Brighton Centered

Unofficial vote: Brownsberger Wins Senate Race

noreply@blogger.com (Michael Pahre) — Wed, 14 Dec 2011 02:45:00 +0000

According to the Twitter-universe -- actually the Watertown TAB's Twitter feed -- the unofficial vote totals for the special senate primary election for the full district are:

William Brownsberger 4958
Jonathan Hecht 3849
Robert McCarthy 3436
Timothy Schofield 2887

Schofield Wins Big in Allston-Brighton

noreply@blogger.com (Michael Pahre) — Wed, 14 Dec 2011 02:32:00 +0000

Tim Schofield has taken a big lead in the special senate primary election results today, winning the 28 Boston precincts (mostly in Allston-Brighton) with nearly 64% of the vote:

NAME	Votes	Percent
TIMOTHY N SCHOFIELD	2061	63.79%
ROBERT B McCARTHY	602	18.63%
WILLIAM BROWNSBERGER	370	11.45%
JONATHAN HECHT	181	5.60%
Write-in Votes	17	0.53%

Allston-Brighton's historically low turnout, however, means that Schofield will have difficulty holding onto this lead. While Boston's total number of votes cast was 3203, Belmont already 2858 votes cast as of 3 pm -- with around 4400 expected by the time the polls closed at 8 pm.

State representative Will Brownsberger of Belmont is the favorite to get the lion's share of those Belmont votes.

Boston Globe Coverage of Senate Candidates Forum

noreply@blogger.com (Michael Pahre) — Sun, 11 Dec 2011 20:35:00 +0000

The Brighton senate candidates forum was covered by the Boston Globe -- currently linked to only through its Belmont or Watertown "Your Town" websites, natch.

On state funding for the Faneuil branch of the Boston Public Library:

Candidates agreed at a forum in Brighton last night that the Faneuil branch of the Boston Public Library in Oak Square, which teetered on the edge of permanent closure last year, should continue to be state-funded and kept open.

On MBTA funding:

Candidates also went head-to-head on solutions for bailing the MBTA out of debt, since the area is heavily dependent on both the Green Line and multiple city buses.

Schofield said he did not think fares should rise, but that the state should funnel money into the T...

Brownsberger said he thinks the state should raise the gas tax to increase revenue dollars, which could then help fund the MBTA.

State Senate Candidates Websites

noreply@blogger.com (Michael Pahre) — Fri, 09 Dec 2011 13:05:00 +0000

It was a pleasure to hear from all four candidates at last night's candidates forum, sponsored by the Brighton Allston Improvement Association.

It is encouraging when we hear from a slate of candidates for a particular office where every single person has an interesting background, understands many of the varied issues before our community and state, and can speak eloquently on the issues.

Many thanks go out to the BAIA for sponsoring the candidates forum, and especially to those in the organizing committee who put it on: Ruth Scheer, Joanne Laplant, Mary Cronin, Abigail Furey, Lauren Mattison, and BAIA president Anabela Gomes.

Unfortunately, we appear to have had such strong attendance that we ran out of handouts at the forum. Here are links to the four candidates websites, information that appeared on the handouts:

Rep. Will Brownsberger: www.mywillbrownsberger.com, (617) 771-8274
Rep. Jon Hecht: www.electhecht.com, (617) 393-3501
Bob McCarthy: www.bobmccarthy.org, (617) 612-5262
Tim Schofield: www.timschofield.org, (617) 453-8683

Boston Globe Endorses Brownsberger for State Senate

noreply@blogger.com (Michael Pahre) — Fri, 09 Dec 2011 12:54:00 +0000

The Boston Globe's editorial page has endorsed state representative William Brownsberger (D-Belmont) for the special election to replace Steven Tolman in the state senate's 2nd Suffolk and Middlesex seat.

Tolman stepped down in October after he was elected as president of AFL-CLO in Massachusetts.

In their endorsement, the Globe's editorial board wrote:

[S]tate Representative Will Brownsberger of Belmont has a progressive record on social and environmental matters — but also a history of creative thinking about making government more effective, honest, and transparent.

In making their endorsement, the Globe seems to have given an honorable mention to state representative Jonathan Hecht (D-Watertown):

[Hecht] shares Brownsberger’s emphasis on open, efficient government... He and Brownsberger have voted in similar ways.

