By Patrick McGroarty
News Editor

A simmering dispute over private parking contracts on Columbia Point surfaced on Monday evening when Larry Baker, owner of Priority Parking, appeared before the Columbia Savin Hill Civic Association to request that the group give him permission to re-open the for-a-fee parking outfit that he operates out of lots at the McCormack School and St. Christopher's Church along Mt. Vernon Street on Columbia Point.

Baker says he has had an agreement with administrators from both the church and the school to operate out of their parking lots and that a percentage of his profits is returned to those institutions. But the parking lots are not zoned to include for-a-fee parking operations and Baker has always operated on a temporary license, facts that became an issue when a Harbor Point resident lobbied to have his operation suspended in mid-September.

"It's not a good idea for this to be operating in the neighborhood," said Lisa Donovan, a ten-year resident of Harbor Point. "He had flaggers and sandwich boards out in the middle of the street, and Crystal Transportation buses idling along Mt. Vernon, running shuttles for UMass students."

Baker said that both he and Bayside Expo Center had an agreement with UMass-Boston to operate overflow parking operations at the beginning of this school year to help the university alleviate what was anticipated to be a major parking crunch. UMass Chancellor Michael Collins announced in July that the university would close its massive in-house parking garage because of chronic problems with the facility's structural integrity.

Baker disagrees with claims that his operation resulted in increased congestion or safety concerns after UMass returned to school in early September.

"Over the course of six days we were open we parked about 400 cars," said Baker. "We were anticipating around 300 a day, and the low turnout is really a testament to how well UMass handled the situation. If they didn't get their lots ready in such a timely fashion, there would have been a lot more business coming down the street."

Baker is seeking a zoning board variance to continue the parking operation that he says he has had an agreement to run at the church and school since 2000.

Moments after the civic association passed a motion to support Baker's request for community approval until he could return to the association with specifics about the zoning variance, Donovan asked the association members what right they had to speak for the residents of Columbia Point, which she said falls outside the jurisdiction of Columbia Savin Hill. Donovan said that Baker should appear before the Habor Point Task Force, an organization of residents who live in the Harbor Point apartments. She produced a letter signed by the Task Force's executive board that outlines their support for the closure of Baker's operation, and said additional members of the task force were unable to appear at the meeting because their meeting was being held simultaneously.

Orlando Perila, executive director of the Harbor Point Task Force, said Donovan, who agitated many Columbia-Savin Hill association members with her rhetoric, is a member of the task force as all Harbor Point residents are, but does not officially represent the organization. Perila did not sign the task force letter because he is a paid employee of the organization. He said on Tuesday that he had serious concerns about increased car and bus traffic associated with Baker's parking operation, but that he would be willing to meet with Baker to discuss a compromise.

Spooky World comes to Bayside Expo

The Spooky World Halloween show will be held at the Bayside Expo Center on Friday through Sunday evenings from October 6 through the October 29. State Police Sgt. Brian Dunn told several local civic associations last week to expect a large number of visitors and marked increase in traffic for the event, and also promised that law enforcement officers would be working hard to keep order both within the Expo Center and in the surrounding community.

Catherine O'Neill, community relations director for Bayside, said at Monday's Columbia-Savin Hill meeting that turnout was not expected to be higher than for last year's Halloween festival, which did not bear the Spooky World brand name. She also said that steps had been taken to prevent an altercation similar to one that occurred last year when a pre-existing feud between teenagers from two local schools prompted a fight in the exhibition hall.

"We do not anticipate any problems that will negatively impact the community," said O'Neill.

UMass to pave gravel lots as winter looms

UMass-Boston will pave several satellite parking lots ahead of the November 15 deadline to halt asphalt work across the city, UMass Vice-Chancellor Andrew O'Brien said. The paving will take place at gravel lots near the Calf Pasture Pump Station created to alleviate the university's parking shortage. Some were frustrated that the paving would include land that abuts the HarborWalk trail.

"I find it ironic that as we prepare to dedicate the West Link Park, they're going to pave land that I thought was going to be part of the East Link Park," said Paul Nutting.

Amended bylaws up for discussion

Next month's meeting of the Columbia-Savin Hill Civic Association will be dominated by discussion of revisions to the civic group's bylaws. The proposed bylaws have been posted on the organization's website at collumbiasavinhill.org. Already, some association members have voiced concern about amended rules regarding committee selection. Under the proposed amendments, the association president would have the authority to appoint each committee member, who would in turn appoint the remaining committee members. Several association members have described that model as "too autocratic."