Category Archives: The Waterfront

The Waterfront, Newburyport, MA

Newburyport, the Central Waterfont, the Task Force

Oy Veh…the article in today’s Newburyport Daily News, Thursday, June 29, 2006 on Mayor John Moak’s task force on the future of Newburyport’s Waterfront.

I hate it when all those red flags are actually red flags (see earlier post.)

Yup, this does appear to be a vehicle to further the Mayor’s agenda for Newburyport’s Waterfront (i.e. paving it over.) Sigh.

Yes, the initial results of the survey are in (the final results should be in by the end of July), guess what? “36 percent in support of a larger park with parking reduced to about 100 spaces. An additional 44 percent supported expansion of the park with about 200 parking spaces remaining. About 10 percent support all parking.”

You can bet your bottom dollar that this was absolutely not what Mayor John Moak had in mind (only 10 percent support all parking,) so yes, voila the “task force.”

The article in the Newburyport Daily News says, “Moak also reiterated his waterfront goal to primarily keep parking. To meet downtown parking demands, Moak said, the city needs to keep all spaces in the west parking lot and three-quarters of the parking in the east lot.”

And apparently the argument for the “original purpose of urban renewal” is being touted as the excuse for not heeding the results of the Waterfront survey.

To quote attorney William Harris who is serving as a citizen representative along with former Mayor Byron Matthews (see earlier post.)

“The solution should reflect the original purpose of urban renewal, Harris said, which was to support a vibrant business district.

‘If we don’t have a central waterfront that supports the central business district, then we failed the urban renewal plan.’ ”

Oy Veh…I do not know what we as citizens do when the Mayor of Newburyport makes such an obvious and blatant circumvention of the democratic process.

Mary Eaton,
Newburyport

Newburyport, Task Force for the Waterfront

Oy Vey. How can a blogger not blog on the story in today’s Newburyport Daily News, June 20, 2006 on the task force being formed by Mayor John Moak to help decide the most appropriate use of the waterfront property.

A few red flags here.

*The survey from the Newburyport Redevelopment Authority is still being collected. We do not even know the results of the survey yet. And Mr. Moak is on record any number of times as feeling it was “biased,” and taking the position of paving over the entire waterfront.

I am just guessing here, and believe me I do not know, but my guess is that the waterfront survey is not developing the way the Mayor John Moak might have hoped for…i.e. most probably the survey is coming in for half parking, half park or for all park…and my guess would be paving over the entire waterfront is not the overwhelming favorite choice.

*Wouldn’t it make more sense to have a task force after the survey for the Newburyport waterfront was in? A task force to implement what the people have said that they would most prefer?

From what the mayor is quoted as saying in the Newburyport Daily News, apparently not.

*And I’m very suspicious of political task forces. They are often a way to achieve a political agenda that may not be what the people of Newburyport would like. Take Mayor Moak’s task force on the Woodman property. All of a sudden a large 40B project is back in the picture, the Planning Director is kept out of the loop, and the possible solution to have a much smaller project in that area appears to be dismissed.

In my book, political task forces are not a good sign. Sigh.

*We already have the Newburyport Redevelopment Authority who is in charge of that area, why in the world would we need a task force on top of that, unless there is another agenda?

*Ok, Byron Matthew is a member of the task force. Not that Mr. Matthews is not an outstanding citizen, but the residence of Newburyport, Massachusetts made it very clear that they did not want him on the Newburyport Redevelopment Authority, and that’s why the Newburyport City Council voted against his nomination on the first reading. So why is Mr. Matthew now on this task force addressing the very same issues.

*And if you really wanted an informed task force, let’s face it, you would ask Mary Lou Supple to be on there, yes?

*And the task force first meeting is June 28, 2006. That is 8 days from now. That’s very, very soon. If it were meeting were let’s say sometime in the beginning of September, when the public had time to respond this idea, it would be less of a red flag in my book.

*And a mater of coming to a “position, a vision,” well that is what the waterfront survey was for. My concern is that this is a way of Mr. Moak implementing his own vision.

For me, there are red flags on this all over the place. Good grief.

