So, I was musing on Facebook this morning about the electronic sign the City put in front of my house in April that will be there through the end of May, and an FBF who lives across from Albemarle Field posted this photo of the view from her front door. The banner is across the street from a residential neighborhood comprised of single and two family homes, at the intersection of Crafts Street and North Street, where many Day Middle School and Horace Mann Elementary School students cross on their way to school. Other FBFs also chimed in, questioning the message it sends to residents and others about their neighborhood.
Being a civic minded fellow, I immediately dashed off an e-bomb to the Mayor’s Office, Chief of Police, the Commissioner of Parks & Rec (Boy, do I miss that show) and the entire City Council applauding the City’s efforts to be proactive, but asking whether they would want this banner across the street from their houses. After some back and forth with a few city officials, I was informed that all banners at Albemarle Field would be removed, while the City rethinks its policy. Personally, I do not like sign pollution, regardless of the content. But I have to confess that I agree with the residents who objected to this particular banner being posted in their neighborhood.
While I agree that the banner has an important message, I wonder whether it is the most effective way of addressing the opioid crisis, and also whether it sends a negative–albeit unintended–message about the residential neighborhood where it was posted. I was somewhat surprised to get significant pushback from some of our elected officials, who think the banner was appropriate, regardless of how the neighbors feel about it. So, I am interested in hearing from the Village 14 Neighborhood. What do you think? Should the City’s “Need Narcan?” campaign include erecting banners in residential neighborhoods, or should the City focus instead on policies that have proven effective at addressing the opioid crisis, like what the City of Quincy is doing.*
*Yes, I know it’s a loaded question. Don’t @ me.
Of course we should be doing this and more.
I don’t think the banners preclude the City’s efforts to date in addressing the opioid epidemic. I don’t understand what is offensive about the sign, wherever it is posted. Narcan is a life saving opioid overdose reversal drug that has saved many lives to date and is part of a harm reduction model to this crisis.
I spoke to a worker in Quincy who works in the opioid overdose follow up program, and she said Narcan is an essential part of engagement with those struggling with opioid addictions.
I think these signs do belong in our City and am proud to live in a City that understands the complex nature of addiction – and is willing to stand with those who are hurting.
I encourage you to think about the stigma you are reinforcing when you are concerned about two words on a sign that could help save a life.
I support any City sponsored effort to get Narcan out in the “wild”. I do think that there are better ways to communicate this information. The TAB, on-line, by reverse 911 calls, etc.
The sign in question was completely out of character from all other signs on that fence both in size, type size and design.
If the residents object then it should be placed elsewhere.
First place ought to be city hall, a banner could be placed on the Gath Pool building. Another could go in Newton Center.
Do they have “need narcan” yard signs residents can post in their front yard? That might help save more people.
So the sign is great as long as I don’t have to look at it?
That’s some serious NIMBY-ism!
The opiate problem is here, in every neighborhood in every City.
And although a difficult topic, kids, even as young as elementary school age can benefit from age appropriate education on the use and abuse of opiates.
Anything that can be done to get help to users and/or family members to save lives is worth the inconvenience of seeing a sign.
What did the sign do that was so offensive? America’s biggest problem is being exposed and help offered. There should be one in each village.
Is the one at Albermarle in Nonantum or West Newton?
PS
Don’t tell me it’s not Nonantum. Check with Planning & Development.
There is another sign at the corner of Walnut and Comm near Bulloughs Pond. I don’t necessarily find the sign offensive but I agree with Neil above that it doesn’t seem to be a very effective way to communicate the message.
Good comments. Here are my thoughts.
Let’s stipulate that the “Need Narcan?” message is an important one that saves lives, worthy of posting in prominent places around the city, and focus on location instead.
Context matters. In a public park or playground, neighbors might expect to see temporary banners about Little League signups or events. But an oversized banner that says “Need Narcan?” which appears neither temporary nor relevant to what the park or playground is for seems out of place. And the fact that it is in a residential neighborhood, where commercial and political signs are strictly regulated by the city, likewise seems out of place.
