This week, the City of Newton achieved Safe Harbor status with regard to a state housing law, Chapter 40B — over 50 years after the law was enacted in 1969. In communities where Safe Harbor status has not been achieved, developers may bypass some local zoning requirements for projects that…
Posts published in “News”
As shopper after shopper visited Auburndale gift store Just Next Door this week, they greeted owner Amy Shih with praise, gratitude, and wistful regret that she will soon be shuttering the beloved business. When customer Jenny Rosenthal — a Newton resident who has been buying presents there for 10 years…
Unresolved NTA Contract Overhangs Meeting Agenda. The School Committee meeting on January 8, consistent with prior meetings for the past few months, began with several public commenters advocating for higher City budget allocations to Newton Public Schools (NPS) in order to settle the outstanding negotiation with the Newton Teachers Association…
“The reason grief can be so hard is because it can feel so isolating,” Julia Ong reflected while discussing the 2021 death of her younger child, Avery. Even before their daughter died, the Newton resident and her husband, Jordan Bray, experienced the crushing weight of grief upon learning the baby’s…
Recent honors, appointments, and arrivals for people who live or work in Newton…
The Zoning and Planning (ZAP) Committee held its first meeting of 2024 on Monday, January 8 with its new chair, veteran City Councilor Lisle Baker, presiding. In a memo to the Committee, Councilor Baker proposed that the members engage “in a preliminary discussion about where the Committee might spend its…
Soon after being sworn in by Mayor Fuller on January 4, the Newton Highlands Area Council elected officers for the new term: Jeremy Freudberg, President; Barbara Darnell, Vice-President; Groot Gregory, Treasurer; and Srdjan Nedeljkovic, Secretary. City Councilors Bixby, Farrell, Getz, Lobovits, Lucas, and Wright attended the meeting. The Area Council…
In response to rising COVID-19, RSV, and flu infection rates, local hospitals have recently brought back masking requirements. Dana Farber began requiring full masking by patients and providers on December 18. Since January 2, MassGeneral Brigham, which includes Newton-Wellesley Hospital, has been requiring providers to be masked when providing care…
Following up on our analysis of preliminary election spending, Fig City News has analyzed campaign finance data for all 14,564 donations to Newton City Council and Mayoral campaigns since 2015 to explore where the money came from and who received it. Candidates for City Council and Mayor in Massachusetts must…
Monday, January 1, 2024, was a day of beginnings in Newton. At noon on the first — bright, sunny — day of the new year, the recently elected City Council and School Committee joined the Mayor in the City Council chamber to launch the opening meeting of the 2024-2025 session…