In Adrian Walker’s column in today’s Boston Globe, he writes about Mayor Setti Warren’s second-term agenda to “figure out what cities like his can do to address the issues of income inequality and economic mobility.” At last week’s US Conference of Mayors, Warren convened two panel discussions about what local governments can do to combat lack of mobility.
Here’s an excerpt:
Issues of class — which are what Warren is really hoping to address — have traditionally been considered largely beyond the reach of local government, driven by forces mayors and their allies simply aren’t in a position to influence much.
Warren begs to differ. It’s practically an article of faith among him and his peers that mayors can actually make things happen, albeit on a limited scale, while other levels of government are gridlocked.
According to the column — and to data provided to Walker by Warren — six percent of Newton’s population lives below the poverty line.
It’s worth the read. Then come back here and share your thoughts.
30-40% of students being on assisted lunch programs is deeply concerning and seems to indicate that the 6% number could be on the low side. Clearly many people in Newton are having trouble making ends meet.
Increasing population growth in small amounts will help keep Newton open and welcoming. However, to do it in large numbers will certainly mean overrides and increased property taxes making life even more stressful and financially difficult for the folks already here.
@Charlie: I don’t believe the study said that 30-40% of students are on assisted lunch programs. Rather, it was 30-40% at some of the schools. Doesn’t mean it’s not a problem, but there’s a huge difference.
Interesting article. As someone who grew up in Newton in public housing and on welfare, there’s no question that there is legitimate economic inequality in Newton.
As a kid living less than 1 mile from City Hall, I often did not have heat in the winter. We would have to saran wrap the windows as insulation and walk around the house with blankets. Often times, we didn’t have enough money for food, so I went to bed so hungry that I’d strategically ration pretzels by my bed so that when I woke up because of hunger pains in the middle of the night, I’d be able to calm them. Reliable transportation was non-existant, so I would routinely walk upward to six miles per day to get to and from school. I’ll never forget the times in elementary school when I would walk through the woods in the dark to get home. It’d sometimes be so dark and cold that I’d play a game, where I’d close my eyes to see if I could make it home without using my eyes to guide me. Beginning at fifteen years old, I began living alone as my father had abandoned me at two years old and my mom is a non-functioning drug and alcohol addict. When I was still a teenager, she was sentenced to nearly three years in prison.
Despite facing some of the worst income inequality and abuse that there is, very little was done to help me as a kid. Despite missing upward to 50% of school days at points, there was no meaningful intervention that I was aware of. However, luckily for me, I was a talented runner, winning a State Championship at Newton North. Thanks to my ability to run fast, I was recruited to colleges. Without that, since no one in Newton helped me chart a path to college, I would have ended up like every other kid I grew up with in my neighborhood. I would have been another statistic, stuck in the ever perpetual cycle of poverty and dysfunction. However, thanks to the unconditional support of friends I made, I was able to graduate college and attend law school. Thanks to the lessons taught to me through athletics, I was able to learn effective leadership skills, which I recently use to produce meaningful results as the president of my law school Student Bar Association (effectively student body president).
There is no question that there is a growing divide between the rich and the poor. That being said, as someone who understands these issues from both a real world and academic perspective, I do not believe that the path our political leaders continue to lead us down is the answer. In Newton, we have every resource possible to solve the problems that ruined my childhood. Instead, our political leaders continue to conduct study after study, panel after panel, all the while taking little to no action to solve problems. After spending this summer managing Jess Barton’s campaign, there is no question that we can do better.
Tom, thank you for writing that. To help me begin to wrap my mind around your experiences, do you mind telling me (roughly) what decade(s) that your experiences took place in?
In retrospect there were children and families under stress that a ten-year-old paper boy making his routes did not have the ability at the time to understand.
That was one time period in my life. Similar experiences in 2002 and found the level of economic stress still there in many areas. So, just curious. Thank you.
@Gail-Thank you for the clarification. Yes-huge difference. Still, it does seem very high and worthy of concern.
I believe the primary point is still relevant and accurate.
From the NPS website:
For the 2014-15 school year, the Title 1 schools are Lincoln-Eliot, Horace Mann, Underwood, Franklin and Countryside. Other schools are eligible for smaller amounts of funding for supplemental services as well.
