Cambridge Civic Journal Forum

November 22, 2021

The Beat Goes On – November 22, 2021 Cambridge City Council meeting

Filed under: Cambridge — Robert Winters @ 1:07 pm

The Beat Goes On – November 22, 2021 Cambridge City Council meeting

Here’s my take on the interesting stuff this week:City Hall

Manager’s Agenda #1. A communication transmitted from Louis A. DePasquale, City Manager, relative to reappointments and new appointments of members of the Transit Advisory Committee for a term of 2-years, effective Nov 22, 2021.
Placed on File 9-0

Manager’s Agenda #2. A communication transmitted from Louis A. DePasquale, City Manager, relative to the reappointments and new appointments of members of the Pedestrian Committee for a term of 2-years, effective Nov 22, 2021.
Placed on File 9-0

Manager’s Agenda #3. A communication transmitted from Louis A. DePasquale, City Manager, relative to the reappointments and new appointments of members of the Bicycle Committee for a term of 2-years, effective Nov 22, 2021.
Placed on File 9-0

Manager’s Agenda #4. A communication transmitted from Louis A. DePasquale, City Manager, relative to the reappointments of the following members of the Planning Board, effective Nov 22, 2021: Mary Flynn, Louis Bacci, Jr., Catherine Preston Connolly and H. Theodore Cohen.
Placed on File 6-3 (McGovern, Sobrinho-Wheeler, Zondervan – NO)

Charter Right #1. A communication transmitted from Louis A. DePasquale, City Manager, relative to new appointments of members of the Foundry Advisory Committee for a term of three years, effective Nov 8, 2021. [Charter Right – Councillor Simmons, Nov 15, 2021]
Placed on File 8-0-1 (McGovern – ABSENT)

Charter Right #2. A communication transmitted from Louis A. DePasquale, City Manager, relative to new appointments and reappointments of the following persons as members of the Citizens Committee on Civic Unity, effective Nov 1, 2021 for three year terms. [Charter Right – Councillor Simmons, Nov 15, 2021]
Placed on File 8-0-1 (McGovern – ABSENT)

I have no idea what Councillor Simmons is up to with her Charter Right last week to delay acceptance of the reports of the City Manager’s appointments. I shudder to think of what it may be like next year when some councillors may question or veto some of these appointments for reasons having little or nothing to do with the qualifications of the appointees. Perhaps Councillor Simmons is offering us a chilling preview.

During a time when more comprehensive transportation planning is warranted it’s interesting that we have no advisory committee addressing motor vehicle traffic, and all other transportation modes are balkanized into separate silos.


Carl Barron PlazaManager’s Agenda #5. A communication transmitted from Louis A. DePasquale, City Manager, relative to Awaiting Report Item Number 21-80, regarding a report on redesign work done at Carl Barron Plaza.
Referred 9-0 to Dec 8 Joint Hearing of Health & Environment Committee and Veterans & Human Services Committee

A few tweaks here and there may be helpful, but the proposed redesign has been pretty well fleshed out at this point and is hostile to no one. Bringing up this matter at this point is more political turf-fighting than anything else. I will, however, note that several years ago I voted in favor of a Participatory Budget proposal for a public swing in one of more of the City’s Squares. That might be a nice addition to Central Square.

Manager’s Agenda #8. A communication transmitted from Louis A. DePasquale, City Manager, relative to Awaiting Report Item Number 21-76, regarding a report on the incident involving the Cambridge Police Officers outside Central Square YMCA on Oct 17, 2021.
Placed on File 9-0

Some of us will be expecting apologies from a couple of city councillors on this one. Invoking irrelevant national issues in this matter was hostile and insulting – and entirely expected from those two councillors.

Order #3. That the City Manager is requested to direct City staff to work with partners including the Cambridge Redevelopment Authority (CRA) and the Central Square Business Improvement District on identifying spaces in Central Square that would support the creation and protection of cultural and human service spaces that align with the City’s goals.   Vice Mayor Mallon, Councillor McGovern, Councillor Simmons, Councillor Carlone, Councillor Nolan, Councillor Sobrinho-Wheeler, Councillor Toomey, Councillor Zondervan, Mayor Siddiqui
Order Adopted as Amended 9-0

The devil will be in the details. We all want to see stabilization of arts and cultural resources, but if the only result of this request is the expansion of some of the more problematic services that only serve to define Central Square in the worst possible way, that will not be an improvement.


