Cambridge Civic Journal

Issue 18
May 4, 1999

ONCE UPON A TIME

The Cambridge Civic Journal is produced by Central Square Publications, 366 Broadway, Cambridge MA 02139. All items are written by Robert Winters unless otherwise noted. Submit articles and comments to rwinters@math.harvard.edu.
Cambridge Civic Journal: www.rwinters.com 
Cambridge Civic Calendar: www.rwinters.com/calendar.htm

Contents:
0) Foreword
1) Mar 29 City Council meeting
2) Apr 5 City Council meeting
3) April 12 City Council meeting
4) April 26 City Council meeting
5) Calendar

0) Foreword

The time since the last issue of the CCJ has been a time of great civic angst for this writer. The announcements by Mayor Frank Duehay and Councillor Sheila Russell that they will not be seeking reelection this fall have been very unsettling. These outstanding civil servants have been the most stable influences on the City Council for some time and the prospect of City Hall without them gives me no comfort.

We can only hope that the elections this fall lead to future councillors who can match the wit and wisdom of these two individuals.

Though I shall not report on the May 3 City Council meeting in this issue, I will note that the Council did unanimously pass the amended Living Wage Ordinance that guarantees a minimum $10 per hour wage for city workers and employees of outside contractors working under City contracts.

You may want to check out the web site of the Cambridge Civic Journal listed above for up-to-date news and additional materials. For example, for the political junkies amongst you, the distribution of #2 votes behind all elected councillors and school committee members can be found there. This kind of information has been requested by a number of people now that there will be two vacant seats on the Council and probably two other vacancies on the School Committee.

1) Mar 29 City Council meeting

At barely two hours, this meeting was the briefest in a very long time. Perhaps it was the announcement three days earlier that Mayor Duehay would not be seeking reelection in November that led our good councillors down the path of brevity. Alas, resignation is such a scarce resource.

One of the more intriguing ideas heard at this meeting, at least to this observer, was Councillor Sullivan's remarks in response to a report from the City Manager about utilizing land in adjacent communities for either affordable housing or recreational facilities. The report was clear on the inadvisability of using this strategy for affordable housing based on the principal of retaining economic diversity within the bounds of the City of Cambridge. Councillor Sullivan took issue with the blanket dismissal in the matter of recreational space. He cited the fact that parcels in the vicinity of Boynton Yards behind Roosevelt Towers between Cambridge Street and the railroad tracks would be ideal for such use and were very close to a Cambridge residential area.

In an unrelated matter, the City Manager provided details about the proposed purchase of 57 acres of land in Lincoln to be donated to the Town of Lincoln as conservation land for water supply protection. Astute readers of the Cambridge Civic Journal are no doubt aware that the watershed for the Cambridge occupies portions of Lincoln, Lexington, Weston, and Waltham.

Councillor Born continued her quest to have the former Board of Alderman Chamber of City Hall restored for use as a public meeting space. The City Manager remains lukewarm at best about the proposal. The discussion spurred Councillor Reeves to give yet another carbon copy of his well-worn speech about meeting rooms for the License Commission and the state of the tile floors at City Hall.

Councillor Toomey chimed in with his opinion that the City should not be utilizing the Senior Center across the street from City Hall for public meetings, arguing that the space should be reserved for seniors. Since this space is not utilized on most evenings for senior activities, one could argue that Councillor Toomey is really championing under-utilization and inefficiency. State government can do that to a person.

The closing moments of the meeting featured several councillors reciting their favorite "Washington's Rules of Civility" from a Globe piece distributed by Councillor Davis. For example:

Councillor Davis' choices:

Kill no vermin as fleas, lice, ticks, etc. in the sight of others.

Let your countenance be pleasant but in serious matters somewhat grave.

Labour to keep alive in your breast that little spark of celestial fire called conscience.

Be not hasty to believe flying reports to the disparagement of any.

Frank Duehay's choice:

Be not curious to know the affairs of others, neither approach those that speak in private.

Ken Reeves' choices:

Cleanse not your teeth with the tablecloth, napkin, fork, or knife...

Drink not nor talk with your mouth full, neither gaze about you while you are drinking.