But the Globe criticized the other two candidates in the race, Timothy Schofield (D-Brighton) and Robert McCarthy (D-Watertown), for their positions on paying for health care for employees of local government:

[Schofield and McCarthy] have criticized recent efforts to help cities and towns save on spiraling employee health costs. Digging in to defend unsustainable costs shouldn’t be mistaken for progressive government; if anything, it leads to more layoffs of public workers and worse services for citizens.

State Senate Candidates Forum Thursday, 12/8 at 6:30 pm

noreply@blogger.com (Michael Pahre) — Mon, 28 Nov 2011 03:31:00 +0000

The Brighton Allston Improvement Association will be hosting a candidates forum for the special election for state senator in the Second Suffolk and Middlesex district seat recently vacated by Steven Tolman.

The special primary election will be on Tuesday, December 13th. Since all four candidates for the seat are Democrats, the winner of the December 13th primary will be unopposed in the January special election.

State Senate Candidates Forum

Thursday, December 8th
Meet-and-Greet: 6:00 pm; light refreshments contributed by Athan's
Candidates Forum: 6:30 - 8:00 pm

Brighton Elks Lodge
326 Washington Street, Brighton Center
Parking at rear of building (enter lot from Winship Street)

Sponsor: Brighton Allston Improvement Association
Candidates: State Rep. Will Brownsberger, State Rep. Jon Hecht, Bob McCarthy, Tim Schofield
Moderator: Michael Pahre, editor, Brighton Centered Blog

To check if you live in this district, visit www.wheredoivotema.com

State Senate Special Election in Allston-Brighton in Early 2012?

noreply@blogger.com (Michael Pahre) — Wed, 31 Aug 2011 03:26:00 +0000

The Boston Globe reported earlier today that Steven Tolman, state senator from Brighton, appears likely to step down from his position in order to become the next president of AFL-CIO of Massachusetts.

Tolman's new job would mean that Allston-Brighton -- as well as Belmont, Watertown, the South End, and part of Cambridge -- would probably have a special election in early 2012 to fill his seat. Tolman has told the paper that he would resign his seat if named president of the labor organization.

Tolman's path to its presidency was cleared when his only opponent for the position, lobbyist Tim Sullivan, dropped out of the running.

I will venture to guess that among the names from Allston-Brighton likely to run for the senate seat would likely by state representative Michael Moran, who has been accumulating campaign cash of late concident with his role as head of the legislative redistricting committee. Also, I expect that District 9 City Councilor Mark Ciommo will likely take a pass, because he is running for reelection in November (albeit unopposed).

Outside Allston-Brighton, I can imagine that Rachel Kaprelian of Watertown, who runs the Registry of Motor Vehicles and is a former state representative, might be looking closely at this race.

Any other names out there? Drop suggestions in the comments field below.

Update: David Bernstein at the Phoenix's Talking Politics blog has more names for consideration.

Brighton Garden Tour 2011

noreply@blogger.com (Michael Pahre) — Tue, 12 Jul 2011 01:30:00 +0000

I've put a slideshow of images from last weekend's Brighton Garden Tour 2011, sponsored by the Brighton Garden Society, over at the Shades of Bright Town blog.

Correlating Mayor Curley With Governor Patrick

noreply@blogger.com (Michael Pahre) — Tue, 29 Mar 2011 22:17:00 +0000

From an amazon.com email I received recently:

Dear Amazon.com Customer,

Customers who have purchased or rated "The Rascal King: The Life and Times of James Michael Curley, 1874-1958" by Jack Beatty might like to know that "A Reason to Believe: Lessons from an Improbable Life" will be released on April 12, 2011. You can pre-order yours at a savings of $9.96 by following the link below.

A Reason to Believe: Lessons from an Improbable Life
Governor Deval Patrick

From this I surmise that people who are interested in the totally corrupt and personally profitable political machine known as Mayor Curley will also be interested in the political life of Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick? Not even the governor's enemies would make that connection...

Brighton Fourth-Grader Wins City Spelling Bee

noreply@blogger.com (Michael Pahre) — Sun, 13 Mar 2011 15:29:00 +0000

Zachary Doiron, a 4th grader at the Edison K8 School in Brighton, yesterday won the City of Boston's spelling bee by correctly spelling the word "toboggan."

Fourth- through eighth-graders in Boston compete in the annual event. Edison K8 School students held their qualifying event last month.

