A few thoughts before the March 31, 2008 City Council meeting:
Manager's Agenda - The nature of the Manager's Agenda changes from week to week. Some weeks feature one or two major fiscal items such as last week's setting of the water & sewer rates, the mid-May vote on the annual budget, and the setting of the property tax rates in the fall. (The Manager always correctly points out that the City Council merely votes on tax classification, exemptions, and various other parameters, and the Mass. Department of Revenue sets the rates.) The primary focus of this week's Manager's Agenda is catching up on Council requests for reports on various matters. Of the 26 items on "Awaiting Report", the Manager answers 10 this week covering topics from parking meters to bicycles to rodents to block grants to tree plantings to bricks on Cedar Street. Not too sexy or controversial, but these are all part of managing a city.
Last week's Council Order from Mayor Simmons regarding possible changes to the rules governing Public Comment at City Council meetings is sure to elicit further response from the usual suspects. It's been funny watching the reactions to this highly non-specific Order that doesn't actually propose any changes, though you would never know it from the reactions. A little history may be helpful here. There are few people among those who now attend Council meetings who go back to times before the current protocols were in place, but I am one of them. The reporters, in particular, have no basis for comparison. It used to be that if you wanted to speak on a particular item, you waited until that item came up during the meeting and you stepped up to the microphone and were recognized by the Chair. The great advantage of that system was that members of the public were obliged to address a specific agenda item at the time the item was under discussion. I preferred that system because it allowed those who had something serious to say to do so when that topic was before the Council. It was not uncommon that there would even be some interaction between the councillors and the person making the comments. The major down side of that system was that you had to stick around until your item came up, and some of those meetings could run pretty long.
Because rent control was always the big deal of the day, this meant that you could count on seeing Mike Turk, Connie Thibault, Bill Noble and others from the Cambridge Tenants Union dutifully occupying their usual seats in the Sullivan Chamber just in case anything involving rent control came up during the meeting. We were also blessed with the presence of Bill Jones who would regularly offer his perspectives on current events and local history (though not always accurately) when he was not partaking of the plentiful food provided in the Council's Green Room. Though everyone was supposed to address specific agenda items, it was an unwritten rule that Mr. Jones could stray somewhat from the agenda. Say what you will about Billy, but none of the would-be comedians who now work the Sullivan Chamber can hold a candle to Mr. Jones in terms of pure entertainment. More importantly, just about everyone liked Billy Jones. That cannot be said of today's crop of crabby complainers.
One East Cambridge woman at last week's meeting who generally speaks intelligently on matters of substance during Public Comment seemed upset at possibly being lumped in with the "nut cases". Let's be clear about this. Whether or not you want to see some changes in the protocols governing Public Comment, no one wants to curtail the rights of any member of the public to speak on relevant matters before the City Council. The principal problem, as I see it, is that some members of the public feel they have license to use this opportunity to mock and attack anyone and everyone for no purpose other than to draw attention to themselves. I agree with Councillor Toomey that the rules as they stand do not need to be changed. They merely need to be enforced - perhaps, in some cases, with an iron hand. Most or all of the principal abusers of Public Comment have “blogs” in which they freely express themselves - just as I freely express myself on this website (as I am doing now). Nobody is obliged to read my erratic ramblings. Anyone can similarly read “From the Port” or “Enough Room” if they want to listen to the erratic ramblings of Councillor Podgers or Councillor Bercaw. Free speech reigns.
Anyone who reads my ramblings can easily discern some of my likes and dislikes of elected officials and others who work in the City administration. Most have picked up on the fact that I'm generally supportive of candidates (new ones in particular), elected officials, department heads, and City workers. I actually believe Cambridge is a well-run city - as compared to many other Massachusetts cities, especially those without a city manager form of government. This doesn't mean I believe there's no room for improvement. I think we do a piss-poor job of community policing, we don't do nearly enough to address problems of vandalism and loud cars, and I believe there are a number of City programs that exist primarily to preserve the jobs of those who work in them. I will likely never be convinced that city councillors need personal aides (perhaps better referred to as Sullivan chambermaids or manservants). I am flabbergasted by some of the salary levels in the City administration and how the elected officials go along to get along just as long as we're flush with property tax revenue. It bothers me that the executive director of the Election Commission treats one of the best friends the commission ever had like an enemy for no rational reason, and I still believe that the Dept. of Traffic & Parking owes me $80 for towing my VW Bus away without warning. Then again, my mechanic has been holding my Bus hostage in Natick since December 13, so T&P is looking pretty good in comparison.
Cambridge water is good enough to win prizes, and that doesn't happen by accident. The Cambridge Department of Public Works has a public service philosophy that can't be beat. If anyone wants to complain about the condition of Cambridge sidewalks or snow plowing, they should visit almost any other city or town in Massachusetts to see just how good we are in comparison. Cambridge is way ahead of most cities in terms of recycling and environmental initiatives - and the City Manager deserves most of the credit for this. I attended a public hearing last week about the Cambridge Energy Alliance and the programs they will be providing for Cambridge residents and businesses, and it made me feel very proud to live in this city. Though some of the City Manager's appointments are, in my opinion, driven by the desire to avoid trouble rather than to improve things, I still believe Mr. Healy is possibly the best in the business and, unlike some of the naysayers, I believe our multiple AAA bond ratings speak volumes about how well this city is managed.
Hmmm... maybe I should say that during Public Comment, but it's not on the agenda and I don't know if I can squeeze it in under three minutes. -- Robert Winters