Order #1. That the City Manager is requested to meet with the Public Health Department, the Department of Human Service Programs, and the Recreation & Aquatics Department to look into providing a suitable practice space for the Cambridge Synchronized Swimming Team for Cambridge residents.   Vice Mayor Mallon, Mayor Siddiqui
Order Adopted 9-0

You can’t top Harry Shearer, Martin Short, and Christopher Guest on SNL.

It’s encouraging to see City Council Orders of late that call for the creation of spaces for pickleball, cricket, and now sychronized swimming. I just won’t be satisfied until there’s at least one miniature golf option available in the city – maybe coupled with a batting cage.


Committee Report #1. The Housing Committee met on Nov 10, 2021 to conduct a public hearing to discuss the Sept 20, 2021 Policy Order that seeks to amend the Zoning Ordinance via potentially raising the linkage fee.
Amended, Placed on File 9-0

Communications & Reports #3. A communication was received from City Solicitor Nancy E. Glowa, transmitting memorandums regarding Home Rule Petition on Transfer Fee amendment. [City Solicitor’s Letter] [Petition (redlined)]
Placed on File, Order Adopted 9-0

And The Beat Goes On. Boston’s linkage fees total about $17.30 per square foot of new commercial development. Councillor Zondervan’s motion to recommend an increase in Cambridge’s linkage fee to $33.34/sq ft failed (for now). The meeting was recessed, not adjourned, and may reconvene at some point w/o additional public comment. Personally, I find problematic the continued singular belief that creating subsidized housing with little or no emphais on homeownership or building of equity. In Boston there is always at least some discussion of empowerment and wealth creation for those who might otherwise be excluded from such opportunities.


Communications & Reports #1. A communication was received from City Solicitor Nancy E. Glowa, transmitting a response of City of Cambridge to Open Meeting Law Complaint of Heather Hoffman dated Nov 3, 2021.
Placed on File, Order Adopted 9-0

Regardless of the particulars, there has been a trend during the pandemic toward limited transparency in Cambridge public meetings, especially in regard to late orders and other matters not known to the public prior to a meeting or available in publicly posted agenda materials. Even proposals for charter change sprang out of nowhere. Zoom is simply no substitute for actual public meetings.

Communications & Reports #5. A communication was received from Councillor Dennis Carlone transmitting recommendations regarding the Alewife Quadrangle urban design and zoning.
Placed on File 9-0

I’m sure Councillor Carlone has some good ideas here – as would be expected from someone whose livelihood is based on such ideas. That said, I’ll repeat what I said last week on this topic: “Honestly, if our councillors were actually working for us they would have proposed interim Alewife zoning within one week of the Envision Alewife recommendations. Even if those recommendations were insufficient there would already have been interim zoning in place. Instead they now propose a moratorium after over a half billion dollars exchanges hands under existing zoning.”

Communications & Reports #6. A communication was received from Mayor Sumbul Siddiqui, regarding the 2022 City Council Inauguration.
Placed on File 9-0

The swearing-in ceremony is proposed to take place in-person on Jan 3, 2022 in the Sullivan Chamber with masks and distancing observed. There will be fewer invited guests, and the public will have to settle for Zoom. – Robert Winters

November 16, 2021

Cambridge InsideOut Episodes 525-526: November 16, 2021

Episode 525 – Cambridge InsideOut: Nov 16, 2021 (Part 1)

This episode was recorded on Nov 16, 2021 at 6:00pm. Topics: Final Election process; reprecincting; Boncore vacancy; non-implementation of planning efforts in Alewife and Central Square; Alewife and Envision chronology; failure of well-paid councillors to show up for work; deep pockets and the means to achieve good results. Hosts: Judy Nathans, Robert Winters
[On YouTube] [audio]


Episode 526 – Cambridge InsideOut: Nov 16, 2021 (Part 2)