Instead, why not hang these banners at the police station, fire stations, and the hospital? These emergency responders are the ones who have the most contact with people who overdose and their loved ones. NPD headquarters has a sign for “Safe Havens” where infants whose mothers cannot care for them can be left, no questions asked, and they will be taken care of. Why not show the city cares by hanging the banners there? Or how about in village centers like West Newton, Newtonville, or Newton Centre, which are commercial areas where more people would see them?
Content also matters. There are many causes that I believe the city should raise awareness about, including the opioid crisis. Another one is preventing the transmission of STDs and unintended pregnancies. Aside from abstinence, condoms, when used properly, are the best protection against both. But that requires a longer conversation than just hanging a sign outside a school or public park that says “Need Condoms?” That sign belongs in the school nurses’ offices, the sex ed classrooms, and anywhere else that an adolescent who is having sex will receive accurate and complete information about the risks of STDs and unintended pregnancies and how to prevent them. And while I wholeheartedly agree with that message, I don’t think it belongs at a public park or playground in a residential neighborhood.
This all started when I was musing about the electronic sign parked in front of my house, warning drivers to expect delays while night construction is going on in West Newton square. It is huge, it flashes all day and night, and it is an eyesore. And while I don’t really want it in front of my house, I recognize that it is temporary, that it serves a useful purpose, and that it has to go where it will do the most good, which happens to be on Watertown Street on the way to West Newton.
During my tenure as a City Councilor, I had constituents demand that the city remove everything from street signs to dog waste containers, because it marred their view. Parks and Rec actually went out and landscaped one of the blue dog waste containers on the grass median on Commonwealth Avenue because a neighbor complained about it. And don’t even get me started about all of the “double poles” Eversource has around town. So I don’t think it is too much to ask to be sensitive to neighbors who complain about the “sign farms” that are proliferating in various public places like the parks and playgrounds, and around Bullough’s Pond.
I like the idea of giving out lawn signs saying “Need Narcan?” The city gives out lawn signs to people who are participating in its electricity program, “Newton Power Choice.” It seems natural that the city would also give out signs to residents who want to participate in its “Need Narcan?” campaign.
There you have it, folks. Thank you all for commenting.
Yes, the Planning Dept. has changed the boundaries for
Newtonville. People who live close to Walnut north of Watertown St. no longer live in Newtonville. Nonantum village boundaries have been extended West to include Albemarle Park, Horace
Mann school and 4 streets west of Albemarle Rd.
Why this has been reconfigured? Must be because of rezoning.
I have lived in Newtonville since 1979. Suddenly, my connection
to the village is gone. I do not belong in Nonantum. So I have no village anymore.
These boundary changes are occurring in every village.
You might live in Waban and soon find out your village affiliation is Upper Falls.
What is happening to Newton? Is our government losing touch
with its citizens?
@Ted,
You raise some great points for sure. But I would like to suggest that a sign like this is NOT out of place in a residential setting. People are overdosing and dying in their homes….in this City.
Fair enough, TheWholeTruth. But would you want a sign that big across from your house all year long? And what about the parents who may not be equipped to discuss that issue with their young children? Or get the facts wrong? Opioid abuse is not a moral weakness issue. And it does not discriminate on the basis of class, race, or any other human characteristic. I agree people are overdosing and dying everywhere, including right here in Newton, but until we face the underlying cause and treat it, we are just applying band aids.
Big Pharma exploited patients with legitimate pain issues like drug pushers, despite knowing the risks involved, particularly with fentanyl . Drug manufacturers pushed these opioids on doctors, giving them all sorts of financial incentives to prescribe as much and as often as possible, even knowing that these drugs were addictive and could lead to serious substance abuse issues and overdoses. Only now are Big Pharma executives being prosecuted and convicted for their reckless, criminal conduct over a period of many years.
It should also be understood that Narcan does not cure the opioid crisis. It will save lives, in some cases. But, sadly, without treatment, many survivors will go out and overdose again, some within 24 hours of receiving Narcan.