Title 1 funds are allocated based on percentage of students eligible for free & reduced lunch. Burr was a Title 1 school for many years, but stopped qualifying a few years ago as the population increased dramatically.
While school lunch programs and supplemental services are a necessary, wonderful and unarguable necessity for those in need, It’s a narrsasistic political pipe dream ( a “vision “? ) for any leader to ” figure out what cities can do to address issues of income inequality and economic mobility”.
Fix our roads, control our growth, correct our ancient water and sewers, and pay off our unfounded liabilities. That is what taxpayers can and should expect, not hallucinations.
Oh my, Blueprint. Do you really want our city leaders to ignore issues of income inequality, particularly where students are concerned? Did you read the column? The mayor talks about creating internships for low-income high school students, as just one example.
@blueprint bill -yikes!!!!
Yes, a local leader believing that they can solve all issues of poverty would indeed be a pipe dream. Believing that we should be doing our best to try to address these issues wherever and however we can is neither a pipe dream or a hallucination.
Reading your “stick to roads …” response, particularly just a few paragraphs after Tom Davis’s compelling first hand account of growing up poor and ignored in Newton seems callous in the extreme.
Differences of opinion about what we can do, what we should do, what would be effective, what would not, are all reasonable.
Throwing up your hands and saying “we’ll always have young Tom Davis’s so just stick to pot holes” is the epitome of cynicism.
I do hope your view is a very small minority opinion in newton. If not, I despair for our city.
Mayor Warren and I do not always agree, but I am proud to say that he and I are on exactly the same page on the issue of income inequality. I believe he is totally sincere about wanting to address this important issue and I am willing to put my political capital on the line to be part of the solution.
@Mark: For the most part, my experiences took place in Newton between 1986 (the year I was born) and 2004 (the year I graduated from NN). A few years in there I was either living in a trailer park in Louisiana/Florida or moving from house to house between Newton-Watertown-Brighton-Malden. I’ve lived in Newton again since shortly before starting law school in 2012.
@Gail: The Mayor may have good intentions, but his actions speak louder than his words and have in many ways increased income inequality in Newton. For example, the internship program is a non-starter for most of the kids I grew up with as it very clearly states on the application that transportation is not provided. Growing up, we didn’t have a car, nor did many of the kids in my neighborhood.
Another simple example is our off-street parking ordinance, which is fundamentally offensive. If you’re rich and have a large driveway, you won’t get ticketed. If you’re poor or middle-class and don’t have a large driveway, you’ll be ticketed a significant sum of money even if there isn’t snow in the forecast for months. Moreover, the financial penalty for this offense was recently increased by an unreasonable amount. It may not seem like much to many in Newton, but there is a large portion of our population whom literally have zero extra dollars to spend. Given our city’s reputation for progressive politics, this makes no sense.
And of course, there are many examples of development increasing economic inequality in our city.
Everything that Jerry, Gail, and Ted said.
I’ve seen firsthand the positive outcomes of the new summer programs and internships for high school students. They take enormous pride in taking part in the internships and the new summer programs provide experiences for students that open up a whole new world for them.
Tom,
Thanks for posting your story.
You went to school from 1986-2004, I assume you went at 5 yrs old so we are looking at 1991-2004. For the most part of those days we hadn’t seen too much in cuts to the school. My question is did you ever reach out for help from counselors or teachers? Did a teacher ever notice your situation and ever try to help you out? Thanks.
Fundamentally, help for students in the schools is lacking, especially learning life skills for after high school. I have said it before but in case you don’t know, almost every Newton student goes on to College.
The problem with this is that in recent years the pressure for students to learn basic life skills like how to choose a college loan, how a credit card works etc. have been ignored. In fact, you can’t graduate high school without taking three years of math and four of English. By the time you’re a senior in the high school you have to take a “fun” English elective like Film class or short stories and Calculus or Pre-calculus.
Don’t get me wrong film class and calculus was “entertaining,” but a mandatory college application or basic financial literacy class would have served a much greater amount of students, because calculus will only apply to a fraction of future student jobs.
You wouldn’t know any of this unless you were in the schools or had just graduated. Unfortunately, most of the graduates leave and don’t return for years.