This episode was recorded on Nov 16, 2021 at 6:30pm. Topics: Detailed election results and analysis; the dominance of incumbency; political spin in the absence of mandates; importance of establishing a loyal political base vs. “movement” candidates; winners & feeders; slate voting results; Siddiqui’s margin of victory and dissatisfaction with other candidates; the Cincinnati problem; ballot transfers, #2 votes, alternate measures of popularity; School Committee campaign finance. Hosts: Judy Nathans, Robert Winters [On YouTube] [audio]

[Materials used in these episodes]

November 13, 2021

Final 2021 Cambridge Election Results

Final Official City Council Results (Nov 12)
(in order of election)

Siddiqui, Sumbul
Simmons, E. Denise
Nolan, Patricia M.
Carlone, Dennis J.
McGovern, Marc C.
Zondervan, Quinton Y.
Azeem, Burhan
Mallon, Alanna M.
Toner, Paul F.

Final Official School Committee Results (Nov 12)
(in order of election)

Wilson, Ayesha
Fantini, Alfred B.
Bhambi, Akriti
Weinstein, Rachel B.
Rojas Villarreal, José Luis
Weinstein, David J.

All three ballot questions passed (Final, Official)

Final Official City Council results:
Council2021-Official
Distribution of #1 Votes by ward/precinct – City Council 2021:
Council2021ward-precinct
City Council 2021 – #2 Vote Distributions
Council2-2021
Alternate Measures of Popularity – 2021 City Council Election
Council2021rank
Final Official School Committee results:
School2021-Official
Distribution of #1 Votes by ward/precinct – School Committee 2021:
School2021ward-precinct
School Committee 2021 – #2 Vote Distributions
School2-2021
Alternate Measures of Popularity – 2021 School Committee Election
School2021rank

Who would replace each of the elected city councillors and School Committee members should a vacancy occur? Replacements are determined from the ballots used to elect each councillor or School Committee member. I ran the tabulation software with the 2021 ballot data and here’s what I found:

City Council Replacement
Azeem Sobrinho-Wheeler
Carlone Williams
Mallon Sobrinho-Wheeler
McGovern Sobrinho-Wheeler
Nolan Williams
Siddiqui Sobrinho-Wheeler
Simmons Sobrinho-Wheeler
Toner McGuirk
Zondervan Sobrinho-Wheeler
 
School Committee Replacement
Bhambi Hunter
Fantini Hunter
Rojas Villarreal Lim
D. Weinstein Johnson
R. Weinstein Hunter
Wilson Johnson

November 11, 2021

To Be Continued – November 15, 2021 Cambridge City Council meeting

To Be Continued – November 15, 2021 Cambridge City Council meeting

Most of the significant items from last week were either delayed by Charter Right or Tabled where they may languish or eventually vanish when the lame duck dies. Here are the items worth mentioning:Lame Duck

Manager’s Agenda #1. A communication transmitted from Louis A. DePasquale, City Manager, relative to an update on COVID-19.
City Manager reports that DCR has agreed to extend Riverbend Park (Sat and Sun) through December 19.

The rate of new cases has been growing since mid-October. While disturbing and somewhat frustrating, the fear and panic that was routine a year ago has largely given way to perspective and trust in the effectiveness of vaccines to at least ward off the worst of the ill effects. Will Thanksgiving and other holidays fuel the Covid fires, or will increased vaccination among younger people blunt those disease vectors? Time will tell. I think it’s booster time.


Manager’s Agenda #2. A communication transmitted from Louis A. DePasquale, City Manager, relative to new appointments of members of the Foundry Advisory Committee for a term of three years, effective Nov 8, 2021.
Charter Right – Simmons

Manager’s Agenda #3. A communication transmitted from Louis A. DePasquale, City Manager, relative to the reappointment of the following person as a members of the Fresh Pond Master Plan Advisory Board, for a term of three years, effective Nov 15, 2021.
Placed on File 9-0

Manager’s Agenda #4. A communication transmitted from Louis A. DePasquale, City Manager, relative to new appointments and reappointments of the following persons as members of the Citizens Committee on Civic Unity, effective Nov 1, 2021 for three year terms.
Charter Right – Simmons

I’m glad to see the pace of board appointments picking up, and I hope there are lots more before the politicos sink their fangs into the process after January 1. There is still no protocol for how the councillors will exercise their new micromanagement authority come the New Year (if they dare to do so). Will appointees have to go before a Council tribunal to answer for the jokes they made on social media? Will members of the public be given an opportunity to voice their approval or disapproval of the background of board appointees? Will anyone even want to apply to be on a City board or commission?