Sheila Russell' s choice:

Be not tedious in discourse, make not many digressions, nor repeat often the same manner of discourse.

The complete list can be found at: http://www.history.org/life/manners/rules2.htm

2) Apr 5 City Council meeting

Though twice as long as the previous meeting, this meeting was of tolerable duration at about four hours. The budget for FY2000 was available at the meeting and is scheduled for adoption at the May 10 meeting of the Cambridge City Council. The complete budget may be downloaded from the City's web page at http://www.ci.cambridge.ma.us/special/budget00.html.

The Council took care of some zoning business when they passed two amendments to the IPOP (Interim Planning Overlay Proposal) regarding parking structures and special permit procedures.

Public Comment

A number of residents spoke in opposition to Massport's plan to build a new runway at Logan Airport.

Nancy Hall of the Eviction Free Zone made a plea for the reinstitution of rent control, saying, "We need social ownership of housing, taking buildings out of the private market." She directed the Council to "do more than pay lip service to your convictions."

Other topics featured were a call for the restoration of the City's 1934 antique fire truck (Bill Jones), recreation of The Great Alewife Swamp (Ralph Yoder), and an invitation to a tree scavenger hunt (Karen Carmean).

After some discussion about crosswalks in Lafayette Square and morale in city departments, City Treasurer Jim Maloney presented an informative account of the history of the in-lieu-of-tax payments that Harvard and MIT contribute to the City. The topic came up because of recent reports of high rents in Harvard affiliate housing. Dormitories are tax-exempt, but market rate housing is not. The definition of what constitutes a dormitory is at issue.

It was, in fact, this very same dispute that led to the in-lieu-of-tax agreements 30 years ago, according to Mr. Maloney. Rather than face long and costly litigation, Harvard and the City came to an understanding that the City would not challenge the tax exempt status of Harvard's affiliate housing and Harvard would pay an amount equivalent to what the property tax would have been. Mr. Maloney characterized it as "a legal demilitarized zone."

MIT's in-lieu-of-tax agreement is based on an entirely different formula based on the total square feet of its tax-exempt buildings. Both the Harvard and MIT agreements are up for re-negotiation and renewal in the near future.

There was a report from Historical Commission Executive Director Charles Sullivan in response to an earlier order from Councillor Born asking what resources might be available to compile an oral or written account of Cambridge history from William Jones, a long-time fixture at City Hall. City Manager Healy brought satisfaction to Councillor Born when he said, "I'm sure Mr. Sullivan can find some money in his budget to complete this."

Councillor Russell suggested that, instead of interviewing Mr. Jones alone, it might be more productive to have Mr. Jones and former Mayor Walter Sullivan engage in a series of recorded conversations. Excellent idea.

An order submitted by Councillor Davis asking for a zoning analysis of the Mahoney's site (still called Treeland by many) and the surrounding area led to some informative discussion about the history of that parcel. Councillor Reeves stated that it was another proposal for that site years ago that led to the takeover of the Harvard graduation. Former City Councillor Saundra Graham was a central figure in that incident.

Mayor Duehay explained the provisions of the proposed Community Preservation Act, Mass. Senate Bill 1513. This would allow local communities to impose surcharges and transfer taxes for the purposes of open space acquisition, affordable housing, and historic preservation. The Council voted 8-1 on the resolution supporting this legislation. Councillor Galluccio voted "present."

Councillor Reeves spoke with great passion about the plight of young people who leave school and do not obtain any formal employment, do nothing, get involved in the sale of drugs, and are eventually arrested and go to prison. After release from prison, many return to prison within a year and a number of them never see their 30th birthday. Reeves said, "We are failing a youth population. Programming has to sometimes follow the demand."

In a rather awkward moment during the discussion of an order by Councilor Born thanking Mayor Duehay for his many years of service to the City of Cambridge, the Mayor mistakenly called on Councillor Reeves to comment on the order. In spite of some less than respectful remarks concerning Mayor Duehay from Councillor Reeves in the past, he did manage to come up with some halting remarks of congratulations and respect for Mayor Duehay in the wake of his announcement to not seek re-election this November.

