Category Archives: Civics

About the city of Newburyport, MA, the people who live here, and the actions and the events that effect their lives.

Newburyport, Losing Funding for Education

As many of the readers of the Newburyport Blog know, I am a big fan of Bill Moyers.

On September 5, 2008 Bill Moyers had this to say at the beginning of the segment on the Bill Moyers Journal:

“Fifty million American children went back to school this week. But as reporter Sam Dillon writes in the “New York Times”, more of them than ever are homeless and poor enough to need free meals. Mortgage foreclosures are throwing hundreds of families out of their homes each month. With fuel and food costs rising, with tax revenues falling, school budgets are in retreat. Detroit, for example, has laid off 700 teachers. We’re not talking about just a few isolated places. This is nationwide…

The Bush Administration was announcing an increase in American aid to Georgia by more than 1500 percent… From 64 million dollars this year to one billion dollars next year. A billion dollars. You can only wonder how many American kids a billion dollars could put back on the buses, back in class, and back in the cafeteria line.”

You can read the whole transcript here.

And this is one of the things that concerns me. We as a country have the Bush administration (I trust Bill Moyers) allocating one billion dollars next year to Georgia (the country not the state). One billion dollars that could have gone to the education of the children in the United States of America. Money that we in Newburyport, MA would not see go towards funding for our much under-funded public schools.

Come January, I want a president who would be wise and prudent in spending our tax dollars, who would make sure that, yes, the war on terror is vital, but so is the education of our children. I want a president who understands that. I do not want another four years of a Bush-Cheney administration.

Newburyport, Education and the Election

I’ve been consumed by the national election for president. Nothing on the local level (at least as of today) seems to be as intriguing as what is happening on the presidential campaign front.

And, for me, there is so much that would effect us locally in Newburyport, MA, depending on the outcome of the presidential election.

At the moment, mayor John Moak is asking the citizens of Newburyport, MA to consider voting on a tax increase to help with, among other things, education in Newburyport, MA.

This is at a time when people are loosing their jobs, not getting pay increases, dealing with the high cost of gasoline, increased cost of groceries and other staples, getting ready for more expensive heating and electric bills for the winter. This would be a tough sell for our mayor at any time, and it is a particularly tough sell at this point in tough economic times.

And we need a lot more money to help educate our children.

And one of the things that we as a community in Newburyport, MA, have discovered during the ordeal of the Override for funding for our schools last year, is that there is little help from the State of Massachusetts, one of the reasons being, the Federal government is not helping the states, or at least our state, with money to adequately fund education.

So I want someone in the White House next January who is going to pay attention and help local education, as well as help the financial plight of small cities and towns all across America. And during the last eight years we certainly have not seen the local support that we in Newburyport, MA need so badly, from the current administration. And I doubt we would see an improvement in support for our small cities and towns from 4 more years of a Republican administration.

It is one of the many reasons that I would like to see a Democrat in the White House.

And to compare the candidates’ voting records and educational priorities, I found a helpful site here and here.

North East View, Sarah Palin

My first impression when I saw the first appearance by John McCain and Sarah Palin, was that Sarah Palin made John McCain looked really, really old, and that John McCain looked, not like he was hugging his daughter, he looked like he was hugging his mistress, he made Sarah Palin look slutty.

This is exactly the sort of thing that the Obama campaign does not want anyone to mention.

Tough luck, it’s true.

How many years did we as a country obsess about Hillary Clinton’s hair. Aren’t we allowed to do the same with the new Republican VP pick without being accused of being sexist?

First introduction, too much hair and way too much make-up. My prediction, the hair is coming down (which it has), it will also get a lot flatter, no more possible hair pieces in the back. (I really don’t care if it sounds catty, it’s true). The hair high-lights are going to be toned way down, and a “trim” and a whole lot less hairspray and hair product. Honey, this ain’t Alaska anymore.

