On November 18, the City Council approved Mayor Ruthanne Fuller’s nominations of former City Councilor Deb Crossley and Charles Eisenberg for one-year terms as associate members on Newton’s Zoning Board of Appeals (ZBA).
The vote on Crossley’s nomination was inverted, in that Yes vote signified denial of the nomination and No vote indicated approval of it. A two-thirds vote would be needed to reject the Mayor’s nomination. Since 22 Councilors were present, a rejection would require 15 votes. The vote was 13 voting No (i.e., against the 4-4 tied ZAP recommendation to deny, and thus for the Mayor’s nomination) and 9 voting Yes (i.e., against the nomination). (See NewTV video.)
This inverted approval process was due to an earlier vote by the Zoning and Planning (ZAP) Committee, which voted to recommend Mr. Eisenberg’s nomination but did not vote to recommend Ms. Crossley’s.
At the November 14 ZAP Committee meeting, seven members voted on whether to recommend Mayor Ruthanne Fuller nominees – Mr. Eisenberg and Ms. Crossley – as associate members on Newton’s Zoning Board of Appeals. Five ZAP members voted for Mr. Eisenberg, and two abstained.
Ms. Crossley, an architect, as City Councilor had served on the Land Use Committee for ten years, chaired Public Facilities, and then chaired Zoning and Planning for four years. She lost re-election to the City Council in 2023. After some heated discussion in the ZAP meeting, the vote was four to approve and four to not recommend the nomination, which meant the Committee rejected the Mayor’s nominee. However, Mayoral nominations must go to the full City Council for a vote and can be rejected by the Council only by a two-thirds vote of those present.
In the City Council meeting, Ward 4 Councilor Randall Block said Ms. Crossley’s nomination was a reminder of “the rancor and divisiveness” present in the previous City Council, and he suggested that the Councilors were being “manipulated into arguing over an unnecessary dispute.” Councilor Albright countered that she didn’t feel manipulated. Rather, she believed the Mayor chose someone with expertise and long-term service.
Councilor Pam Wright, in opposition to the nomination, said: “I feel the Mayor is adding people to the ZBA for the 40Bs coming down the road with people who may not evoke safe harbor [the number of affordable units a community is required to provide]. In my opinion, invoking safe harbor will give us much better projects. Working with Ms. Crossley for four years on ZAP, I’ve seen first-hand that she is not open to different opinions. She pushes her own agenda. At public meetings, residents have repeatedly told me they were treated with arrogance and disrespected. The residents of Newton did not support her for City Council and voted her out. I will not support Deb Crossley for the ZBA….”
Reflecting those on the Council who spoke favorably of Ms. Crossley’s experience, long-time City Councilor Vicki Danberg praised her “technical skill as a long-time practicing architect,” noting that “she brings decades of experience in plan reading needed on the ZBA …and a complete and thorough understanding of Newton building requirements and Newton process …honed over many decades of experience. The law states clearly that this appointed position is based on the ‘Professional Qualifications of the appointee.’ Deb is an outstanding candidate in filling all the requirements of a ZBA member, and as such I consider her a terrific choice. …I know her to be an open-minded and careful listener. ….Her first act as a Councilor was to educate Council members to be the first community in Massachusetts to adopt the [building] stretch code [which focuses on low-cost energy efficiency for building construction].”
The Mayor’s nomination could be rejected only by a two-thirds vote, which with 22 Councilors present was 15 votes. The measure to approve the ZAP Committee’s rejection of the nomination failed (13 in favor and nine opposed), so the Mayor’s nomination of Ms. Crossley was approved.
Ed. Note: We revised this article to correct the explanation of the City Council’s vote on the Zoning and Planning Committee’s recommendation to reject the Mayor’s nomination of Ms. Crossley. We also corrected the description of her service on City Council committees.