Does that “Need Narcan?” sign explain all that in context? No. It would be just as irresponsible to hang a “Need Condoms?” banner in front of Newton North, without providing guidance on abstinence, proper use, STDs and unintended pregnancies. I get that these signs are intended to be provocative and informative, but they fail, on their own, with respect to the latter.
Colleen can you be more specific about all these changes because this is the first I’ve heard of them. Are you perhaps talking about the new school districts regarding the Cabot School and Horace Mann School? I’m fairly certain that if any changes such as the one you describe had happened the Ward 2 and Ward 3 City Councilors would have been part of the discussion.
Colleen,
I believe there is no ‘official’ village map. I can see from my 1922 house construction that I was officially listed as ‘Newtonville’ but its not clear if its now Nonantum, West Weston or still Newtonville. I don’t know if google maps search “Nonantum, Newton, MA” is an official answer either ..
FYI: for your original house construction permit (the original signed document from the builder/architect): put in your street number and name here, it ‘might’ show a construction permit from 100 years ago. I found mine from 1922 but many houses don’t have it in this link
http://apps.newtonma.gov/egovplus
@Ted,
Again, you raise great points. All I’m saying is that we should do everything we can to try and stem this problem. I do not believe the sign is a permanent fixture but yes, it would be okay with me to have it in my sight line.
I understand that some parents may not be equipped to discuss this issue with their children. But we can’t put our heads in the sand and think it will go away. Education comes in many forms and if I were a parent not equipped to discuss this with my kids, I’d go and get that education.
There are many reason behind the origin of this problem. Big drug companies are only one reason. Doctors that routinely prescribe narcotics to their patients are also to blame.
There have been great strides made by some doctors to stop the cycle. Recently, I had some oral surgery and prior to leaving, the Doctor sat with me to discuss my pain tolerance level. In the end, he gave me a script for TWO narcotic pain pills. This is a far cry better than the usual script for 20-30 that doctors routinely used to give. And that comes from education and a commitment to be part of the solution.
Signs are just one way to be part of the solution.
BTW, if you are interested in learning more about Newton’s Narcan Training and Distribution Program, go to this link on the City of Newton’s website. There was nothing on the City’s homepage, so I took the time to hunt it down so you won’t have to.
Cheers!
All true, TheWholeTruth. Of course, the many new restrictions imposed by the Massachusetts Opioids Prescription Law passed in 2016 is the reason physicians are prescribing fewer pills.
We will just have to disagree about where “Need Narcan?” banners would be most effective. I remain unpersuaded that hanging them in a residential neighborhood is more effective than Dr. Neil Halin’s suggestions or mine, and could do unintended harm.
@Ted,
Fair enough. I love the concept of agreeing to disagree with civility and grace.
Great conversation. Thanks to Ted for this thread.
I agree with Ted that the Narcan signs are largely ineffective. But the government’s entire approach to the “opioid crisis” has been ineffective. In fact [not opinion], lawmakers have done far more harm than good. For example, a slew of laws like the one Ted referenced above have turned hundreds of thousands of patients with medically managed pharmaceutical addictions into the most explosive heroin epidemic in US history. That’s what happens when politicians interfere with doctor/patient relationships.
I’d love to know HOW you know the signs are ineffective? Has anyone taken the time to ask how many people have become trained in Narcan administration and received a Narcan kit? Or how many people in Newton have been rescued with Narcan? Of course Narcan alone won’t solve the epidemic – no one strategy will. But if we don’t help people live another day to offer them a chance for recovery then we are giving up on a lot of lives. The notion that there are only certain places we should be talking about addiction and recovery is the very definition of stigma. I’m wholly disappointed that a former city councilor would express such narrow mindedness. I’m glad to see so many pushing back here.
