Episode 623 – Cambridge InsideOut: July 2, 2024 (Part 1)
This episode was recorded on July 2, 2024 at 6:00pm. Topics: Starlight Square Retrospective: 2020-2024. Host: Robert Winters [On YouTube] [audio]
Episode 624 – Cambridge InsideOut: July 2, 2024 (Part 2)
This episode was recorded on July 2, 2024 at 6:30pm. Topics: Possible future of Starlight Square – floating some ideas; compatibility with housing; creating a Square within the Square; working with abutting property owners for best solutions; the problem of self-appointed spokespersons for people they don’t represent; cyclist fatalities at Mt Auburn/DeWolfe and now at Hampshire/Portland, the problem with intersections and visibility, better solutions needed, hostility and vengefulness by bike lane advocates; noteworthy board appointments; Central Lots Study and future zoning considerations continue – “hurry up and wait”; PILOT agreements; upcoming meetings of interest; accountability of Affordable Housing Trust; Charter Review status – what should happen, keep it simple; DPW gratitude; Cambridge Jazz Festival coming July 27; government role in local news? – reinvention needed, a problem that needs to be solved; a final note on Presidential election prospects. Host: Robert Winters [On YouTube] [audio]
Episode 621 – Cambridge InsideOut: June 18, 2024 (Part 1)
This episode was recorded on June 18, 2024 at 6:00pm. Topics: Harvard Summer School; Recent (Riverfest) and upcoming festivals and events (Juneteenth, Spelling Bee, Fresh Pond Day, Citywide Dance Party, Starlight Lovefest); World Champion Celtics; Red Sox rising; Mayor Simmons mutual interests, solving the mystery of the shrinking annual reports; Municipal Facilities Improvement Plan and fiscal constraints; reviving local news, public funding, objectivity, right ways and wrong ways, the larger questions, future of Cambridge Chronicle, the purpose of a “paper of record”, democracy dies in darkness. Host: Robert Winters [On YouTube] [audio]
Episode 622 – Cambridge InsideOut: June 18, 2024 (Part 2)
This episode was recorded on June 18, 2024 at 6:30pm. Topics: Best ways to augment democracy with healthy environment of objective information, community voices, marshalling existing resources – the overdue conversation that needs to happen, Cambridge once had 5 newspapers covering Cambridge; cyclist death at Mt Auburn/DeWolfe and aftermath; some City bicycle planning not consistent with bicycle safety at intersections, the limits of signalization, the importance of simplicity; consideration of possible charter changes – simple is best; Cambridge Public Schools and dismissal of Superintendent Victoria Greer; ongoing planning for Central Square – and reactions from abutters. Host: Robert Winters [On YouTube] [audio]
Episode 619 – Cambridge InsideOut: June 4, 2024 (Part 1)
This episode was recorded on June 4, 2024 at 6:00pm. Topics: Recycling updates, zero waste plan 2.0, Hazardous Waste Day; FY2025 Budget Adopted – nearly a billion dollars, significant increases over time and especially this year; potential tax implications for fall; reorganization of some City departments – Executive and CDD; sizable 34.3% increase in Mayor’s Office budget; Charter Review status and Gov’t Operations Committee; Planning Board appointments and voracious appetite of some city councillors for behind-the-scenes control or public inquisition; Ronayne Petition v. Supersize proposals. Host: Robert Winters [On YouTube] [audio]
Episode 620 – Cambridge InsideOut: June 4, 2024 (Part 2)
This episode was recorded on June 4, 2024 at 6:30pm. Topics: Ronayne Petition v. Supersize proposals for residential zoning, legalizing multi-family housing; preference for diversity of housing stock rather than supersize everywhere; turning Cambridge into Flushing and rents don’t go down; artificial affordability via subsidy; Central Square zoning discussions and Central Square Lots Study; lunacy of permitting only low-income housing; naive belief that Starlight Square 2.0 would be compatible with high-density housing; Central Square should be more than a social utility – should be a regional draw, need to involve people who currently don’t want to go to Central Square; the perils of onerous Inclusionary Housing requirements; Historical Commission award for our video, the many things we didn’t include in our video; disappearance of the historical role of the wards; need for a history of the Plan E era. Host: Robert Winters [On YouTube] [audio]
Episode 617 – Cambridge InsideOut: May 21, 2024 (Part 1)