Honey, they want you to look “professional” bordering on frumpy. No “hot” or “sexy.” And let’s face it, the first impression was that she was a “babe.” My prediction is that the babe-alicious stuff is going to played way, way down. We could see this “gorgeous” woman, go to the frump-o-meter side of the scale.

Yes, untested Sarah Palin could bomb. Dems would be delighted. But, yes, she could also do really, really well. She’s already been a quick study, witness the hair coming down thing.

And if she does really, really well, look out America, this woman could be not the most conservative, formidable politician since Ronald Regan. From what I can tell she is way, way more conservative than Ronald Regan. Ronald Regan paid lip service to some of the stuff that flows happily and proudly through Sarah Palin’s vanes. This goes way beyond “more of the same,” this woman’s views are so rightwing that it’s just downright spooky.

MA Health Care, It Pays to Scream

It’s that time of year when I get the invoice from my health care insurer, telling exactly how much my healthcare would go up this year.

Most years I brace myself for a 10-15% mark-up. Last year, the first year of the Massachusetts (infamous) Health Care Reform, the premium hike was (I kid you not) 47%.

This year, when I called my health care insurer to brace myself for the always horrific news, I couldn’t believe it, it was “good” news. My health care premiums actually went down. And in fact they offered me a better plan for less.

I kept saying, “What?” “Are you sure?”

And finally when I asked “Why?” (because in all the decades this has never happened before) the answer was that it was too expensive for people and they could not pay.

No kidding.

So maybe someone in MA, got the message that the (infamous) Massachusetts Health Care Reform has the potential for bankrupting the middleclass and putting small businesses out of business of (see earlier post).

(And as a btw, from the responses from my various public representatives concerning my horror to premium hike-ups last year, Senator Steven Baddour got an F-. I still have his response from August 20, 2007 on my desk. And I glare at it, still.)

My premiums are more affordable. But are my premiums actually really and truly affordable? No.

It is a step in the right direction. But there are a whole lot more steps to go.

Thank you, particularly the Boston Globe, for writing very courageous articles on how the new (infamous) Massachusetts Health Care Reform would be causing so much anguish for small businesses, middle aged folks (the article about the woman eating popcorn for dinner, so that she could pay for her mandated heath care premiums) and the middle class.

Thank you to all those people who spoke up and continue to speak up. May this “downward spiral” be just the beginning of affordable and quality health care for everyone.

Activists Then and Now

Having written about Jim Roy’s activism in the community over decades, and taking a look at what SEED is doing (see previous post) and even thinking about my own activism, I had several thoughts.

It’s possible what we could be seeing in successful activism, a “new breed” of activists that no longer see themselves as “outside” the community, nor do they see themselves as “victims.”

One could see this with the Newburyport Preservation Trust (NPT) as well. The NPT is working with the Newburyport Chamber of Commerce, and it is also working with the City of Newburyport itself.

The emphasis is not that preservation is a victim of developers, but the emphasis would be that historic preservation would be vital to the local economy.

When we fought MassHighway in 1999, the emphasis was that our small New England city would be a victim of thoughtless bureaucracy.

When Al Decie and CEB fought for the Access Road (among many other things, see previous post), the folks fighting for the environment could be cast as victims of local business and politicians. And local business, it seems, could often complain of being “victimized” by CEB. Lots of drama.

In contrast, SEED has worked with the Newburyport Chamber of Commerce and has been embraced by the City of Newburyport, MA. They are seen as “non-political.”

Interesting.

Even recently, in the fight for the Override for our schools, last spring, the folks who were fighting for the school system, could be perceived by many as angry “victims,” who in turn could be “victimizing” other folks with their “demands.” And it appeared to not “sit pretty.”

The approach by SEED and the Newburyport Preservation Trust seems to be working. And they appear to be “unifying” instead of “divisive,” activists who are “non-activists,” who are “non-political.”

Activism without the appearance of “blame.” Activism without the appearance of “shame.” Activism without the appearance of a “guilt trip.”

Definitely a new possible prototype.