As the winner, Zachary now has the opportunity to compete in the national spelling bee in Washington, D.C. in May.

A Highly-Effective Fundraising Letter

noreply@blogger.com (Michael Pahre) — Thu, 24 Feb 2011 02:59:00 +0000

In these days of electronic communication I still get a phenomenal amount of snailmail asking for donations for this or that worthwhile cause. Sadly, my income is finite, so I cannot respond to most.

But one local institution has managed to send me a fundraising letter to which I just can't say no.

The Oak Square ~~YMCA~~ Y put a cute picture of a gap-toothed 7-year-old on a newsletter that came along with a request for a donation. The same adorable picture that the Y also used last year on one of their seasonal programming guides.

How can a father say no to that? The check is in the mail.

Brighton Death of Globe's Latest So-Called Trend

noreply@blogger.com (Michael Pahre) — Tue, 22 Feb 2011 13:44:00 +0000

Another week, another so-called trend appearing in the pages of the Boston Globe. Today's trend: cupcake stores in Boston, poised for an even greater surge.

While the story hyped the number of cupcake stores in Boston (six) and pointed to new stores possibly coming soon, it failed to point out at least one cupcake business that has gone bust.

That would be right here in Brighton Center, where Cherry Bomb closed its doors recently at 379 Washington Street after what appears to have been less than one year in business. Bye-bye bacon, beer, and pepper cupcakes.

You would think that balancing the busting, not just the booming, of cupcake stores would be a necessary journalistic ingredient in assessing whether or not there is a local trend.

Image by lamantin provided through CC by 2.0 license.

Soft, Naked Opening

noreply@blogger.com (Michael Pahre) — Sat, 19 Feb 2011 19:27:00 +0000

No, not what you think.

Friday night the new Naked Pizza at 433 Washington Street (corner of Foster Street) near Brighton Center -- formerly a gas station that often ran out of gas! -- had its soft opening. Inside it looked very crowded for this take-out only joint.

So, if your insides are craving pizza crust made from oats, brown rice, buckwheat, quinoa, amaranth, teff, spelt, tapioca, and two kinds of wheat -- as well as prebiotic agave fiber and probiotics -- you can get your fix now. Just prepare to wait in line.

Fantastic! A Fox This Morning in Brighton Back Yard

noreply@blogger.com (Michael Pahre) — Thu, 10 Feb 2011 13:44:00 +0000

Startling but lovely sight this morning to see a fox trotting into my Brighton back yard. He wandered around a bit, hopped over the fence into the neighbors yard, stretched out and scratched. A chorus of crows surrounded him in the trees, and he left soon after.

Methinks he was looking for rabbits, a few of which live on this block. I've tracked them recently in the fresh snow.

Bike Lane on Brighton's Lake Street

noreply@blogger.com (Michael Pahre) — Sat, 13 Nov 2010 02:57:00 +0000

City workers were seen painting bike lane -- and shared bike lane -- markings on Brighton's Lake Street last Saturday morning. The stripes were painted from the beginning of Lake Street at Commonwealth Avenue down to the bottom of the steep hill at Lake Shore Road, approximately a half mile.

The striped pavement looks to be approximately: 0.1 mile of exclusive bike lane; 0.25 mile of shared bike line on the right hand side of the street; and 0.15 mile of exclusive bike lane.

The street was recently re-paved, which meant that a number of potholes larger than a newborn baby were filled in. Several dangerously protruding manhole covers are also now level with the asphalt, although one bad one still remains at a location halfway down the hill.

For those who know the one-way street: it is fairly steep downhill such that a cyclist can easily speed over 40 mph unless braking steadily the whole way. In the past, I have had to ride in the center of the lane, blocking vehicular traffic -- weaving left-and-right because of the horrendous condition of the road surface. The resurfacing and bike lane are welcome improvements.

MWRA Workers at Chestnut Hill Reservoir

noreply@blogger.com (Michael Pahre) — Thu, 26 Aug 2010 23:10:00 +0000

Word is that MWRA workers have been over at the Chestnut Hill Reservoir -- including a boat and a truck -- who look to be preparing for the reservoir to be used as part of the city's water supply should the water main in Weston need to be closed off for repairs.

Earlier today the Boston Globe reported that the city's main water line had sprung a leak in Weston at a location only 75 feet away from the major leak that disrupted the city's water service back in May.

