Daily News Question of the Week: Ward 5 candidates address council efficiency

Daily News of Newburyport article

Question of the Week

The City Council is good at passing budgets, approving appointments and accepting gifts. But when it comes to major projects it seems like proposals get stuck in the mud. The Bartlet Mall frog pond renovation project, the future of the former Brown School, Lower Atkinson Common parking issues, moving NYS to 59 Low St., are just four examples.

Do you agree with Councilor Ed Cameron who recently claimed the council was "foot dragging on several stalled or stalling projects"?

My full response

“Yes, I agree. The Council’s role is to verify that projects proposed by the administration are in the public interest by approving the project’s budget and financing. Projects stall when Councilors attempt to micromanage decisions that should be made by the administration with input from subject matter experts. The City Council needs to stay in their lane; executive decisions must be made by the administration.

The administration did their due diligence for the Bartlet Mall frog pond. The project remediates an environmental hazard and improves accessibility which is in the public interest. The Council made financing contingent on their approval of the final design. The project is being held up in committee by individual Councilors second guessing the work of a licensed professional engineer.  Inordinate questioning of design details by a competent engineering firm burdens the Planning Office and increases consulting fees. Such delays also threaten to increase the overall cost of the project.

Public comment and recent letters to the editor show that converting the Brown School to affordable senior housing is the desire of the community.  Individual Councilors want to keep the gym and cap the number of affordable units at 20, which could make the project ineligible for tax credits and state funding.  The $1.77 million price tag to renovate the existing gym for limited public use is not in the public interest. A gym will be built at the Newburyport Youth Services (NYS) facility. NYS is another project stalled by individual Councilors questioning expert advice on conservation land use and project scope, such as the inclusion of necessary office space.   

The Council must work to provide the administration with trained experts to inform decisions on project scope, which will allow Newburyport to effectively compete for grant funding. We need to keep politics out of decisions best made by experts in street design, water management, and other crucial city functions.”