Category Archives: Civics

About the city of Newburyport, MA, the people who live here, and the actions and the events that effect their lives.

Kathleen O’Connor Ives Running for State Senate

Kathleen O'Connor Ives for State Senate

On September 4, 2007, I met then candidate for Newburyport City Council at Large, Kathleen O’Connor Ives (Katy).

I found Katy to be delightful, smart, gutsy and energetic, someone who could be a real asset to Newburyport. But being a newcomer to Newburyport, I really and truly did not think she had a prayer in the upcoming elections.

It’s pretty gutsy to come into town and decide to get that involved in your new place of residence–to run for Newburyport City Councilor at Large.

And that she most probably didn’t stand a chance, but was running anyway, and against some pretty steep competition–a very accomplished incumbent and two former mayors no less.

That said a whole lot about Katy Ives.

And as I walked and talked around Newburyport, what I found was that everyone, once they had met Kathleen O’Connor Ives, wanted to see her on the Newburyport City Council (really, I’m not kidding).

And that’s no small accomplishment.

At first it was the more progressive folks and centrist folks that seemed to take a shine to Ms. Ives.

However, when I started to talk to more conservative folks, they had the same reaction. They liked her too.

And somehow Katy was overcoming the old Yankee suspicion about anyone “new,” combined with the old Yankee attitude of “you pay your dues.”

And Katy proved me wrong. She won. And Kathleen O’Connor Ives has turned out to be the Newburyport Councilor at Large everyone hoped she would be, winning two more terms handily for Newburyport City Councilor at Large.

Sound familiar.

Yup, Kathleen O’Connor Ives is now running for Massachusetts State Senate for the First Essex District. And as one of her supporters said, “In an old boy, old boy world, Katy may not be the most connected candidate, but she’s the smartest.”

And do not count Kathleen O’Connor Ives out in this election for Massachusetts State Senate on Thursday, September 6th. Once her voting constituency meets Katy Ives, they will have the same reaction that the people of Newburyport did in 2007, 2009 and 20011. And they will know she would be terrific as their state senator, and they will vote for Kathleen O’Connor Ives on Thursday, September 6, 2012.

Kathleen O'Connor Ives for State Senate

Katy’s website can be found here.

Katy’s Facebook page can be found here.

Citizens for Historic Newburyport to Take Down “Yes! LHD” Signs

This is a press release from Citizens for Historic Newburyport

Citizens for Historic Newburyport (CHN) thank Mayor Donna Holaday for speaking in support of a Local Historic District (LHD) at last night’s public hearing, and take to heart her appeal for all lawn signs and banners to be removed as the proposal moves to the Newburyport City Council.

LHD Yes! signs were made available by CHN last March at the request of residents upset by the appearance of signs installed earlier by opponents of historic district protections. Within days of becoming available, more than 200 LHD YES! signs were displayed by residents throughout the city.

“We think we’ve made our point,” said Jared Eigerman on behalf of CHN. “Proponents of an LHD are steadfast in their support of sensible, mainstream legislation to protect Newburyport’s historic character. Our 11 City Councillors will now take up the issue, and people of all views can contact them directly and at hearings going forward. Lawn signs won’t aid those deliberations.”

CHN volunteers have already begun to remove LHD Yes! signs in a process which should be completed by the end of the weekend.

Newburyport’s Local Historic District (LHD) Public Hearing

Public Hearing on the Newburyport’s proposed Local Historic District (LHD),

Thursday June 21, 2012, at 7PM

Newburyport High School Auditorium (not City Hall)

This is the legally required hearing, the one where people, for, against and I’m not sure, get to make a statement about the LHD proposal.

There have been lots of changes to Newburyport’s proposed Local Historic District (LHD), and no it’s not “lipstick on a pig” the way some folks have described it.

The LHD Study Committee has listened to the community, and those who may be totally against anything, well, nothing would make them happy. But, those who would like to find a “common ground” and are willing to compromise, boy or boy, the LHD Study Committee has listened to you!

For more information see previous post here.

Newburyport Daily News article can be read here.

You can also go to the City’s website for detailed information and updates here.