This episode was recorded on May 21, 2024 at 6:00pm. Topics: End of semester; Outstanding City Employees; Historical Commission Preservation Awards – recognition for John Pitkin, Robert Winters; Harvard and MIT encampments resolved; Salman Rushdie quote; Budget Hearings, the “fiscal crisis” that’s really more of a warning of sticker shock in Fall tax bills for single-, two-, and three-family homeowners; PTDM Ordinance modified, Cycling Safety Ordinance delayed – and the sky did not fall, but there were theatrics and record numbers of communications; nothing but public housing and bike lanes; Order trying to keep Cambridge Police from being involved in campus interventions, perfect response from City Manager re: mutual aid agreements; petition and other proposal to allow multi-family housing in all residential zones – plus A LOT MORE, a defense of maintaining diversity in housing stock, falsehoods promoted by advocates; questions raised by affordable housing advocates, possibility of AHO 3.0. Host: Robert Winters [On YouTube] [audio]
Episode 618 – Cambridge InsideOut: May 21, 2024 (Part 2)
This episode was recorded on May 21, 2024 at 6:30pm. Topics: Ronayne Petition vs. Azeem/Farooq/Cotter Petition-To-Be; Tripling the Resident Permit Parking Fee from $25 to $75; $77 million Fire Headquarters, the costs associated with meeting BEUDO standards, cost/benefit considerations – more exorbitant costs likely for future projects, Is it really worth it?; Porchfest for Cambridge? Riverfest, Dance Party coming in June; Central Square Rezoning and Central Square Lots Study – NLTP meeting, curious beliefs about outreach to select community groups, social balkanization – “first and foremost a housing production plan”, Totten wrongheadedness; treating Central Square as a utility rather than a place or destination; not just about nightlife; Charter revision process pending – June 5 Gov’t Operations meeting, unanswered questions, what needs to change and what should not change, the Manager vs. Strong Mayor question, things overlooked by the Charter Review Committee, proper ways of facilitating “redress of grievances” and citizen assemblies. Host: Robert Winters [On YouTube] [audio]
This episode was recorded on Apr 16, 2024 at 6:00pm. Topics: Tax Day, StuffSwap, compost giveaway, community meetings, C-Port Neighbors Assn. meeting w/CARE and the Cent. Sq. BID; CSBID background, actions, reauthorization, coming attractions, World’s Fair, Dance Party, resident survey; Eclipse; Multivariable Calculus at CRLS; mathematics in Cambridge schools; the $6100 April Fool; Crimson article on Supt. Greer being asked to resign – true? violation of Executive Session?; the importance of not violating confidence; Graham & Parks principal controversy; ward committees and notion of wards as a better alternative to proposed “citizen assemblies” in charter reform. Host: Robert Winters [On YouTube] [audio]
Episode 614 – Cambridge InsideOut: Mar 19, 2024 (Part 2)
This episode was recorded on Apr 16, 2024 at 6:30pm. Topics: Repairing the Cycling Safety Ordinance – original and 2020 revised, problematic implementations, impact of local businesses, political third rail, PTDM and alternate parking arrangements; Cambridge political and civic life should not be dominated by bike lanes; upcoming Budget Hearings in era of fiscal limitations; paradox of tenant protections – need not be warfare; payments-in-lieu-of-taxes (PILOT) legislation; Ronayne Petition, simplifying ADUs, allowing multi-family buildings in all zones, reasonably adjusting FAR; crossing the RR tracks and then some; supervoters down to 77. Host: Robert Winters [On YouTube] [audio]
Episode 613 – Cambridge InsideOut: Mar 19, 2024 (Part 1)
This episode was recorded on Mar 19, 2024 at 6:00pm. Topics: Middlesex Canal – history, Sullivan Square to Middlesex Village, Brooks Bridge, Medford, gypsy moth infestation, Pomp’s Wall, extensions from Concord NH to Haymarket Square; knowing where you live – Cambridge and elsewhere; Flushing Remonstrance (1657) and religious freedom in USA; Adopt-A-Drain, volunteerism; Little Things – just be a good citizen; School Committee campaign finance update; Linear Park plans – bikeway or park? Host: Robert Winters [On YouTube] [audio]
Episode 614 – Cambridge InsideOut: Mar 19, 2024 (Part 2)