Tom, it’s a real shame that you did not receive the attention you needed and it’s a true credit to who you are that you were able to seize the opportunities afforded by “your ability to run fast” (and hard work). It’s also a shame that 11 years later the inequality is just getting worse but no one is hearing you still.
Mayor Warren is touting his successes but really, what has he or the city done to help those like Tom. The internship program is for any student from 14-18, not disadvantaged students, is unpaid and requires you have your own transportation. It sounds like a good program, but it’s not doing anything about inequality. The student who needs this type of leg up most likely needs to be earning money in the summer and has no access to transportation and parents who either are too busy or are incapable of providing the structure and encouragement to support him.
The Newton School Foundation, privately, funds several programs for low income youth and those really sound promising in helping to close the gap. They aren’t just for 6 weeks in the summer but all year long and provide transportation and meals. But what exactly is the city doing for these kids or their parents that is helping to close the equality gap through education? Maybe I’m missing something.
Or in some cases, a high schooler is denied the internship because a single mother who works full-time cannot take time away from work to transport for an 8am-12pm internship that is not within walking distance or T-accessible. Or your income rises *just* enough that your child no longer qualifies for free/reduced lunch. The problem with being poor is that as your income slowly rises, services are discontinued drastically instead of gradually, leaving a huge gap to fill. In order to make it work, your income has to make a huge leap (rather unrealistic) to overcome the reduced services. Otherwise, you get stuck, with savings depleting, trying to make ends meet each month. :/
I can tell you firsthand that that these internships are given to students who don’t fit the traditional Newton mold . The high school faculty advocates passionately for students in more ways than you can imagine, including getting these internships. The students do get them and the experience is life changing. Students return to school in September with a new sense of purpose and commitment. These may not be students you know and interact with, but the city of Newton and the schools actively seeks these students out for internships and summer programs.
Cyrus, once again I’m surprised by your lack of understanding of NPS. Students are reguired to take an Engish class every year, but the selection is huge and goes extensively beyond short stories and film class. As for math, there are many pathways through the 4 years that don’t include even pre-calculus. Maybe you were given bad advice or pushed by outside forces to take the higher level math courses.
A really great thing about our high schools is they offer a good Career and Vocational Technology path that includes a large variety of majors that prepare students to enter the workforce or continue to college. They include Automotive Technology, Carpentry/Construction Technology , Culinary Arts, Design &Visual Communication, Drafting, Early Education & Care, Graphic Communications, Greengineering, Introduction to Technical Theatre and TV / Video Production.
I do agree that basic financial literacy should be taught to every student, including but not limited to the use of credit cards and balancing a checkbook. I taught courses to high school seniors, called Basic Math, which included those skills and more and believe they are still needed.
Topics such as choosing a college loan, or not, filling out an application, choosing a community college first (or only) and transferring to 4 year college afterward, and filling out financial aid forms should be taught/explained to students, and their parents, by trained counsellors. I would be surprised if such counseling is not available.
Heather, your story is, unfortunately, a common one. I’ve know women who refused a small pay raise because it would cost them more in new school expenses.
@Marti, unfortunately the career and tech ed. path is hit or miss. I know I explored many programs and was actually a major in the culinary arts. Some are fun but others are universally known by students to be not helpful at even learning the basics.
This is something you would only know about if your a student. While the career and tech ed. classes and senior English electives may sound extensive, they are not.
Sorry to burst your bubble.
Cyrus – North does offer a financial planning, business math, and personal finance electives. Not sure how many kids choose these, since as you point out the vast majority are going on to college. But Mass state colleges and universities require 4 years of English, as do most private institutions, so having our high schools require the same seems reasonable. (They also require 3 years of Math – 4 starting next year – but from what I can tell Newton only requires 10 credits.) Looking at the course catalogue I see about a dozen senior English classes, including Lit & Comp (both AP and ACP) and Shakespeare (neither of which I’d call “fun”, although I’d highly recommend both.) In what way did you find that selection to be not extensive?
@Jane – Are we talking about the same internships? As I said, we were denied for transportation issues. Leading to my high schooler sitting around the house alone all summer because we did not have a back up plan when the decisions were handed out in June (admittedly my fault, and I certainly learned my lesson there). By then it was too late to find something else for the summer. Maybe my child fits the “traditional mold” because I’ve certainly not experienced what you’ve described in the Newton Public Schools.