(And this was not decided by the election on June 5, 2012, that was the school projects and the Senior Center, all 3 projects passed. The proposed LHD will be voted on by the Newburyport City Council. After the public hearing, there are several legal steps the proposal will go through before it gets to the Newburyport City Council, and then it will go into “Committee” for deliberation, and then finally come out of “Committee” for a vote. The proposed LHD ordinance needs at super majority vote, 8 out of the 11 Newburyport City Councilors to pass.)

Newburyport Rail Trail, Phase 2, Public Meeting and Maps

On Thursday June 28^th, 2012 at 7:00 p.m., there will be a public informational meeting in the Firehouse Center for the Arts theatre for Phase 2 of the Clipper City Rail Trail and Harborwalk project. This is the part of the Newburyport Rail Trail that will go through the South End of Newburyport.

Here are 3 maps courtesy of the Newburyport Planning Office.

Rail Trail map 1, press to enlarge

Rail Trail map 2, press to enlarge

Rail Trail map 3, press to enlarge

And for more information or questions Geordie Vining, in the Newburyport Planning Office, is the project manager for Phase 2 of Newburyport’s Rail Trail.

Public Hearing on Newburyport’s Proposed Local Historic District (LHD) and Updated Information.

There will be a Public Hearing (this is the legally required one) on the Newburyport’s proposed Local Historic District (LHD),Thursday June 21, 2012, at 7PM at the Newburyport High School Auditorium (not City Hall).

Below is the summary of the LHD Ordinance and the LHD Ordinance updates (3rd draft, now officially called the “Preliminary Report”). Press images to enlarge.

LHD Ordinance Summary, page 1 (Press image to enlarge)

LHD Ordinance Summary, Page 1, Excluded Items and Reviewable Items (Press image to enlarge)

LHD Ordinance Summary, page 2 (Press image to enlarge)

LHD Ordinance Summary, Page 2, Additional Changes (Press image to enlarge)

The PDF version can be read here: 2012-public-hearing-lhd-ordinance-summary2

Or you can read the PDF version on the City of Newburyport’s website here.

Map of Newburyport's proposed Local Historic District (LHD), Press to enlarge

This is the map of the proposed Newburyport Local Historic District (Press to enlarge). It can also be seen on the City’s website here.

Complete information on the updates on Newburyport’s proposed Local Historic District (LHD) can be read on the City’s website here.

The Newburyport School Vote and Senior Center Passes

The Newburyport school vote and the Senior Center Passes!!

Good go’n Newburyport!!

Below are the election results thanks to the Port Pride Facebook page!!

School vote and Senior Center passes (photo thanks to the Port Pride Facebook page)

Here is a breakdown of the voting totals, thanks to Newburyport City Councilor Ed Cameron.

Question 1, Building a new Bresnahan Model School building (Press to enlarge)

Question 1, (Press to enlarge)

Question 2, Renovating and upgrading the Nock/Molin Upper Elementary school (Press to enlarge)

Question 2 (Press to enlarge)

Question 3, Building a new Senior & Community Center (Press to enlarge)

Question 3 (Press to enlarge)

All three questions together (Press to enlarge)

Newburyport Election, June 5, 2012 (Press to enlarge)

Sticky, Gooey Political Taffy

Goo

Taffy, sticky, gooey taffy. That’s what the LHD (LHD = Newburyport’s proposed Local Historic District) political brou-ha-ha has come down to. Just plain old weird, political stickiness.

No amount of calm recitation of the facts is going to do it.

In the comment section of today’s Newburyport Daily News, Jared Eigerman, a spokesperson for Citizens for Historic Newburyport attempted a “clarification:”

“Please let me clarify that the “YES” signs and postcards were paid for by members of our private group Citizens for Historic Newburyport (CHN). As I explained to your colleague ___ by email weeks ago, we do not have any government funding. My understanding is that the City’s LHD Study Committee has had public funding, none of which is shared with us.
Thanks.
– Jared Eigerman”

Is this calm recitation of the facts going to convince some folks on the “Say No to LHD” side? As they say in New Yawk, “Forget about it.”