The Boston Globe's story notes that the MWRA is preparing unspecified backup plans:

"Right now, there are no service interruptions of any kind, but we are making ready our backup plans just in case," said Ria Convery, an MWRA spokesman.

In May the CHR was used as part of the backup water supply. The MWRA activity over there today suggests that it may be called into service again soon.

Judge Rules BC Task Force a Government Body -- At Least For Now

noreply@blogger.com (Michael Pahre) — Fri, 30 Jul 2010 12:26:00 +0000

The City of Boston was dealt several setbacks recently in a lawsuit against them over the city's approval of the Boston College institutional master plan.

In the case of Galvin et al. vs. Boston Zoning Commission et al., Superior Court Justice Charles Spurlock [right] issued a preliminary ruling on June 29th that there are "sufficient facts to support an inference" that the BC Task Force, an official advisory body of the Boston Redevelopment Authority (or, in the judge's words, "a subcommittee of the BRA"), is a government body, and hence subject to the state's Open Meeting Law. The ruling was issued in response to a series of pre-trial motions by lawyers on both sides of the case.

The ruling is significant in that it is consistent with the ruling of Suffolk County District Attorney Dan Conley in June 2007 that the BC Task Force and the Harvard Allston Task Force are government bodies that are subject to the state's OML, a ruling that the city continues to dispute.

Two Brighton residents, Patrick Galvin and Mark Alford, filed their lawsuit against the city in July 2009 in response to the city's approval of BC's IMP. The BRA Board voted in January 2009 to approve the IMP; the Boston Zoning Commission approved it, with modification, in June 2009; and Mayor Thomas Menino subsequently signed it.

Justice Spurlock's order, while not a final ruling in the case, indicates that the task force will continue to be a defendant in the lawsuit. To date the task force has not, to my knowledge, responded at all to the complaints nor have they been represented in front of the court by legal counsel.

Implicit in the judge's ruling is that the lawsuit will go forward into additional phases, such as discovery and, potentially, trial. This alone suggests that there may be a protracted legal battle over BC's IMP that could impact the university's ambitious expansion plans.

This preliminary ruling by Justice Spurlock appears to be a major headache for the city, since its lawyers argued strongly to try and keep the task force out of the lawsuit. Now not only is the task force in this lawsuit as a defendant, but the judge has made an initial ruling that would appear to imply that all of the BRA's task forces are subject to the state's OML -- and, by extension, the state's Public Records Laws and ethics laws.

Let's hope the task force members -- now confirmed by the preliminary ruling to be part-time, unpaid municipal employees -- are doing a better job at retaining their emails than some other city employees who have recently been in the news.

Other Rulings by Judge

The judge also turned down two separate motions by the defendants that would send the case to Land Court and expedite it.

While not noted in the ruling, the judge appears to have allowed Boston College earlier this spring to join the lawsuit as a defendant without objection from the plaintiffs (as expressed in a December 2009 hearing). BC's lawyers have been filing motions repeatedly with the court -- including the Land Court and expedition motions -- actions that are normally allowed only for parties to the case.

The plaintiffs did not, however, win on every issue. The judge: ruled that their allegation of OML violations were filed too late according to the statutory 21-day limit; rejected their attempt to make a claim for violations of civil rights and their rights under the Equal Protection Clause; said that he would not consider possible criminal violations of the state's ethics laws, since those should be brought in front of the district attorney instead; that the individual members of the task force could not be named separately as co-defendants in the lawsuit, appearing to lift their individual liability (while not ruling on the government body's collective liability); and that the task force itself did not impact the rights of the plaintiffs, because the task force was only an advisory body to the BRA.

I suspect that that last ruling will be hotly contested in the case, and that we haven't heard the last of it.

The ethics issue, too, promises to be complicated as the case moves forward. While ruling that this civil action is not the appropriate venue for a criminal allegations of conflict-of-interest against individual members of the BC Task Force, the judge also stated case law that ethics civil violations are administrative matters that are rectified by processes within governmental agencies. But if the BRA Board and BZC relied upon recommendations from their advisory panel (the task force) that were allegedly biased due to financial conflicts-of-interest, then nothing in the ruling appears to prevent the plaintiff's arguments from going forward in seeking to invalidate approval of BC's IMP in a tainted process.