And it could have something to do with the time of Newburyport, MA. We seem to be through most of the transition (see previous post) from a blue collar, working class town, to a upper, upper-middle class destination, and there doesn’t appear to be as much tension (whether it would be good or bad) that once existed in Newburyport, MA.

Political Journals, Time and Place

When Tom Ryan came to town and started his local political journal in 1996, Newburyport, MA was somewhere between “at the beginning” and “in the middle” of a very interesting transition. A transition from a working class, blue collar town, to a professional, upper to upper middleclass destination.

Newburyport had literally rebuilt its downtown from destitution, and that renaissance had begun to spread gradually to the rest of the city. In 20/20 it was almost certain that it would become the desirable place to live, work, visit and play, that it is today.

Lisa Mead, a then Newburyport City Councilor, an intelligent, strong, interesting, young woman, became mayor, and started (consciously or unconsciously, probably a little bit of both) to move the city from its blue collar sensibility.

And folks didn’t like that, and there were some very strong and colorful characters who resisted Mayor Mead with vigor.

Tom Ryan, really and truly, had some real life drama to write about. He not only created a “niche” for himself and the Undertoad, but he was in the right place at the right time, with a gift for chronically a story, in a compelling way, that was gradually unfolding.

Not only did Tom Ryan have the talent for telling dramatic stories of Newburyport’s “heroes” and “villains” (see previous post), but he also had some real interesting folks and times to write about.

The dramatic internal struggles and power-plays that Tom Ryan wrote about in earlier years, seem to me, to be pretty much mitigated. A lot of the very colorful characters, might now occasionally, verging on never, make a “guest appearance.”

It seems to me (and I could definitely be wrong here) that this could make it more difficult for local journals (and blogs) to engage folks in the story and the issues of our small New England seaport city.

And, ironically, for me, Jim Roy, the editor of the latest political journal, The Newburyport Liberator, could be one of the most colorful characters in town.

Local Political Journals

In the previous post I talked about Jim Roy and his new journal, The Newburyport Liberator, which hopes to engage people in issues in Newburyport, MA.

The Newburyport Liberator definitely follows, in almost everyone’s opinion, including Jim Roy’s, in the footsteps of Tom Ryan’s political journal of 11 years, The Undertoad.

The Undertoad talked about issues, certainly. It also talked about people. And Tom Ryan had a knack for creating very entertaining drama, “heroes” and “villains,” twice a month, out of, let’s face it, for the most part, pretty ordinary folks and pretty mundane lives.

Our little seacoast town, every two weeks, was the subject of compelling drama. Joe or Josephina citizen of Newburyport, MA, could be elevated to a “hero” or a “villain,” or an accomplice to one or the other. It was riveting stuff. People bought it, because, who knew, “villainy” or “heroism” might befall or enfold about the person you might be talking to over grapes at your local grocery store.

The ordinary folks of Newburyport, MA, became “important,” frequently way larger than real life.

Often it was like reading a local tabloid, all about Newburyport, MA. And in between all that drama, Mr. Ryan also talked about issues. In between reading about the “good guys and the “bad guys,” one also learned about how government was run, who was on the city boards, who was your Newburyport City Councilor, what were the compelling issues that the people of Newburyport were fighting for. It was the stuff that one might have read, or glanced at or yawned about or ignored in one’s local print media.

Do folks pay attention about who is on a local city board or committee when it is reported in our local print media? Rarely.

But if those same people were mentioned in the Undertoad, “villains” or “heroes,” folks were engaged. They remembered those ordinary folks, because they remembered the story that could be enfolding about or around them.

The stories of ordinary folks, raised to high drama, were the hook that got people interested in reading about the issues that affected their lives.

The caveat was that folks didn’t mind being the “hero.” But they sure didn’t like it if they, or their friends or loved ones, actually became the “villain.”

Activism, Issues, Jim Roy

Jim Roy has been a long time activist in Newburyport, MA.