Seriously Ted? If the sign gets seen by
one person who needs help and saves their life, then it is worth it. I would much rather have this sign on my LAWN rather than the phony, virtue sharing “all are welcome here”
signs. Good lord! We build and live in
climate destroying McMansions, release dangerous drug dealer deportees free to roam into our neighborhoods, let our young children browse and absorb the garbage on the internet, social media and on TV, and a narcan awareness sign offends our sensibilities? Snowflakes indeed!
I’m so glad I never got onto Facebook….
I’d keep moving the signs around to new locations every 3 weeks or so, so people will notice then because they’re new. After they’ve been up awhile people will start to tune out.
Ps, can’t stop laughing at the idea of “Need condoms?” banners being posted around town. That might get some press coverage!
The sign(s) should be put wherever
they make the most people uncomfortable. Drug addiction, spousal abuse, alcoholism, suicide and other societal ills cut across all economic and social barriers.
There is a fairly good chance that most
posters have experience dealing with one or more of the above, or know someone that has.
@ Paul Green. A staunch defender of Newton’s exclusiveness once tried to tell me that the City had only a few isolated instances of the tragic public health and welfare problems you noted above. Of course, the lid was blown off that myth long ago and that is all to the good in terms of identifying the full scope of each of these problems and getting help (and tough love where necessary) to those in denial about their problems and addictions.
When I was a kid, several members of the old Yankee establishment would go out of their way to let everyone know they regarded alcohol consumption (particularly robust beer drinking) as a real moral deficiency. A de facto temperance movement was quite resilient here in the Highlands. Oh, these folks might acknowledge having a little white sherry with dinner, but nothing more daring than that. About this time, the first plans were unveiled to bring the MBTA Riverside Green Line to Newton and this caused open concern by some long term residents that it would draw “a different crowd of people” from Boston’s who might not be entirely sober when they set foot in our City.
Respectfully, it is from 14 years as a City Councilor/Alderman that I know that personal outreach, follow-up, and empathy are far more effective than any advertising campaign in dealing with substance abuse and mental illness, among other things. And I know that most people who need Narcan, and their loved ones, know they need it and do not need a reminder. They need help.
The best way for them to learn about the City’s programs is from emergency responders and follow-up from professionals involved in rehabilitation and treatment. Just my personal opinion, but based on facts and years of experience as a public servant.
To be fair, the City is being proactive and has achieved results. Here is an email I received from Deborah Youngblood, the Commissioner of Health Human Services.
I just want to add one other comment before I move on (which is no reason for anyone else not to make further comments on this post).
Thank you, all, for your civility in having a difficult conversation about a controversial topic. You have reinforced my faith in the good people of Newton who can disagree without becoming disagreeable.
In the future, I plan to raise other controversial topics for discussion on this blog. I hope you (and I) will bring the same level of civility and respect to those conversations, no matter how far apart we may all be on an issue. Already I have some ideas about topics to raise, and I expect we will be having some crackling conversations.
Be well.
Thanks Ted for bringing this up.
A good topic that was discussed with
respect. I don’t always agree with you but your heart is usually in the right place.
This thread has been really interesting to me. I wanted to learn about the facts of this program rather than just people’s opinions so I called the Newton health dept this AM. I spoke with someone about the program and learned the following that I think others might be interested to know:
1) Since the Narcan training and distribution program started in Summer 2018, they have trained approx 150 people and distributed Narcan kits free of charge to many folks who want them (not everyone wants/needs a kit).
2) People come for lots of different self-reported reasons, many are worried about someone they know who is struggling with addiction but plenty of others just want to be prepared to help as “good samaritans”. Some are business owners or employees in Newton.
3) She said that while you can get Narcan at pharmacies, it’s expensive and many people don’t want their insurance to be used for this because of discrimination. She also thinks that the confidential training they provide that includes sharing lots of recovery resources and talking through people’s individual’s situations is hugely valuable and unlike other places where you just pick it up and go.