Spurlock was assigned to the case earlier this year after the previous judge, Christine Roach, recused herself after repeatedly suggesting her potential conflicts to the lawyers.

Update: The Boston Bulletin has a story on the ruling.

Catastrophic Failure of Boston's Water Main -- In 1859

noreply@blogger.com (Michael Pahre) — Sun, 02 May 2010 03:34:00 +0000

While today's catastrophic failure of the water main supplying drinking water to Boston may seem unprecedented, it's not.

The city's water main also had a major failure once before -- in 1859. Allston-Brighton historian William Marchione wrote in Allston-Brighton in Transition: From Cattle Town to Streetcar Suburb:

In 1859 a major break occurred in the aqueduct at the point where it passed across the Charles River at the westerly end of Needham. Since the capacity of the four small storage reservoirs ringing the city was quite limited, it became necessary to thut off water service to Boston for all but domestic uses while repairs were being made. Had a major fire broken out at this point, the fast-growing metropolis might have found itself without water, with devastating consequences. This emergency prompted the Cochituate Water Board to recommend the construction of a much larger storage reservoir just outside of Boston.

That new reservoir would be the Chestnut Hill Reservoir, the site of which was selected in 1864 and construction began in 1865. Its location was straddling the border between Brighton -- then an independent town not part of Boston -- and Newton. The purpose of the new reservoir was to provide a much larger backup water supply in case of catastrophe.

The reservoir consisted of two basins; the larger one still exists, while the smaller one was granted to Boston College, which, over time, filled it in to make way for an expansion of its campus (the "Chestnut Hill Lower Campus"). The main water pipe, however, continues to pass underground at the same location on the BC campus.

The reservoir is no longer used as part of the water supply system for Boston, but is reserved as a backup in case of emergency. Such as today.

Chestnut Hill Reservoir at Half Capacity Before the Emergency?

noreply@blogger.com (Michael Pahre) — Sun, 02 May 2010 03:32:00 +0000

Earlier this year I repeatedly noticed that the water level of the Chestnut Hill Reservoir has been much lower than it usually is at this time of year.

I estimated by around six (or so) feet lower than normal. William Marchione, in his book Allston-Brighton in Transition, gives the size of the Bradlee Basin as 125 acre (5.4 million square feet or 1.56 mile circumference) and a storage capacity of 550 million gallons. Using the conversion of one gallon to 7.5 cubic feet, I estimate the reservoir's "standard depth" as 13.3 feet. That means current water level of 7.3 feet, instead of the usual 13.3 feet.

So the Chestnut Hill Reservoir this spring might only have been just over 50% capacity? Ouch. That extra water would have come in handy right about now.

I wonder if the people at the Massachusetts Water Resources Authority and Department of Conservation and Recreation might now be kicking themselves for letting the reservoir's level get so low earlier this year.

Do Library Supporters Have the Right Target in Their Sights?

noreply@blogger.com (Michael Pahre) — Thu, 22 Apr 2010 22:37:00 +0000

The Trustees of the Boston Public Library voted earlier this month to close four of the 26 branch public libraries in the city, including the Faneuil Branch Library in Brighton's Oak Square.

Library supporters are outraged and looking to reverse that decision -- whether through additional state funding, with an attached rider that would require all the branches to remain open, or additional city funding.

Those who want the branches to remain open have top two targets for their criticism: BPL President Amy Ryan, who drew up the closing plan, and Boston Mayor Thomas Menino, who voiced his strong support for it.

Are they targeting the right people?

The answer to this question lies first in figuring out why BPL is in a funding crunch.

Menino spokesperson Dot Joyce noted that the city this year "level-funded libraries."

Budget documents on the BPL website show that the City of Boston has decreased its payments much less: from $31.2 million in FY09 to $29.7 million in FY10 and $29.4 million in FY11. That's a decrease of $1.8 million over two years, or a cut of 6%. (Note that Joyce is not quite correct in saying that the city has "level-funded libraries.")

Now let's look at the state funding side of the BPL budget.

Brighton state Representative Michael Moran is especially outraged at Menino and has co-sponsored a bill in the state House of Representatives that would restore some state funding.

Note that verb: "restore."

In the same time period that the city has cut its funding to BPL by a little bit, the state has cut heavily its own contribution to BPL: from $8.9 million in FY09 to $4.0 million in FY10 and $2.4 million in FY11. That's a decrease of $6.5 million over two years, or a cut of 73% in state funding for BPL.