Councillors Born and Davis were very generous in their words of praise for the role that Mayor Duehay has played over the last several decades in helping to bring the City to where it is today. Mayor Duehay noted that he was first elected to the Cambridge School Committee two weeks prior to the assassination of President Kennedy.

The Council passed two amendments to the IPOP provisions of the zoning ordinance. The first measure calls for the requirement of an IPOP special permit from the Planning Board for any new parking structure that adds more than 150 new parking spaces. The Planning Board recommended against this provision as unnecessary. It passed on a 6-3 vote with Councillors Galluccio, Russell, and Sullivan voting against it.

The second IPOP amendment called for the allowance of simultaneous permit applications relating to the IPOP. That provision passed unanimously.

3) April 12 City Council meeting

There was a chill air of mortality present at the start of this meeting as residents of East Cambridge offered their words of praise and respect for Planning Board member Hugo Salemme. Resolutions from both the Massachusetts House and Senate were read in tribute to Hugo, who is quite ill. A gathering to honor Hugo was planned for April 17. Rich Vendetti struggled with his emotions as he read the Senate resolution.

Perhaps the most striking moment of this Council meeting was what appeared to be a showdown between Councillors Galluccio and Toomey over "leadership" in the ComEnergy - Cambridge Research Park controversy. The moment that caused all the reporters to rush inside the Sullivan Chamber was when Councillor Toomey intimated that East Cambridge residents had been endangered in a recent accident involving a fuel truck. It was clear that Mr. Toomey was trying his best to cast the Manager in the light of negligence and the Manager would have none of it.

Public Comment

James Williamson treated us to yet another one of his accounts of the injustice allegedly done to Lori Berenson by Peruvian authorities. She is in prison for treason growing out of associations with known terrorists in that country. The Cambridge City Council has passed a number of supportive resolutions calling for a review of that case, though one has to wonder what impact such a resolution could have. Nonetheless, there was a communication from the Peruvian authorities in the materials for the May 3 City Council meeting.

Former School Committee member Sara Mae Berman spoke in opposition to expansion of the Main Library on its current site. She gave a history of decisions made in the siting of the high school on its present site and of assurances given at the time of its construction that adequate space would be allotted for the students of the high school. She made the case that expansion would lead to isolated spaces that could become a security problem. She expressed her preference for a Central Square site for the new Main Library and for keeping the current Main Library as a Mid-Cambridge branch library.

Francesco Caserta, Paul Shea, and Bill Cavallini spoke in support of the City facilitating the purchase of 8 Bigelow St. for affordable housing. It has most recently been used for seven single room occupancy (SRO) units, five 1BR units, and a large basement apartment. The preservation of 13 affordable units is complicated by the fact that the asking price is $847,000. [Scarce dollars for affordable housing might provide more units at a lower price elsewhere. Mr. Caserta and Mr. Shea are the only two remaining tenants in the building.]

John Pitkin spoke in opposition to allowing the Cambridge Research Park proposal to move forward. He likened the scale of the project to five Rindge Towers plus an Alewife-sized parking garage. He urged the Council to make whatever changes may be necessary to the Toomey-Born zoning petition in order that it may be able to stand up to the inevitable legal challenges.

The "leadership" issue goes ballistic

Councillor Galluccio brought up the issue of the ongoing controversy surrounding Lyme Properties and their proposed Cambridge Research Park on the former ComEnergy site in Kendall Square. He made the case that the time was long overdue for David Clem of Lyme Properties to negotiate in earnest directly with the East Cambridge Planning Team. When Galluccio stated, "The people of East Cambridge need some leadership right now," it was certain that Councillor Toomey, the de facto East Cambridge councillor, would respond in kind.

Councillor Galluccio proceeded to use last year's Area 4 controversy over the Bulfinch properties and the Carroll and Gregory zoning petitions as an example of a developer working with a neighborhood to come to an agreement. What he failed to mention was that the only reason that the neighbors were forced to accept that deal was that several councillors, including Councillors Galluccio and Toomey, would not support the very reasonable zoning proposals that the neighbors really wanted.