@Heather/Jane: I could be mistaken, but I believe Heather might be talking about this summer internship program started by the mayor three years ago that’s administered by the Health & Human Services Department as opposed to the programs that are administered by the high schools.
This is from that program’s description:
What a terrific article about our mayor and his commitment to invest in the least fortunate in our community.
I was also very moved by Tom’s story of growing up in Newton. How many young Toms do we have in the City today?
I also agree 100% with Tom that our winter overnight street parking ban hits those hardest who can least afford to pay these tickets. I spoke with a young couple last year who told me without an off street parking option they park on the sidewalk because the ticket is only $15 as opposed to a $25 ticket for parking on the street. Last winter we had three months of no snow until those February storms, yet people were still banned from parking on the street. I think we should be able to make this work.
Another obvious step we could take would be to finally offer Full Day Kindergarten to all Newton students. The K teachers are already working a full day so the cost would be minimal. Low income families would save on childcare and children who need extra support in math and literacy could receive it.
@Tom Davis,
Thank you for sharing your experiences. Your comments were poignant and compelling. Wishing you great success in your legal career.
@Cyrus,
I agree that financial literacy is very important. That’s why, as a parent, I made a point of teaching it to my children. I also note that Newton North offers students an excellent elective course in financial literacy. On top of that, I was pretty darned impressed by the crash course in financial literacy given to my son by the manager of a local branch when he went in to open his first bank account. On the other hand, History through the Hollywood Lens and the Art and Technique of Film, both classes requiring extensive research, writing and analysis, are not subjects that I could impart to him. I’m quite grateful that in his senior year he had the opportunity to take these wonderful courses offered by the Chairs of the English and History Depts. at Newton North. Each in its own way, gave him an incredible foundation for his college film program.
Heather – I know of several students from single parent homes and did not have transportation who were in the internship program. As for the summer programs, students who benefit from several programs for a variety of reasons are actively recruited so they aren’t left sitting at home. I know this to be true because I am one of many people recruiting students for one of the programs.
There are people at the high schools who can assist you in finding a placement for your child and I encourage you to make use of them so that s/he isn’t left in the same situation next summer. No one wants high school students left without appropriate summer activities.
High school students get themselves to school and other activities in various ways that don’t include parent drop-off. The 59 bus is the most popular, but I’ve noticed an increase in the number students riding bikes to school (which will make Adam and Nathan happy).
Jane, I don’t doubt that teachers work hard to get students into these programs. With only 24 spots this summer, I’m sure its not easy to make the selections. Most teachers I know spend a great deal of time trying to help students in any way they can. Teachers can try to reach those who need to overcome the income gap through education and internships but without the necessary back up written into the rules of the internship program, too much responsibility falls on teachers. So it’s the teachers using the program to help bridge the gap, not the mayor’s program itself, although it’s a great program.
The rules of the internship program could be changed so that they conform to what the mayor is saying. Such as, instead of being for any student 14-18, it could be changed to “low income students have priority,” which leaves open the chance that additional students could participate. I hope this program continues to grow because it offers a great opportunity.
The internships are scattered throughout the city, not at the high schools. I don’t believe any comments are directed at students needing rides to school. The transportation network in Newton makes it easier to get in and out of Newton, but certainly doesn’t do a great job of getting to all parts of Newton, unless you live and work in places close to the T stops or s bus route. It would reach many more low-income students if transportation were at least partially provided.
If we don’t listen and learn from those who have had these problems, we are not moving toward that vision of closing the inequality gap. If you think the gap has not been completely closed, then instead of saying, “it does work, ” time would be better spent on improvement.
The winter overnight parking ban is ridiculous. It starts too early; it doesn’t take the weather into account; it costs way too much money. This topic comes up every year as we approach November. Last year the ticket cost was raised exorbitantly even though we heard from many residents and alders representing residents who were forced to leave Newton. We heard compelling stories but still the rate was raised and the rules were kept the same. I think it was Emily who talked about a single mother with a young child not being able to park in the municipal lot in Newtonville and get home with her toddler.
