What happened to bulk trash pickup?

When the Board of Aldermen voted on the new trash contract last year, several of us asked how Newton residents would throw out items that were too large to fit in the trash carts. We were assured that any items that did not fit in the trash cart would be picked up if a resident called DPW to schedule a pick-up.

Now it appears that promise has been broken. According to DPW staff, the new policy is to limit the pick-up of additional items to five per week and to impose size restrictions on what will be picked up. When I called to schedule the pick-up of an old rug, I was told that it needed to be cut to not more than four feet in length. But if I did that, it would fit in my trash cart. I thought the point of bulk pick-up is to allow residents to throw things out that don't fit in the cart.

I'm going to look into this situation more, but it seems to me there has been a policy change without public input or deliberation that significantly degrades the quality of public services in Newton. When I learn more, I'll post it here.

Newton Applies for Google Fiber High-Speed Internet

I'm pleased to report that our citizen initiative to get Newton to apply for the Google high-speed internet pilot program helped the city to submit an application before last Friday's deadline. Maurya Sullivan of the Planning Department did much of the legwork in putting together the application. Also, Citizens Assistance Officer Aaron Goldman deserves a great deal of credit for managing to coordinate this project while dealing with flooding-related emergencies.

Only a few of the 600 communities that applied will make the cut and we won't know if we are among them for months, but I'm proud that we put our best foot forward. Also, I want to thank our many volunteers who put together the NewtonFiber.net web site and worked to support the application. In particular, Newton-Needham Chamber of Commerce President Tom O'Rourke acted quickly to survey Newton businesses to guage their interest, which led to a strong indication of support that may prove to be an important factor in our consideration.

Here's the full text of the press release sent out by the Mayor's Office:

City of Newton Applying to be a Google Fiber Test Community

Newton--The City of Newton hopes to become a test community for Google Fiber, an ultra high-speed internet network to be developed by Google.  The city is partnering with a local citizen initiative to complete an application by March 26th and encourages interested residents to voice their support.  If Newton is selected by Google, residents and organizations would have access to browsing speeds up to one-hundred times faster than what is currently available.

“It’s an exciting opportunity,” said Mayor Setti Warren.  “We have an extremely high percentage of computers in homes as a community, and we could benefit greatly from the increased internet speed if we are fortunate enough to be chosen.”

"This is a great opportunity for our tech-savvy community," said former Alderman Ken Parker who initiated the citizen effort.  "The company is looking for evidence that people want this service, and so they need to hear from interested citizens.  All Newton residents are encouraged to visit the Google website to nominate our community."

To nominate Newton to be a Google Fiber test community please visit:  http://www.google.com/appserve/fiberrfi/public/options and click on "nominate your community."

According to a statement about Google Fiber on the company's website, "We plan to test ultra-high speed broadband networks in one or more trial locations across the country. Our networks will deliver Internet speeds more than 100 times faster than what most Americans have access to today, over 1 gigabit per second, fiber-to-the-home connections. We'll offer service at a competitive price to at least 50,000 and potentially up to 500,000 people. From now until March 26th, we're asking interested municipalities to provide us with information about their communities through a Request for information (RFI), which we'll use to determine where to build our network."

Loose ends and getting roped into new projects

My eighteen years on the Board of Aldermen ended with a few loose ends left to tie up. I've been working with some of the current Aldermen to hand off projects. New Alderman Ruthanne Fuller has taken on the leadership of the effort to get Newton to deal with our $600 million post-retirement health care liability. I'm in the process of assembling documents and information to pass on to Ward 6 delegation relating to the dog-park issue, in particular setting up a neighborhood liason committee for Cold Springs Park.

I've been coordinating a community effort to gather support for and assist with Newton's application to be a pilot Google Superfast Internet community, which is sort of the continuation of my previous efforts to get citywide WiFi in Newton.

Another project I'd like to see finished is the installation of a solar-powered heating system for the Gath pool. As I put together more information on that, I'll post it here.

Is there something else that I promised to do but didn't finish during my years on the Board? If you know of something, please post it here. I've tried to avoid taking on any new civic responsibilities (e.g. committees, commissions, task forces, etc.) until I tie up the loose ends from my Aldermanic work.

Aldermen Run Universe (or not) on Common Ground tonight!

There will be a new, live episode of Common Ground on NewTV tonight. We have a panel that includes three members of the Board of Aldermen. We'll be talking about budget myths, clearing snow from sidewalks, and whether or not Newton Aldermen do (or should) run the universe. Tune in at 8:00 PM on NewTV's blue channel for the discussion. . . and to find out about a Newton policy initiative that might make a real difference in your life.