Politics
Politics
Murphy’s got it right: City Council needs to flex its powers
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Steve Murphy— Boston’s City Council president— has ruffled some feathers in City Hall in recent days by suggesting that he and his council colleagues should have a more direct role in resolving two critically important developments before city government: casinos and the hole in Downtown Crossing created by the demolition of the old Filene’s building. Read more
High court ruling in Turner case could change local rules
Feb. 1, 2012
An upcoming case before the state’s highest court, stemming from the Boston City Council’s removal of convicted former Councilor Chuck Turner, could alter how city and town governing bodies regulate their own membership. After Turner was found guilty of accepting a bribe and lying about it to federal investigators in 2010, the City Council invoked a rule to remove Turner from the panel for violating his oath of office.
At the center of the court battle is whether the City Council had the legal authority to remove Turner when they voted to vacate the District 7 seat in Dec. 2010. Read more
Former Patrick aide leaving UMass, headed to private sector
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A year after rejoining UMass Boston, a former top aide to Gov. Deval Patrick is on the move again. Effective Feb. 10, Arthur Bernard, vice chancellor for government relations and public affairs, is headed to the private sector.
He'll be joining up with a former boss, Robert Travaglini at Travaglini, Eisenberg and Kiley LLC, a government relations firm. Travaglini served as state Senate president, and for four years Bernard was his chief of staff. Read more
Hart moves up the ranks in State Senate leadership
Jan. 24, 2012
South Boston Sen. Jack Hart and Worcester Sen. Harriette Chandler moved up the Democratic leadership ladder in the Senate Tuesday and Sen. Karen Spilka of Ashland broke into the ranks of Senate President Therese Murray's closest advisers. Read more
Voting rights coalition proposes its own City Council redistricting map
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A coalition of voting rights advocates are pushing map redrawing the boundaries of City Council districts, which could result in revamped Dorchester districts and two incumbents potentially pitted against one another.
A City Council committee, headed by District 2 Councillor Bill Linehan, is working on approving a map. Growing populations in downtown Boston and northern neighborhoods mean the lines have to be redrawn in order to equalize the population numbers. For example, Dorchester’s District 3 needs to pick up residents, while District 2 must shed residents. Read more
Foes rally against ‘three-strikes’ legislation
Jan. 12, 2012
State Rep. Byron Rushing (D-Roxbury/South End) spoke during a public forum on Saturday at the Dudley Square branch of the Boston Public Library. Shown at right are State Reps. Gloria Fox (D-Roxbury), Russell Holmes (D-Mattapan/Dorchester) and Carlos Henriquez (D-Dorchester/Roxbury).
More than 250 people crowded into the Dudley Square Branch Library on Saturday to voice their concerns about a pair of bills that would implement a “three strikes” sentencing policy in Massachusetts, claiming the legislation will disproportionately affect communities of color. Read more
Dot author Lehane tries on BPL trustee hat
Jan. 12, 2012
City officials, in an attempt to get celebrated author Dennis Lehane onto the Boston Public Library’s board of trustees, did a simple thing: They asked.
“I got the feeling they were circling me for a little bit, but I was mostly living out of state the last couple of years,” Lehane told the Reporter on Tuesday, after his first meeting of the trustees, where he was introduced to staffers and his fellow board members by Boston Public Library chief Amy Ryan. “And I let it be known when I met Amy that should the question ever be asked of me, I would do anything for the library.” Read more
Reporter's Notebook: Council prez eyes new course on Eastie casino question
Jan. 12, 2012
City Council President Stephen Murphy appears to be shifting course on the 13-member body’s approach to the issue of siting a casino in Boston. Read more
No matter the issues, evictions always take time
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Alan Duffy, a Dorchester resident who works as a constable in Suffolk County, says there is little that the city can do to speed up an eviction process. Photo by Pat Tarantino
The landlord of a troubled property on Savin Hill Avenue home has started the process of evicting a trio of tenants arrested after a large brawl outside the house earlier this month. But Boston’s complicated eviction process means the raucous residents are likely to remain in the apartment for at least another month and a half. Read more
Reporter's Notebook: Clerkship 'process' was disservice to Feeney and to the office
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Steve Murphy: Council president defended clerk process, pointing to a 'tight timeline'An extra-inning game of inside baseball came to a merciful ending yesterday with the City Council’s 10-2 vote appointing Maureen Feeney to the position of City Clerk, which comes with responsibilities as the body’s parliamentarian and purveyor of City Hall permits. The two dissenters to a unanimous approval were Councillors Tito Jackson, who voted "present,” and Charles Yancey, who cast a vote for another applicant, Natalie Carithers.
So the $102,000-a-year clerkship that Feeney has coveted for years is finally hers. But the road that led her to the title of “Madame Clerk” was a rocky one, and the entire affair almost demands the application of an asterisk now, because the supposedly open process was a disservice to both her and the position. Read more
