Rebroadcast of Olympics Debate Sunday Night

In case you missed seeing the Boston Olympics debate live Thursday night, Fox 25 will be rebroadcasting it Sunday night at 5 pm. This is the first debate between Boston 2024 Chairman Steve Pagliuca and the co-chair of No Boston Olympics Chris Dempsey. The hour-long debate is moderated by anchor Maria Stephanos Globe reporter Sacha Pfeiffer,

Boston City Council Looks At Parking Fines Pilot, Olympics, City Charter Changes & More

Councillor-At-Large Michelle Wu provides notes from Boston City Council meetings. The Boston City Council considered the items below and more at their May 20, 2015 meeting:

Parking Fines & Towing: The Council voted 12-1 (Councilor Murphy opposing) to pass Mayor Walsh's ordinance giving authority to the Transportation Commissioner to designate Pilot Zones where fines for not moving your car during posted street cleaning times would be increased from $40 to $90 but towing would no longer occur.  After hearings and working sessions, the language was amended to include a sunset clause, ending the pilot program November 30, 2015.  The Transportation Commissioner will also be required to provide the City Council with data from the pilot program. The pilot will happen in Charlestown, and at the end of the program, there will be further evaluation.  Many Councilors expressed concern with the impact of stopping towing on cleanliness - if residents are less likely to move their cars for street cleaning, even with an increased fine, the City will have to use the extra ticket revenue for hokies or specific tools to clean around parked cars. Councilor Murphy expressed skepticism that the pilot would work and believes that towing is crucial for compliance with posted street cleaning. Councilor Wu voted for the pilot as a way to support government experimentation and innovation, remaining open to the possibility that it could work in some neighborhoods even if she is skeptical about it in the Downtown neighborhoods. Councilor McCarthy called for a citywide anti-litter campaign to get at the root problem.

2024 Olympics: On Monday, the City Council's subcommittee on the 2024 Olympics had a hearing focused on the International Olympic Committee's 2020 Agenda. There has been extensive coverage of the proceedings, including this Globe article. Overall, the Council heard about the IOC's goals of creating a more affordable and sustainable host city experience.  However, they will still require a financial guarantee for cost overruns, although this may come from a private entity. It would be a violation of the City Charter to write a blank check, as any financial expenditure needs to have a specific appropriation in place beforehand. Boston 2024 stated that they would have more of a plan by June, and that no financial guarantee would be signed until at least after the 2016 statewide referendum on the Olympics.  The City Council will be hosting several more hearings on the Olympics.

Boston City Charter: On Monday, the City Council's subcommittee on Charter Reform held a working session to discuss ideas for changes. Councilor Baker put forth 11 suggestions that had been submitted by constituents and others. These include: Giving the City Council authority to approve all Mayoral appointments, Council confirmation of School Committee appointees, Term limits for City Council & Mayor, City Council power to veto sections of the budget vs. an up or down vote, Extending City Council terms to 4 years, Eliminating the home rule petition, Charter revamp to eliminate conflicts and clean up language, City Council & Mayoral pay structure/raises, Special Election for vacant At-Large seats, Elections for Mayor & City Council to be on off years, Open Meeting Law review. Councilor Baker asked for this docket to stay in committee.

Constable Confirmation: The Council voted to suspend and pass confirmation of Constables and Inspectional Services Constables authorized by the City to serve civil process from May 2015 until April 2018.

• Renewal List: Gabriel Azubuike, Linda Castagna, Geovanne Colon, William Flippin, Kevin Loftus, Shane Reed, Wallace Tilford, Joseph Turco
• New Constable List: Sean Alexander, Holsen Borgella, Cavkil Bromfield, Samuel Desrosiers, Aisha Johnson, Krista Long, Ronald Luccio, Martin Richardson, Nicola Tritta
• ISD Renewal List: Indira Alvarez, Anthony Cillo, Raoul Jacques, Toney Jones, Charles Mba, Baraa Mohamed, Tawonya Morris-William, Taschetta Stephens-Weston, Yvonne Tofuri
• ISD New Constable List: Michael Campbell, David Rini, Yolanda Stinson-Tubbs

Diesel Emissions Reduction Ordinance: The Council voted at the May 13th meeting to pass the amended ordinance filed by Councilor Murphy that would require the use of ultra-low sulfur diesel fuel and diesel emissions control technology in vehicles used for City projects and services.  That means for vehicles owned, leased, or operated by the City, as well as vehicles used for City construction projects with greater than $2M cost, they must be powered by ultra-low-sulfur diesel fuel and meet EPA emissions standards for new vehicles in effect in 2007 or later or have verified retrofit technology that removes at least 20% of particulates from the exhaust stream. The ordinance is a victory for public health and environmental issues, and it has been in the works since 2009.

