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April 11, 2007 GAC Update
The Council met Monday and passed changes to the noise affidavit and to the zoning on Prospect, discussed the license cap policy, sub-prime mortgages, and several orders regarding parking and construction. The Council also received the Planning Boards report following the annual Town-Gown meeting held in February. The City Manager transmitted information regarding a number of new appointments and reappointments and introduced the new Police Commissioner and Public Health Commissioner at the start of the meeting.
The Council’s Finance Committee met last week and held a preliminary discussion on the City budget for FY 08, the period from July 1, 2007 to June 30, 2008.
Applications for the 2007 GoGreen Business Awards are available and due by April 27.
Issues at the State level of importance to Chamber members include implementation of the State’s Health Care Reform legislation passed last year and legislative action to address the Supreme Judicial Courts recent ruling affecting land-locked tidelands including North Point. The Chamber also was part of a group of statewide business leaders who recently met with the Secretary of Housing an Economic Development Dan O’Connell and Legal Counsel and Permitting Ombudsman Gregory Bialecki.
Upcoming GAC Events
The 2007 Government Affairs program is sponsored by Genzyme.
Vice Mayor and State Representative Toomey to Address May GAC
Cambridge Vice Mayor and State Representative Timothy Toomey, Jr. was scheduled to be our guest in January and had to cancel due to legislative responsibilities at the State House. He will now be our guest on Tuesday, May 22 at noon at the Chamber Board Room. Please e-mail tsmith@cambridgechamber.org or phone (617) 876-4213 if you plan to attend.
April 9, 2007 City Council Meeting
The Council met Monday and passed changes to the noise affidavit and to the zoning on Prospect, discussed the license cap policy, sub-prime mortgages, and several orders regarding parking and construction. The Council also received the Planning Boards report following the annual Town-Gown meeting held in February. The City Manager transmitted information regarding a number of new appointments and reappointments and introduced the new Police Commissioner and Public Health Commissioner at the start of the meeting.
Changes to Noise Affidavit and Prospect Avenue Zoning Approved
The Council passed two ordinance changes previously passed to a second reading. The first changes language to the Noise Affidavit that is required as part of the building permit process the second changes the zoning along Prospect Street creating a Prospect Street Overlay District. The Ordinance Committee Report on the Noise Affidavit is available at Unfinished Business Item 2 and the Ordinance Committee Report on the Prospect Street rezoning is available at Unfinished Business 3.
Committee to Review License Commission Cap Policy
The Council received a report from a January meeting of the Council’s Economic Development, Training and Employment Committee held to discuss the license Commissions “cap policy” relative to licenses to serve alcoholic beverages.
At that meeting the Committee drafted two orders for the full Council. The first orders the City Manager to confer with the Chair of the License Commission and the Assistant City Manager of Community Development and other staff to draft potential changes to the “cap policy” that support the City’s economic development goals. The second orders the City Manager to appoint a committee to discuss a draft policy revising the current “cap policy.” The Council passed both orders and an order submitted for Monday’s meeting asking that at least two members of this committee be members of the public who have “no financial or bureaucratic interest” in the current policy.
A copy of the Committee Report is at Committee Report 1, the two Orders from the Committee report are available at Policy Order 38 and Policy Order 39 and a copy of the Policy Order regarding membership on the committee is at Policy Order 16.
Sub-prime Mortgages
The Council asked the City Manager to report to the Council on the impact of sub-prime mortgages on Cambridge residents. In the discussion it was noted that staff from the Community Development Department’s Housing Division provide counseling and assistance to homeowners who are having difficulty paying mortgages. There was also discussion about contacting the local lending community to provide counseling and other assistance to homeowners. A copy of the order is at Policy Order 8.
Parking and Construction Orders
The Council approved an order asking the City Manager to provide an evaluation of the traffic and parking burden in areas close to mass transit. A second order on parking, asking what type of program, if any, would be feasible to restrict on-street parking permits as part of the special permit process for developments, was tabled by use of the Council’s Charter Right. The Council also passed an order asking the City Manager if it is possible to add fees or fines to developers whose construction projects go longer than contemplated at the start of construction.
The parking orders are available at Policy Order 4 and Policy Order 31 and the Construction order is available at Policy Order 32.
Planning Board Report on Town-Gown Meetings
At its February 6 meeting the Planning Board heard presentations by Harvard, Lesley, and MIT regarding development plans by these institutions. This “Town-Gown” meeting is held annually and follows submittal to the City of required Town-Gown reports that provide information on enrollment, employment, and other data. On Monday the Council received the Planning Boards report from the Town-Gown hearing held in February. (Cambridge College also files a report but was not required to make a presentation at the February hearing.) A copy of the report is available at City Manager Agenda Item 13. The City of Cambridge maintains information on current and past reports on its website at Town-Gown Reports.
Appointments and Reappointments
The City Manager transmitted information regarding the appointment of the new Police Commissioner and new Chief Public Health Officer and introduced Police Commissioner Robert C. Haas and Chief Public Health Officer Claude-Alix Jacob at the start of the meeting. The City Manager also transmitted information on the appointment of two new Associate Members to the Planning Board and the re-appointment of three members and a new appointment to the Cambridge Water Department.
