Newton’s four Neighborhood Area Councils — Newton Highlands, Waban, Upper Falls, and Newtonville — are beginning their 2024 season by electing officers and setting goals for their two-year cycle. Much of their focus in recent years has been the redesign of their village centers as well as a number of proposed development projects. While the City Council has passed the combined MBTA Communities Act/Village Center Overlay District zoning proposals, there are ongoing and additional development plans affecting local residents.
Area Councils were established under Article 9 of Newton’s City Charter “to encourage citizen involvement in government at the neighborhood level by permitting limited self-government through the establishment of neighborhood area councils as legal entities of the city government.” The City Council also has the right to dissolve local area councils. Local area councils encompass neighborhoods that are not necessarily defined by ward. For example, the Newton Highlands Area Council represents some of Wards 5, 6, and 8. Newtonville’s Area Council contains most of Ward 2, some of Ward 1, and a sliver of Ward 3. Area Councils may have between 5 and 9 elected members. Currently, Newton Highlands, Upper Falls, and Newtonville each have eight members; Waban has three elected members. Area residents may apply for, and be appointed to fill, vacancies.
Jeremy Freudberg, recently re-elected Newton Highlands Area Council President, is committed to working with newly elected Ward 6 and Ward 8 City Councilors — Martha Bixby and Stephen Farrell, respectively. He is hoping to expand the reach of the Area Council by producing resident surveys like the ones developed by the Newtonville and Waban Area Councils. Among the objectives of the Newton Highlands Area Council is an expanded informational website. The Area Council will continue to monitor development projects and the City’s plans for Crystal Lake. The Newton Highlands Area Council, the oldest of the four area councils, marks its 50th anniversary this year and plans a Village Day celebration of it. Its annual Village Day generally attracts several thousand people.
Chris Pitts, the new (and a former) President of the Waban Area Council — replacing Rena Getz, now a City Councilor from Ward 5 — told Fig City News that the Waban Area Council plans to: focus on reviving the Friends of Quinobequin subcommittee to deal with Waban’s portion of the park; work to find an effective solution for Area Council elections; develop more local resident surveys; plan a Native American event; and partner with other Area Councilors and City Councilors on a range of issues.
The Upper Falls Area Council has been engaged in the extensive 800-unit Northland development project and the remodeling of Needham Street. Upper Falls Area Council member Jay Werb is a member of the Northland Liaison Committee. In addition, Pettee Square in Upper Falls is scheduled for renovation this year. The Upper Falls Area Council has eight members and plans to elect officers at its January 18 meeting.
Newtonville Area Council’s Vice President, Laura DeVeau, elected to the Area Council last year, chaired a committee that produced a resident survey and is planning additional surveys to elicit local priorities in the areas of pedestrian safety, public transit issues, and welcoming small businesses. The Area Council is also committed to increasing local awareness of its existence.
In 2018, the Newtonville Area Council developed a survey focusing on Washington Street development, sent to 11,000 residents, of whom 2,500 responded. Peter Bruce, former Newtonville Area Council President, developed a 3D village center model to assist constituents in understanding the project. Mr. Bruce praised the City Council candidate debates, organized by the local Area Councils and moderated by Marjorie Arons Barron, and the success of Newtonville’s Village Day, which generally attracts between 4,000 and 5,000 residents.
Opinions vary about the efficacy of Area Councils. In discussions with Fig City News, City Councilors Andreae Downs and Bill Humphrey expressed their views. Councilor Downs, a founding member of the Waban Area Council, says that people do not seem to be interested in Area Councils. “Considering how accessible City Councilors are, why do you need Area Councils?” she asks. She noted that there are plenty of local groups that people could join, and they offer a lot of opportunity for discussion. Bill Humphrey — who, as Ward 5 Ward Councilor, is an ex-officio member of the Waban, Upper Falls, and Highlands Area Councils — said he does not know what Area Councils do that local neighborhood associations do not do. He noted that they are not filling their membership slates and generally appoint members. “It’s a stretch to say they are elected when most are appointed.” According to Councilor Humphrey, neighborhood associations have more freedom because they do not need to abide by the Open Meeting Law and are effective disseminators of local information. Moreover, he believes that Area Councils are a burden on the election process because they are not subject to mail-in ballots and require special staffing at polling places. Jeremy Freudberg counters that Area Councils should not be private clubs, but rather, they exist to engage a wide range of people in discussion of local issues, generally in the presence of City Councilors.
City Councilor Tarik Lucas, who was a Vice President of the Newtonville Area Council in 2019, disagrees. He told Fig City News that he learned about city government through serving on that Area Council, and there he helped to develop the Washington Street survey tool. Moreover, he noted that Area Councils raise their own money, which they use for a wide range of local benefits. In 2015, 2017, and 2019, there were competing slates for the Newtonville Area Council, and turnout was high.
Newton Center’s Marylee Belleville, who has been involved in discussions about village center redesign, feels that Area Councils provide more representation. She suggests that the absence of Area Councils limits democracy. She said that Area Councils are a lot closer to local neighborhoods than the City Council and have a designated standing that neighborhood associations lack.
See the City’s website for information about Area Council meeting schedules, minutes, materials, and catchment areas
Ed. Note: Before joining Fig City News, the author was a vice president of the Newtonville Area Council. She is treasurer of Tarik Lucas’s campaign fund.