From Nancy Hyde in the mayor’s office…
To All Newton Residents,
Please join Mayor Warren for the 3rd community meeting about the Austin Street parking lot project on Sunday, February 8th from 1-3:00 PM at the Newton North High School Cafeteria. You are welcome to stop by for some or all of the time and view some visual displays, talk with the developers and city staff, have your questions answered, and generally see how ideas have evolved based on feedback from previous community meetings.
Whether you feel fully informed about the Austin St. parking lot or are just beginning to learn about the possibilities for this project, this is an opportunity to gather information including proposed solutions and to share your thoughts.
We hope you will be able to come. For questions, please contact Nancy Hyde [email protected].
Also
Monday, January 26th: 7:00 – 8:30 PM
New Art Center
61 Washington Park
Forum on proposed Austin St. development
with presentation by developer
(Austin Street Partners)
While reading an article in the Globe about the Boston Olympics 2024 Committee yesterday, I was reminded of Newton, and what appears to be a similar ‘community engagement’ process. Many of the descriptions of the process are almost identical to what we are hearing in Newton about the Austin St plans. Is this pattern prevalent for many large development proposals?
http://www.bostonglobe.com/business/2015/01/24/olympic-secrecy-riles-property-owners/v6RgqFCV2ChQvCYQFECiOL/story.html
“…Responding to the property owners’ complaints, Boston 2024 chairman John Fish said Friday that the committee has only tried to demonstrate a “proof of concept” at this point and that the venues the committee has identified were not definite. He suggested it was premature to have detailed discussions with property owners at this stage of the planning.
“..There’s no need to startle or introduce anxiety into the conversation when we don’t have more definitive plans,” Fish said.
On Friday, a spokeswoman for the committee issued assurances that organizers will consult with property owners in the coming months. “All plans are subject to change, and the proposals are merely starting points for a robust public process that has just begun and will last through the year,” said spokeswoman Erin Murphy….