As folks, who are activists would know, there are lots of folks who have lots and lots of ideas, and most folks last for a couple of hours, maybe a few days, possibly a couple of weeks, on projects of varying importance.

There are very few people who actually would be willing to do the work, and actually do the work, which, in my experience, almost always turns into a fulltime job, often to 2 full time jobs, that often lasts for years (sometimes decades).

And as many activists have found out, after the initial enthusiasm has worn off, the activist project often ends up on the shoulders of one person, who cares passionately. Occasionally, there might be 2 people.

Over the decades, Jim Roy has been one of those few activists in Newburyport, MA who do the work, and who have consistently done the work, who “walk the walk” as well as “talk the talk.”

Jim Roy has been passionate about having an open waterfront in Newburyport, MA for decades. For decades he has worked on all sorts of committees to try and solve the traffic and parking problems in Newburyport, MA. He helped Frank Schaeffer find a solution to the hideous, looming, towers that were going to be built across the Merrimac River.

He was one of the people who stepped up to the plate for the fight to save High Street. Historic preservation has been one of his passions as well. There are many projects that Jim Roy has worked on behind the scenes, that no one knows about.

We as a city owe a lot to Jim Roy.

Jim Roy cares about the issues. Unfortunately, in our “Paris Hilton world,” people’s attention spans are short, and it is my experience that most folks don’t care about issues unless they directly affect them.

The fact that Jim Roy still has the stamina and determination to keep on fighting for what he believes in, is, in this blogger’s opinion, quite something.

Jim has started a journal in the hopes of engaging people in the issues that face Newburyport, MA.

It remains to be seen whether he would be able to entice folks to think about what the issues are, or whether, in our “Paris Hilton world,” people’s attention spans could be too short, and they might not be interested in the issues at hand, because the issues at hand might not apply directly to their lives.

The Newburyport Liberator can be bought at Richdales in downtown Newburyport, MA (that’s the one place so far that I have found it).

Vote on the Senior Center

In my mind the stupidest vote by a Newburyport City Council came during the Lavender Administration concerning the parking garage downtown.

At that time there was a piece of property, right off Route 1, on Merrimac Street, right behind the police station on Green Street, called “Lombardi Oil.” The owner of the Lombardi Oil property offered the land to the city for “a song” (especially in 20/20, a real loud song).

There was 5 million dollars good to go from the State of Massachusetts to start the ball rolling. And the Newburyport Planning Office had come up with an amazing (what we now call “Smart Growth”) flexible plan, that included a very attractive street view. This was no ugly parking garage plan, believe you me. It was a complete “win,” not even a “win/win” situation. And the Newburyport City Council at that time, turned it down, I believe, by one vote.

As I remember it, the rational for some of those pivotal votes, was that the money should be used for a spanking new elementary school. That’s what the emphasis should be. And in 20/20 in 2006 and 2007 we know what a lousy visionary approach that turned out to be.

In December 2006, the community at large ranted against what then Newburyport City Councilor Audrey McCarthy referred to as the “Taj Mahal” approach to our elementary school building needs, as opposed to funding much needed basic education.

What was lost, way back there in the last part of the 20th Century, was a crucial moment that could have helped empower the downtown Newburyport economy. Yes, yikes.

And I’m wondering, if a similar lapse in judgment and vision is about to happen on the Newburyport City Council floor in regards to a vote for the location for the Newburyport Senior Center.

It looks like a vote for a Senior Center site at Cushing Park may go down the tubes. (Anyone reading the Newburyport Blog in the year 2008, knows how strongly I feel about having a Senior Center.)

And I am wondering whether in 5 years, whether we could look back, the same way we look back at the vote on the downtown parking garage, and think, “What folly.”

Tourist Season

Friday afternoon I drive downtown. None of the usual places to park. Park off in sort of far away “la-la” land. I get to where I’m going late. The comment, with no prodding from me, “No place to park, tourist season.”

Yup, tourist season. The week before the Fourth of July. They are here like locusts.