Councillor Toomey characterized Galluccio's comments as an insult to the residents of East Cambridge. He then hammered away at the City Manager for not providing the mediation and technical assistance that he and other councillors requested. He said that, in retrospect, the neighbors should not have acted so respectfully. He suggested that the mistake of the residents was that they should have "beat them up" and that because they didn't, they "got the shaft."

Councillor Toomey then went on to give a rather distorted report of a gasoline truck overturning in East Cambridge. The intimation was clearly that disrespect for East Cambridge was at the root of this as he said, "Thank God it didn't explode!" He added, "What will happen when they start moving contaminated soil through the neighborhood? The health and safety of the residents are at risk!"

City Manager Bob Healy came charging into the Council Chamber fit to be tied. As several city councillors gestured to him not to angrily respond to Toomey's assertions, the Manager explained that no truck had overturned and that there had simply been an accident in which several gallons of diesel fuel from the truck's fuel tank spilled and entered a catch basin.

Toomey then tried to make the case that there had been the potential of a gasoline explosion, but it was clear that this was just another chapter in Toomey's campaign to drive out the City Manager. This has become standard practice in Cambridge politics - when your arguments begin to unravel, just make a claim of environmental hazard and danger to residents.

After Councillor Russell intervened in an attempt to refocus the discussion on setting up a meeting between David Clem and the East Cambridge Planning Team (ECPT), Councillor Galluccio re-entered the fray suggesting that East Cambridge residents should now be negotiating for whatever benefits they might be able to derive from the development.

Councillor Davis brought up the idea that the City should be providing facilitation in this matter. Councillor Triantafillou made the point that the City Council had already gone on record in favor of this and that the City Manager had responded negatively. She questioned whether there was any point in passing a new order to this effect when they really ought to be getting the City Manager to respond to the previous order. At that point she turned to David Clem in the audience and asked, "Mr. Clem, would you go to a meeting?"

Mr. Clem was then permitted to address the Council and gave a history of his interaction with the ECPT. In the end he said he would be delighted to meet with the ECPT, though he said it was not always clear who was in charge.

Councillor Born defended the Toomey-Born petition, arguing that the petition was drafted in part to give some time for a resolution to be found. She said, "If it were not before us now, the show would be all over. The people of East Cambridge would be sold out and would be frustrated. This was not intended to do legal mischief. If the petition does nothing else than bring dialogue, that would be enough." She finished with a story of an East Cambridge resident who wanted to build a 900 sq ft unit in her backyard for whom the permitting process took longer than Lyme's process for their 1.4 million sq ft project.

Councillor Reeves stated his belief that dialogue with good people in the room can lead to good conclusions. He took issue with the characterization of the Area 4 case last year as anything close to ideal. He called it "30 pieces of silver - in some cases not 30". He suggested that the Mayor should intervene, to which the Mayor responded, "Fools rush in where angels fear to tread."

Phil Higonnet of the ECPT welcomed the prospect of renewed dialogue with David Clem and Lyme Properties

Agenda for Children

Ken Reeves spoke at length about the significance of the proposed Agenda for Children and the associated pilot program scheduled to begin this fall at the Harrington School and Frisoli Youth Center. The two basic goals established by the Kids Council and the broader Agenda for Children are that
a) all children and their families should be able to read, and that
b) all children and youth should have access to supervised activities in a nurturing environment.

Though these goals may sound simple enough, the implementation involves some very significant tasks. At its heart is the "extended day program" which will see the Harrington School utilized from 7am to 7pm providing a broad range of opportunities for children, youth, and their families. Staff will come not only from the School Department but from the Dept. of Human Services Programs and elsewhere. The program will expand to other schools and facilities over time.

Councillors Davis and Born spoke optimistically about the possibilities that will come as the Agenda for Children is implemented over the next several years. In describing her reaction to the full proposal, Born said, "We were so happy we all could have flown."