For complete notes from May 20th and prior Boston City Council meetings, visit www.michelleforboston.com/notes or sign up to receive these notes automatically each week by email at www.michelleforboston.com/sendmenotes.

Boston City Council Looks At Transportation, A New Superintendent, Spring & The Week Ahead

Councillor-At-Large Michelle Wu provides notes from Boston City Council meetings. The March 4, 2015 meeting was delayed by two hours for the Council to attend the Boston Municipal Research Bureau's annual meeting and hear Mayor Walsh's address (here's the text of his speech if curious: http://www.cityofboston.gov/news/default.aspx?id=20023). Please reach out to Councillor Wu with any comments. Anyone can sign up to receive weekly email meeting notes at www.michelleforboston.com/sendmenotes or see past notes at www.michelleforboston.com/notes.   

Snow Removal Fines: Mayor Walsh submitted a home rule petition to the Council that would allow the City to impose fines up to $1,500 for failure to responsibly remove snow, slush, or ice. The proposal would allow Boston regulators to impose 3 categories of fines: 1) people, corporations, associations, and societies who remove snow/slush/ice and throw it onto a public way, 2) abutting property owners who fail to clear sidewalks, and 3) abutting property owners who fail to clear curb ramps. The current cap on fines is $300. The Mayor noted that increasing the fines would help deter bad behavior but also recover some of the costs associated with snow cleanup. The matter was referred to the Government Operations Committee for a hearing.

Refinancing Bonds: We voted unanimously to authorize the City to issue up to $65M in refunding bonds to refinance and take advantage of favorable market conditions. The Administration estimated a savings of $9.2M over FY 2016-2029 after refinancing from 4.6% interest to 2.3%, even after fees are accounted for.

Boston 2030: Councilor Linehan proposed a hearing to develop the city's policies and projects to improve transportation infrastructure in conjunction with the City's Go Boston 2030 transportation planning initiative as we look ahead to Boston's 400th birthday. The first phase of Go Boston 2030 launched in late January, collecting 4,000 questions from 15 different neighborhood spots to develop an action plan this spring. Councilor Linehan noted that the City Council should have a seat at the table and participate in developing this initiative, given the importance of transportation infrastructure. The matter was referred to the Special Committee on Transportation, Public Infrastructure & Investment for a hearing.

Spring Clean-Up & Street Sweeping: Councilor O'Malley called for a hearing to discuss the city's plans for cleanup once the snow banks have melted. He anticipated issues around trash that has collected in the snow as well as flooding. Councilor Flaherty also noted that many youth sports leagues are scheduled to start but worried about the condition of parks and fields. The matter was sent to the Committee on City & Neighborhood Services and Veterans Affairs for a hearing.

New Superintendent: Councilor Jackson as Chair of the Education Committee announced that the School Committee selected Dr. Tommy Chang to lead the Boston Public Schools last night. Many Councilors voiced appreciation for the openness of the interview process and the Administration's model of transparency. Councilor Jackson encouraged each District Councilor to host the new Superintendent at a reception in their district to introduce him to residents and families. You can find Dr. Chang's bio and application for the job here: http://www.bostonpublicschools.org/Page/4464.

Upcoming Meetings/Hearings (all in the Iannella Chamber unless otherwise noted):
• Thursday, March 5th, 11:30AM: Residency Policy Commission meeting, Piemonte Room
• Thursday, March 5th, 6PM: Hearing on Late Night MBTA Service
• Friday, March 6th, 10:30AM: Hearing on 2024 Olympics
• Wednesday, March 11th, 12PM: Weekly Council Meeting
• Thursday, March 12th, 6PM: Hearing on Equitable Transitions for Students Receiving Special Education Services

FPNA Presents Olympics in Fort Point: An Initial Discussion

The Fort Point Neighborhood Association (FPNA) resumes their monthly neighborhood meeting series with special guest John Fitzgerald, City of Boston's Director of Olympic Operations. 

If you are not yet familiar with the Boston 2024 Olympic concept for Fort Point, please take a look at Boston 2024 Olympic venue plan ( pages 34-41).