They are easily spotted. Speak foreign language, often. Sort of cool. Come in clumps, often multigenerational. That’s fine. Baby carriages and looking lost, often the case. Older couples comfortable with each other, walking slowly, those are often my favorite.

Ok, at first I always seem to be overwhelmed by tourist season, and readily admit that am relieved when it lets up after Yankee Homecoming the first week in August, and then things get back to “normal” after Labor Day.

My attitude, like so many Newburyporters, is “I just want my city back.”

But Newburyport needs tourists. We need tourists for our local economy to thrive, so part of me says, “Whew, they are coming this year again, I hope they enjoy and, buy, buy, buy,” in our lovely and historic, seacoast New England city.

And, in my mind, the beauty and historic qualities of Newburyport are why so many tourists come. I would.

And the Newburyport Preservation Trust seems to agree. They are working with the Newburyport Chamber of Commerce to assess just how much historic preservation brings to our beautiful town economically speaking. I’d really and truly bet the ranch, that they would find out from the “assessment” that they would be doing together, that historic preservation is the root of our economic tourist attractiveness.

Newburyport From Another Perspective

A while ago a got an email from a gentleman called Shawn Gearin who has started a site called NBPTMA.com.

According to my email from Mr. Gearin, the site “covers the Newburyport experience from a blue collar perspective from 1950-1990.” In my mind, this would be welcomed perspective on Newburyport, MA on the World Wide Web.

Mr. Gearin’s desire is “to connect with people who remember Newburyport as she was during reconstruction, but prior to the current inflated home prices.”

The site is a work in progress and I hope Mr. Gearin preservers. We need more insight from people who know the history of Newburyport, and who have seen it change, evolve, whatever you would like to call it, over the years.

So far, my favorite part of the site is the marvelous photo album which is at the top right hand side of the site. You can either have a slide presentation, or see the photo album in its entirety. There are so many historic photographs that I have never seen, including one of the clam shacks, which I think is my favorite. So please, treat yourself and go take a look.

I am hoping that this would develop into another “treasure trove” of insight and information for those who love Newburyport, MA.

SEED, and Newburyport’s Local Environment

I’ve watched the emergence of Newburyport’s Seacoast Energy & Environmental Design Coalition, (SEED) with great interest.

SEED has, wittingly or not wittingly, been very politically savvy. It also helps that the timing is “on the money.” It is finally politically correct to be “green.” And it doesn’t hurt either that our very own Al Gore shared the Nobel Peace Prize for building awareness about man made climate change. And even President Bush’s awareness on the “green” issue is sort of evolving.

While Al Decie and all the folks who worked with him in CEB (see previous posts), was ahead of his (and their ) time. And folks like David Hall was ahead of his time. The SEED folks have hit the timing just right (and as a btw, it appears that folks like David Hall [see many previous posts] are extremely pleased, as well as now being involved in the organization).

The organization also took an inclusive, pro-business, pro-Newburyport Chamber, non-adversarial, non-political approach, and it’s worked really, really well.

It is not an “Us vs Them” approach, the way so many of the activist groups in Newburyport have navigated for so many years. This new dichotomy appears to possibly be a new model for getting things done. It seems to be possible, in part, because of the new folks that have moved into town. But it is also embraced by new folks and folks who have been around for “a while.”

And basically, the cement, which is great activist cement, is that being “green” is economically good for everyone. And one of the things that I’ve learned as an activist, is that it’s much more effective to get things done, when the majority of folks are united, rather than at each other’s throats.

So although SEED is in so many ways non-political, and I don’t see anything on their website about this, and I can’t find (I could keep looking) anything on the web, it would be great if SEED could help Newburyport, MA out, by being very proactive in regards to the Newburyport Landfill. It would certainly tie in with their goal of protecting the environment. And I don’t know of anyone in Newburyport, MA who does not want to see the Landfill capped as soon as possible. So it would tie in with their approach of a unifying theme.