No, at least from comments and email that I’ve received, the pro-LHD folks are supposedly on “the take,” and apparently that includes me. I’m not kidding. Basically insinuating fraudulent activity, i.e. taking the CPA money given to the city and siphoning it (I guess) for private LHD advocacy.

A new low in the LHD wars.

Good grief!

Newburyport Anti-LHD Propaganda

The anti-LHD folks, we will scare you with lies. (LHD = Newburyport’s proposed Local Historic District) The impression that some of the anti-LHD folks would give you is that Newburyport’s proposed Local Historic District is “Un-American.” Really, I’m not kidding here.

“Another layer of Socialist bureaucracy, by a board of permit Komaczars…unAmerican.” I personally have received the moniker of “Nazi,” “Communist,” “Controlling zealot.” And these folks aren’t just throwing words around because they’ve had a bad day, unfortunately, they actually mean it.

And they will not compromise, period. All on record.

So the anti-LHD poster below, over the top, unfortunately folks, no. This is what they would like you to think about any version of Newburyport’s proposed LHD.

Sheer propaganda.

What the anti-LHD folks would like you to think about Newburyport's proposed LHD

“Propaganda often presents facts selectively (thus possibly lying by omission) to encourage a particular synthesis, or uses loaded messages to produce an emotional rather than rational response to the information presented. The desired result is a change of the attitude toward the subject in the target audience to further a political agenda.”

And what we’re doing is talking about protecting Newburyport’s historic assets here. UnAmerican? Oy Vey.

The Anti-LHD Folks, We will Scare you with Lies

This next number in the Newburyport Local Historic District (LHD) musical, “LHD-Bombshell,” (working title, see earlier posts), I think I’m going to call, “We will scare you, no matter what it takes.”

The scene opens with a row of 5 doors, set diagonally across the side of the stage. The doors are all painted different colors. And then, I think there would be 5 women all dressed the same, with the same wig, a piece of paper in hand.

Lights go up on the 5 doors and the 5 women march as if they are going door to door, and they line up in front of the five doors and knock, maybe pound on the doors and then stand back.

And then in unison the 5 doors open.

The musical number begins. The five women launch into song, “We will scare you about LHD, no matter what it takes.”

The first one sings, “Your home insurance premiums will go through the roof with LHD.”

The second one sings, “A board of appointed experts (who don’t even live here) will control your life.”

The third one sings, “With LHD you will be lost in litigation.”

The fourth one sings, “You’ll never be able to do anything ever to your house.”

The fifth one sings, “The LHD gestapo will make you pay fines, fines, fines.”

Mark Twain

And on the other side of the stage, historic preservationists, sitting on the edge of the stage, others standing behind them sing, “It’s not true, it’s a lie, don’t believe them, don’t believe them, they are lying.”

And, I debated how to do this again, but I think I’m going with Mark Twain one more time, even though the quote is not attributed to him. Everyone stops singing, lights go dim, the Mark Twain character walks on stage, center stage, spotlight on him, turns to the audience and says, not sings, “A lie told often enough becomes the truth” (the old proof by repeated assertion technique).

The stage goes dark.

And yes, the lies, misinformation, omission of the facts about Newburyport’s proposed Local Historic District (LHD) is off the charts, and “proof by repeated assertion,” what a way to lose Newburyport’s historic assets. Oy Vey.

Proof by assertion: “Proof by assertion, sometimes informally referred to as proof by repeated assertion, is a logical fallacy (a statement or an argument based on a false or invalid inference) in which a proposition is repeatedly restated regardless of contradiction. Sometimes this may be repeated until challenges dry up, at which point it is asserted as fact due to its not being contradicted (argumentum ad nauseam).”

You can read the entire explanation of what “proof by repeated assertion” is here.

The Newburyport Local Historic District (LHD) Musical, the Conspiracy Number

I’m thinking about a second number for Newburyport’s Local Historic District (LHD) musical, “LHD-Bombshell” (working title, see previous posts).

As I’ve said in earlier posts we have the John Birch Society mixed in with this wild LHD concoction. Again, you can’t make this stuff up. So they’re not going to make an appearance in the musical? Forget it. This is way too yummy.

