Beacon Street Bike Lanes Finished -- and End at Newton's Border

The new bicycle lanes on Beacon Street are finished: stripe painting and stenciling.

Sean Roche at the Newton Streets and Sidewalks Blog has images of the lanes, including where the westbound lanes end abruptly at the border with Newton.

The ball's in your court now, Newton!

Double-Take in NYC Over Artificial Turf

The New York City Parks Department appeared last week to be the first city to declare a moratorium on the use of rubber infill from used tires for artificial turf fields. But then the department made an abrupt, partial retraction of the position, instead stating that the city is "exploring the use of carpet-style" nylon turf -- which, it so happens, does not include used tires as a component of the construction.

An independent watchdog group, NYC Park Advocates, published an internal NYC Parks Department memo, dated January 14, in which the department put forward a new design directive "suspending the use of rubber infill synthetic turf in all Parks Capital Projects," according to the New York Times. The NYC Parks Department also asked the Health Department to investigate the potential human health impacts of shredded tires used in many, if not most, artificial turf construction:

On Tuesday, the department said it had asked the city health department to investigate potential health and safety problems associated with the synthetic material, even as it continued to insist the surfaces were safe.

After the disclosure of the internal memo, however, the Parks Department appears to have changed course -- albeit not a full about-face -- according to the New York Metro newspaper:

“I incorrectly made a blanket statement,” said Deputy Commissioner of Capital Projects Amy Freitag. “There is no change in Parks Dept.’s policy on synthetic turf.”

Freitag went on to explain the city is now “replacing” the rubber-infill “standard” and “exploring the use of carpet-style” nylon turf.

Carpet-style nylon turf does not include a layer of shredded, used rubber tires as part of its construction. (I guess she meant to make a carpet, not a blanket, statement.)

Used rubber tires typically contain polycyclic aromatic hyrocarbon molecules, a class of organic molecules of which seven have been identified by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency as being "probable human carcinogens." Concerns have been raised about these PAH molecules leaching out into ground water, the rubber layer "crumb" breaking free from the installation, and the PAH potentially entering humans through inhalation. Additional concerns have been raised about the high temperatures artificial turf reach in hot weather, causing a heat island effect.

The possibly conflicting positions emanating from the NY Parks Department might reflect an internal battle. According to the Times, Parks Commissioner Adrian Benepe "has been a forceful advocate of the safety of turf fields made with shredded rubber."

Mr. Benepe has said the surfaces are safe to play on; have environmental advantages over natural surfaces, which require pesticides, watering and mowing; and are cheaper and easier to maintain than are grass fields.

The NY Metro article also refers to data sheets from the artificial turf manufacturer Forever Green, presumably provided to the Parks Department, which were obtained by the newspaper through New York's Freedom of Information Law. The manufacturer's data sheets read, in part:

“This product contains petroleum oils similar to ones categorized ... as causing skin cancer in mice after prolonged and repeated contact. Any potential hazard can be minimized by using ... protective equipment to avoid skin contact and by washing thoroughly” [after using the fields].

These data sheets appear to indicate the the manufacturer confirms that their product contains particular molecules or compounds that are a known animal carcinogen.

The New York State Legislature is considering a bill that would put a six-month, state-wide moratorium on the use of rubber infill from used tires as part of the construction of artificial turf.

Artificial turf installations have become increasingly popular both among public agencies -- including Boston's Parks and Recreation Department and the City of Newton -- and private institutions, including Boston College, which has proposed three new artificial turf fields for the former St. John's Seminary land purchased from the Archdiocese of Boston.

University PILOT Payments Detailed

The Boston Globe ran another story about university PILOTs (payments in lieu of taxes) to Boston and surrounding cities.  (BTW:  I carefully avoid repeating that repetitious phrase of redundancy, "PILOT payments.")  The story hook was a recent study by Newton's Blue Ribbon Commission on the Municipal Budget. 

A summary:

Berklee School of Music:  $175 thousand to Boston
Boston College:  $215 thousand to Boston; $100 thousand to Newton
Boston University:  $3.20 million to Boston
Harvard University:  $1.77 million to Cambridge; $1.75 million to Watertown; $1.60 million to Boston
MIT:  $1.22 million to Cambridge
Northeastern:  $137 thousand to Boston

How much is brought in by each city?

Boston:  $23 million per year (as of 2003)
Cambridge:  $3.6 million
Newton:  $100 thousand (apparently BC is the only university/college contributing)
Watertown:  $1.75 million (I'm not sure if there are any PILOTs other than Harvard)

The point put forward by Newton's Blue Ribbon Commission is that, for example, Boston College owns property in Newton with a combined, assessed value of $355 million -- one-third of the value of all the tax-exempt property owned within Newton -- and yet Newton only receives a very small PILOT.  (The remainder of the tax-exempt properties?  Roughly $300 million in governmental and religious institutional property.  Also, "Newton-Wellesley Hospital...  reported $392 million in net assets to the IRS in 2005," although assets are not the same as property holdings.)  BC's property value holdings are substantial, and their PILOTs appear disproportionately small by comparison to the other institutions listed here.

Newtown Firefighter Injured at Boston College Blaze

The Boston College newspaper, The Heights, reported that a City of Newton firefighter was seriously injured while working at a dumpster fire on the BC campus last night.

The firefighter was injured when the fire truck unexpectedly "lurched forward" and ran over him. The assistant fire chief on the scene tentatively blamed the accident on "this damn equipment we have."

The fire was reportedly started by people -- who appear to be BC students -- who were burning books and papers in the dumpster. Today, May 15th, is the last day of the year-end examinations according to the BC academic calendar.

No word on disciplinary action yet on students who may have been involved in starting the fire.

Will Newton's Own Development Pave the Way for BC's Master Plan?

A March 27, 2007 editorial in the BC newspaper, "The Allston-Brighton-Boston-Newton College's The Heights," discusses the City of Newton's plan to build a parking garage in Newton Center:

"Apparently a five-story parking garage is not too tall. Needless to say, if these proposals for Newton Centre are accepted, the city of Newton will have little grounds for denying BC the buildings that will be a part of the upcoming campus masterplan."

While the editorial does go on to ask Newton to "carefully consider this proposal," the editorial provides a justification for BC's master plans (in Newton) based on Newton Center's development project located a mile or so away.

I think that the editors at the newspaper may need a little education on zoning. A structure that is perfectly suited to one site can be wrong for another. We don't build the Prudential Center in Brighton Center, for example, nor do we build student dormitories in the middle of Boston Common. The neighborhood bordering BC's proposed buildings in the upper campus needs to be considered when evaluating if the proposal is appropriate; likewise, the shopping district bordering Newton's proposed parking structure in Newton Center needs to be considered when addressing its appropriateness.