Al Decie, Newburyport Green

I miss Al Decie. And weirdly, or maybe not weirdly, there are a lot of people who would go “Al Decie, who?”

Al Decie, who left Newburyport not long ago, with very little fanfare, was in my opinion, one of the people who helped make Newburyport the desirable place that it is today.

Al Decie founded Citizens for Environmental Balance (CEB), way before it was fashionable (in fact one could possibly say that it was downright unfashionable) to be “green.” And one of Mr. Decie’s passions was the Newburyport Landfill. God Bless him.

I found an old post on Al Decie and CEB, on the Newburyport Blog, written by a CEB member here.

CEB and Mr. Decie had a wonderful website chock full of unbelievable information, including original documents, including the original “Host Agreement” for the Newburyport Landfill, that’s gotten us, as some believe, in so much trouble. And when Mr. Decie left, the site went down, and alas, all that great information went with it.

But, “A Ha.” Low and behold, I’ve come across a site that has the same (as well as updated documents) on the “Landfill Capping,” “The Common Pasture,” and the “Vernal Pools.” To see the site Little River Basin.org, press here. In fact it has a very detailed chronology of the whole mess (with a disclaimer) dated 5/1/08 here (PDF Version).

I don’t know who has resurrected the site (I have my suspicions). And if you really want to get the history of “Newburyport Green,” visit, LittleRiverBasin.org.

Landfill and Suffolk Superior Court

Relief for this blogger about the decision yesterday by the judge at the Suffolk Superior Court in Boston, to include Newburyport, MA in the negotiations for the Landfill, along with the DEP, the State Attorney General and the owner of the Crow Lane Landfill, New Ventures.

Well, whew.

Yes, it may cost more money in legal fees, but, in my mind, that would be money very wisely spent.

The worse thing would be for the City of Newburyport not to be included in the negotiations. Good grief.

So I’m proud of the Newburyport City Council for voting unanimously against the latest, in my mind, unacceptable proposal by the owner of the Landfill.

And I realize that legal bills make our mayor nervous (yes, legal bill are expensive and no fun), but taking the long view, it would be much more expensive for the people of Newburyport, MA to have accepted the most recent legal proposal by New Ventures (bringing in a lot more stuff, a whole lot more stuff to the landfill) and not push for the darn thing to be capped ASAP.

Kay Lazar on the Newburyport Landfill

Kay Lazar has written an awesome piece in today’s Boston Globe North on the Newburyport Landfill, its owner and the relationship to Everett, MA. The article is a must read, so press here to read it.

Kay Lazar is a first rate reporter, and when I called her last week, she said it was her last day as a reporter at Globe North, and that she is being moved to another beat on the Boston Globe.

One of the joys of doing the Newburyport Blog has been getting to know various editors and reporters at different newspapers and publications. And I first got to know Kay Lazar when she did a front page article, September 17, 2006, on blogs on the North Shore and she included the Newburyport Blog.

A friend of mine had told me to be very careful of reporters, that unless I said, “We are off the record, you agree,” and they did agree, I was on the record, you betcha, and anything I said could be used.

Not having known this, and having been quoted in not too flattering ways in various civic endeavors that had been reported on, I was mighty wary of reporters, you better believe it.

And when Kate Lazar showed up to interview me, I was mighty, mighty on my guard. But Kate could not have been more professional or kind. And after that article was published, and I realized that she could be trusted, I’d like to say that we became friends.

So I will miss Kate Lazar, and her trusted reporting on Newburyport, MA and the North Shore. And wish her all the luck in the world on her new beat. Can’t wait to see what she is going to do.

A-Frame Signs Downtown Newburyport

A-frame signs downtown Newburyport.

When one of my Newburyport City Councilors mentioned that was a major agenda item, my first response was, “Well, if that’s all we have to worry about, things can’t be too bad.”

But then I read the article in the Newburyport Daily News. And yes, A-frame signs could make or break a business. And well, things would be very bad for that business indeed.