So this is what I’m thinking, we have a guy decked out in a suit, gray hair slicked back, emerging center stage, the lights go dim to bright on him and he bursts out with the new musical number, “It’s a conspiracy.” The lyrics go something like, “It’s a conspiracy, the LHD is a UN conspiracy. Historic preservation destroys the masses.”

And then we have the lady who’s on tape (see earlier post) who accused the Mayor of Newburyport and the LHD Study Committee of conspiracy (and if she was willing to say this on tape, she must believe it, right?) and we have her character emerge from behind the John Birch character, and burst into song with, “Yes, it’s a conspiracy, the LHD will ruin your life!”

And when I felt this whole weird LHD mess was because of the John Birch Society, and some of our more right wing conspiracy minded Republican friends, I thought to myself, “That’s unrealistic Mary, the Republicans in Newburyport are out numbered by the Democrats.” (Although there are Republicans that support Newburyport’s LHD, this is not just a Democrat liberal agenda thing by any means–it’s most definitely non-partisan.)

So we got to have the townies in this number.

In the musical “The Producers” where they have the musical number with the little old ladies and the walkers and everyone gasps at first. Well, I think I’m going to borrow from that one. The townies, like it or not, are a dying breed here in Newburyport, forced out by gentrification and higher taxes, and they are pissed.

So I’m thinking we have one townie with a walker, and maybe 7 or 8 eventually emerge, and they burst out into song, “They (the Birchers) are so good at this, shall we let them just have their way.” The lyrics go something like, “They’ll get rid of these elitist blow-in carpetbaggers, the ridiculous architectural gestapo, taste-police!” You get the idea.

Will the curtain go up on the musical "LHD-Bombshell" (working title).

And then at the end, the LHD Study Committee shuffles in as a group; they do a huddle, and then turn around and look at the Birchers and the townies in the walkers, and kneel down and huddle again. They are now center stage with the Birchers and the townies singing wildly on either side (clearly this is another ensemble number).

And then the singing stops, the lights are just on the LHD Study Committee huddle, and then one member stands up, dressed in a suit, looking dapper, spotlight just on him.

It goes something like this. The LHD Study Committee character, living here in Newburyport let’s say for well over 40 years (still considered a carpetbagger), “My…(pause)… We are in a shit storm… (pause) And we are surrounded by crazy people.”

Lights out. The conspiracy musical number, “LHD-Bomshell” (working title).

Newburyport’s Local Historic District (LHD) as a Musical

I’m liking this whole Newburyport Local Historic District (LHD) mess as a musical (see previous post).

It could open with a Tom Salemi, one of Newburyport’s esteemed bloggers, character singing a solo, “Keep it Classy” (based on Tom’s great essay, “Take the Bagels, Leave the Petition,”on Newburyport’s LHD in Newburyport Today).

The stage is dark except for Tom’s character, and then in the background, lights come up come slowly, we have two ladies in front of an establishment handing out fliers. Their musical number is called “Fines, Fines, the LHD will Bankrupt You.”

And huddled at the front of the stage are preservationists (Newburyport preservationists tend in general to be meek and mild, “fierce” is not an adjective I would give to most Newburyport preservationist. “Fierce” goes good with some of the the anti-LHD folks, but not most preservationists, so that’s why they are huddling). Lights come up slowly on them, and their musical number is, “It’s not True, It’s not True, It’s a Lie.” (Clearly this will be an ensemble piece.)

So Tom’s character is singing “Keep it Classy,” while the two anti LHD women are singing “The LHD will Bankrupt You”, and the Newburyport preservationist are singing “It’s not True, It’s a Lie.” And then everyone freezes, you know the way they do on stage.

Mark Twain

And what I’m picturing here is having someone dressed as Mark Twain, maybe with a sign hanging across their chest so the audience will get it, walks on stage, spot light on him, everyone else is dimmed out. Doesn’t sing, just looks at the audience and says, “A lie can travel halfway around the world while the truth is putting on its shoes.”

The Mark Twain character walks off, and the Tom Salemi character sings one last line of “Keep it Classy?” with a question mark in his voice, and then the lights fade out on all the characters. (Irony here, how elitist!!)