Another way the gap between haves and have-nots is widening. Many Newton rentals do not have off street parking, particularly the ones that are in old two family’s with fewer amenities and lower rents. How does forcing these tenants out of Newton support the mayor’s vision unless it’s because there would be no gap if only the wealthy could afford to live here?
I will also make a plug for the Transitioning Together program at Newton North. Aimed at students who may be the first in their family to go to college or the first to go to college in this country, it offers help with the college process by providing families with mentors who can assist with the application process, financial aid and so much more.
The opportunity gap, however, continues to grow. According to a study by the Brookings Institute, higher income families spend as much as 7 times more on activities for their children than lower income families – things like SAT prep, tutors, computers, music lessons, etc. That’s why we should always think twice about fees for school-based activities. And of course, full-day kindergarten would help all our students get off to a better start.
Regarding Financial Literacy, The Village Bank has purchased a very high quality online Financial Literacy curriculum and it is offered free of charge to the teachers at both high schools. To date, one teacher at NSHS has used it; several teachers at NNHS have used it, including two business teachers and several math teachers. The bank offers support and training to the teachers. Last school year, the program was used by around 500 students at NNHS. Village Bank officers are also at NNHS several times during the school year, presenting topics such as basic checking and savings accounts, investments, credit, budgeting, identity theft and fraud, and retirement savings. During the last month of senior year, bankers have made presentations regarding credit to many senior math classes at NNHS. (Except to mention where the Bankers work, no marketing of the Bank or its products are is done by the officers)
Greg, I thought that was the program being discussed. There is a different one at the high school?
Margaret and NativeNewtonian, great to know. Important lessons.
Oh Marti Please !
The over night parking ban is not ridiculous ! The poor people who must supplement their incomes with accessory apartments, are cutting down trees so that they can pave over their yards to accommodate off street parking. Now you are proposing that we allow on street parking so that their tenants cannot get to work after a snow storm? And the kids walking to school,.. Oops they don’t walk anymore,.. The school busses won’t be able to pass those streets to get the kids to school,.. at least in a timely fashion. Now there’s a real “vision ” we should ALL contemplate.
The availability of public transit is a key element of making a true livable and diverse city. A car is expensive and clearly so is parking (especially in the winter). We treat these things in Newton as if they’re low cost and pervasive, but they’re not.
Right now Newton doesn’t have options like ZipCar. Uber is here, but the cost of that can rise quickly, a problem when budgets are an issue. Our bus system is slow and designed to get people to downtown Boston, not around Newton.
When did Zip Car leave Newton Centre ? There used to be designated spaces in the lot.
The winter parking ban (and its alternatives) could fill a whole other thread- and has, if I recall correctly.
Charlie, you may be correct on Newton Centre, but I haven’t seen them in other villages.
Actually, let me correct that. Zipcar tends to be at the transit hubs (commuter rail stations, T, etc.) which means it’s really designed for people coming out by transit to use once they get to Newton.
Blueprintbill, really? I’m obviously talking about when no snow is predicted. It seemed to me that it would be obvious I was talking about the all winter ban but I included “it doesn’t take weather into account” just to be clear. Weather can mane it neccassary.
There are many programs in the city and yes, Marti, more can be done. The students I had were in the Health and Human Services internship, but there are many other summer programs as well that I’ve recruited students for that are extremely successful. The teachers don’t feel that recruiting students for these programs is any way a burden. Just the opposite – we feel like the city, the school system, and the individual schools are on the same page and work well together. I’d also like to give a shout out to John Panica, the youth officer, who works closely with the schools. I suspect residents would be pleasantly surprised at how well the different parts of the system work together to help as many kids as we possibly can.
I notice a huge shift from even 5 years ago in the systemic efforts to help families in need. Of particular note was the response to the tragic suicides 2 years ago. The entire city came together to put together programs to address the emotional well being of high school students.
As Margaret mentioned, the Transitioning Together program has been a great success as well and has assisted many students whose families are new to the college application process.