Manager’s Agenda #7. Transmitting Communication from Louis A. DePasquale, City Manager, relative to the appropriation of $400,000 from MassDOT’s FY22 Complete Streets Program to the Public Investment Fund Public Works Extraordinary Expenditures account which will be used to support the Huron Avenue (Glacken Field to Fresh Pond Parkway) project.
Will keep 80% of the existing parking (but eliminate 20% of the currently available parking) – Order Adopted 9-0

I believe the proposal is to create a two-way bike path on the Fresh Pond Reservation side of the street – no controversy expected.

Manager’s Agenda #9. A communication transmitted from Louis A. DePasquale, City Manager, relative to Awaiting Report Item Number 21-6, regarding a report on housing development information.
Referred to Housing Committee 9-0

2,814 affordable units in development of which 940 will be new units. This includes the Jefferson Park redevelopment at a cost of $251,769,435 for 278 units (which works out to $905,645 per unit). So glad to see our tax dollars at work in the least efficient way possible.

Manager’s Agenda #12. A communication transmitted from Louis A. DePasquale, City Manager, relative to Awaiting Report Item Numbers 21-37 and 21-38, regarding digital equity. [McCormick, Gianetti] [Analysis of U.S. Digital Equity Programs] [CHA Housing Broadband Pilot Engineering Report]
Referred to Civic Unity & NLTP Committees 9-0
[Note: None of the proposed actions anticipates any provision of Cable TV.]

I have no real sense whether these reports are sufficiently responsive, but since the councillors will brutally criticize just about anything relating to municipal broadband or the alternatives, does it really even matter what’s in the reports?

Charter Right #1. That the City Council go on record requesting that the forthcoming new Universal Design Playground located in Danehy Park be named the Louis A. DePasquale Universal Design Playground. [Charter Right – Sobrinho-Wheeler, Nov 8, 2021]
Motion by Sobrinho-Wheeler to dually name playground (for Haben Girma) FAILS 3-5-0-1 (PN,JSW,QZ – YES; AM,MM,DS,TT,SS – NO; DC – PRESENT);
Order Adopted 8-0-0-1 (Zondervan – PRESENT)

I have a few suggestions regarding the naming of several public restrooms in honor an elected official or two.

Charter Right #2. That Article 20.90 – Alewife Overlay Districts 1-6 of the Cambridge Zoning Ordinance be amended to insert a new section entitled Section 20.94.3 – Temporarily prohibited uses (Ordinance #2021-25). [Charter Right – Toomey, Nov 8, 2021]
Referred to Ordinance Committee & Planning Board 7-0-0-2 (Simmons, Toomey – PRESENT)

Charter Right #3. Upper Mass. Ave. Bike Lane Improvements. [Charter Right – Simmons, Nov 8, 2021]
Order Adopted 5-4 (DC,AM,MM,PN,SS – YES; DS,JSW,TT,QZ – NO)

Let the fur fly. Honestly, if our councillors were actually working for us they would have proposed interim Alewife zoning within one week of the Envision Alewife recommendations. Even if those recommendations were insufficient there would already have been interim zoning in place. Instead they now propose a moratorium after over a half billion dollars exchanges hands under existing zoning.

As for the upper Mass. Ave. bike lanes, it’s all about whether or not you signed the pledge to cover your ears and close your eyes and mind.

Order #2. That the Regular City Council meeting scheduled for Nov 29, 2021 be changed to a joint Roundtable meeting of the City Council and School Committee to discuss the past election, including but not limited to new practices and polling locations is Cambridge with the City Manager, Election Commission, and any other relevant departments.   Mayor Siddiqui
Order Adopted 9-0

School buildings are public buildings, and they should accommodate our occasional elections as needed.

