Last week, Damien Croteaux-Chonka’s letter cited Minneapolis as an example of a place where rents have gone down from building many more units and as a model for creating affordable housing elsewhere. Lacking direct evidence, he cites an article by Christian Britschgi, in the libertarian magazine Reason, who pays homage…
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As recent retirees, we moved to West Newton less than a year ago, after raising two children in a high performing school district in Connecticut. I have been following the news coverage and social media discussions of ImproveNPS’s petition. Petitioners’ assumptions and false choices are striking. The first false choice…
I had a long-standing problem with an extremely bright light shining at my house which appeared to be coming from a new building across the river in Watertown. My daughter suggested I contact Ward 1 Councilor Maria Scibelli Greenberg. Although Maria is not my ward councilor my daughter suggested that…
Walk any street, sidewalk or park and you will find littered plastic waste, including bottles, packaging and even floss sticks. Plastic is truly everywhere, even in our bodies, in the fish we eat and in the stomachs of marine mammals. It is poisoning seabirds, the marine environment and ourselves. The…
Margaret Ward recently asked the question: where did the cost of housing go down as a result of building more units? The answer is Minneapolis. In short, Minneapolis eliminated minimum parking requirements for new residential developments, which facilitated the increased construction of smaller apartment buildings, such as duplexes and triplexes.…
As I write this, Newton’s citizens are voting on three override questions. I have no idea how that will play out. What I do know is that there is a fundamental decision that must be made in Newton. Specifically, who should carry the burden of the cost of increased services…
The Charles River Region Chamber of Commerce opposed the general override as a threat to Newton’s small businesses. It cited economic headwinds (inflation, high borrowing costs, a possible recession, etc.) to argue Newton’s small businesses face enough challenges and this is no time to increase their tax burden. The Chamber wrote: “Without…
Hello. I am a student at Newton South high school and I am very concerned.There override vote happening on March 14. This override would allocate around $4.5 million to the Newton Public Schools and it is desperately needed. Without it the Newton Public Schools will be forced to cut certain…
Newton’s prevailing theory is that building a lot more inventory will lower the cost of housing. Then, please tell me why Manhattan is not affordable? They have greatly densified over the last few decades. Or Seattle? Or Washington DC? Surely there must be cities that you can cite where the cost of…
Engine 6 Newton Housing Advocated regrets that Mark Development has put on hold its plan to develop land around the Riverside MBTA station for laboratories and 550 units of much needed housing. We strongly support, however, its decision to negotiate with the state to use the shuttered Indigo Hotel on…