The Cambridge City Council met on Monday and received reports regarding electric vehicle charging facilities and business composting, passed an order regarding driving and cell phones and passed several orders related to environmental issues. The Council also received a report from the Ordinance Committee regarding zoning to facilitate vehicle sharing services. The Council meets next Monday at 5:30 p.m. in a regular meeting.
As was reported in last week’s Update the City held its annual GoGreen Business Awards event on Tuesday May 29. I missed one of the Chamber members that received an award. Congratulations to the Cambridge Health Alliance, recipient of the award for Energy, Large Organization. Other Chamber members receiving awards were :Genzyme, Climate Protection, Large Business; The Charles Hotel, Transportation, Large Business; Irving House, Transportation Small Business; Forest City Development, Storm-water Management, Large Business; Homeowner Rehab Inc., Energy, Small Organization; and Volpe National Transportation Systems Center, Waste Reduction, Large Business. Again, congratulations to all the award recipients.
Chamber staff look forward to seeing many of you at our Annual Excellence in Business Awards dinner tonight.
Upcoming GAC Events
The 2009 Government Affairs program is sponsored by Genzyme.
Tuesday June 23, 2009
This would be the date if we were to do a June GAC. This date is being held open should the GAC need to meet regarding a number of policy issues that may arise before the Council breaks for its summer recess. Please watch this space. If you have any questions, please contact Terrence Smith at 617- 876-4213 or by e-mail at tsmith@cambridgechamber.org.
June 1, 2009 City Council Meeting
The Cambridge City Council met on Monday and much of the discussion focused on environmental issues. The Council received reports regarding city efforts to ensure that electric vehicle charging facilities are available in Cambridge and a report on businesses and institutions composting materials. The Council passed orders regarding several environmental issues including urging state action on zero-net energy buildings and the beverage container law and the actions required for the City to implement the “stretch” building code. The Council also passed and referred to committee an order regarding banning use of cell phones and texting while driving in Cambridge and received a report from the Ordinance Committee regarding zoning to facilitate vehicle sharing services.
City Manager Reports on EV Charging and Composting
City Manager Agenda Item 2 reports on City’s on-going work to ensure that electric vehicle charging opportunities are available in Cambridge. The Manager reports that Community Development has studies several models for charging infrastructure and is in the process of bringing interested stakeholders together to assess issues and opportunities. The City Manager noted that one major issue regarding electric vehicle charging is that the environmental benefits of chargeable electrical vehicles are impacted by when charging is done. It is not generally viewed as beneficial to charge during peak-electrical use times. This issue has also been discussed in the Cambridge Climate Protection Action Committee and it is likely that zoning issues will be discussed by the Green Building/Green Zoning Task Force.
City Manager Agenda Item 7 responds to a Council Order asking how many Cambridge businesses and institutions are composting and what efforts are in place to increase participation in composting programs. The reports states that sixty businesses and institutions are composting through a company under contract to the City and efforts are on-going to recruit additional participants. Businesses and organizations interested in participating can find more information at http://www.cambridgema.gov/TheWorks/departments/recycle/compost_that_stuff.html.
Policy Orders on Environmental Issues
Policy Order 5 urges the Governor to sign an Executive Order requiring al new homes and businesses to be zero energy by 2030.
Policy Order 7 asks the City Manager to transmit to the City Council the method by which the City can adopt the state’s “stretch” energy code. This code was recently approved by the Massachusetts Board of Building Regulations and Standards (BBRS) and allows communities to enact the code effective on either January or July 1 and requires a six month period between the time a City or Town enacts the code and when it goes into effect. Several Councillors would like the code to be in effect as soon as possible which would require action before July 1, 2009 for it to go into effect by January 1, 2010. An issue that has been raised by some in the building community is the need for sufficient time and resources to train staff in both industry and in regulatory organizations about this code.
Policy Order 9 urges the State Legislature to support updating the Massachusetts Container beverage Law to broaden the types of containers subject to the deposit requirement.
Banning use of Cell Phones and Texting While Driving in Cambridge
Policy Order 4 asks the City Manager to confer with appropriate departments regarding local regulations to ban the use of cell phones and texting while driving. The Council referred the matter to the Civic Unity Committee for a hearing.
Ordinance Committee Report on Vehicle Sharing Zoning Amendment
Committee Report 1 is from a May 7 hearing of the Ordinance Committee regarding a proposed zoning amendment to facilitate shared vehicle services in Cambridge. Currently one company, Zip Car, operates a vehicle sharing service in Greater Boston. Zip Car was founded and is headquartered in Cambridge and is a member of the Chamber.
The amendment is required because City staff have determined that the current zoning regulations would only permit the rental of spaces for vehicle sharing services at commercial parking lots and in some instances where available parking is in excess of that required under the zoning ordinance. Zip Car currently rents parking spaces throughout the City and selects sites based on the demand from the 10,000 members in Cambridge.
The Chamber supports this amendment not only because it will benefit our member business but also because the availability of these vehicles throughout the City provides mobility to residents and visitors while reducing the number of vehicles parked in the City. The availability of this type of service is also important to those property owners who must comply with the City’s Parking and Traffic Demand Management (PTDM) ordinance. The Planning Board has also held a hearing on this matter and a recommendation is expected soon.
The Committee report includes a request for City staff to compile and report to the Council on the regulatory treatment of vehicle sharing services in other communities. Zip Car is the largest vehicle sharing service in the country and serves members throughout North America and recently expanded to London, England.
For a listing of public meetings, visit the Public Meetings link or the Public Meeting Notices area of the City of Cambridge Web site.
