetts communities are enjoying Verizon's FiOS TV. Newton residents also deserve the best technology available along with a superior choice for cable TV.

I am writing to ask that you move quickly to approve Verizon's application for a video license so that Newton residents can benefit from more competition and the capabilities of this advanced fiber network.

Strategy 3: Try to astroturf local blogs like Borderline.

Result: Success, probably, judging by page 3 of the Nov. 15 Newton Tab.

Who is Joe Publius?

Borderline and 49 other people -- most of them current residents of Newton who are involved in or follow the local political scene -- have received a series of emails from someone calling himself "Joe Publius." The emails, and the website they directs us to, are dedicated to questioning the use of CPA funds for the Newton South Astroturf project.

Here's the text of the first message, which Borderline received on November 10:

Hello. On June 21, 2006 the Community Preservation Committee voted 7-2 to recommend to CPA funding for the Newton South synthetic turf improvement project.

Now the Board of Aldermen is being asked to okay CPA money to pay for something that is essentially a School Department proposal.

Says who? Check out the clips from the CPC meeting – statements by the committee members Mr. McMillan and Mr. Dickson on www.joepublius.com.

Here attached is a clip from www.joepublius.com. Enjoy!

For more on this and other insights go to www.joepublius.com.

Feel free to share this e-mail with the grassroots growing near you.

The second installment came on Nov. 12, and followed the same format, referring us to the clips he had gathered (see sample), apparently by pointing a digital videocamera at a television screen, which was showing the CPA/Astroturf debate.

By now people on the email list were beginning to notice, and someone fired this message off to all recipients, including Borderline:

I asked privately and now I ask publicly: I would like to know who is behind Joe Publius. You have answered that you don't want to "distract" the reader's ability to get the facts by knowing who is putting up the web site. However, you have provided parts of people's conversations from a variety of meetings. These bits and pieces can be edited and put back together in ways which support or not. Unless you are willing to say who you are - I for one find that fact a huge distraction to the believability of the material you present.

This email prompted a reply from Jeff Seideman (also on the list of 50), who agreed that the anonymity was distracting, but noted that the clips seemed legit and also presented the community preservation committee in a new light.

So who is Joe Publius? Stay tuned ...

Borderline's election analysis: TV news sucks

Sorry the lack of updates. Like a lot of people these days, Borderline has to take work-related overseas trips every now and then.

But I did make it back in time for the elections. I was surprised by the wine vote, but hey, Massachusetts has been a haven for bizarre alcohol-related rules since the 1600s. Why stop now?

I won't comment on the local or national races -- other local blogs are better on that front (Check out local reax from H2OTown, The Newton Tab Blog, and The Garden City Blog).

But I will make one observation regarding televised media coverage: What the heck happened to objectivity? Elections are serious business, and personal feelings of reporters are supposed to stay off camera. Right? But half of the local TV people couldn't stop smiling. Even on channel 44, MacNeil or Lehrer or whatever his name had this huge grin on his face at one point, for the first time since, like, 1978.

The local Fox 25 political coverage was odd. Their chief political reporter, Battenfeld, sounded like he was going through puberty -- his voice was really cracking. At least Bob Ward managed to look serious, even though he was at party central -- aka Deval Patrick HQ.

Eventually, once it became clear who was coming out on top, I decided to wait until the morning for real political analysis in the Globe and NYT, which goes way beyond the 100-word sound bytes that pass for talking-heads analysis on TV.

I then switched to South Park on 38. Good episode, too -- Cartman as a robot!

Just what Waltham doesn't need -- A Big Box Lowe's On River Street

I can't believe this is even being considered. A big-box Lowe's Home Improvement store in a place that already has major traffic problems -- The River Street/ex-Raytheon area, right on the Watertown line. The News Tribune has the details, including furious neighborhood reaction.

"That's not going to work in our neighborhood," homeowner Chris Hayes said to applause from his neighbors. "The traffic is already brutal."

Several residents mentioned traffic and loud trucks brought in by a recently built Shaw's supermarket on River Street. They said major retail on River Street is too damaging to the nearby Warrendale and Rangeley Acres neighborhoods, and some said office buildings would be preferable.

They are absolutely right. There already is too much traffic there, and the streets around that site, many of them one lane in each direction, are not meant to handle thousands of extra cars and trucks every day. People with families live there. I cross River Street all the time at that intersection to go to Dunkin's with my kids.

There's another thing that the News Tribune failed to mention: Just down the road, across the Watertown line on Pleasant Street (aka, across from Russos) someone is building a big-box condo development. Guess how many extra cars that monstrosity is going to bring to the area once it opens? There's only two easy ways to get there, Pleasant Street and River Street in Waltham.

Here's my suggestion to Waltham citizens: Let your councilmen know what you think about the Lowe's juggernaut destroying this neighborhood, and let them know that they need to put up a fight, instead of sucking up to developers.