The funding shortfall in BPL's budget can nearly all be traced to a decline in state funding, not a decline in city funding.

Should Brighton protesters target Mayor Menino to tell him to restore funding for the libraries to keep the Faneuil Branch Library open? That strategy appears misguided, since it is not the city that has drastically cut their funding for the libraries.

Instead, Brighton residents might find their outrage better directed at members of the state legislature who voted to decrease state spending on BPL by 73% over the past two years.

Since state representatives Moran and Kevin Honan both voted for the budget bill that included decreased funding for BPL in the FY10, shouldn't the outraged residents of Brighton be holding them accountable? (Senator Steven Tolman probably also voted for the same cuts, but I can't find a roll call vote from 6/19/09.)

Shouldn't the the outraged citizens of Brighton be demanding that Reps. Moran and Honan and Sen. Tolman restore the state's funding to BPL from $2.4 million to the FY09 level of $8.9 million?

Methinks the public's anger towards Menino is misplaced on this issue since it is the state legislature who created BPL's funding sinkhole.

And members of the public who are angry at the possible closing of the Faneuil Branch Library should hold Moran, Honan, and Tolman responsible for their June 19, 2009 votes on the FY10 budget.

PILOT Numbers Behind McGrory's Metro Column on BC

noreply@blogger.com (Michael Pahre) — Fri, 16 Apr 2010 22:37:00 +0000

The Boston Globe's Brian McGrory has done his best to channel Howie Carr in today's metro op-ed column about how Boston College should be paying more in Payments in Lieu of Taxes (PILOT) to the City of Boston.

The problem with McGrory's argument that BC should contribute more PILOT to the city is that he didn't give a handle on what might be a reasonable expectation for those payments, particularly since only some of BC's property is located within Boston's city limits.

By looking at what BC might be expected to contribute in PILOT under the proposal recently made by the city's PILOT reform commission, BC ought to be contributing at least $1.6 million more to the city than they are currently paying through PILOT and real estate taxes.

Here's how I come by that number: Boston College's existing Chestnut Hill campus (just that part within the Boston city limits) are currently assessed at a valuation of around $480 million, according to the city's website. Add to that the 16-story apartment building at 2000 Commonwealth Avenue they purchased in 2008 and the former St. John's Seminary land they purchased from the Archdiocese of Boston for $177.4 million in a series of transactions between 2004 and 2007. Added together, those properties lying within Boston have a current value in the ballpark of $722 million, no small change.

The current property tax rates in Boston -- the amount that BC would be paying if they were not a tax-exempt institution -- are $12 (residential) or $29 (commercial) per year per $1000 of valuation for residential property. Since BC's primary financial activities are in education and research, not rental income, most of the land would fall under the commercial rate; I'll assume 75% commercial, 25% residential, or $25 per $1000 of valuation.

If BC were to pay full taxes on their property at that $25 rate it would total around $18.05 million per year. The city's commission that is looking at PILOT reform is recommending that tax-exempt institutions, like universities, voluntarily contribute PILOT at a rate of 25% of the tax rate -- corresponding here to $4.5 million -- of which the institution could elect to pay half in payments-in-kind (e.g., community benefits). The 25% figure is based on a calculation of the cost of city services the institution requires as part of its operation, such as the emergency response to many campus incidents (including Tuesday's ammonia leak at BC's Conte Forum).

Applying the commission's recommendations implies that BC should be contributing a minimum of $2.3 million cash in PILOT to the city, while BC is currently, according to McGrory, paying only $0.3 million in PILOT and $0.4 million in real estate taxes for taxed property. (Nearly all of the valuation for the taxed property is 2000 Commonwealth Avenue; since I include it in the PILOT calculation above, it is appropriate to consider it alongside BC's current PILOT.)

So BC should be paying at least $2.3 million in cash to the city, while they are currently paying only $0.7 million, a shortfall of at least $1.6 million. Based on the commission's recommendations, McGrory has a point that BC is underpaying the city for required city services.

McGrory's tone has evinced a torrent of outraged (and outrageous) comments -- channeling the tone of Howie Carr fans who comment at the Boston Herald's website -- nearly all from people defending BC from what they view as his unfair attacks on their alma mater. Read at your peril.