I asked her if she was aware of the banner controversy and she said she was. She said this is only the second complaint she has received about the banners which have been hung in a variety of places throughout the city, moved around every month or so for almost a year. She described the banners as serving two purposes, one to generally raise awareness in the city about the opioid crisis and the other to encourage people to come get Narcan kits and the training. She said numerous people have told staff that they learned about the program via the banners, more than many of the other outreach strategies they have used such as newsletters, Newton TAB, article in the Globe, targeted letters to businesses (and some others that I think I’m forgetting here). She said she wants it to be widely visible in unexpected locations because that’s what gets people’s attention and we need to get people’s attention on this crisis.
She also said that they have had people who received Narcan from the program come back after using it to save someone’s life. And that they have helped people find recovery treatment and family members find support.
I came away more impressed by the program than ever and more convinced that we need this program and more of these banners.
She also told me a little bit about all the work the City has done to combat the opioid epidemic over the past several years and pointed me to their website. I’m now on the mailing list!
@all: The important point to know about Narcan is that our 1st responders carry it with them, making it available when needed. In the summer of 2015, a Farmers Market conversation with a Newton Fire Lt revealed to me that our 1st responders were running into overdosed individuals and had no access to Narcan. The Lt felt that awaiting transfer to local medical facilites was causing a loss of life, and would cost more lives absent this medication.
Councilors Norton, Harney, and myself immediately docketed the item raising the discussion with the Administration as to how to get Narcan to the field. This was a largely quiet item as the committee was holding the “leaf blower” hearings at that time, and our goal was to raise administration awareness. We met with Public Safety union officials who were happy to “buy-in” to make this happen. I must credit Councilor Norton with this life changing breakthrough as she amazingly got Newton Public Safety and the Administration on the same page without awaiting contract modifications.
I’m opposed to the banners for the reasons cited by my former colleague, and Council Dean of the Ward, Ted Hess-Mahan; and additionally, to not make our city playgrounds drug dealer meeting points with addicted indiduals.
Important to emphasize that in an emergency Newton 1st reponders will arrive with Narcan. (Who else would one call in an emergency?)
@be part of the solution, thank you for following up and imparting some really great information about Newton’s Narcan program.
While I still disagree about the location of this particular banner, I wholeheartedly agree that more advertisement of this worthwhile training program is essential. I knew about it when I was still on the City Council, but I am overjoyed that it has been effective.
My former colleague, City Councilor-At-Large for Ward 3 Jim Cote, Ward 2 Councilor Emily Norton, and former Ward 4 Councilor Jay Harney deserve the credit for bringing this issue to the City Council’s attention at a time when first responders were not administering Narcan in Newton. There were a lot of reasons for that which I will not get into, but in most communities at the time, drug overdose victims were treated more like criminals than people in desperate need of help. A big part of the city’s Narcan training program involves working with emergency responders like police officers and firefighters, not only to administer Narcan but also to treat overdose victims with respect and dignity. One reason I would like to see a banner at the Police HQ and the Fire Stations is to show that our emergency responders support the city’s Narcan program, which I believe will help build trust with drug users and their loved ones.
There are many publicly owned locations that would not necessarily face residential neighborhoods that would be far more visible to more people than at the intersection of Crafts Street and North Street. The Police Station in West Newton Square and the fire stations at the intersection of Crafts Street and Watertown Street and at the corner of Commonwealth Avenue and Washington Street, among others, are on Route 16 and would seem like ideal locations for maximum visibility.
The Need Narcan? banners are not the only ones that people have complained about. There has been a proliferation of “sign farms” all over Newton, some posted by the City and others by privately owned businesses which are literally trespassing on city property. Naturally, the residents who complain live across from or close to these locations. It really is not fair to the neighbors to have all these banners, signs and posters in their residential neighborhoods, because it makes them look like a commercial district instead of a residential district. And, indeed, Newton has sign regulations which strictly limit the number, size and types of commercial signs in all districts and especially in residential districts.