Last call for alcohol ...

Borderline has watched with great amusement the TV commercials for and against Question 1, which proposes that grocery stores be allowed to sell wine. Not surprisingly, the grocery stores are for it, while the local liquor stores (aka package stores, packies) are against it.

I saw a pro-grocery store ad last night, and it was a hoot. Packies are represented by fuzzy, neon signs at night. The grocery stores are well-lit bastions of civility, where a good-looking professional couple are smilingly picking up a bottle of wine.

But all this makes me wonder: Didn't Star Market in Newtonville sell booze until three or four years ago? Right in the back of the store? It was the only supermarket that I know of that was able to sell wine and beer, and it was very convenient. And then suddenly they got rid of it. How did Star/Shaws manage that for so long, and just in that store?

And speaking of the electorate ...

Joe Vizard points Borderline to a letter he wrote to the Trib about transparency in local government. He has a couple of suggestions that would let Walthamers/ites better understand the workings of the city government here. The one that I agree with relates to the website:

... More information should be provided to citizens through the City's Web site. During the budget process, citizens should be able to view city budget information online. It is the people's money that is being spent, and the people deserve to see how it will be spent. Minutes of City Council meetings, including roll call votes, should be placed on the Web site.

Vizard notes in his letter that the city already places some useful information online, including the contact information for councillors, meeting schedule, and the City Council docket.

He also suggests having City Council committee meetings covered by the Municipal Access Channel. Borderline is not so sure about that one unless the costs for production can be kept down. And really, who would watch it? We can't afford cable TV, but even if we did shell out for RCN or Comcast we probably wouldn't watch -- there's just too much going on in terms of the number and complexity of issues being covered, and too much procedural stuff that gets in the way of the interesting debates.

BTW, if you have interesting tips related to Waltham or Newton, send 'em in. The email is borderlineblog@gmail.com.

Ignore the electorate at your own risk ...

Newton pols are steamrolling the people of Newton on rebuilding NNHS, and residents have decided to fight it. Not a handful of residents. A LOT of residents. They have 800 signatures so far, sez the Newton Tab Blog. Check out the petition that's going around, or visit the Better Newton North website.

If I were the mayor or an alderman, I'd be worried ...

Damage control, City Hall-style: Hire a lightning rod

I had a good laugh reading Mayor Cohen's spokesman Jeremy Solomon's fiery letter to the Newton Tab and criticism of editor Greg Reibman on August 30. Here's the meat of Solomon's rant:

For a long time now, Greg has simply been unable to hide his animosity toward Mayor Cohen.While careful readers of the Newton TAB may pick up on the paper’s propensity to print sensationalistic headlines and articles with negative slants, it is only now that Greg has made it personal.

Shame on you Greg Reibman. For someone who claims to care about our community and who serves as a newspaper professional, to disparage our city leaders in a Brookline media outlet is unprofessional at best, and slanderous at worst.

Given your stated opinions of the form of government and our elected officials here in Newton, as long as Greg Reibman is the Editor-in-Chief, it is clear that Newton residents should not expect to find unbiased news coverage of our city in the Newton TAB.

Unfortunately, the Tab editor is taking the letter way too seriously in the Tab blog, not realizing that it's an old ploy from the PR professional's bag of tricks: Deflecting attention from an unpopular issue or your unpopular boss by making provocative statements in your own name about a completely unrelated issue. Here's how Borderline responded in the Tab blog:

On the face of it, it looks like an attack on you, Greg, as well as the Tab, but there's more to the story than that. Remember, as a hired PR gun, Solomon's job is to make the mayor look as good as possible. A large part of that responsibility involves deflecting criticism from Mayor Cohen, who has a serious image problem, as evidenced by his hiding from the media and public scrutiny. What better way to draw attention away from Cohen than to send a provocative letter to the Tab? He's setting himself up to be the lightning rod for people critical of City Hall, as next week's crop of letters to the Tab are likely to prove. This takes attention away from Cohen, just as things are starting to heat up on the NNHS and NFD fronts.

Don't let yourself be played by Solomon, Greg. Stay focussed on Cohen and the city's real problems.

There's no doubt that Cohen has a tough job, but the way he's handling the media -- deferring all questions to Solomon and refusing to answer unscripted questions on his own from the city's no. 1 media outlet -- is really quite sad. Answering tough questions from the media is part of the job of being a public figure. Hiding behind Mr. Solomon — an unelected official whose job is to make Cohen and the city government look good — is weak and doing the public a disservice. Mayor Cohen’s job is to lead the city, and explain his policies — which often means answering tough questions off the cuff. Mayor Menino gets five microphones shoved in face every time he appears in public, and is not afraid to answer questions that deal with ugly or unpopular topics. Why not Cohen?