Other highlights

Included in the Communications for this meeting was a sharply critical response by US Attorney Donald K. Stern to a recent council order that objected to the use of the term "paddy wagon" in the government's appellate brief in the case of United States v. Kenneth Conley. He said, "While I appreciate the City Council's concern with the usage of a term in an appellate brief that some might find offensive, I would have thought that the Council's interest and concern with the Conley case might also extend to other issues. Apparently, the Council did not consider it necessary or appropriate to condemn the brutal beating and abandonment of a Boston plain clothes officer by fellow officers, nor pass a resolution encouraging those officers who were present to come forward with relevant information. One of those officers present was Kenneth Conley, who was convicted by a jury of committing perjury and corruptly obstructing the grand jury investigation of the deplorable civil rights violations inflicted on the beaten officer."

There was an interesting communication from an attorney at Hill & Barlow concerning the Toomey-Born zoning proposal for the area that includes the site of the proposed Cambridge Research Park. This letter raises the same issues and concerns raised at the Planning Board about the validity and legal viability of the proposed zoning amendment. It quotes the 1990 court case of National Amusements v. City of Boston. This decision should be required reading for anyone interested in zoning matters. The decision is available at www.rwinters.com/docs/NationalAmusements.htm.

Finally, I would be remiss if I did not draw attention to Councillor Reeves' order calling on the Cambridge Peace Commission to inform the City Council and citizens what they might do to support efforts for peace in Yugoslavia. Perhaps we should send the Peace Commission to Serbia. Now there's an idea.

4) April 26 City Council meeting

State Representative Jarrett Barrios and Robb Johnson of the Friends of Magazine Beach led off this evening with an update on efforts to build a partnership between the MDC and the City of Cambridge concerning Magazine Beach. What is envisioned is some sort of licensing agreement that would give the City certain rights to schedule the use of Magazine Beach in exchange for the City making some capital improvements and handling maintenance. The MDC is generally not very receptive to ceding control of any of its properties.

Public Comment

The most dominant topic of public comment was the disposition of the so-called "Putnam Park" at the corner of Putnam Ave. and Kinnaird St. This is a now vacant lot where once stood a building that had been involved in legal complications related to the city's former rent control laws. Thirteen people urged the City to do whatever it takes to prevent housing from being built on the lot.

The descriptions given of what is now on that lot were not consistent with what I found there, but, fictions aside, it would have been nice if that space could have been retained for use as a park. However, the property recently sold for over $800,000 and it is hard to imagine any scenario in which funds of that scale could be raised for a lot that small in size. Councillors Davis, Reeves, Duehay, Sullivan, and Toomey did their best to explain to the advocates why the numbers were against them.

Regular Business

The Council went into Executive Session for the purpose of hashing out some of the legal complexities associated with the proposed Toomey-Born amendment to the zoning ordinance affecting the Com Energy - Cambridge Research Park parcel.

Late in the meeting several late orders were introduced asking the Community Development Department and the Law Department to propose a substitute zoning amendment that would be similar to a 1991 Planning Board proposal for the affected area. Another order from Councillors Born and Toomey called upon the CDD and the Law Dept. to draft an ordinance for a moratorium on development at the ComEnergy site similar to the one that was previously in place at the WR Grace site.

After the Executive Session, Councillor Toomey exercised his right under the City Charter to delay discussion of all items on the City Manager's Agenda until the May 3 Council meeting.

Councillor Sullivan moved to have an additional $5 million appropriation added to the FY2000 budget for the purpose of acquiring a parcel of land on Fulkerson St. for open space. This proposal has been discussed in the Finance Committee and elsewhere for some time and could, with a street closure, result in a 6 acre site in East Cambridge when combined with existing playing fields. The resolution passed 9-0. At the May 6 Council meeting, a communication from the City Manager explained the legal reasons for not including the appropriation in the budget and reaffirmed that the City would most likely undertake eminent domain proceedings in the near future to acquire this or a neighboring site.

The Council voted to reopen the discussion of proposed changes to N. Mass. Ave. related to an upcoming sewer project. The proposal would remove portions of the existing median, add bicycle lanes, and greatly increase the frequency of crosswalks along that stretch of road from Porter Square to the Arlington line. Some residents have resisted the proposed changes in favor of keeping things more or less as they are.