The conversation that we’re having on this thread is one of the most important discussions that our community should be having right now. However, many of the comments here reaffirm my frustration as someone who grew up in true poverty in Newton, which is that we are not effectively using our limited resources to fix very real problems that have existed in Newton for generations. The reason this frustrates me is because although it is clear that we all want the same outcome, the powers that be continue to go down the wrong road, despite communicating to the voting public that we are going down the right road. Rather than use the tools we have to incrementally fix the problems of poverty and cyclical dysfunction in Newton, it seems to me that we instead incrementally make these problems worse. In my opinion, the Mayor does a good job at building political support by talking about these problems, but he doesn’t do a good enough job at identifying the root causes of these problems, nor has he taken sufficient action to create and successfully implement initiatives that’ll make a difference for those who need our help the most. In my opinion, actions always speak louder than words.
Furthermore, it’s important for anyone reading this to understand that there is a difference between offering programs and actually making sure that those who need them the most consistently participate in them. It’s also very important to understand that when you come from the environment that I grew up in, there is likely no one consistently advocating for you, filling out your applications, pushing you in the right direction, etc. Rather, beginning as a toddler in Newton, kids in my situation are physically and emotionally abused. There were times as a toddler that I was pistol whipped for trying to protect my mom from being badly beaten. Before the age of ten, I often played the role of caregiver to my younger brother, as our mom was non-functioning. As an early teenager, living one mile from City Hall, I would physically break down doors to pull my mom out of very dangerous drug dealers apartments. There were near daily street fights. There was even a shoot-out with the Newton police in my backyard. This reality exists in Newton, yet very little is done to fix it. How do I know this? Because of all the kids in my neighborhood, I was the only one to graduate from college, let alone go to law school. Many didn’t even graduate from high school. In fact, my mom, who grew up in Newton, only has a middle school education.
I’m bringing this all up because I know for a fact that we can do better. I have long believed that we could work together to create a national model as Newton is very unique in that our community composition includes the richest of the rich and the poorest of the poor. That being said, good intentions aren’t enough.
Tom – We can always do better, and should always look forward to see how we can do better. Your voice is extremely important in this discussion and yes, I completely agree that this needs to be a top priority in the city. I’d love to talk with you one on one (I’ve had coffee with just about everyone around here who’s self identified). I obviously don’t want to print my email address here, but my phone number is in the old fashioned telephone book.
Thank you for sharing your story, Tom. You also make a good point about the winter parking ban. The parking ordinance is essentially a poor tax. Laws like that create an unfriendly city to families who aren’t higher income.
I think there is much we need to do to improve support for those in need in our community. However the winter parking ban is not a poor tax. If you don’t have a place to keep your car off the street at night, you probably don’t have a place to put it during a snow emergency. If cars are not moved off the street, it is difficult for the roads to be plowed. I would be happy to go all winter without my car, but most people I know in Newton don’t feel that way. If you do not have a parking space, find one. My in-laws tenant used to rent a neighbor’s drive way in exchange for shoveling it out a free solution that benefited both parties.
The winter parking ban would not be a big deal if police only enforced it when there’s snow on the streets. But when they ticket cars that are parked on streets that don’t have a single snowflake, it unfairly penalizes some people.
Tom Davis: You’re my hero.
You’re 100% correct when you said: “the powers that be continue to go down the wrong road, despite communicating to the voting public that we are going down the right road.”
Maybe with your efforts working with the city we can honestly lessen the burden of poverty in Newton. Please keep posting. I’d also love to sit down with you as well. My email is: [email protected]. Thanks.
Alicia, that may be the most elitist attitude I’ve heard. I’m so impressed you could go without your car all winter. How does that affect those who cannot? Are you better because of it? And your compassion is underwhelming. “If you don’t have a parking space, find one.” A lot of you vs them in that comment.
If the city of Newton allows, even promotes, housing units with no parking facilities, then it is entirely inappropriate to charge a large fee for parking on the street when the weather is fine. But your solution for the people that this affects is to just find one. Perhaps single parents and others, after working long hours, taking care of the kids, etc. should work shoveling their more affluent neighbor’s driveways to avoid a nightly fine.
The city says it wants to reverse the growing inequality in our city. Well telling those with lower income “you are on your own” is going in the wrong direction.
@Greg – yes, that’s the one I was talking about.
