Over the years, as a member of the Advisory Committee and as a Town Meeting member I have cast hundreds of votes and been a proponent or petitioner of many warrant articles. Here are some that stand out in retrospect, but this is only a partial list. In every case, the successful outcome reflected the collaboration of many people. I am always open to working with other Town Meeting members.
Town-wide
Economic Development: Commercial and Residential
I was a proud supporter of amendments to the zoning bylaw that made possible commercial and residential development that has or will generate more revenue for the Town of Brookline in the form of real estate taxes, building permit fees, hotel occupancy taxes, and restaurant meals taxes. These developments include Two Brookline Place (Children’s Hospital) in Brookline Village, the Hilton Garden Inn, the Homewood Suites Hotel on Route 9, and the forthcoming Waldo-Durgin hotel and apartment building in Coolidge Corner. When I was on the Advisory Committee, particularly as chair of its Planning and Regulation Subcommittee, I was actively involved in writing or revising some of the proposed zoning changes that moved these projects forward and ensured that they added to Brookline’s revenues. These projects also brought or will bring residential and/or commercial vitality to the areas where they have been or will be built.
At the November 2023 Town Meeting, I voted in favor of the consensus proposal to implement the MBTA Communities Act and to add many units of multi-family housing—including affordable housing—along Harvard Street and at other locations. That proposal should serve as a model for other zoning changes intended to add housing units in commercial areas near public transit.
I also voted to move the Comprehensive Plan process forward and I look forward to seeing the completed plan.
Rodent Control
At the November 2022 Town Meeting, I was a lead petitioner, along with former Precinct 1 Town Meeting Member Anthony Ishak, for a warrant article that would increase funding for replacing open trash receptacles (in parks and public areas) with rodent-resistant “Big Belly” receptacles. As it turned out, there was not enough money in the budget to immediately implement that proposal, but many Brookline residents spoke at the public hearings on the warrant article. Their testimony revealed the scale of the post-COVID rat infestation, and put the issue on the Town’s agenda. I joined with other residents and Town Meeting members in urging Town Administrator Chas Carey to address the rat problem. He worked with town staff—particularly the Departments of Public Health and Public Works—to formulate and fund a Rodent Control Action Plan. That plan includes tougher regulations for trash storage and disposal, more staff for inspections and enforcement, a new small garbage truck, and more rodent-resistant trash receptacles. I recently met the Town’s new trash enforcement officer to look at where inspections and citations are needed in Precinct 1. During the annual hearings on the budgets for the Departments of Public Works and Public Health and Human Services, I ask what is being done to address the rodent problem and whether the departments have sufficient funding for this task.
Short-Term Rentals
In 2020–21, I served on the Moderator’s Committee on Short -Term Rentals (often referred to as Airbnbs). That committee was charged with drafting new bylaws to regulate short-term rentals. Short-term rentals were considered a problem because many residential units were being removed from Brookline’s regular, long-term housing inventory and rented out to short-term visitors. Investors were buying apartments and turning them into short-term rentals. Neighbors were also concerned that guests in short-term rentals were not always observing local rules regarding noise, parking, and trash. After much discussion and many public hearings, the Moderator’s Committee proposed new bylaws that would enable homeowners to rent part of their primary residence as a short-term rental, but would prohibit investors from doing so. The new bylaws also gave condominium associations more control over whether units were used for short-term rentals. The May 2021 Town Meeting overwhelmingly voted to adopt the new bylaws.
Enabling the Select Board to Focus on the Most Important Issues
As a member of the Committee on Town Organization and Structure, I drafted Article 11 of the May 2023 Town Meeting. That article amended Brookline’s bylaws so that the Select Board would have more flexibility in deciding whether to consider, for example, Town Meeting resolutions on national and international topics, but still would be required to make recommendations to Town Meeting on matters central to the functioning of local government.
Precinct 1
I have worked with Precinct 1 residents and Town Meeting members on many issues—fast-tracking permits for businesses in the St. Mary’s commercial districts, fixing signs, repairing potholes, making sure that trash is stored and collected correctly. A few examples of significant projects are listed here.
Pedestrian and Traffic Safety
Along with other Precinct 1 residents and Town Meeting members, I have worked to improve pedestrian and traffic safety. I helped to persuade the Town to install new signals at the intersection of Monmouth Street and Carlton Street. The timing of the previous signals could not be adjusted to prevent traffic from backing up, there were inadequate pedestrian signals, and the old signals were unreliable.
I attended many meetings to argue for a better pedestrian crossing on Park Drive near the Fenway MBTA station. Although Park Drive is in Boston, many Precinct 1 residents cross that road as they walk to the Fenway MBTA station, the Landmark Center, and other destinations in the Fenway area. Eventually, these efforts paid off when a crosswalk was added.
I also have been involved in discussions of the design for a new pedestrian crossing at the corner of Carlton Street and Colchester Street. The Department of Public Works plans to install that crossing later this year.
Carlton Street Footbridge
I joined with many other proponents of the Carlton Street footbridge in the long campaign that culminated in the reopening of the bridge in 2023,. In 2009, as an Advisory Committee member, I was at the center of the negotiations that produced the language of the motion that Town meeting passed by a vote of 194-24-3 to enable the Town to move forward on restoring the Carlton Street footbridge. Along with other Town Meeting members, I subsequently was an advocate for grant funding from the Massachusetts Department of Transportation—funding that paid for construction costs when the bridge was repaired and restored. There was much controversy about the bridge during the many years that it was closed. After the bridge was reopened, the number of pedestrians and bicyclists using it was three times as many as had been projected by studies commissioned by the Town. The bridge also includes ramps that make it more accessible to all users. The bridge project has won multiple awards, including state, regional, and national awards for historic preservation, engineering, and public works.
Monmouth Park
I am particularly proud of my work on Monmouth Park. Twenty-five years ago, the park was a neglected patch of dirt. Neighbors called it the “dog park” because dog owners would tie the gates shut and turn the park into a large dog run. In 2002, I worked with neighbors and Town Meeting members to persuade Town Meeting to vote to permanently protect the property as public parkland. Working with neighbors, I helped to organize the Friends of Monmouth Park to consider ways of improving the park and to lobby the Town to appropriate funds for renovating the park. After the funds were allocated, I served on the Design Review Committee that worked out the details of the how the park would be redesigned and improved—new benches, a play structure with a fire-fighting theme, a curving stone wall, and new plantings and trees (including elm trees for Monmouth Court). Our goal was to create a small park that would have something to offer all users, old and young. The renovated park reopened in 2006. The renovation project received an award from Brookline’s Preservation Commission. After 20 years, it was time to renovate the park again, although it did not need a complete transformation. I served on the Monmouth Park Design Review Committee in 2023–24. The next renovation will begin in spring 2025, and will include new trees, an updated play structure that will retain the fire-fighting theme, and repairs to paths and the fence.