Communications & Reports #1. A communication was received from Nancy Glowa, City Solicitor, transmitting a letter regarding an Open Meeting Law complaint from Heather Hoffman.
Report Accepted, Placed on File 9-0; Late Order to have Solicitor Respond Adopted 9-0

I have some interest in this – mainly in regard to the erosion of standards in our new Zoomy version of City Council meetings. We have a City government that apparently believes in the principal: “The public will eventually find out what we did, and we’ll convince them later that what we did was acceptable.”

Communications & Reports #3. A communication was received from the City Clerk, transmitting the Pending Zoning Chart.
Report Accepted, Placed on File 8-0-1 (DS – ABSENT)

Communications & Reports #5. A communication was received from the City Clerk, transmitting the 2020-2021 Referral List.
Report Accepted, Placed on File 8-0-1 (DS – ABSENT)

See previous comment regarding the erosion of standards in our new Zoomy version of City Council meetings. – Robert Winters

November 7, 2021

Post-Election Mayoral Arm-Twisting Season Begins – November 8, 2021 Cambridge City Council Agenda

Post-Election Mayoral Arm-Twisting Season Begins – November 8, 2021 Cambridge City Council Agenda

Mayor Al VellucciThe Election is over save for the overseas votes, and it’s pretty much a wash. We replaced the retiring Tim Toomey with Paul Toner, and, for the kids, Sobrinho-Wheeler with Burhan Azeem. All of the incumbents were reelected to the School Committee and we added the lavishly well-funded Akriti Bhambi to fill the soon-to-be vacated seat. It’s always interesting to see how people associated with the various slates view these elections entirely through the lens of their respective slates and agendas with barely any acknowledgment of the fact that almost all of the incumbents were reelected based on their individual campaigns.City Hall coin

Now begins the season of phone calls and private meetings during which the various mayoral hopefuls try to make their case to be the next all-powerful weak mayor. Needless to say, Mayor Siddiqui’s 4121 #1 Votes gives her an edge (if she wants it), but I’m sure others will make the case in the name of “equity” and “whose turn it is” to ascend to the hallowed throne. Meanwhile, has anyone heard anything at all about where we stand on the rather important matter of selecting the next City Manager? Oops, I guess they must have forgotten.

As for the business of city councilling, here’s a sampler of what’s up for discussion/action/inaction this week:

Manager’s Agenda #4. A communication transmitted from Louis A. DePasquale, City Manager, relative to Awaiting Report Item Number 21-84 regarding BEUDO (Building Energy Use Disclosure Ordinance) proposed amendments. [CDD Memo] [current draft] [City Solicitor opinion]
Referred to Health & Environment Committee 9-0

Covered under the proposed amendments are: (1) municipal property with one or more buildings with 10,000 sq ft or more; (2) one or more non-residential building(s) where such building(s) singly or together contain 25,000 to 49,999 sq ft); and (3) one or more residential building(s) that singly or together contain 50 or more residential dwelling units – rental or condos. So my electric and gas bills can stay safely in my bottom drawer – for now. Some councillors are already looking ahead to the day when they can drop the bar down to cottages or people living in a van down by the river.

Unfinished Business #5. Ordinance #2021-24 (Oct 25, 2021 Order #3) That the City Manager be and hereby is requested to direct the City Solicitor and the appropriate staff to review the language of this proposed ordinance amendment and to report back to the City Council in advance of the next City Council meeting. [Passed to a 2nd Reading Oct 25, 2021; To Be Ordained on or after Nov 8, 2021]
Ordained as Amended 8-0-1 (Carlone – ABSENT)

How Dare You!This will pass 9-0 unless one of the councillors casts a protest vote because the proposal to label gas pumps doesn’t go far enough. Maybe the next step will be stenciling city roads with “How Dare You!” and a little Greta image.

