As promised, I used your thoughtful suggestions posted in the comments to this post and suggestions from folks offline to draft some questions to the Ward 5 ward councilor candidates. I sent the candidates the questions last Thursday with a reply deadline of today. I have received responses from Kathy Winters and Bill Humphrey and will post a single question and their responses in each of five separate posts. Through a spokesperson, Rena Getz declined to participate.
Here are the questions:
The Engine 6 project and its failure seems to have been a defining moment for Ward 5. If a project nearly identical to Engine 6 came up today — similar site, size, and residents — would you support it? If not, why not? How has your position changed since 2013?
Do you support the current NewCAL Working Group proposal in terms of both programming and site selection? If not, what part or parts of the proposal do you disagree with? What should the city do instead? Why?
Where in Ward 5 would it be appropriate to add more housing? Specifically, where would it be appropriate to add large developments? Small apartment buildings? Duplexes and triplexs?
How is the role of a ward councilor different than an at-large councilor? What current city councilor is the closest to how you expect to serve? In what ways?
Where would you put a statue of John Rice?
Note: I wish that I had asked about paying for the senior center as part of the second question and had asked about how many units of housing each candidate thinks Newton can/should absorb by 2030. Live and learn.
No comments on this thread. I’ll have Candidate Humphrey’s and Winters’s answers posted later this evening.
It’s extremely disappointing that Rena Getz “declined to participate.”
Village 14 is a widely read platform in this city (and there certainly aren’t a lot of other outlets to communicate with voters in August, just weeks before the election). I wouldn’t expect or advise any candidate to spend all their waking hours commenting here but to “decline to participate”… “through a spokesperson” (spokesperson? This is a Ward Council race.) is mystifying.
If elected would her spokesperson deliver her floor speeches?
I know that I have commented often on V14 (guilty as charged) but there are also MANY who have discouraged my comments, stating that this forum can be a “cesspool” of attacks and catty remarks, with a small group who controls access and is able to swing the narrative of discussions.
Personally I have fun with it all, but can respect if others have not.
Don’t know what Rena’s position is on the matter, just my 2 cents.
Sean, here’s a question no candidate (or councilor) is willing to answer….
If the special permit vote for Needham Street were to take place today, how would you vote and why?
Matt, honestly, the cesspool insult for the forum feels very dated at this point. I don’t think it ever was what those “MANY” folks thought it was, but there were certainly very heated threads and comments over the years. And certain posters do like to stir the pot a bit (Greg, Sean, Amy occasionally (although in her comments, not her threads)). But there is a great mix of folks from every side of the argument, a few reactionary folks who post in anger (and confusion) occasionally, a few folks like myself who traffic in posts who lots of words, and lots of folks in between. But the insults are extremely low for a public blog, and there are certainly folks on the left and right side of the political spectrum.
You can certainly argue about who can start threads, and whether that process is fair to all sides. But the topics and the discussions are the most honest and least heated online forum I’ve seen.
I’ll also note that I find it ironic that quite a few of the folks who in the past have claimed this blog is a cesspool seem to post when it suits them. So apparently it is just a cesspool “some” of the time… ;-)
Maybe you and I and the others who post regularly just have thicker skins.
I’m certain that online forums are not for everyone. And it is fine for folks not to participate, I just wish they wouldn’t insult the forum at the same time. And I do think in the end that it is possible to change people’s minds about some issues, which is why if you are passionate about a particular topic, you SHOULD post here in my view. And why I’m glad that folks I don’t always agree with post here. Because it would be very boring to read just posts I agree with.
Also, for the record I think your avatar is hilarious. I especially love the flower.
It’s not known (to me anyway) why Rena declined this week to submit written answers to Sean’s questions.
But if it’s, as Matt wonders, because she disagrees with the opinions of the some/all the moderators here, that’s troubling.
Being willing to engage with people you may not agree with (unless of course they’re white supremacists, pedophiles, or some other hateful group) should be an essential part the job description for any city councilor.
If she’s not participating here because we, say, disagree over how tall a building should be, I’d propose that she really ought to decide if she wants this job because she will encounter colleagues who will have different views.
But, of course, we don’t know why because her spokesperson (!?) says she declined to participate.
On a side note, I’d like to have a spokesperson sometimes.
“Fignewtonville has decided to eat the entire Pecan Pie. Figgy asks for privacy during this time of personal dietary crisis”.
“Fignewtonville has decided that Greg Reibman’s avatar is far too serious. We all know Mr. Reibman is not a “thinker” so he should remove his hand from his chin. Mr. Figg recommends Mr. Reibman consult Mr. Lai for advice for proper avatar hilarity”. That is all.”
Greg, it may also be because Village14 isn’t the bee’s knees or the cat’s meow for everybody. Her loss I think.
Like Fig, I dislike it when anyone refers to Village 14 in a disparaging way. This is a great resource and public forum where everyone gets to speak their mind…
Village 14 helps hold elected officials accountable for their actions. And that’s exactly what some office holders really don’t like about it. They don’t want to be questioned or challenged in a forum they can’t control. It makes it very hard to explain things like why they can’t fix high school start times, or why they voted to ban medical marijuana.
Given the amount of time I send on V14, it’s clear I enjoy engaging in these debates, but I can also understand why others do not.
And while it’s important to hear form all candidates, if someone does not want to do so on V14, that’s also their prerogative.