@Jane – I was told that because we requested an internship within walking distance/T-accessible that my child could not be placed. How were others without transportation accommodated? I was not given any other options. We are quite familiar with the 59 bus and it is regularly used for school transportation in our household. Who at the high school would I talk to about summer placement programs?
Speaking of unsupervised high schoolers – what is the deal with all of the early release/late start days? Tomorrow is another one because of the PSAT testing. Isn’t NNHS big enough to accommodate testing AND students without fear of disruption? The school is massive. I find it hard to believe that this is an issue. It was the same policy for MCAS testing last year and we had multiple late start days. Between the holidays and the early releases/late starts, these teenagers have a LOT of unsupervised time. But perhaps that question belongs in a different thread…
@Heather: the huge number of early release days is another thing Mayor Warren could tackle that would help all students, especially low income students. Every Tuesday and monthly Thursdays is too much time out of school not learning.
@Alicia: During snow emergencies people could make arrangements with a neighbor as you suggest or the City could look into offering space in the municipal or school lots. At least it would be a lot fewer nights than every night from Nov 15-April 15. I think we should be be bending over backwards to be accommodating as this is the population we claim to care so much about welcoming to our City.
Heather – I will get you the contact information for summer programs. Depending on your child’s needs, there may be several sources for the various programs.
My students were not given transportation but were thrilled to receive the internship and got themselves to their placement.
Alicia’s “If you don’t have a parking space, find one” elitist and classist attitude is exactly why this city is unfriendly to people who are of lesser income. How am I supposed to find a parking spot? Do you have any recommendations? I’m supposed to pay for a parking spot ALL WINTER, even if there’s no snow?? I’m happy to pay for a parking spot when there’s a snow emergency (or when the roads are difficult for a few weeks after a blizzard) but I can’t afford to pay for a parking spot from November until April. People shouldn’t have to do that. Waltham got RID of their winter parking ban just as Newton raised the fines. We have enough technology that residents can be notified to remove their cars off the street. Text messages, robo-calls, etc.
Thank you Alicia.
Attractive towns don’t have a lot of cars in the streets. Do we want Newton to be a parking lot? Let’s not make this into class warfare. That is great trick to shut down the debate. A lot of millionaires in Newton park on the street every chance they get. A lot of millionaire own 3+ cars. I don’t want to look at millionaire cars in my street and I don’t want to look at crappy cars (like mine).
A car is privilege, not a right. There is public transportation. For most people, I think that Uber is less expensive than owning a car. If Newton attracts people who prefer to ride bikes,walk, take buses, the T, and Uber, and loses people who want to park cars in the street, that is fine with me. If we lose people who want to park RVs and boats in the street, that is really fine with me. Sorry for being insensitive.
Living in one of the tighter-space neighborhood (which is by no means “all poor”) I could get behind a policy of parking bans only during snow emergencies. That leaves the question of where to pu the car during a snow emergency, but that problem already exists for anyone who has a municipal lot permit- so it needs to be solved anyway. I just don’t see it strictly as a class/economic issue. It’s a space issue.
@ Jeffrey and Alicia,
Couldn’t agree more. Jeffrey you are not being insensitive. Au contraire,.. your comments indicate an awareness of the aesthetic and practical necessity of limiting density in our environment. At the core of the maintenance of the physical character of the “Garden City”is the issue of overcrowding. Too great a population density causes people to have to park on the street, to take down green space and tree canopy to pave over the yard, to increase traffic on our streets, to over populate our schools, increasing our taxation, to raise the amount of trash that needs collecting, to overburden our village centers with car parking, to ….. EtcEtcEtc. Newton is a beautiful , safe and desirable place to live. That is why we’ve chosen to live here. We shouldn’t have to endure its environmental compromise that over population brings.
Density of housing does not have to mean density of cars. In fact, density of housing, in the right place, can mean lessening density and dependency on cars. A specific policy supporting that is the uncoupling of residential parking at Austin Street from the housing rental. This appeals to people who want to live with one car, or car free, like seniors or younger professionals without kids.
Alicia’s point about parking sharing is also a good one. There are parking sharing apps that now make this very easy.
As for the parking ban, I disagree with the theory that removing the ban will make living in Newton more affordable.
Housing for sale or rent without parking in area without on-street parking is less expensive than housing that has parking. The owner/renter either does not have a car or, more likely, has to pay to park it elsewhere.