There was a late discussion of the recent tragedy in Littleton, Colorado where two students murdered 13 people before killing themselves. Eight councillors offered their perspectives on the matter and tried to relate those events to what could or could not happen in the Cambridge schools. I imagine the same conversation took place in every city council, school committee and legislature across the country. Credit should be given to our elected officials for not proposing a ban on trenchcoats or some other irrelevant action.

The Council adjourned with best wishes to former Mayor Al Vellucci who was in the Cambridge Hospital.

City Council Scorecard:
Council Orders of Mar 29, Apr 5, Apr 12, and Apr 26

P (policy-related), I (requests for info), R (rules and procedural items), M (maintenance - potholes, traffic, etc.), D (deaths), C (congratulatory orders), A (announcements), and F (foreign and national policy). Here’s the approximate tally of orders introduced:

Councillor

P

I

R

M

D

C

A

F

Born

6

3

1

1

1

5

2

0

Davis

9

10

0

6

1

8

4

0

Duehay

8

1

2

2

0

14

6

0

Galluccio

4

7

0

2

41

19

1

1

Reeves

2

8

1

4

2

14

0

1

Russell

1

4

1

3

7

11

5

0

Sullivan

5

1

0

1

17

13

13

0

Toomey

4

4

1

7

23

16

11

0

Triantafillou

5

2

0

0

1

4

3

0

Total by category

31

36

5

25

44

88

42

2

Calendar:

Wed, May 5

8:30am   Cable Communications Planning Workshop - Arts and Cultural. Co-sponsored by the Cambridge Multicultural Arts Center and the Cambridge Arts Council. (Cambridge Multicultural Arts Center (CMAC), 41 Second Street)

3:00 - 5:00pm   Cable Communications Planning Workshop - Human Services (Senior Center, Central Square)

5:00pm   Meeting of the City Council's Ordinance Committee. (Sullivan Chamber, City Hall)

5:00pm   Public hearing to consider proposed amendments to the Zoning Ordinance on the re-filed Planning Board Petition on Yards.

5:30pm   Public hearing to consider a proposed amendment to the Zoning Ordinance on the petition submitted by Sheila Cook et al. relative to Yards.

6:30pm   Public hearing to consider a proposed amendment to the Zoning Ordinance on the petition submitted by Marilyn Zoeller Wellons et al. relative to Yards.

7:00pm   Cambridge United for Education (CUE) Spring Meeting (Cambridge High School Library)

7:30 - 9:00pm   Friends of Magazine Beach monthly meeting. Info: 868-6842. (Howard Johnson's, 777 Memorial Drive)

7:30 - 9:00pm   Public meeting of the City Council's Traffic and Transportation Committee to receive a presentation from the Truck Advisory Committee on the issue of a day-time truck ban and any other matters related to trucks. (Sullivan Chamber)

Thurs, May 6

8:00-9:15am   Envir. Desirable Practices/Recycling Advisory Committee meeting. (City Hall, Ackermann Room)

8:30am - 10:30am   Cable Communications Planning Workshop - Business. (Univ. Park Hotel, 129 Franklin St.)

5:30pm   The City Council's Food Policy Committee will conduct a public meeting to receive information on childhood hunger in Cambridge. (Sullivan Chamber)

6:30pm - 8:30pm   Green Ribbon Open Space Committee. (City Hall Annex, CDD Conference Room)

7:00pm - 9:00pm   Cable Communications Planning Workshop - Neighborhood (Main Library)

Fri, May 7

8:30 - 10:30am   Cable Communications Planning Workshop - Municipal Services (Main Library)

Sat, May 8

10:00am   Alewife Brook Cleanup: Call Betty Radwanski at 628-5565 or David White at 781-641-2879 for details.
Blair Pond, Claypit Pond, and Little Pond Cleanup: For info, call Lori Tsuruda at 423-2545 x308.

9:00am   Tree Walk of North Cambridge with Larry Acosta, Cambridge City Arborist. Tree care demonstration at 9am, walk from 10am to noon. (Meet at corner of Massachusetts Ave. and Clarendon Street.)

