Monday, August 17, 2015

MASSterList: Last surviving tenement tells all | Baker (hearts) R.I. governor | Do we truly need a new gas pipeline?


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 Monday, August 17, 2015

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By George Donnelly (@geodonnelly) with Sara Brown
Today...
Attorney General Maura Healey joins Judiciary Committee Chairman Rep. John Fernandes (D-Milford), the family of an overdose victim, and a coalition of law enforcement advocates to announce a new tool to help combat the heroin and opioid epidemic, Attorney General's Office, One Ashburton Place, 20th Floor, Boston, 1 pm.
 
...And the action this week: More Olympics rehashing?
If you thought Olympics political theater was over, think again. The Brattle Group, the brainy Cambridge consultancy, is expected to release its report on the feasibility of Boston 2024's bid. The findings may seem moot, but the report could feed the public's imagination for new developments, including the now famous Widett Circle and Columbia Point. And perhaps it will provide a pointed third-party view of Boston's transportation infrastructure. And it may catalyze a new round of soul searching.

There will a new round of legal maneuvering around the Deflategate matter as the parties, the National Football League and the NFL Players Association, return to US District Judge Richard Berman's courtroom.

You know it's a quiet week when we alert you that the annual Tomato Contest will be held this Thursday. In its 31st year, the contest will be held at a new site -- the demonstration kitchen of the recently-opened Boston Public Market in Haymarket Square.
 
Housing for the non-wealthy -- will it happen by North Station?
One of the most interesting stories of the week was about a proposal to build apartments by North Station. Not more fancy housing, you say. But this project, proposed by Related Beal, would all be below market rate, both low- and moderate-income housing, 239 units in all. It's a shocker of a story, for when was the last time a residential project in the heart of the city been for anyone than for those who could pay market prices? The adjacent hotel Related Beal wants to build would help subsidize the project. And there's a catch, as the Globe's Tim Logan reports. Related Beal is still negotiating the size of the tax break it would get from the city. But the project, if it goes forward, would create an interesting formula for building affordable housing: assistance from a commercial element tied to the project; tax breaks; state and federal housing credits; and low-interest, state tax-exempt bonds.
Interesting to note that the top family income level for the moderate-income units is about $78,000; that would put the maximum rent (30 percent of income) at $2,000 per month, not exactly a tiny amount. Here's Logan's story from Friday, ICYMI. http://bit.ly/1TNYEqx

The history of a West End tenement
Kudos to Eric Moskowitz for his wonderful tale of lives lived in the last-standing West End tenement, a lonely and yet remarkable building that somehow survived at 42 Lomasney Way. The generations of people who lived in the building, which Moskowitz diligently researched, tell a slice of Boston's immigrant community's history. (One family paid $16 per month rent in 1940, about $273 in today's dollars, just to give a sense of how much rents have risen.) Most of the West End's residential housing was razed for new development in the late 1950s, its 11,000 or so residents forced to scatter -- for many seen as urban renewal at its worst.
 
Amazon and the future of work
If you think it's cushy playtime (ping-pong and limitless snacks in the kitchen) working for a successful tech firm, read the New York Time's Sunday story on Amazon's work culture. A combination of fierce performance metrics, harsh open and covert internal criticism, and a work-around-the-clock ethic are thoroughly explored in this remarkable report. The money quote: "Amazon is where overachievers go to feel bad about themselves." http://nyti.ms/1IR5D9N
 
Do we need the new gas pipeline?
The battle over the proposed gas pipeline is heating up, and former undersecretary for energy Ann Berwick weighs in today in the Globe's op-ed pages, saying Attorney General Maura Healey's plan to study the electricity supply of Massachusetts is "hugely important" before any decisions are made. A new pipeline, Berwick argues, "would exacerbate our dependence on a single fuel with a history of price volatility, bias our future energy use towards a fossil fuel that is far from clean, and increase our reliance on a fuel that depends on fracking."

Mass could be a hands-free zone for drivers
Massachusetts activists are advocating that the state become hands-free zone for drivers. This would mean motorists would not be allowed to hold their phones while driving. "There is no personal liberty to create unnecessary hazards for other members of the public," Rep. William Straus said to the Associated Press. Several states in the New England area have already adopted a similar law. "New Hampshire's new law carries fines from $100-$500 and since that state is generally perceived as more reluctant to regulate personal behavior, passage there is seen by advocates as further impetus for Massachusetts to act," the AP reports via the Eagle-Tribune.http://bit.ly/1NdakPl

Voters concerned about transparency
Next year voters could decide if lawmakers have to comply with the state's open government laws. "They go behind closed doors, do their horse trading, and then come out to vote as a bloc," John Ribeiro, the main sponsor of the initiative said to the Salem News. "It doesn't matter where you stand in the political spectrum, one of the basic foundations of democracy is to understand what your government is doing. There's no reason they should be exempt from this law." To get on the ballot, organizers must get 64,750 signatures. http://bit.ly/1NnfLdy

Shaky results for 8th graders riding the T
Boston eighth-graders who used public transformation to get to school were more tardy than students who took a bus last year. However, they were less absent. Under an expanded policy, more students will be taking public transportation this year according to the Boston Globe. The program will save the city $7.6 million; however, not everyone supports it. "I'm not in favor of seventh-graders or eighth-graders using the T," said Richard Stutman, president of the Boston Teachers Union. "People harken back to the old days when all kids, myself included, took the T to school. It's a different world now, and we need to be more protective of kids on public transportation."http://bit.ly/1UNS9B7

Baker and Raimondo become friends
Gov. Charlie Baker and Rhode Island Gov. Gina Raimondo have developed an unlikely friendship over the past few months, the Herald reports. "Raimondo said there isn't a New England governor she's had more contact with while in office. They speak by phone monthly, and during the height of last winter's snowstorms, they talked daily -- sometimes twice, she said." Baker has even donated to her campaign.http://bit.ly/1DZBh5T

Animal activists working to get on the ballot
State animal activists want to allow voters to decide if farmers should be allowed to confine chickens, eggs and cows in small cages and ban the sale of eggs they produce. Cage practices are very rare in the state but supporters of the ban says this will prevent large farms from moving here, according to the Gloucester Times. A ban on such products could make the prices go up. "After tightening restrictions on their use, the European Union banned battery cages three years ago. The new law cost egg producers in the United Kingdom an estimated $613 million, according to Food Safety News, a trade publication," the Gloucester Time reports.

Martha's Vineyards votes on casino
The Aquinnah Wampanoag tribe voted to continue to try to bring electronic bingo style games to Martha's Vineyard, after a referendum to halt the effort failed. The vote was 110 to 110, and the measure would have required a two-thirds majority to pass. Tribal members want to bring 300 bingo games to the community centers. Games like blackjack or roulette were not proposed. Supporters for the casino said it would bring $4.5 million in every year.
How to reach me and MASSterList
Nothing makes me happier than comments, tips, suggestions. Also, opinion articles also will be considered. Please don't hesitate to weigh in on what we're missing and where we should look. Reach me atgdonnelly@massterlist.com or on Twitter @geodonnelly.


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