Preview of December 6, 2021 Cambridge City Council meeting – T Minus Two Meetings
The Pandemic Council Term is winding down even as the Omicron Variant is winding up for the next term. I fully expect another two years of coronagendas pushed through under the Shadow of Zoom.
Here are a few items of possible interest for this week:
Manager’s Agenda #1. A communication transmitted from Louis A. DePasquale, City Manager, relative to a COVID-19 update.
Placed on File 8-0-1 (Nolan – ABSENT)
Suffice to say that the latest rates of positive tests have been quite alarming – even though fatalities have become quite rare (as he searches for wood on which to vigorously knock). I would very much appreciate more information about where the increased positive tests are rooted. It appears as though the university populations and younger people are the chief contributors, but many of us would like more clarity.
Manager’s Agenda #4. A communication transmitted from Louis A. DePasquale, City Manager, relative to the appointment of the following persons as new members of the Family Policy Council effective Dec 1, 2021: Wendy Georgan, Tabithlee Howard, Sophie Goldman, Elijah Lee-Robinson, Elaine Wen
Placed on File 9-0
Order #7. That the City Manager is requested to instruct the City Solicitor to draft the appropriate ordinance amendments for the City Council to review following the recent charter amendments. Mayor Siddiqui, Councillor Nolan, Councillor Sobrinho-Wheeler
Order Adopted 8-0-1 (Simmons – ABSENT)
<sarcasm>I believe we need to see a report detailing the status of each of these appointees in terms of ethnic representativeness, rental status, and philosophy regarding housing density. After all, Family Policy is Housing Policy. Please wait until after January 1 to refer these appointments to the Civic Unity Committee.</sarcasm>
I am looking forward to seeing how the tribunals will be structured for the evaluation of the worthiness of citizen volunteers by a panel of clueless and politically motivated councillors. Meanwhile, all I have heard regarding the rather important matter of choosing the next City Manager is a throng of crickets.
Manager’s Agenda #14. A communication transmitted from Louis A. DePasquale, City Manager, relative to Awaiting Report Item Number 21-88, regarding amendments to the draft Ordinance to limit and monitor campaign donations by individuals seeking financial benefit from the City of Cambridge. [Solicitor’s response]
Referred to Proposed Ordinance 7-0-0-2 (Simmons, Toomey – PRESENT)
On the Table #1. That the City Council adopt a municipal ordinance to reduce or limit campaign donations from donors seeking to enter into a contract, seeking approval for a special permit or up-zoning, seeking to acquire real estate from the city, or seeking financial assistance from the city; Ordinance #2020-27. [Tabled – Nov 8, 2021]
Taken from Table 9-0; Passed to 2nd Reading as Amended 7-2 (Simmons, Toomey – NO)
On the Table #2. 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. [Tabled – Nov 8, 2021]
Taken from Table 9-0; Placed Back on Table 8-0-0-1 (Simmons – PRESENT)
For what it’s worth, I don’t actually support these restrictions. I’m all for disclosure, and I do my best to help illuminate campaign donations, but the forced imposition of restrictions like those in the proposed ordinance is a slippery slope that serves no useful purpose and is based on the loosiest and goosiest of interpretations and carve-outs for politically acceptable influence-purchasing. Every candidate is free to refuse donations from any source or to highlight the acceptance of those donations by their competitors.
And just to piss off anyone who continues to lose sleep over the Citizens United case decided by the U.S. Supreme Court, I actually agree that the right to raise and spend money falls under the category of “free speech”. That said, I think everyone should cast a suspicious eye toward Super-PACs, Independent Expenditure PACs (which, lets face it, often aren’t all that independent of the candidates they support), and any other vehicle used to purchase election victories. Perhaps a more relevant pursuit would be to ensure that all credible candidates are guaranteed widely accessible free platforms via which voters can get to know them.
