City Council creates subcommittee to revisit charter
Four Newton City Councilors — two who supported the proposed city charter that was defeated by voters last November and two who opposed it — have been appointed to sit on a subcommittee to revisit the various Charter Commission recommendations. The...Dear Councilors: Please aim for citywide consensus on council size
When discussing and deciding whether and how to reduce the size of the City Council, I hope councilors will consider the following: 1. We just went through a bruising campaign. Discourse in our city during this election was hostile and ugly. Just as has happened in...Post-election message from the “No” campaign
Jack Prior, Treasurer of the “No” campaign, Newton Citizens for Local Representation, sent this message this morning to members of the Charter Commission and leaders of the “Yes” campaign: Hello Commissioners and Yes Campaign Leaders — ...
Fact: Real estate donors just 5 percent of the YES campaign
As the 2017 campaign season draws to a close, I like many of you have been canvassing and leafleting. To my amazement many found a flyer, see attached, paid for by the Newton Citizens for Local Representation campaign with the headline !!!!BREAKING NEWS!!! “YES”...
Lennon: I would not support the proposed home rule charter alternative
Mayoral Candidate Scott Lennon called me this afternoon to say that he “misspoke” at Sunday’s mayoral forum and that “I would not support the proposed eight and eight home rule petition” that has been docketed by City Councilor Emily Norton, chair of the vote no...
Just what is this thing called “Ward representation”?
Here’s one thing that the YES and NO sides of the charter debate agree on: Ward representation is important — so much so that both sides feature the phrase in much of their campaign materials. The YES side says that the proposed new city charter...
City Councilors, including mayoral candidates, come out against Home Rule petition
A strongly worded letter released this morning and signed by seven city councilors, including the two mayoral candidates, opposes the Home Rule Petition that is docketed by another 14 candidates. This suggests that even if the petition passes the city council, it may run into trouble with the new mayor, no matter who
Setti Warren endorses Newton’s new charter
This just in from the Yes for A New Charter Campaign Mayor Setti Warren announced he will be voting yes on the ballot question in November. The question to amend the city charter would reduce the city council size from 24 to 12 members, impose term limits on the mayor...
Majority of City Councilors co-sponsor a plan for downsizing the Council
Today 14 of our 24 City Councilors co-sponsored a proposal to reduce the City Council to 8 At-Large Councilors elected city-wide plus 8 Ward Councilors elected by their wards. The docketed legislation says that if the Charter Commission’s proposed City charter...Two views on the proposed charter. What’s yours?
In November, Newton voters will be asked to approve or reject revisions to the way our municipal government functions in the form of a new charter. Recently the TAB published columns by two men who have a first hand perspective on our city’s structure, in...
The Saga of the Newtonville listserv
Recently there was another digital scuffle on the Newtonville listserv. This time it was over the use of the word “assimilation” in a discussion of whether at-large elections promote diversity – not over whether or not diversity is beneficial as some...