If you have an off State Street business or an upstairs State Street business (for those readers who do not live in Newburyport, MA, State Street is the main street going through downtown Newburyport) then yes, an A-frame sign would be a “must have.”

The Tannery has a very classy way of listing all the stores that live there. But, I got to say, I rarely if ever read it. Maybe, possibly, an occasional glance.

I like A-frame signs. They seem to be almost always for local businesses. And they, for me, give a homey and inviting feel to downtown Newburyport, MA. A statement against “high end homogenization.” And quite frankly I often forget that our local tea shop or a yummy chocolate shop is there, and the signs are a reminder. Don’t forget, a little something to make your day just a little nicer.

Landfill Craziness

I was talking to one of my fellow local bloggers a few days ago about why the Mayor of Newburyport, MA and the Newburyport City Council would not just say an immediate and resounding “No” to the Landfill owner’s new, very invasive request–shipping in lots and lots of more stuff, and NOT capping the retched thing NOW, and leaving the good folks of Newburyport, MA alone, and doing the whole thing right. Good grief.

I told my fellow local blogger that I would “bet the ranch” that the mayor and every Newburyport City Councilor understands the crazy and agonizing stuff that people have gone through for years (one only has to have one whiff of noxious odor to get the message real quick). But that my guess would be that the owner of the Landfill would have come up with some sort of legal “Gordian knot” to further complicated an untenable situation, and continued to make it really, really hard for the City of Newburyport, MA to get rid of the fellow.

And, yes, it appears that is what it would boil down to.

And, the reality is, which I’m pretty sure every politician and former politician and civil servant and former civil servant in Newburyport, MA would know, is that it wouldn’t take much to cap the damn thing and to leave us all alone.

A reality show nightmare that just appears to keep on “giving.”

High Street Master Plan Passes

On Monday night, April 28, 2008, in the Newburyport City Council, the High Street Master Plan passed.

It passed 11-0. Not a peep from anyone. Everyone just sat there and then voted, “Ah,” another words, “yes.”

I expected at least one rant from Newburyport City Councilor Tom O’brien, having listened to his and former Newburyport City Councilor Erford Fowler’s very colorful rants the last time. But no, absolute silence.

So I figured it must be the first reading, and the rants and protests would come later on.

Well, of course I’m going to ask around and find out why this went so smoothly, of course.

And apparently, the High Street Master Plan–as it was read, the restoration of an historic roadway, was not an “Ordinance,” but an “Order.”

I’m still on a learning curve here. An “Ordinance” is a law, and “Order” is a directive, and only requires one reading.

So, “Voila,” the High Street Master Plan actually does pass 11-0. A minor miracle, in my book.

My first question is, can the mayor veto an “Order.” (I ask this question because the previous mayor vetoed the High Street Master Plan, go figure. See earlier entry on “Weird Bike Lane Politics.”) And the feeling that I am getting is Mayor Moak’s approach simply could be, not to fund the project in anyway. Thereby, very politically sidestepping the entire issue. Notice that there is not one mention of High Street, at least that I can find, in his proposed 2 million Capital Improvement Plan.

The only person who spoke in the Public Comments, was a Mom who was very concerned about the danger of the Newburyport High School students crossing High Street, when they get out of school. (And unfortunately this has been an ongoing dilemma, ever since the automobile was invented.)

And as I remember, and I’d have to look again, the compromise that “we” came to was, a “push light” at the corner of Toppans Lane and High Street, where the crosswalk is.

When I talked to the crossing guards when the Bike Lanes first went down, their response was that the only thing that slowed downed motorist around the High School on High Street, was the presence of a cop car. Other than that, people didn’t give a rip.

I mentioned this to one of my Newburyport City Councilors, and suggested somewhat flippantly, that maybe the city could leave an empty cop car, one that isn’t working so well, at the corner of Toppans Lane and High Street during peak get out of school hours.

And I don’t know whether or not they were kidding or not, but the response was, “good idea.”

