Boston Capital Projects Viewable Database and Maps

The City of Boston has a beta version of a GIS (Geographic Information System) tool to search a database to find capital projects being undertaken by the city. I'm not sure how long this beta version has been online (the copyright shows 2007), but I hadn't come across it myself until a well-informed local resident pointed it out to me.

If you search within the neighborhood of Allston-Brighton, for example, you'll see 38 capital projects currently underway -- listed as "To Be Scheduled," "In Design," "In Construction," or "Ongoing Program." The projects include renovations of schools, libraries, and fire stations. It is informative to see all these projects linked to from a single database.

The mapping system in the city's online tool appears very similar to that for their online assessing, hence the parcels are outlined. The city probably spent an awful amount of money producing this mapping software, while an enterprising netizen could probably do the whole thing independently with google maps and a couple hours of work -- assuming that the (latitude,longitude) of the assessing database were available.

Mayor's ONS to Hold Office Hours in Allston-Brighton

The Boston Mayor's Office of Neighborhood Services has initiated a program to hold regular office hours in the districts, including both Allston and Brighton, in order to provide better constituent services for both residents and business owners.

In a February 11, 2008 letter sent out to the community, the Allston-Brighton liaison within the ONS, Paul Holloway, announced the times and locations for the office hours in A-B:

• Brighton: 1st and 3rd Wednesdays each month, 2:00 - 6:00 pm, Brighton Branch Library, 40 Academy Hill Road, Brighton.
• Allston: 2nd and 4th Wednesdays each month, 3:00 - 7:00 pm, Honan Allston Library, 300 North Harvard Street, Allston.

In the letter, Holloway wrote:

Our goal is to enhance the delivery of city services and facilitate communication with our constituents by providing you with easy access to a member of the Mayor's staff.

For more information, contact Holloway at 617-635-3485 or paul.holloway@cityofboston.gov .

You know, you don't have to show up to office hours, such as these, to get your complaints about city services constituent services dealt with. Just call the Mayor's 24-hour Constituent Service Hotline at 617-635-4500, or go online. (Note that I have not always found that online requests get looked at over the weekend or late at night, although I have been told more recently that they are -- or should be. It may depend on the hours/staffing of the relevant department.)

Snow Emergency; Boston Public Schools Closed Monday

City Declares Snow Emergency - Sunday 1/13/2008


Mayor Thomas M. Menino today declared a snow emergency in anticipation of forecasted heavy snowfall tonight. The snow emergency and parking ban will go into effect at midnight tonight. Putting public safety as the top priority, Mayor Menino reminded residents of the following:

# Move cars from main arterials during snow emergencies. A listing of main arterials can be found at: www.cityofboston.gov/snow/parking.asp

# Do not park cars within 20 feet of an intersection. Parking too close to an intersection can restrict emergency vehicle access.


# Do not throw snow back into the street. "Throwbacks" force the city to remove snow from the same street twice.

# Shovel out fire hydrants close to your home.


# Property owners are reminded to shovel snow from sidewalks that abut homes and businesses.


# Do not double park.

# Keep wheelchair ramps clear.


# Check on elderly and neighbors and others in need.


During declared snow emergencies, discounted parking is available at several parking lots and garages to cars that display Boston resident parking stickers. A list of locations is available at www.cityofboston.gov/snow.

Residents with storm-related questions or concerns should call the City of Boston Storm Center at (617) 635-3050.


Boston Public Schools

Closed for Monday, January 14, 2008

Snow Emergency Declared in Boston

December 13, 2007

Mayor Thomas M. Menino today declared that a snow emergency and parking ban will go into effect at 2:00 p.m. this afternoon. Putting public safety as the top priority, Mayor Menino reminded residents of the following:

• The City of Boston encourages businesses to release employees early. Rush hour is expected to see the storm’s heaviest snowfall. Everyone is encouraged to use public transportation.
• All City of Boston afternoon and evening activities will be cancelled.
• Move cars from main arterials during snow emergencies. A listing of main arterials can be found at: www.cityofboston.gov/snow/parking.asp
• Do not park cars within 20 feet of an intersection. Parking too close to an intersection can restrict emergency vehicle access.
• Do not throw snow back into the street. “Throwbacks” force the city to remove snow from the same street twice.
• Shovel out fire hydrants close to your home.
• Property owners are reminded to shovel snow from sidewalks that abut homes and businesses.
• Do not double park.
• Keep wheelchair ramps clear.
• Check on elderly and neighbors and others in need.

During declared snow emergencies, discounted parking is available at several parking lots and garages to cars that display Boston resident parking stickers. A list of locations is available at www.cityofboston.gov/snow. The city’s Know Snow program will be in effect this afternoon to alert residents of the snow emergency.

The City of Boston Storm Center will open at 2:00 p.m., when the snow emergency goes into effect. Residents with storm-related questions or concerns should call the center at (617) 635-3050, starting at 2:00 p.m.

UPDATE: The citywide snow emergency and parking ban will remain in effect until 6:00 a.m. Friday morning.

UPDATE: Boston Public Schools will be closed on Friday.

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.

Arnold Arboretum: City Failed on Its Promise to Protect Open Space

Harvard Magazine recently ran an article giving some food-for-thought in dealing with institutional expansion and the City of Boston's failure to deliver on promises to protect open spaces.

The article quotes from the Longfellow Area Neighborhood Association:

“Forty years ago, the City gave the Hebrew Rehabilitation Center permission to build a facility for seniors at the nine-acre Joyce Kilmer Park on Centre Street….After promising to protect the remaining open space at that site, the City later allowed the Rehab Center to double in size in 1973. Most of the remaining parkland was subsequently paved for cars in violation of public deed restrictions on the property.…The lesson of Joyce Kilmer Park is that once an institution gets established in a location, there is little a neighborhood can do to limit its eventual expansion.”

Quite sobering.