I know some of you put a lot of time into running this and it’s appreciated. V14 can be both entertaining and informative, it’s not be-all and end-all of Newton. Let’s not disparage a candidate for not participating in Sean’s questions. I still very much want to hear what all 3 candidates have to say.
PS My unanswered question to all 3 candidates….
If the special permit vote for Needham Street were to take place today, how would you vote and why?
Of course it’s their prerogative to comment or not. It’s also others’ prerogative to critique them for that.
I happen to think it’s bad campaign strategy. Here we are less than three weeks from a low turn out preliminary election at a time of the year when not a lot of people are around. Why not take advantage of every platform to connect with voters? What possible benefit is there not to?
If there’s one thing we know about Village 14 readers (and we have far many more readers than participants) is that they’re not “likely voters” in local elections, they will vote in local elections.
@Matt Lai – Good question
Matt – It is a good question. But the city councilors are engaged in a special permit process that is effectively a negotiation. I can’t fault them for not publicly tipping their hands prior to completion of those negotiations. In an attempt to give you some clarity I will say this: I would align myself with the efforts of Councilors Auchincloss and Downs (and others) to drive down parking and incentivize the developer to attract car-lite tenants. Any development proposal will involve tradeoffs. There are many positive aspects to the Northland proposal, and at this point I think the critical issue is making sure that the resulting traffic does not cripple the surrounding neighborhoods. I hope that helps.
@Matt – to add to what others have said, the Special Permit Process requires councilors to sit in a quasi-judicial role. They can’t pre-Judge a project before it comes to them for final approval without opening the city to legal liability.
However, they can discuss more generally things they like or don’t like, or are looking for, more generally.
@Kathy and Bryan: But you are not currently on the council and can share with us your views. Kathy – thanks for letting us know that you align yourself with Jake and Andreae. So if less parking and less cars on site (that doesn’t mean people won’t have cars and park in the neighborhoods) – how do you think residents will get to and from their living space to wherever they work?
@Amy – I am working as hard as I can to be on the City Council. There is no guarantee that these special permits will be disposed of before the election.
As a lawyer, I take the quasi-judicial role of the City Council seriously, and don’t plan to take a firm position on a special permit that may come before me if elected. Those who do pre-Judge special permits may be forced to recuse themselves, to protect the city ethically and financially.
@Greg Maybe Rena declined to engage on V14 because the voters she intends to appeal to aren’t to be found here? BTW, it looks like she now has an active website: renagetz.org. Judging by where she stands on the issues, which requires just a little reading between the lines, she and Sean and not exactly kindred souls.
Maybe she feels more of an affinity with NewtonForum! [Sound of crickets chirping]
@Amy We get it. You are promoting Rena, Emily Norton and others who supported your Mayoral campaign – that comes across loud and clear with your posts. We get it. Would you please stop baiting Bryan and Kathy in to answering questions on this forum while your candidate Rena refuses to participate? Perhaps each time you ask a question you could preface it with whether or not you donated to a candidate in the race?
@Robert. The Newton forum’s last article was about a mayoral candidate during the 2017 primary. Are you posting an update on that race any time soon? http://newtonforum.org
I stand corrected. No snarkiness here. ;-)
Happy Thursday everyone!
PS The only thing that matters for the Sept Primary is Ward 5. Is there Village5 site?
@Jack: Oh, I have nothing to do with the NewtonForum, and I don’t shared the views of the NVA crowd at all. But it seems that Rena’s positions are more aligned with those that (used to) congregate there. Maybe Chris Pitts will get the wind back in his sails and revive it?
@Greg: Just as with cable news, we also have local polarization. You are echoing the argument about liberal politicians appearing (or not) on Fox News. Not that V14 is anything like Fox News!
@Robert: And the Dems who don’t appear on FOX are making the same tactical mistake.
Does Team Rena read the same V14 I read? Yes, the posters may skew pro-development, but the commenteriat is decidedly anti-. See my post about growth and the comments.
Rena will find a very friendly audience here.
@Kathy and Bryan
Your comments are appreciated!
I’ve been told a number of times – by certain councilors, interested parties, and now yourselves – about playing a ‘judicial’ role, ‘special permit is a negotiation’ etc.
Took a few starts and stops, but I finally finished watching the Aug 6th Land Use Committee meeting, and like the meetings prior, I do not see a lot of negotiations happening. Not hearing things like an ask of space for a school (per Mike Striar). Or have we seen the number of apartments budge from 800 for a very long time (and before that it was a drop from 820 to 800?).
Over the past two years, a tremendous amount of time, effort and money has been spent to quantify cramming a square peg into a round hole. Not sure which – Councilor Auchincloss’ push to limit parking spots or Councilor Laredo’s plea for phasing – is better, but neither directly ‘negotiates’ the expectation of size. How come no one will negotiate the number of apartments? At least to me, it appears that Northland is not willing to negotiate further, have folded their arms, and watch our Councilors argue amongst themselves…while laughing all the way to the bank!
I guess I’ll be proven right or wrong regarding negotiations when the Board Order is complete (in early October?).
Rena Getz will certainly get my vote. She was kind enough to take the time to notice I was strugglingwith moving heavy bags on my property. Anyone that thought as much as I about how much Brian Yates meant to the City ,specifically Upper Falls, has to without a doubt be an asset to serve us in Ward five.
By the way she also helped me move those bags and I was able to regain my strength..
Sometimes it is the little friendly neighbor helping neighbor that counts ….