Order #1. That the City Council go on record requesting that the forthcoming new Universal Design Playground located in Danehy Park be named the Louis A. DePasquale Universal Design Playground.   Councillor Simmons, Councillor Carlone, Councillor McGovern, Mayor Siddiqui, Councillor Toomey
Charter Right – Sobrinho-Wheeler (don’t let the door hit you on the way out, councillor)

There are some who choose to protest the naming of public facilities after people who are either still living or still working for the city. Just a reminder that we’re not issuing postage stamps or minting coins (well, except for perhaps Al Vellucci). So here’s to Thomas W. Danehy Park, the Walter J. Sullivan Water Treatment Facility, the Robert W. Healy Public Safety Building, and Timothy J. Toomey Park, and the Louis A. DePasquale Universal Design Playground. My ideal is a bit different, courtesy of the late, great John Prine.

Order #2. That the City Manager is requested to work with the appropriate City departments, as well as the Commission of Persons with Disabilities and the Special Education Parents Advisory Council, to develop a plan to install fully accessible equipment in every playground throughout the city.   Councillor McGovern, Mayor Siddiqui, Vice Mayor Mallon, Councillor Nolan, Councillor Carlone, Councillor Simmons, Councillor Sobrinho-Wheeler, Councillor Toomey, Councillor Zondervan
Order Adopted as Amended 9-0

This would be great, but presumably it means “in addition to the existing playground equipment” as opposed to “replace all playground equipment”. I doubt if monkey bars and skate parks can be made fully accessible.

Envision AlewifeOrder #4. That Article 20.90- Alewife Overlay Districts 1-6 of the Cambridge Zoning Ordinance be amended to insert a new section entitled Section 20.94.3 – Temporarily prohibited uses.   Councillor Nolan, Councillor McGovern, Mayor Siddiqui
Charter Right – Toomey

Committee Report #1. The Neighborhood and Long-Term Planning, Public Facilities, Arts & Celebrations Committee met on June 2, 2021 to conduct a public hearing to discuss the Alewife Envision Plan.
Report Accepted, Placed on File 9-0

I’m all for coming up with a grand vision for this area with multiple bridges crossing the tracks and all sorts of fun, new additions. That said, don’t you think all this grand visionary stuff should have been put in place long before parcels were sold with the presumption that they could be built out under existing zoning? Parcels in this area were apparently only very recently sold for a sum in the neighborhood of half a billion dollars. If the City were to now pass either temporary or permanent zoning changes that significantly decrease the development potential, it sure seems like a good case could be made by the new owners that they should be compensated for that loss. I hope that won’t happen, but this says a lot about the consequences of City Council inaction or lack of a coherent vision. By the way, the order contains one of the more interesting maps from the 1979 Alewife Revitalization study, a.k.a. “The Fishbook”.

Order #5. Upper Mass. Ave. Bike Lane Improvements.   Councillor Nolan
Amended 7-2 (DS,TT – NO); Charter Right – Simmons

The latest installment in the ongoing turf wars over roadway allocation where politicians deftly try to please all of the people all of the time. The problem here is, of course, that these things should never have been enshrined into an ordinance with inflexible mandates. But hey, don’t forget to sign The Pledge. Meanwhile, Cambridge roads are starting to feel more like a Habitrail for hamsters – overly prescriptive and thoroughly inflexible.

Committee Report #3. The Neighborhood and Long-Term Planning, Public Facilities, Arts & Celebrations Committee and the Housing Committee met on Aug 24, 2021 to conduct a joint follow-up hearing to continue the discussion on the elimination of single and two-family only zoning and restrictions on the type of housing that can be built city-wide.
Report Accepted, Placed on File 9-0An Even Better (Bigger) Cambridge

Now that the election has passed it will be interesting to see how fast The Densifiers try to rush through their Big Plans. I do like the idea of relaxing some of the restrictions to allow more multi-family homes, but I would prefer to see housing growth based more on available opportunities than on wholesale revision and density doubling densification based on a transient and trendy philosophy and historical revisionism. We have been down that road before.