As was reported previously Commissioner Haas was appointed Police Commissioner effective April 9. The new Chief Public health Officer was appointed by Dennis Keefe, CEO of the Cambridge Health Alliance and started in that position on April 2. Claude-Alix Jacob is replacing Harold Cox who left that position last year for a position at Boston University. A copy of the transmittal regarding Commissioner Haas is available at City Manager Agenda Item 6 and the transmittal regarding Chief Public Health Officer Jacob is available at City Manager Agenda Item 11.
The Manager also transmitted his appointment of Patricia Singer and H. Theodore Cohen as Associate Members of the Planning Board and reappointed Amy Finlayson, Barbara Shaw, and Pamela Winters to the Board. A copy of that transmittal is available at City Manager Agenda Item 5. Paul Robillard has been appointed to the Water Department and that transmittal is available at City Manager Agenda Item 8.
Council Finance Committee Preliminary Budget Hearing Held April 4, 2007
The Council’s Finance Committee held a preliminary budget hearing on Wednesday April 4. The City Manager reported that the budget will be available to the Council at the April 23 Council meeting. He also reported that he and his staff are working to keep the levy increase below 6%. Major cost increases reported by the City Manager include health insurance, pensions, and scheduled wage increases. The City has negotiated higher contributions from City employees to health insurance with employees paying 15% and the City 85%. The City’s share will drop to 82%. The City Manager also reported that staff is using conservative estimates of state aid for budget planning purposes as the actual amount of aid will not be known until the State budget is approved.
The next meeting of the Finance Committee is scheduled for 10 a.m. on Saturday April 28 to discuss the FY 2008 budget. The budget is the City’s spending and revenue collection plan for the fiscal year beginning July 1, 2007 and ending June 30, 2008. Revenue from property taxes approved in the budget are the basis for setting the tax rates in early fall.
GoGreen Business Award Nominations Solicited
The City annually awards small and large businesses for environmentally friendly workplace practices. Nominations are due to the City by April 27. More information on the GoGreen Business Awards and nomination forms are available at from the City website at GoGreen.
State Issues
Health Care Legislation
The Commonwealth’s Health Care Connector continues to implement the Health Care reform law passed last year. It is possible that some deadlines will be postponed. State Representative Marty Walz, who also is an employment law attorney with Chamber member Littler Mendelson, has written an update on the current status of the law. The update is available at Massachusetts Health Care Reform Law Update.
North Point
Almost two months ago a ruling by the Supreme Judicial Court of the Commonwealth found that actions by the State Department of Environmental Protection exceeded the agency’s statutory authority regarding development at NorthPoint. This decision has far reaching impacts on projects, completed, in development, and planned, throughout the Commonwealth. At the recent preliminary budget hearing the City Manager noted that the City’s budget estimates assume completion of the planned development at North Point.
The Boston Globe and the Boston Herald have both published opinion pieces on this ruling within the past week. The Herald published a column written jointly by David Begelfer CEO of the Massachusetts Chapter of the National Association of Industrial and Office Properties and Vivien Li, Executive Director of The Boston Harbor Association. The column is available at “To save shore, investments.”
The Boston Globe wrote an editorial calling for the legislature to act on this issue. The editorial is available at “All Wet on NorthPoint.”
April Meeting of the Business Coalition
Director of Government Affairs Terrence Smith represented the Cambridge Chamber at a recent meeting with met with Secretary of Housing an Economic Development Dan O’Connell and Legal Counsel and Permitting Ombudsman Gregory Bialecki. Both discussed the administrations efforts to assist the business community create jobs and economic opportunity in the state.
Secretary O’Connell reported that Governor Deval Patrick has reorganized the State’s economic development departments bringing the Departments of Economic Development, Housing and Community Development, and Consumer Affairs and Business Regulation under the Executive Office of Housing and Economic Development. The Governor has also established a Development Cabinet that includes Secretary O’Connell and the Secretaries of Energy and Environment, Administration and Finance, Labor, and Transportation. The Governor has also been doing direct outreach to executives of Massachusetts businesses to better understand what the state can do to encourage retention and growth of Massachusetts companies.
The permitting ombudsman was established in the Economic Stimulus legislation passed last year and Greg Bialecki is the first person to hold this position. His responsibility is to work with both developers applying for permits and State agencies to ensure that the process works as efficiently. He noted that the State has developed incentives for communities to identify specific areas for redevelopment that will allow for a streamlined permitting process at the local level.
Bialecki said that one of the issues the State needs to address is the lack of investment in infrastructure over the past twenty years that has resulted in strains on transportation, water, sewer, and other systems. The state recently announced a $100 million grant program for infrastructure improvements tied to development projects that will create jobs. he state has also developed incentives for communities to allow more intensive development of residential units.
The meeting was sponsored by Business Coalition, an informal assembly of representatives from local and statewide business organizations. The group plans to meet with Secretary O’Connell once a quarter.