First possible scene of the new possible Broadway hit, “LHD-Bombshell,” (still a working title-the “Smash” thing again, see previous post).

Newburyport Local Historic District (LHD) Theater

My lovely young theater friends in NYC hate the TV program “Smash.” (I am secretly addicted to “Smash,” don’t tell them-truly they will be offended!!)

I suppose for them it’s a little like me watching Bravo’s “Next Great Artist,” The TV show reminds me of an advanced art class in college (not even grad school). But, whatever quality the art may be, or how “unrealistic” the “reality” process may be, the press and the buzz probably helps whoever like crazy in their career, that’s just the nature of the biz, at least in my world.

So my NYC theater friends may be addicted to Bravo’s art stuff, who knows.

But thinking about “Smash,” I kept wondering, too bad someone couldn’t do something with all this Newburyport Local Historic District (LHD) drama. Historic preservation may be boring (this is certainly the first time in the 31 years I’ve been here that it’s gotten this much attention!!), but my, we’ve got a lot of great characters, on both sides, and mucho drama. A LHD sensation!!

On the pro side we have Jerry Mullins who has outed himself recently as the P.Preservationist. Jerry is dedicated. All that dedication makes some people just uncomfortable, positively squirm. But through all of this LHD stuff, one of the great gifts is that I’ve gotten to know Jerry Mullins, and he’s my new bff.

On the anti side, we’ve got great characters. We got one of the leaders, on tape, accusing the mayor and the Local Historic Study Committee of secretly meeting, and implying that they are engaged in illegal acts. You can’t make this stuff up. What a TV writer wouldn’t give for this!

We’ve got the John Birch Society messed up in this LHD stuff. If you were a fiction writer, no one would believe you. It’s yummy.

We’ve got a colorful Bossy Gillis character from Plum Island, telling people, on tape again, that LHD (like it’s some sort of terrible medical disease) will control you. The LHD has nothing to do with Plum Island. It’s not on Plum Island. Bossy Gillis is alive and well. How cool is this? Wowza!!

And then you have the somewhat deer stuck in the headlights Local Historic District Committee caught in the shit storm. It’s almost like you can hear them saying, “Say what??” (We’ve got a chorus number here in the making.)

And a newspaper person declaring really, really early on that the LHD is already lost in a messy defeat .. Honey, this is at least a 4 part play. A little speedy on the getting to the conclusion thing, don’t you think??

Marilyn Monroe

It’s a musical in the making. We could make preservation history in Newburyport. Can we ramp it up a little more? Let’s really go at this full throttle. Let’s make history, let’s make this whole LHD mess worthy of a TV sitcom. I’ll take Broadway. Or it could be a TV drama (I’m not fussy here) about Newburyport’s LHD being a Broadway musical-just like “Smash,” only it’s about historic preservation not Marilyn Monroe. TV and Broadway. Is that fun or what? (And I bet my lovely young NYC theater friends would watch it!) Think casting, Newburyport Blog readers, think casting. (I’m sure everyone’s brains, for or against, are turning on the casting thing… now, don’t be mean.)

Tom Salemi’s Latest Posts

I like the last two posts over at Tom Salemi’s Newburyport Posts.

The first one “Give it Time,” on Jared Eigerman’s immensely sane Letter to the Editor in the Newburyport Daily News.

“Our hope is that the councilors can cut through the noise and emotion and debate the pros and cons of the LHD concept rationally.”

And Tom’s second one today, “Wasn’t them” the decisive response in today’s Newburyport Daily News to what Tom labels “one of the oddest letters of the LHD debate,” which, as he points out, got 10 comments, and Tom wonders:

“Ah, the end of Anontyranny. Anonymousity?

Still working on it….”

Fear and Newburyport’s Local Historic District (LHD)

I walk down the street and I see her sweeping in front of her Newburyport home. I call her name, but not until I call out, “Hey beautiful, what you do’n,” does my friend turn her head. She’s one of the first people I ever knew when I moved here 31 years ago.

My neighbor, way back then, was a crusty old guy, and my friend was the sister of his very longtime girl friend, Ollie.

“What’s go’n on Mary?”

“I don’t know, what’s go’n on?”

My friend shrugs.

