I received a report from an attendee that here was an event last night for city council candidates to ask questions of department heads. One of the candidates was told that the list for NewCAL was narrowed to six locations yesterday, with an announcement coming perhaps today. And the impression given was that they were mainly large centrally located parks.
Perhaps one of our municipal officials can confirm this.
Perhaps the LWV can add questions about this “process” to their debates.
Perhaps the mayor, in her newsy emails, could give an update, too. She has been singularly quiet about this, Does she have a secret list this of her preferred sites? Is she influencing the process from behind the scenes?
We’re losing green space at a precipitous enough rate as it is, never mind the surplussing of one of our precious few parks! This would appear to be an underhanded, backroom deal. Speaking of transparency!
According to the NewCal page on the City’s website: https://newcal.projects.nv5.com/ – the next community meeting will be held in the fall on September 19th at 7:00 p.m.
Will it be too late by then, Amy?
The LWV and any organization sponsoring City Council debates this fall should make certain to pin every Council candidate down as to his/her position on this proposal. As best I can tell, there is little support for it across the city, so hopefully the Council can be prevailed upon to vote it down should the mayor continue to push for it. Frankly, I remain shocked that she doesn’t understand the universal opposition that is building regarding the notion of siting this unwanted facility on parkland. Continue to pursue this proposal, Mayor Fuller, and you’ll make certain that you face spirited opposition when you’re up for re-election in 2021. Instead, why not put the money you’re spending on this to a far better use: pave our streets and sidewalks! That, unlike this, would be popular with everybody.
A letter from the mayor arrived just now. I hope V14 posters can put up the full text, but for now, here are the sites:
“The NewCAL Working Group conducted an analysis that included fifteen weighted criteria and resulted in six potential sites, all City-owned:
• Albemarle Playground/Field (on Albemarle Road in West Newton)
• Cabot Park (probably on the northern portion of the site near Newtonville Avenue and East
Side Parkway in Newtonville)
• McGrath Park (behind Warren House on Washington Street in West Newton)
• Newton Centre Playground (on Tyler Terrace where the Jeannette West Recreation Center
(aka “The Hut”) is located in Newton Centre)
• Pelligrini Playground (on Hawthorne Street just off of Watertown Street in Nonantum)
• Weeks Playground (off Centre Street in Newton Centre)
I want to know where every councilor stands on this project before the November election. Not just the councilors who are in contested races, but all 24.
What is their rationale for voting for a major capital project without a debt exclusion override? I want to know if they think the $16m price tag is close to accurate and why. Why has there been no city council pushback on this project?
And can we stop calling it NEWCal? It’s a community center without that we don’t need and can’t afford. Build/renovate/expand a designated senior center with excellent senior services and be done with it.
Jane, those are my questions too.
The mayor says she can fund it from the budget and bonds. From my research, it seems the price tag will be much higher – maybe three times more – with the inclusion of the gym and pool. Sometimes “big ideas” are not good ideas and come with a hefty cost in dollars and green space. Membership fees, at least for those who are not seniors, will be probably be required to pay the bills.
The city council seems to have opted out of their power to question anything the mayor puts before them.
NewCal is my least favorite thing about the entire proposal. The city needs to just stop using these cutesy acronyms. Call things what they are – community center, senior center, etc. – or just spell out the words – Newton Center for Active Living. And other things like “Hello Washington Street” need to go away too. It seems that the city thinks that using these annoying nicknames will camouflage the more serious reality.
Newton needs a larger, more user friendly, senior center.
I want to know where every councilor stands on this project before the November election. Not just the councilors who are in contested races, but all 24.
What is their rationale for voting for a major capital project without a debt exclusion override? I want to know if they think the $16m price tag is close to accurate and why. Why has there been no city council pushback on this project?
And can we stop calling it NEWCal? It’s a community center that we don’t need and can’t afford. Build/renovate/expand a designated senior center with excellent senior services and be done with it.