This episode was recorded on Mar 19, 2024 at 6:30pm. Topics: Linear Park, lack of public process; paradoxical negative climate effects of electrification – increased electrical demand outpacing new energy sources; Reinventing the Wards, organizing in the wards, party ward committees, potential charter changes to create issue-specific “citizen assemblies” – a partisan, biased proposal; creation of nonpartisan ward committees; triple AAA bond ratings for 25th straight year; water & sewer rates; Red Line shutdowns and proposal for fare-free #1 Bus – better than expecting everyone to move to bikes; proposal to restrict conversions to fewer units and unintended consequences; proposal to allow multi-family homes citywide – rationale in Order based on fiction. Host: Robert Winters [On YouTube] [audio]
Episode 611 – Cambridge InsideOut: Mar 5, 2024 (Part 1)
This episode was recorded on Mar 5, 2024 at 6:00pm. Topics: Super Tuesday; Iran voting boycott vs. campaign for “No Preference”; Trump vs. Biden; ward committees; City Council less dysfunctional, more collaborative w/City Manager; Finance Committee – levy projections, call for restraint, need to maintain excess levy capacity; use of operating budget for affordable housing has consequences; anticipated 10%+ annual increases in levy coming; fewer building permits – revenue not subject to Prop 2½ limits; commercial values relatively flat – shift of levy from commercial to residential; within residential, condos get sweetest deal after residential exemption and most of the increases borne by single-, two-, and three-family properties; need for intervention now to avoid future need for overrides; councillors had luxury for years in not having to think about limitations; FY24 consolidated spending categories; note that every stick of affordable housing (deed restrictions) has de minimis tax revenue – receive far more value in services that tax generated. Host: Robert Winters [On YouTube] [audio]
Episode 612 – Cambridge InsideOut: Mar 5, 2024 (Part 2)
This episode was recorded on Mar 5, 2024 at 6:30pm. Topics: Mar 4 City Council meeting; PERF report – police-involved shooting, good recommendations, positive evaluation of CPD practices, less-lethal options, CPD to be first in Mass. with policy on releasing names of involved officers; Central Square Lots Study in parallel with zoning changes; other assets, adjacent properties; everyone loves Central Square until they don’t; demise of current Starlight Square, need for replacement; contradictory signals on whether to gather more information or take action; exclusive focus on “affordable housing” creates net financial negative in perpetuity – math doesn’t work; plan in concert with privately-owned adjacent lots, e.g. Bishop Allen/Prospect, Green/Pleasant lot and Needle Exchange building; 44 years and 24 studies – the never-ending study of Central Square; not just about making everything bigger – need to make things better, more creative and more interesting; death of Paul Ryder; Charter Review update – next steps, desire to control process, facets of City government via Special Acts that should be part of Charter or at least be referenced – License Commission, Election Commission, Traffic Board, Cambridge Health Alliance, Cambridge Housing Authority, Cambridge Redevelopment Authority; housing-related orders re: real estate transfer tax and municipally-funded vouchers (a real budget buster); the more we fund affordable housing the wider the gap in affordability. Host: Robert Winters [On YouTube] [audio]
Episode 609 – Cambridge InsideOut: Feb 20, 2024 (Part 1)
This episode was recorded on Feb 20, 2024 at 6:00pm. Topics: Local News – Cambridge and beyond; Valentine’s Day – 46 years; City Council Goals & Objectives; the ordeal of facilitation and training; the value of informality and interaction in committee meetings; 311 vs. SeeClickFix vs. an Ombudsman vs. a simple phone call; benefiting from the existence of a problem; pros and cons of a good idea; upside-down priorities – the essential difference between a city manager and a strong mayor system. Host: Robert Winters [On YouTube] [audio]
Episode 610 – Cambridge InsideOut: Feb 20, 2024 (Part 2)
This episode was recorded on Feb 20, 2024 at 6:30pm. Topics: Ambiguity in affordable housing – buy vs. rent, market vs. subsidized; the DEI lens – one lens in addition to effectiveness, efficient delivery of services, and transparency; Envision – quote it when it suits you, ignore it when it doesn’t; the mythology of Central Square progress; Cycling Safety update – drawing conclusions from the inconclusive; Community Safety update – tiptoeing around the HEART problem; foreign policy or not; Charter Review Report gets political right out of the gate. Host: Robert Winters [On YouTube] [audio]