Me, “The LHD.”

“You for it or against it?”

“Advocating for it.”

“That’s the one where they want to tell you what to do with your home.”

Not the first time I’ve heard this by a long shot. “It’s mainly to prevent people from tearing down old homes.”

“That’s not such a bad thing, is it.”

“Nope,” I say “And no one’s going to come into anyone’s home. And no one is going to tell anyone what color they can paint their house.”

A little tension goes out of my friend’s shoulders, and we change the subject.

She tells me she turned 87, and we reminisce about her sister and my crusty old neighbor Jim.

Tomato Plant

Jim and Ollie used to have a huge garden (a real old time neighborhood garden) up on Johnson Street, on the land on the left as you’re walking down the hill towards the Nock Middle School. All built up now. I always wish that I had painted the portrait, or at least taken pictures to paint a portrait one day, of Ollie and Jim, sitting on the side of his old beat up dark green van, the side where the door slid open, in the middle of the huge vegetable field. They were a great, almost iconic Newburyport pair.

Cutworm damage

So Jim knew a lot about gardening, and laughed and laughed at me when my little tomato plants in my tiny Newburyport backyard were felled by cutworms. (I’m from New York City, who knew from cut worms?).

And Jim came over and told me how to put a ring of paper around the stems of my little tomato plants, and push the the ring of paper down into the earth so the little critters couldn’t snip and destroy.

Jim's cutworm prevention recipe

And Jim was as delighted as I was with my eventual tomato triumph.

“He used to laugh and laugh at you.”

“He sure did.”

“I don’t ever look at a tomato plant without thinking of you and Jim.”

We talked about her children and her grandchildren and folks that are no longer around.

And as I turned to go on with my walk, I winked at her.

“You’d give anybody a lift, Mary.” And that made my day.

Newburyport, Photos of Bossy Gillis

In my hunt for photos of Newburyport, I found these photos of Bossy Gillis, Courtesy of the Boston Public Library, Leslie Jones Collection, October 1924, they are from glass negatives. Press images to enlarge.

Bossy Gillis, mayor of Newburyport, in Salem jail, Courtesy of the Boston Public Library, Leslie Jones Collection, press image to enlarge.

“Bossy Gillis, mayor of Newburyport, in Salem jail.” Courtesy of the Boston Public Library, Leslie Jones Collection.

Bossy Gillis, Mayor of Newburyport, Courtesy of the Boston Public Library, Leslie Jones Collection, press image to enlarge

“Bossy Gillis, Mayor of Newburyport.” Bossy Gillis at one of his gas stations. Courtesy of the Boston Public Library, Leslie Jones Collection.

Photos of one of Bossy Gillis’s gas stations that came down in 1968 can be found here.

(If you download an image would you please give The Boston Public Library and The Newburyport Blog credit. Thank you.)

A New Blog in Town

There’s a new blog in town. The NRA Today (Newburyport Redevelopment Authority).

The very first entry says:

“The next few months promise to be exciting time for the city. With the arrival of spring comes an opportunity to complete the renewal of the city’s waterfront, creating a space for all residents and visitors to enjoy.

As the process unfolds, we’ll post details here allowing residents to chart our progress. We’ll keep an update list of our meetings and hearings with the hope that you’ll attend and share your thoughts and hopes for the two central pieces to Newburyport’s historic water front.

If you’re unable to attend our meetings please examine the minutes to our past meetings. They’re compiled on City Hall’s web site. You’ll find a link to the minutes and our meeting agendas to the right.”

NRA land c. 1920, courtesy of the Historical Society of Old Newbury, press to enlarge.

And in the background of the new NRA blog there is a very cool photograph of downtown Newburyport, NRA land c. 1920, courtesy of the Historical Society of Old Newbury (press the image to enlarge). You can see all the buildings that existed before the demotion that took place in 1968. If you look real closely you can see where Bossy Gillis’ gas station is still standing (see previous post), next to the firehouse.

(If you download the photograph, would you make sure to give the Historical Society of Old Newbury credit. Thank you.)

More LHD Confusion from the “Say No to LHD” Folks

More LHD confusion from the “Say No to LHD” folks.

