Attorney Brian Golden, running unopposed candidate for City Council from Ward 7, is new to Newton politics, but not to elected office. He began his political career as a State Representative, serving 1999-2005, in the same freshman class with former Newton Representative Ruth Balser. Although his district bordered Newton, along the Allston-Brighton line, his connection to this city began much earlier when his father, Paul Golden, served as a Newton Police Department youth officer.
In 2009, Mayor Thomas Menino named Mr. Golden Executive Secretary/Director of the Boston Redevelopment Authority, later renamed the Boston Planning and Development Agency. Mayor Martin Walsh promoted him to head the agency, which he led until he left Boston City Hall in 2022. During his tenure, Boston residential development had expanded dramatically, although the Covid-19 pandemic reduced the need for office space. Under his leadership, 90 million square feet of development — including commercial, institutional, life science, hotel, retail and industrial — were permitted by his agency. In addition to committing the BPDA to undertake long-range planning for Boston, Mr. Golden led a number of neighborhood planning initiatives across the city. Life-science development across the city was a priority of the plan. Consistent with Mr. Golden’s belief that community engagement is an essential component in reordering and developing neighborhoods, he increased the agency’s personnel, introduced regular community participation sessions, and vastly expanded the number of large diverse projects.
Mr. Golden, the longest serving director of the agency, was at the helm of Boston’s biggest development boom when Marty Wash was Mayor. As the head of the city’s development strategy, Mr. Golden explained that he “worked to get to ‘yes’ in development projects, but not at any cost. Development doesn’t work well if the community does not have a meaningful voice. By the 21st century, we learned lessons and neighborhoods were more thoroughly engaged.” The BPDA wanted community support for development, which meant more conversations between local communities and City Hall.
Mr. Golden hired community engagement managers, and to increase community input, the office’s Language Access Plan provides access to community participation to non-English speaking residents. And while Newton is considering the possible repeal of its winter parking ban, at Boston City Hall Mr. Golden pushed for changes in the affordable housing zoning code to remove off-street parking limits, allowing an easier, faster permitting process. In recognition of the city’s many options to meet climate challenges, increase affordable housing, and civic engagement, Boston won Special Mention for Singapore’s 2020 Lee Kuan Yew World City Prize, the only U.S. city to be given recognition that year.
Reflecting on the persistent lack of affordable housing in the Commonwealth, Mr. Golden conceded that “there are many competing interests,” because more affordable housing requires more development of market-rate units, and that involves “tough conversations.” At the same time, he suggested that the proposed development of the industrial zone north of Watertown Street offers real promise for housing creation and other uses.
Noting that people are continuing to work from home and large office space is empty, he believes that smaller, less expensive office space in the suburbs will be more attractive to businesses and workers. He believes that new development, whether large or small, requires close collaboration between City Hall and neighborhoods. “Success is dependent on circumstances and context. We need to determine how much interest there is among stakeholders in altering the existing built environment. …The goal is getting to yes.”
It has been more than twenty years since Mr. Golden ran for office. So, why now and why here? “Local office is where you can get things done,” he responded. “The state and federal levels of government are bigger, more remote, more complicated. There are more nuts and bolts to focus on in municipalities that can have a concrete and immediate effect on daily life.” For Mr. Golden, attending to pot holes and other quality-of-life issues is a way to play a positive role in the community. “It’s important in a democracy for people to be willing to serve,” he said.
Among the ways Mr. Golden has answered that call to serve is his thirty years in active and reserve military duty. His tours of duty included Bosnia, Iraq, and the West Bank. As a lawyer and graduate of the US Army War College, Mr. Golden was a member of the Judge Advocate General’s Corps, dealing with a wide range of legal matters in other countries. He retired two years ago as a Colonel. Before his appointment to the Boston Planning and Development Agency, he was Regional Director of the Department of Health and Human Services. Since leaving the BPDA, he has been working as a real estate attorney.
Mr. Golden is a graduate of Boston Latin School, Harvard College, the US Army War College, and the College of William and Mary Law School. The Golden family – his wife Kristin and five children – bought their house in Newton in 2006. His oldest daughter is a paralegal; his son is a sophomore at West Point; two of his daughters are at Newton North High School, and his youngest daughter is in elementary school.
When he joins his Ward 7 colleagues – Councilors Lisle Baker and Rebecca Grossman – he will take the place of Marc Laredo. All of the ward’s current councilors are lawyers, and Mr. Golden will continue that pattern. Asked about his preference for City Council committee assignment, he suggested that with his experience, the Land Use Committee would be a good fit.