Mon, May 10 through Sat, May 15

9:00am - 5:00pm   Cambridge Police Dept. Open House.
The offices at the Police Station will be open for visitors to stop in and meet CPD personnel and find out what duties the various units are responsible for and get information on crime and safety issues. On Saturday, May 15, the Open House will culminate with a Bike Safety demonstration, a demonstration by the Special Response Team, displays in the Guard Room and a community barbecue. The barbecue will take place in the parking lot on Green Street from noon to 2:00pm.

Mon, May 10

5:30pm   City Council meeting. It is anticipated that the FY2000 Budget will be adopted at this meeting. (Sullivan Chamber)

Tues, May 11

6:00pm   The Cambridge School Committee meets in an informal workshop in the high school media cafeteria to hear presentations on the high school Delta Project and elementary school mergers.

Wed, May 12

5:30pm   Cambridge Bicycle Committee meeting. Contact Cara Seiderman at 349-4629 for info. (City Hall Annex)

Thurs, May 13

5:30pm   Meeting of the Cambridge Commission for Persons with Disabilities. (51 Inman St., 2nd floor conference room)

Sat, May 15

9:00am   Tree Walk of East Cambridge and Kendall Square with Larry Acosta, Cambridge City Arborist. Tree care demonstration at 9am, walk from 10am to noon. (Meet at Broadway & Main St.)

Mon, May 17

5:00pm   Special Presentation - The Mayor will make a presentation to the Cambridge Rindge and Latin School Drama Department, cast and crew on their performance of "The Land of the Astronauts" at the Massachusetts High School Drama Festival. (Sullivan Chamber)

5:30pm   City Council meeting (Sullivan Chamber)

Tues, May 18

6:00pm   The Cambridge School Committee meets at the high school media cafeteria. The Committee will hear presentations and public comment on eight School Improvement Plans.

Wed, May 19

12 noon   The City Council's Rules Committee will hold a public meeting to consider proposed changes to the Rules of the City Council recommended by the Joint Task Force. (Ackermann Room)

3:30pm   Annual Recycling Awards Ceremony (City Hall, Sullivan Chamber)

5:30pm   Meeting of the City Council's Ordinance Committee. (Sullivan Chamber, City Hall)

5:30pm   Public hearing on proposed changes to Ch. 8.28 of the Cambridge Municipal Code regulating youth access to tobacco and smoking in workplaces and public places.

6:30pm   Public hearing to continue its consideration of a proposed amendment to the Zoning Ordinance to regulate through truck traffic at night.

6:00 - 9:00pm   King Open School Silent Auction (Martin Luther King Open School, Upper Gym, Putnam Avenue)

7:00pm   Mid-Cambridge Neighborhood Association Annual Meeting (location TBA)

Thurs, May 20

6:30 - 8:30pm   Green Ribbon Open Space Committee. (City Hall Annex, CDD Conference Room)

Sat, May 22

9:00am   Tree Walk of Fresh Pond and Cambridge Highlands with Larry Acosta, Cambridge City Arborist. Tree care demonstration at 9am, walk from 10am to noon. (Meet at Concord Ave. & Griswold St.)

Mon, May 24

5:00pm   Special Presentation - The Mayor will make a presentation to the Cambridge Rindge and Latin School Science Team on winning the State Science Olympiad Competition. (Sullivan Chamber)

5:30pm   City Council meeting (Sullivan Chamber)

Tues, May 25

6:00pm   The Cambridge School Committee meets in an informal workshop in the high school media cafeteria to hear presentations on special education and world language programs.

Wed, May 26

11:00am   The City Council's Finance Committee will conduct a public meeting to discuss the property tax levy on University owned properties which are tax-exempt. (Ackermann Room)

Thurs, May 27

6:00pm   Cambridge Pedestrian Committee meeting. Contact Rosalie Anders at 349-4604 for more info. (City Hall Annex)

Tues, June 1

6:00pm   The Cambridge School Committee meets in the high school media cafeteria. Presentations will be given on the high school attendance policy and on the Cambridge School Volunteers program.

Sun, June 6

1:00pm - 6:00pm   Central Square World's Fair. Volunteers and vendors needed. Call Green Street Productions at 868-3247 for information. Rain date is Sunday, June 13.

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