I’ve heard from multiple sources that the “Say No to LHD” folks are passing out the same flyer, handout, that was being passed out in January.

Maybe in January, maybe, one could have said that the “Say No to LHD” folks did not understand city and state law. But there has been plenty of time to learn, and clear up the misinformation and wrong information in the “Say No to LHD” literature.

The literature talks about the proposed LHD Commission, which would oversee Newburyport’s proposed Local Historic District (LHD).

The claim is that this commission would be, “appointed by the Mayor and not all have to live in Newburyport.”

This is our Newburyport city law (ordinance).

Sec. 2-62. – Residency requirement.

Persons appointed to City of Newburyport boards, committees, commissions and authorities that are established by ordinance shall be residents of the City of Newburyport. This shall pertain to new appointments made after the date of approval of this section.

Another words, everyone on the proposed commission would live in Newburyport.

And like all Newburyport boards and commissions, the members of the proposed commission would be appointed by the Mayor and be passed by the Newburyport City Council.

Ask yourself, if this one very obvious and basic fact is not true in the “Say No to LHD” literature, how much of that literature could be trusted?

Old Photographs of Newburyport’s Garrison Inn

I found these wonderful old photographs courtesy of the Boston Public Library, Print Department, of the Garrison Inn, Brown Square, in Newburyport, Massachusetts.

Garrison Inn, Courtesy of the Boston Public Library, Print Department, press to enlarge

The photographs were taken by Leon H. Abdalian, October, 24, 1929, on a glass negative.

(If you download either of these images would you please give the Boston Public Library and The Newburyport Blog credit. Thank you.)

Confusion about Newburyport’s Proposed Local Historic District (LHD)

Confusion abounds when it comes to Newburyport’s proposed Local Historic District (LHD).

One of the things that folks are confused about is how the LHD could be changed if it should pass.

Local Historic Districts differ from state to state. Our state LHD state law is called General Law Chapter 40C, the Historic Districts Act. It informs our local LHD law, ordinance, if it should pass, and is often referred to in the draft ordinance of Newburyport’s proposed LHD.

The LHD ordinance or municipal law is guided by state law just the way our city planning and zoning laws are.

The proposed ordinance could not be changed without a super majority of the Newburyport City Council, 8 out of 11 votes. That is in State General Law, Chapter 40C, Section 3.

The proposed LHD ordinance includes what is not included or what is exempt, things like paint color, shutters, roofing material, ordinary maintenance and repairs, landscaping, storm windows, storm doors, gutters, shutter hardware, driveways, terraces.

The draft guidelines help clarify and give guidance to a homeowner who would like to make changes to the exterior of their home, seen from the public way, on items that are not exempt.

What was said at the first informational meeting was that most LHDs don’t start with guidelines, that Newburyport was an exception and should be applauded for trying to make things as clear as possible.

At the moment (and the creation of a city law is a process) the guidelines can be changed with a public hearing (Section 6.3). I asked the LHD Study Committee (they can be contacted at lhdsc@cityofnewburyport.com), and what I was told is that there is only one location in Massachusetts where the guidelines are changed by a super majority vote.

If the Newburyport City Council choses (it will reach the City Council after the Public Hearing), it can change Section 6.3 in the LHD draft ordinance, so that any changes to the guidelines would also require a super majority vote in the Newburyport City Council, 8 out of 11 votes.

The LHD state law, Chapter 40C can be read here.

Newburyport, The Waterfront back in 1972

In my hunt at the Archives at the Newburyport Public Library I found these two photographs of what Newburyport’s waterfront, and Newburyport looked like in 1972 and in 1973.

NRA lots in 1972, press photo to enlarge.

Quite a mess. And in the photo you can see the gap between the brick building and what is now the Fire House Center for the Arts, where Bossy Gillis’ gas station was demolished (see previous post).

NRA lots 1972, press photo to enlarge.

Photographs courtesy of the Archival Center at the Newburyport Public Library.

All of the Urban Renewal photographs that I took courtesy of the Archives at the Newburyport Public Library can be seen here.

(If you download an image would you please give The Archival Center at The Newburyport Public Library and The Newburyport Blog credit. Thank you.)