There is also a historic enmity in the neighborhoods on the north of the city about the way these neighborhoods have been treated with disrespect by city government and residents in other parts of Newton. Some of it is probably perceived slights rather than intentional ones. But other times the mistreatment of neighborhoods on the north side has been patently abhorrent. Myrtle Village, where dozens of black families were displaced when the state was building the Mass Pike, comes immediately to mind. So, I am not surprised that some people felt this particular sign was an affront to them and to their neighborhoods. That is something you learn when you have been on the City Council for a while. Indeed, Jim Cote agrees with me about the placement of this sign (see his post above), and he was out in front on Narcan long before a lot of other people were.
On the other hand, residents have free speech rights which permit them to post signs on their lawns that support all sorts of things, political or otherwise. So I would be all in favor of having the city distribute Need Narcan? signs to residents to display on their lawns, as they do with Newton Power. In fact, I would be first in line to get a Need Narcan? sign for my yard. I am willing to put my money where my mouth is and would even pay a (modest) fee for one. My neighbors already complain about my lawn signs (and pink flamingos) so I am used to it. @Julia Malakie, I will put it right next to my “Need Condoms?” sign.
So I hope we understand one another better now. And thank you, again, for looking into the Narcan program and sharing some more information about it.
Thank you for the kind words Ted and Jim – speeding up the availability of Narcan for our first responders is one of my proudest accomplishments in my 3 terms as an alderman/councilor.
Having Narcan on the fire trucks and in police cruisers is an excellent step in helping to save lives. But they are dependent on someone calling 9-1-1 for help. And then the caller waits for the responders to arrive. All of this takes time and although the response time in this City is pretty quick, it is still several minutes. And those minutes can be crucial. I would suggest that some people are afraid to call for help because they fear the legal repercussions of having illegal drugs. So if a family member had Narcan at hand, it could be the difference between life and death. Being able to educate the public that there is a way of getting Narcan into the home is just one way to help with this crisis.
For James Cote to suggest that letting people know about a Narcan distribution program would encourage drug use and drug dealing in our community is utterly absurd. The surgeon general has encouraged all communities nationally to have Narcan as widely available by the general public as possible. Narcan has no street value and there is simply no conceivable connection between drug dealers and a program that is helping people access a life saving device for people struggling with the medical condition substance use disorder. Newton already has residents who suffer from this condition. They aren’t about to move here for the free Narcan and they certainly aren’t going to stand around where banners are hung.
@be part of the solution: Your writing name on this blog is appropriate to my involvement in the process as previously noted by adding Narcan to our 1st responders. Narcan isn’t new, it’s been in use for years, but the epidmic is a new problem and hence solutions are more visible. Imagine, it was only 3 years ago that our 1st responders did not have this capabililty, and members of our government were asking me, “What is Narcan?”
There’s not a perfect world out there and as I learned through being in the world there are bad people with bad intentions (Drug dealers). As a represenative of the residents, I act when I feel its appropriate.
As the dealers of these deadly drugs righfully became the target of law enforcement, rather than the users, the dealers have taken steps to mitigate their potential legal problems. It’s in the dealers best interest to sell drugs in an area with Narcan as that protects them from possible user deaths and murder charges.
Times are changing and as more and more communities promote Narcan, and the 1st responders all carry it, this will change. At that time it will not matter how many signs are on display it will be common knowledge with readily available medications.
The same sign is on the Walnut Street fence at Bullough’s Pond.
I would not mind for one second if it were across from my house. I don’t believe it sends any message at all about the surrounding neighborhood except the true message that no neighborhood is free of this particular problem. Likewise, the absence of signs does not equal the absence of an opioid epidemic. But it could lead to reduced knowledge of a possible live-saving solution, which I don’t think we really want.
Saving lives > delicate sensibilities about the content, or the mere fact of, relatively unobtrusive signage.
The sign at Bullough’s Pond was moved, from the more visible Walnut Street side to the Comm Ave carriage lane side, where it’s less visible due to being a bit blocked by some of the bushes. I noticed this yesterday, though I can’t say for sure when it was moved. Not sure if the move was prompted by the query regarding the sign Ted asked about.