Fort Point neighbors are invited to engage in an initial discussion of the benefits and impact of Boston 2024 Olympics in Fort Point on: 

Tuesday, March 3, 2015

6:00 pm – 7:30 pm

Boston Children's Museum

via 308 Congress Street
Dewey/Suess Conference Rooms, 5th floor 

R.S.V.P. (required)
  

Boston 2024

Olympics In Fort Point

An initial discussion of benefits and impact

featuring

John FitzGerald

Director of Olympic Operations

City of Boston

with

Richard McGuiness

Deputy Director for Waterfront Planning

Boston Redevelopment Authority

 7:00 pm General Meeting & Neighborhood Updates

originally published 2.19.15

Olympic Community Meeting To Be Held In South Boston

Update: Fort Point identified as broadcast and press center with transport hub, media parking and a satellite farm for Boston 2024. The plan also calls for hospitality barges on the Fort Point Channel according to Boston 2024 Olympic venue plan (see pages 34-41).

With the US Olympic Committee's selection of Boston, Mayor Walsh announces the first nine community meetings beginning February 3d through September 29th to discuss proposed venue plans and the benefits and impacts for Boston. 

“Today marks the start of a long process to meet with residents and solicit feedback from our many diverse neighborhoods as we move forward in our quest to host the 2024 Summer Olympics,” Mayor Martin J. Walsh said. “I am excited to share our vision with the people of Boston and hear their thoughts on how we can work together to not only bring the Games to Boston, but create one of the most innovative, sustainable and successful Olympics the world has seen.”. 

The City will hold an Olympic Discussion Community Meeting in South Boston on:

Tuesday, February 24, 2015

Condon School Cafeteria

200 D St., South Boston
6:30 pm

Meetings and additional steps in the community process will be announced on an ongoing basis. In addition, Boston 2024, the privately-funded nonprofit organizing committee, held the first meeting of its Citizens Advisory Group on Jan. 21 at 6 p.m. at the Boston Convention and Exhibition Center. Boston 2024 created the Citizens Advisory Group through their website to provide information and solicit feedback from the public.Visit Boston 2024 for Citizen's Advisory Group meeting schedule and full City of Boston community meeting schedule.

The USOC decision to select Boston as the United States' bid city is the next step in the International Olympic Committee selection process. There will be a review process before the USOC officially submits Boston as the United States' bid city to the IOC. The IOC will select the 2024 Summer Games host city in 2017.

originally published 1.9.15

Fort Point Neighborhood Meeting Cancelled

In light of the Governor's declaration of a state of emergency, speaker availability, local snow conditions and concern for our neighbors' safety, the Fort Point Neighborhood Association is regrettably cancelling tonight's meeting. 

We encourage everyone to attend City of Boston's Olympic Community Discussion on Tuesday, February 24, 2015 at 6:30pm at the Condon School located at 200 D Street.

FPNA will be holding a separate meeting on the Benefits & Impact of the Olympics in Fort Point on Tuesday, March 3, 2015 at 6pm. More details to follow.

The Fort Point Neighborhood Association looks forward to engaging with our neighbors on neighborhood issues and wishes for 2015. 

Thank you to the City of Boston, State Representative Collins, State Senator Forry, and our Boston City Councillors Linehan, Flaherty, Wu, Pressley and Murphy for your service to our district, especially during the recent winter storms.

Boston City Council Looks at Flight Patterns & Olympics

Councillor-At-Large Michelle Wu provides notes from Boston City Council Meetings. Here are a couple of items from the February 4th meeting:

Logan Airport Flight Patterns: Councilor McCarthy & Councillor Michelle Wu called for a hearing on recent changes to flight patterns at Logan airport, where sending flights to runways 27, 33L, and 4L has increased the number of low-flying planes over residential neighborhoods. This has been particularly bothersome in Councilor McCarthy's district, and my office has also received complaints about frequent noise from low-flying plans in other neighborhoods across the city too, often early in the morning disturbing residents' sleep. The matter was referred to the Special Committee on Transportation, Public Infrastructure, Planning & Investment for a hearing.

Olympics Referendum: Councilor Zakim offered an order that would put four nonbinding public opinion advisory questions about the 2024 Olympics on the November 2015 ballot. The questions proposed include: 1) whether Boston should host the Olympics, 2) if the City should commit public money to support the Games, 3) if the City should make any financial guarantees to cover cost overruns for the Games, and 4) if City should use eminent domain to take private land for the Games. The questions would appear on the ballot if passed by a majority of the Council and signed by the Mayor. The matter was referred to the newly-created Special Committee on the 2024 Olympics for a hearing.

For complete notes from the February 4th meeting, sign up to receive these notes automatically each week by email at www.michelleforboston.com/sendmenotes or see the list of all previous notes at www.michelleforboston.com/notes.