Image of BC's campus:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/jimcintosh/ / CC BY 2.0

Sheep in the State House

noreply@blogger.com (Michael Pahre) — Thu, 15 Apr 2010 10:40:00 +0000

I woke up to the news that seemed in the tank all week: the state House of Representatives voted, overwhelmingly, in favor of legalizing casino gambling and installing slot machines at the state's race tracks.

This follows a completely opposite vote in the same legislative body a couple of years ago, when the same legislative body was against legalizing gambling.

What changed?

The legislators are still using the same "studies" written by the casino industry and its lobbyists, not independent analysis. In fact, this time around they asked only for a "benefits" study, not a "cost-benefits" analysis. Good lord. At least figure out what it is you're getting into before you vote for it.

The legislators are using the same arguments that casinos would create lots of new jobs -- vastly inflated numbers that don't make sense, and are made with the crazy methodology that is "standard" among all kinds of developers (where one hour of subcontracted work qualifies as an entire "job," rather than expressed in FTEs). The unemployment rate might be higher today than it was a couple of years ago, but I predict that the unemployment rate will have dropped significantly by the time that the first shovel goes in the ground.

The legislators are faced with the same arguments that gambling destroys people's lives, such as the nine-year-old boy who had to watch loan sharks repeatedly slam a meat cleaver in-between his father's fingers.

It's the same arguments. In fact, it's virtually all the same representatives voting again, since most of their seats aren't challenged.

What changed?

The speaker of the house, that's who. State Representative Robert DeLeo, whose father we learned this week used to work in the gambling industry at the race tracks, is now the speaker, having replaced disgraced former speaker and former State Representative Salvatore DiMasi.

The old leadership told the representatives a couple of years ago to vote against legalizing gambling, and they did it. The new leadership told the representatives this week to vote for legalizing gambling, and they did it.

A large number of the members of the state house of representatives appear to have no principles behind their voting records; they are just following their speaker like a flock of sheep.

Their benefits for cowing behind DeLeo? Continued leadership positions in the house and the extra pay that comes with it.

Since these legislators appear to operate under no principle other than following their leader, then what does this mean about their votes a few years back to kill efforts to ban gay marriage? Were those votes not based on principle? Will they gladly reverse their votes when a new speaker takes over who wants to get rid of gay marriage?

Gay marriage advocates watch out.

Do I sound cynical? Angry?

Maybe. It's because I learned that our state's representatives ain't got no... you know.

In Allston-Brighton, Representative Michael Moran and Kevin Honan both voted yes in favor of the casino bill. Both voted against the casino bill in 2008.

Image of sheep:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/foxypar4/ / CC BY 2.0

Charles River Bike Path Flooded in Watertown

noreply@blogger.com (Michael Pahre) — Tue, 16 Mar 2010 01:53:00 +0000

In the past month, while out for runs in the mornings on the bike paths along the Charles River, I noticed that the water level had been getting quite low.

No longer.

The Aguageddon -- make that the H2OMG -- looks to be flooding the bike path along the Charles River on the north side in Watertown.

I know where I'm not going for a run Tuesday morning.

Image of flooded Charles River:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/seangraham/ / CC BY-NC-SA 2.0

Which Allston-Brighton Public Library is Most Likely to be Closed?

noreply@blogger.com (Michael Pahre) — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 23:18:00 +0000

The Trustees of the Boston Public Library are compiling data in order to determine up to ten branch libraries to close in order to address a budget shortfall of $3.6 million.

Three of the 26 branch libraries are located in Allston-Brighton; statistically speaking, one of those three is therefore facing closure.

Which one?

On one level, it would be politically disastrous to close the Honan-Allston Public Library in North Allston, since it is named after the deceased brother of current State Representative Kevin Honan. The Brighton Branch Library near Brighton Center would seem an unlikely target, too, since it is currently undergoing renovations -- if it were to close, the money already spent would be tossed down the toilet.

That leaves the Faneuil Branch Library in Oak Square [pictured at right].

How do the data on the branch libraries compare to this superficial assessment? The trustees have stated that they will be guided in their decision-making by data about each of the branch libraries, in addition to other important qualities such as connection to other community centers:

Library administrators will rank the 26 neighborhood branches by foot traffic, computer use, and how many Web surfers use laptops to log on to Wi-Fi networks. They will count how many programs are offered at each location and tally the number of people who attend storytime and English classes.