If on-street parking is allowed, the no-parking available stigma is removed from the housing unit, positively affecting the value of the housing unit. The owner could then sell it for more or rent it for more.
My theory is that rents would go up for units that don’t currently have parking if the parking ban is lifted.
In effect the city would have made an enormous transfer of wealth to private property owners, while the neighboring community is burdened with the effects of increased on-street parking.
I can’t seem to locate a point above. On street parking is already allowed and I haven’t seen anything about increasing it in neighborhoods. I don’t see how the people who regularly park their cars on the street because their residence doesn’t provide off street parking and can’t afford to pay $25/night every night from 11/15 to 4/15 for no reason are increasing on street parking.
On street parking is being increased when new developments provide no parking.
I like the idea of being notified when there will be a parking ban because of weather and allowing parking overnight in lots owned by the city but there still needs to be a way for them to get home from the parking lot. There is a better solution to this problem.
That $25 isn’t a fee, it’s a penalty to enforce an ordinance which may or may not make sense. There’s a difference.
What seems elitist and classist to me is requiring parking in new developments and thereby raising the rent and the barrier to entry for Newton. Parking is not free. Where there are opportunities to share or do without parking (no, not everywhere) residents can save money. It might mean using technology, it might mean revisiting the parking ban, or it might mean collaboration with a neighbor (not necessarily an affluent one, either… perhaps someone on fixed income with extra space in their driveway?)
Nathan, perhaps you can provide a link to that parking app. If I’m not mistaken, it’s a Newton-based startup.
The technological solution to parking ban notification is a very simple one. If the NPD or city hall used a service like Twitter with some consistent message, like a hashtag, people could opt-in and get notifications through a variety of means. Right now, the city’s use of technology to solve that problem is way behind the times… in some cases, several decades behind. I still have to call the NPD to find out if/when it’s getting lifted.
Adam, at parkeasier.com you can download @theSPOTapp
This is a Cambridge startup offering peer-peer private parking sharing.
@ Adam,
Are you joking ? “… requiring parking in new developments and thereby raising the rent and the barrier to entry to Newton.”
A minimum sized NEW unit costs at least $1,000,000. A new 1 bedroom apt rents for $2500. Some barrier,.. required parking. For the affordable units provide free parking, but otherwise provide it and make the millionaires pay for it
And by the way,.. what’s Twitter ?
Bill, I’m quite serious. Say you’re an evil developer and you have a choice between building commercial space on the first floor of your housing, generating higher profits and helping the city tax base out, or building a smaller commercial development and dedicating that extra space to deeded parking spaces instead, because the city says you have to. What does that do to the cost per unit of housing? That parking space is never “free,” even for affordable units. There’s an opportunity cost, even if it could have been a courtyard. And, if the market rent for a given apartment with two spaces is $2,500, perhaps the rent for an apartment with one space, I’m guessing, is $100 or $200 lower. Zero spaces, even less. That creates an opportunity. The renter may have to spend that amount elsewhere on parking, but if he finds some other arrangement or get by with a zip car or public transit, that housing ends up being more affordable.
@Jane: I’d enjoy meeting with you over coffee at some point, so feel free to e-mail me at [email protected].
@Tom: I’d enjoy meeting with you as well, so please do feel free to reach out via e-mail ([email protected]). I’m also glad that you appreciate my comment. To me, that means you read between and behind the lines, which is a good thing. And although I would be honored to work with the City on this effort, I’m yet to hear back from them. (I’ve reached out various times and have never heard back.)
I hope tonight’s Charter Commission Open House went well for you both.
In regard to the overnight parking ban, anyone who believes that the ordinance is fair simply doesn’t understand the reality of living in poverty or on a low income. There are good arguments for having such a ban during or close to snow emergencies, but the fact is that the City could do a lot more to mitigate the inequitable application of this ordinance.
Tom, I agree completely. There will always be arguments to the contrary but it’s these things that a lot of people can’t afford that are kept hidden as people talk about inequality in Newton. Rather do the big, splashy thing.
“An advanced city is not one where the poor use cars, but rather one where the rich use public transport” – Former Mayor Peñalosa of Bogatá