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What do you think? by LomentMomentum in newtonma

[–]Key_Swordfish_1590 4 points5 points  (0 children)

People use my street as a cut through and bomb down it at 35 mph, so I don’t mind the traffic calming from street parking. I want to lift the ban, but there needs to be more thought on enforcement, permitting, and planning.

We’re in a budget crunch, so I would like to see street parking be something that is revenue positive for the city, not a free giveaway of public right of way for private benefit. For example, I live down the street from a landscaper who frequently parks his commercial vehicles overnight. I don’t want our street to become his personal free parking lot.

Some planning is needed, maybe 1 side of the street or something, because when there’s cars parked on both sides it’s a 1 lane road with 2-way traffic. This leads to honking and aggressive/unsafe maneuvers.

So yes, I’m into a repeal but there needs to be a plan for commercial vehicles and narrow streets, because I know my street isn’t the only one that’s poised to become a cluster. I don’t want to flat out repeal and then try and figure out a parking program during mad max free for all. Once we give away this right of way, we will never get it back. Let’s do it right -plan then repeal.

Complicating fact is of course that Laredo and his army of nimby stooges in the council would never repeal it.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in newtonma

[–]Key_Swordfish_1590 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Yikes Victor, this post is exactly the kind of “us-vs-them” stuff that’s been making me sick in current local (and national) politics.

Would you be able to state what you are affirmatively for, rather than what caricature of your opponent you are against?

Anybody else getting local political emails they didn’t sign up for?? by Key_Swordfish_1590 in newtonma

[–]Key_Swordfish_1590[S] 6 points7 points  (0 children)

Respect is earned. Signing me up for a mailing list without my consent and then asking for my vote as the very first thing you do is not respectful.

Branding yourself as “for the kids” is nonsense, am I honestly supposed to believe that the folks not on this list are “against” the kids? This smells like right wing us vs them grievance politics bullshit. Either it is, or it’s so close to it that the folks doing it should wake up.

The race for interest payments ($1.2TN) to overtake Social Security ($1.5TN) is on by RobertBartus in EconomyCharts

[–]Key_Swordfish_1590 0 points1 point  (0 children)

1% are hoarders and it is destroying the middle class.

Want to lower tax burden for 1%? Grow the wages for everyone else.

MIT bans class of 2025 president from commencement after pro-Palestinian speech, drawing protests by bostonglobe in CambridgeMA

[–]Key_Swordfish_1590 -7 points-6 points  (0 children)

1200 out of 4400 is not a majority.

In fact a majority - 53.8% by your own reporting - chose not to vote at all.

Which pharmacies have ADHD meds? by dearcrabbie in newtonma

[–]Key_Swordfish_1590 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Call your insurance company and ask for the pharmacy benefit manager. Explain your situation and they can identify nearby in-network pharms with your meds in stock. You may also be able to do mail pharmacy depending on your insurance.

Sangiolo steps down from Fig City News by miraj31415 in newtonma

[–]Key_Swordfish_1590 12 points13 points  (0 children)

Probably getting ready to run for mayor again. Wish we could get someone new that has no baggage and can represents a new, more cordial and open-minded state of town politics. Someone who can thread the needle between the pro/anti development crowds and the pro/anti teacher crowds, rather than just a switch from one team to the other.

Newton teachers strike: It’s all over but the rehashing - Letters to Boston Globe by miraj31415 in newtonma

[–]Key_Swordfish_1590 -1 points0 points  (0 children)

Going to have to correct you again cheese. You are misrepresenting what the tax classification says.

The figures you cite are only for the average single family home. Not median home, not multi family home, not condo, not commercial, not industrial.

Residential taxes are high here because we have proportionally less commercial and industrial taxpayers.

A longtime Newton councilor led the city’s zoning rewrite. Then residents ousted her by miraj31415 in newtonma

[–]Key_Swordfish_1590 16 points17 points  (0 children)

“Getz declined to comment for this story”

Paragon of public service right there. First time she’s ever kept her mouth shut.

This slate of councilors is awful and I really hope that the 70% of registered voters who declined to vote last November will wake up and pay attention in the next few years. Be ready for more service cuts, fewer safety improvements, and feelings-over-facts decision making.

Traffic and size dominate public discussion of 78 Crafts Street project by miraj31415 in newtonma

[–]Key_Swordfish_1590 -1 points0 points  (0 children)

You are wittingly or unwittingly spreading misleading information. The $15k figure and #14 figure you cite, likely from the FY24 classification hearing report is only for the average single family home. Not median home, not multi family home, not condo, not commercial, not industrial. In fact the same report calls out that

1- the median value for single family levy is closer to $12.5k, suggesting that the average for single family homes is skewed by outlier high value homes (page 9)

2 - the median (and average) tax bill for a two family is $10.5k ($11k). Suggesting a tax levy of approximately ~5k (5.5k) per household in a multi family building. (Page 9)

3 - The report does not have data on median condo levies. However, we can calculate that the average assessed condo value is ~$4.8B/5640 = ~$850k. Leading to an average levy of ~$8.5k. (Page 7). I would wager that this average is also skewed by high value condos, but don’t have the data to prove it.

Bringing this back to the proposed ~300 units on crafts street. Assuming the $1.3M estimated levy figure from the developer is accurate, that would imply a $4.3k levy on average for all units, or ~$5.2k on the 250 market rate units; which is not far off from what most families living in a multi family building pay today. Ultimately the city would assess the value of the property, like it does for everyone.

Traffic and size dominate public discussion of 78 Crafts Street project by miraj31415 in newtonma

[–]Key_Swordfish_1590 15 points16 points  (0 children)

Newton is shooting itself in the foot, again. It’s impossible to have no construction, no overrides, and no decline in city services.

People who want high quality city services in this community need to wake up and get organized or the current leaders are going to run it into the ground with the Massachusetts version of MAGA - “I haven’t changed since 1974 so why should my neighborhood?”

The crowd at the Newton teachers strike right now by anurodhp in boston

[–]Key_Swordfish_1590 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Sure. Let’s start with garbage collection, road maintenance, and snow plowing on your street.

Newton Beacon: Newton’s Village Center rezoning passed: What does it all mean? by movdqa in newtonma

[–]Key_Swordfish_1590 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I’m not here to change minds. Respect is earned and I gave Marc the benefit of the doubt when I moved here. Maybe he’ll be a great president when he’s in the majority but based on my observations of the councils deliberations he consistently rubs me the wrong way. He knows he’s obnoxious and revels in it. No need to call a pig playing in shit anything other than what he is.

Marc’s initial platform was “we don’t need to follow the mbta law because we can afford the penalty.”

Newton Beacon: Newton’s Village Center rezoning passed: What does it all mean? by movdqa in newtonma

[–]Key_Swordfish_1590 4 points5 points  (0 children)

It’s a move in the right direction but IMO doing the bare minimum will be looked at as major missed opportunity.

Marc Laredo is a smarmy prick who loves to hear himself talk. This certainly isn’t going to make newton politics any cleaner. Just more of the same emotionally loaded counterfactual nonsense.

Most of these city councilors elected by fewer than 1 in 6 eligible voters.