Some of the most lavishly-funded campaigns derive their treasures not from “individuals seeking financial reward from the City of Cambridge” but from highly-paid professionals who enjoy great access and influence with the councillors they support. I will add that I find it endlessly entertaining to listen to the rhetorical contortions of councillors arguing both sides of this issue. Everyone is always looking for an edge.
Communications #1-6 all address concerns about the recent N. Mass. Ave. bus and bike lane installation and its impacts on traffic and commercial viability.
Order #1. That the City Manager is requested to confer with appropriate departments on what the standard public process will be prior to implementing new sections of bike lanes, and what general evaluation process will take place post-installation. Councillor Toomey, Councillor Simmons
Order Adopted as Amended 9-0
The problem, of course, is that the City Council passed amendments to the Bike Safety Ordinance that essentially limits public process to little more than a discussion over the color of the flex posts. Considerations of such things as the viability of businesses, traffic congestion, and even actual bike safety must take a back seat to everything except perceived safety and the comfort of cyclists.
Order #3. That the Cambridge City Council condemns, in the strongest possible terms, any actions that may result in the physical injury of any individual, regardless of their support or non-support, of the bike/bus lane implementation on Massachusetts Avenue. Councillor McGovern, Mayor Siddiqui, Vice Mayor Mallon
Order Adopted 7-0-0-2 (Simmons, Toomey – PRESENT)
To any idiot who thinks that you can advance your cause by spreading tacks or bricks or broken glass in bike lanes: Violence is a poor substitute for reason, persistence, or even mockery. Try winning your argument with wit and wisdom instead. Even if you don’t prevail you can still live with your conscience (assuming you have one).
Order #2. City Council opposition to the MBTA’s plans to introduce new diesel infrastructure at the North Cambridge Garage and buses with diesel heaters. Vice Mayor Mallon, Mayor Siddiqui, Councillor Zondervan, Councillor Sobrinho-Wheeler
Placed on File (motion of Mallon) 8-1 (Zondervan – NO)
Order #6. That the City Clerk is requested to forward the Home Rule Petition establishing a Net Zero emissions requirement for building construction in Cambridge in accordance with its Net Zero Action Plan, adopted in 2015, to the entire state legislative delegation for immediate adoption. Councillor Zondervan, Councillor Nolan, Mayor Siddiqui, Councillor Carlone
Charter Right – Zondervan
I will soon be getting insulation pumped into all the outer walls of my building, and I think most Cambridge property owners are receptive to greater energy efficiency in their buildings. That said, I am always suspicious of actions by the City Council that may potentially lead to dramatic increases in the cost of home renovations.
Order #8. That the City Manager is requested to direct the City Solicitor to draft home rule language to establish a Cambridge Jobs Creation Trust for City Council review by the Dec 20, 2021 regular City Council meeting. Councillor Sobrinho-Wheeler, Vice Mayor Mallon, Mayor Siddiqui
Order Adopted 9-0
It sure seems as though this City Council is poised to jack up the linkage fee on new commercial developments as high as legally possible regardless of the intended or unintended consequences. Any reasonable person likely supports job creation for residents, but the proposed Cambridge Jobs Creation Trust seems more like a justification for an increase in the linkage fee than anything else.
Order #9. That a special meeting of the City Council, School Committee, Cambridge Health Department and other appropriate city and school staff be scheduled to discuss the findings of the 2021 Cambridge Teen Health Survey for Middle and High School students and what immediate interventions are going to be implemented in response to concerns. Councillor McGovern, Mayor Siddiqui, Vice Mayor Mallon
Order Adopted 8-0-1 (Carlone – ABSENT)
Suffice to say that the statements “46% of high school students and 31% of middle school students reported feeling tense, nervous, or worried every day for two or more weeks in a row” and “35% of high school students and 27% of middle school students reported feeling so sad or hopeless almost every day for 2 weeks or more that they stopped doing usual activities” may well apply to a lot of people at various times during the pandemic. – Robert Winters