Committee Report #4. The Ordinance Committee met on Oct 20, 2021 to conduct a hearing on an ordinance amendment to reduce or limit campaign donations.
Report Accepted, Placed on File 7-0-0-2 (DS,TT-Present)

Policy Order/Home Rule Petition: That the attached Home Petition titled “Petition For An Act Authorizing The City Of Cambridge To Enact An Ordinance To Limit And Monitor Campaign Donations In Local Elections By Individuals Seeking Financial Reward From The City Of Cambridge” be forwarded to the General Court for adoption.   Councillor Carlone
Order and Home Rule Petition Tabled 7-0-0-2 (DS,TT-Present)

Late Order #6. That the City Manager be and hereby is requested to instruct the Law Department to provide a legal opinion regarding the effect of the proposed Ordinance to Limit and monitor campaign donations on the petitioners of a Citizens’ Petition and the Owners, Board members and employees of an organization seeking financial assistance from the City of Cambridge; and to draft enforcement language and to draft language exempting labor unions from the Ordinance and to provide an opinion about whether Somerville’s Ordinance regarding campaign donations would survive a legal challenge.   Councillor Carlone
Order Adopted 9-0

While I may agree with the general idea of this proposal, the devil may lie in the details. It’s not always so clear which donors to campaigns are seeking or will eventually receive financial reward. For example, if someone contributes either money or labor toward a political campaign and is currently hired or is later hired as a City Council Aide, would that be a violation? Or is political patronage not covered under the proposed ordinance? – Robert Winters

November 6, 2021

2021 Cambridge City Council and School Committee (Unofficial) Election Results

For those who like their information in spreadsheets….

Cambridge City Council
Council2021-Unofficial

Cambridge School Committee
School2021-Unofficial

November 4, 2021

Cambridge InsideOut Episodes 523-524: November 2, 2021

Episode 523 – Cambridge InsideOut: Nov 2, 2021 (Part 1)

This episode was recorded on Nov 2, 2021 at 6:00pm. Topics: Election Day; turnout; early and mail-in voting; Candidate Page statistics; ballot questions & Quest for Control – selling control as “democracy”; truths about City boards & commissions; civic responsibilities; Federico Muchnik videos – Walden Square, The Tasty; reducing elections to “hot topics”. Hosts: Judy Nathans, Robert Winters
[On YouTube] [audio]


Episode 524 – Cambridge InsideOut: Nov 2, 2021 (Part 2)

This episode was recorded on Nov 2, 2021 at 6:30pm. Topics: Changing rules for voter registration; auxiliary ballots, provisional ballots; preliminary vs. unofficial vs. official election results; campaign finance for City Council and School Committee; reporting the details of the PR Count; the down side of slate voting and the importance of voting for individuals. Hosts: Judy Nathans, Robert Winters [On YouTube] [audio]

[Materials used in these episodes]

November 1, 2021

Eve of Election – November 1, 2021 Cambridge City Council meeting

Filed under: 2021 election,Cambridge,City Council,covid — Tags: , , , , — Robert Winters @ 12:42 pm

Eve of Election – November 1, 2021 Cambridge City Council meeting

City HallMail-In Voting, Early Voting, and now finally Voting at the Polls on Tues, Nov 2 – and it’s anyone’s guess whether we’ll see any turnover other than the replacement of veteran Councillor Tim Toomey. Even the Election Night gathering at the Senior Center for The Count has been all but shut down by the lingering pandemic. I still don’t know what I’ll be doing on Election Night.

Will voter turnout go up? Will it go down? What effect will the availability of mail-in voting have on voter turnout? Will this result in a different cross-section of voters than in past elections? Will the Revolutionaries take over and commence a milder version of the Reign of Terror (minus the guillotines)? Will the densifiers transform Cambridge into Co-Op City North? Will automobiles be run out of town like St. Patrick drove the snakes off the Emerald Isle? Will Plan E be replaced by Plan 9? So many questions, so little time. I’m just getting ready to circle the wagons.

Vote for me and I’ll set you free….. Eve of destruction, tax deduction, city inspectors, bill collectors, mod clothes in demand, population out of hand, suicide, too many bills, hippies moving to the hills, people all over the world are shouting, end the war…. And the band played on. – Ball of Confusion, The Temptations

The Eve of Election usually means a light agenda so that candidates can run home to make last-minute pleas to voters, though sometimes it also brings a late ploy for attention by stoking the flames of controversy. There’s not much to work with in this week’s limited agenda, but you never know what surprises may pop out like a jack-in-the-box. Anyway, here are some of the ingredients for this week’s sausage.