The passing of the High Street Master Plan, one more milestone in the ongoing, now just about 13 years, High Street restoration saga.

Mary Eaton
Newburyport

What is a High Street Plan

What exactly are High Street “plans?”

The original plans from MassHighway for High Street were 52 pages of detailed drawings.

The High Street Master plan is also (or I would imagine be somewhere around) 52 pages of detailed drawings.

When the original plans came back from MassHighway, the High Street Ad Hoc Committee that I was on (this would be the spring of 1999) was asked to “mark-up” the plans, another words write comments on the plans as feedback for the MassHighway engineers.

As I recall every page had “NO” written all over it in red pencil.

I don’t know how the Newburyport Planning Office marked up the High Street Master Plan, but I do remember that the plan itself was huge. Each page seemed huge to me (like 1.5 by 3 feet–that’s not exactly the exact size, and yes I could call the Newburyport Planning Office and ask, but you get the idea, the pages aren’t exactly puny).

And when the plan was put end to end, it seemed long enough to almost cover the back of the City Hall auditorium wall. I’m not exactly sure if that is exactly right, but we are talking long, really, really long.

And the plans are detailed. You can get an idea by pressing here, a page labeled “Kent and Johnson Street”. You can see that there are markings for detailed things like trees, where steps to houses are, whether a spot in front of a house has an iron or a wood fence, how long the fence would be, exactly where the grass is, where a house starts and the beginning of a house’s “foot print.”

All of this was and still is visually fascinating to me as an artist. I could appreciate the hours and hours of work that went into such a document/plan. Every inch had been measured. Every inch had been sometimes agonized over.

Having followed the process from the beginning, I realized when I saw the final High Street Master Plan, that it was truly a labor of love. And I was very moved and very thankful to all the people who helped create it.

Mary Eaton
Newburyport

Weird Bike Lane Politics

A little history on the weird Bike Lane politics. Oy Veh.

The High Street Master Plan was presented at a Public Hearing in 2004, to cheers, except for Tom O’Brien, who was at that time the President of the Newburyport City Council. The mayor (Mary Anne Clancy) was at that meeting. All seemed to be well. In fact, all seemed to be great.

(And as a btw, the High Street Master Plan calls for things like textured cross walks, that look like bricks, but are not, so the Fire, Police and DPW could navigate without any problem, brick sidewalks for all of High Street, and yes, trees, and other good stuff.)

As I recall the Newburyport Planning Office had urged the mayor to give the press, press releases before the bike lanes, (the first phase of the High Street Master Plan) went down, so that people would have some information, and not be totally surprised. It is my recollection, that that piece of civic information never made it to the press, and the bike lanes were a surprise to folks who weren’t following along, which turned out to be almost everyone in Newburyport, MA.

Massive confusion and a visceral dislike of the bike lanes followed (this is a vast understatement). The Newburyport City Council decided that it would be prudent to officially vote on the High Street Master Plan, which they did, and it passed.

Then the Mayor, Mary Anne Clancy, vetoed the plan, and there were not enough votes on the Newburyport City Council to override the mayor’s bike lane veto (you need a lot of votes for such things as overriding vetoes).

What a mess.

What a mess especially because the bike lanes were only partially done. For example, as I remember, there was no signage put up to explain to the bikers and drivers when the bike lanes would stop and when bikes and cars would share road space together.

The rounded painted corners look like parking spaces. They are not. If things had been finished, those areas would have been striped, for no parking, so that people could have proper “sight lines,” or in other words, be able to see traffic coming from either direction.

And of course the textured crosswalks never got done, to help slow down traffic further.

All of this, and other stuff, left us in Newburyport, MA, in “bike lane limbo.”

So I would imagine that the Newburyport Planning Office and the Newburyport City Council would dust off the High Street Master Plan, take a good look at it after 4 years now, and decide what to do next. And give the public, I am sure, all kinds of good and helpful information.

Mary Eaton
Newburyport