Below are a few sets of data on the Allston-Brighton branch libraries that were taken from a compilation on the BPL website. Statistics date from fiscal year 2007, which allows for a direct comparison among the branches (since the Brighton branch was closed for renovations in early 2009). I am impressed by the methodological data collection that BPL has undertaken, and the ease with which a member of the public can access the information from the internet. If only all government agencies were like this!

Based on these indicators -- many of which the BPL trustees said they would be using in arriving at their decision -- it would appear that the Faneuil branch library is the most likely to be closed. In fact, the Faneuil branch ranked last in all but one indicator.

The Presentation School Foundation has already initiated a campaign in order to drum up support for the Fanueil library and lobby the city to keep it open. Based on these data, however, the PSF's work is cut out for them.

Most Recent Renovation or Construction (i.e., Most Modern Facilities)

Brighton: built 1969, renovated 2010
Honan Allston: built 2001
Faneuil: built 1931

Size of Collection (in volumes):

Brighton: 76,900
Honan Allston: 74,000
Faneuil: 47,200

Size of Facility (in square feet of floor space):

Brighton: 22,400
Honan Allston: 20,000
Faneuil: 7,600

Items Circulated:

Brighton: 120,710
Honan Allston: 118,117
Faneuil: 93,043

Number of Volumes Used by the Public:

Honan Allston: 14,540
Brighton: 9,841
Faneuil: 2,902

Meeting Room?

Brighton, Honan Allston: yes
Faneuil: no

On-Site Parking Spaces:

Honan Allston: 20
Brighton: shared lot (with courthouse)
Faneuil: none

Public Computers:

Honan Allston: 17
Brighton: 14
Faneuil: 12

Number of Visitors:

Honan Allston: 82,895
Brighton: 77,857
Faneuil: 61,568

Number of Class Visits:

Honan Allston: 101
Brighton: 58
Faneuil: 53

Number of Library-Sponsored Programs Within Boston Public Schools:

Honan Allston: 25
Brighton: 4
Faneuil: none

Number of Students Requesting Library Assistance:

Brighton: 701
Honan Allston: 254
Faneuil: 198

Use of Meeting Rooms by Public Organizations:

Honan Allston: 98
Faneuil: 83
Brighton: 27

Number of People Seeking "Orientation and Instruction":

Honan Allston: 1,736
Brighton: 981
Faneuil: 720

Number of People Receiving "Literacy Training and Assistance":

Brighton: 199
Honan Allston: 116
Faneuil: 10

One statistic appears inaccurate to me: the number of class visits at the Brighton branch. The reason is that nearby Winship Elementary School has no on-site library, yet during a visit to the school earlier this year I was told that they have a regular program to visit the Brighton branch library as a substitute. Four classroom visits per year therefore appears inaccurate.

Another issue that is bound to be raised is that the Faneuil branch would be a nearby resource for a future community center at the former Presentation School in Oak Square; that future connection will not be reflected in assessments of past connections.

A final issue which appears contradictory is that the Faneuil branch had its meeting rooms used more often by public organizations than the Brighton branch, yet BPL documentation lists the Faneuil branch as having no meeting rooms. (I assume that the "meeting room" that is being referred to in the Faneuil branch is the small stage in the children's book wing -- which cannot be used separately from the rest of the room.)

Lacking from these indicators is a measurement of the number of "community centers" connected to each branch library. How exactly this term is defined may determine which branch comes out on top.

Another indicator missing from these is how "central" the branch is to the neighborhood or the public. That's a hard thing to quantify, although it probably already appears in the statistics for the numbers of visitors (gate count) and the circulation statistics.

Finally, the number of children's events (book readings, magic shows, etc.) is not summarized in the information on the BPL website. Based on my experience, I suspect that the Brighton branch will come last in this category -- but there should be a more quantitative measure available on it, too.

Let me add my own architectural category:

Most Interesting Architecture:

Honan Allston: Beautiful building inside and out. A real treat to visit.
Faneuil: Cool Art Deco exterior (only building of that style in Allston-Brighton). Awful and cramped interior that makes you forget its beautiful exterior.
Brighton: Horrendous Stalin-esque exterior (which, in 1969, replaced a beautiful building!). Unknown interior (until renovations are complete).