Delta surgeManager’s Agenda #1. A communication transmitted from Louis A. DePasquale, City Manager, relative to an update on COVID-19.
Placed on File 9-0

After the initial surge of the Delta Variant our numbers were trending solidly downward. There was then a resurgence (students returning, Red Sox excitement, letting your guard down?), but now things seem to be again trending downward. Damn you, Covid! Be gone! Masks are for Halloween!


Manager’s Agenda #3. A communication transmitted from Louis A. DePasquale, City Manager, relative to Awaiting Report Item Number 21-79, regarding proposed amendments to Article 8.12 of the Municipal Code (labels on fuel pumps).
Referred to Unfinished Business 9-0

Unfinished Business #4. Ordinance #2021-24 That the City Manager be and hereby is requested to direct the City Solicitor and the appropriate staff to review the language of this proposed ordinance amendment and to report back to the City Council in advance of the next City Council meeting. [Passed to a Second Reading Oct 25, 2021; To Be Ordained on or after Nov 8, 2021]

I’m sure this will easily pass next week. Perhaps this will be the start of a whole parade of “messaging”. Will parking meters soon beg people to ride a bike instead? (Uh, oh. I hope I didn’t just cause another City Council Order to be written.) Will the 7-11 soon be required to install water dispensers next to the beverage case? Oops, I see another Council Order being written.

Order #2. City Council support of MIT Divest’s campaign to divest MIT’s endowment from the fossil fuel industry.   Councillor Sobrinho-Wheeler, Councillor Zondervan, Mayor Siddiqui, Councillor McGovern, Councillor Carlone, Vice Mayor Mallon, Councillor Nolan, Councillor Simmons, Councillor Toomey
Order Adopted as Amended 9-0


Order #3. That the City Manager is requested to instruct the Climate Crisis Working Group to include a recommendation and proposal to amend the Green Fleet Policy in their final report.   Councillor Nolan, Mayor Siddiqui, Vice Mayor Mallon, Councillor Zondervan
Order Adopted 9-0Happy Halloween!

Committee Report #1. The Neighborhood and Long Term Planning, Public Facilities, Arts and Celebrations Committee met on July 15, 2020 to conduct a public hearing to discuss the timeline, scope, and budget of the Tobin/Vassal Lane School Project, including updates on the Armory property, and how it fits into the long-term plan for all school buildings in the City to accommodate expected enrollment changes over the next 10 to 20 years and to receive an update on the legislative office plans. [report is missing]
Report Accepted, Placed on File 9-0 – even though the report is missing

Committee Report #2. The Health and Environment committee met on May 25, 2021 to discuss proposed amendments to the Building Energy Use Disclosure Ordinance (BEUDO) that would drive down energy use and emissions in existing buildings in Cambridge as well as an update on the Net Zero Action Plan 5-Year Review process and recommendations.
Report Accepted, Placed on File, Order Adopted as Amended 9-0

Committee Report #3. The Housing Committee met on June 3, 2021 to conduct a public hearing to discuss inclusionary zoning preference/eligibility, and how the new state-level Housing Choice law will affect zoning in Cambridge. [report is missing]
Report Accepted, Placed on File 9-0 – even though the report is missing

Note that no reports were provided for either the July 15 NLTP Committee meeting nor the June 3 Housing Committee meeting. In fact, I count about 33 committee meetings that happened more than a month ago for which reports were never delivered. Come to think of it, there are even 13 committee reports from the previous term that were never delivered. Former City Clerk Donna Lopez would never have allowed the Chairs of City Council committees to be so neglectful. I don’t mean to come down hard on our current City Clerk Anthony Wilson, but he really needs to start disciplining the committee Chairs. I hope his successor understands the importance of the role of being “Clerk of Committees” in addition to issuing marriage certificates and death certificates and all the other responsibilities of the City Clerk’s Office. Of course the real negligence here falls to the city councillors themselves. – Robert Winters

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