Mary Eaton, Newburyport

More Thoughts on the Waterfront

To respond to Mr. Clarridge’s thoughts on the waterfront I would like to share my elderly opinion. I am circulating a petition to have a Senior Center built on the East N.R.A. lot. The Seniors of this City have been ignored for over 25 years and deserve a small share of our most valuable waterfront. This location would be in walking distance for the Seniors in the James Steam Mill and the Sullivan Bldg. Many other Senior Centers are located in the downtown area, close to Public buildings, Post Office and shopping areas. I believe this idea is a lot better than hot topping the whole area for parking for Special Interest groups.

George Roaf, Newburyport

Newburyport, the Spirit of Bossy Gillis Lives On, Heads-Up Mr. Karp

Ok, I’ve finished reading the book/biography of Bossy Gillis by Peter Jacobs that the library recommended. So I now know 100 pages more about Bossy Gillis than I did before.

In the biography Mr. Jacobs comments that John P. Marquand had observed about Bossy Gillis that “It almost seems as though another Timothy Dexter had arrived.” And after reading Mr. Jacobs’ biography it almost feels as if another Bossy Gillis has arrived–the similarities between Bossy Gillis and Tom Ryan, the editor of Newburyport’s local journal, the Undertoad, are a little spooky.

Both love/loved a fight. One of the things I learned was that Bossy Gillis took on the old wealthy, Yankee, High Street establishment and beat them. Mr. Ryan has taken on a whole host of folks that most people wouldn’t even dream of confronting. Both have had trouble with the issue of libel (please, please make sure you read the disclaimer on the “Guidelines” page.) Bossy Gillis went to jail for 9 months. Mr. Ryan was found not guilty because the United States Constitution allows free speech. (Why this free speech thing didn’t apply to Bossy Gillis, I don’t quite understand–this is a blog remember not a history lesson.)

And Bossy Gillis published his own newspaper called “Asbestos” because, ” ‘it was so hot to read it had to be printed on asbestos,’ ” and it “became a town conversation piece and brought Bossy a host of new enemies with each edition.” Does that sound weirdly familiar or what?

All of this cheers me up immensely. Yup, it does.

There’s something about the spirit of this town that I love. Can you imagine an Untertoad flourishing in some place, let’s say like Wellesley. No, I don’t think so. (Now people in Wellesley might think this is a good thing.) But the Undertoad has flourished for over 10 years in Newburyport, Massachusetts.

As an artist I would wither and die in a place like Wellesley, Massachusetts, but the spirit of Newburyport seems to suit me just fine. We have a Yankee version of a “live and let live” attitude along with a subtle gutsy and defiant spirit.

So yes, this brings me to the subject of Mr. Karp, Stephen Karp, Newburyport’s very wealthy and powerful new landlord. If you’ve been reading the Newburyport Political Blog for a while, you know that I have been worried that all that money and all that power could stamp out the feisty, individualistic spirit of Newburyport, Massachusetts.

But, if Nantucket is capable of voting against chain stores to preserve its small town character, the people of Newburyport are quite capable of that if needed, and much, much more. Boy, can we as a city make people’s lives miserable if we feel it’s necessary.

So heads-up Mr. Karp, the spirit of Bossy Gillis is alive and well in Newburyport, Massachusetts. It’s been around for centuries and my guess is it will be here forever.

Mary Eaton, Newburyport

Newburyport, NRA, Survival Mode or Celebrate

Having wondered about where we as a city could be headed (see previous post,) and the fact that it seems to me that we’ve come through survival and restoration years, I was thinking how all of that relates to the current fight about Newburyport’s waterfront. And the almost visceral reaction that people had towards Byron Matthews as the nominee for the Newburyport Redevelopment Authority (NRA) board.

If Mr. Matthews could be seen as part of the “restoration generation,” part of the survival and rebirth part of Newburyport’s recent history, what I am wondering is that maybe people want to move on to whatever is next, whatever that may be.

I think that this may also be part of people’s puzzlement about Mayor John Moak’s fiscally conservative approach to governing. Newburyport appears to be out of a survival mode. Although I think fiscal prudence is always a good idea, Yankee that I am, I feel the sense people have is that maybe, finally we can relax a little bit.

I feel like the fight over the waterfront has to be symbolic in some way. It is the last remnant of a survival mode–dusty, ugly, Appalachian like, dirt parking lots. It is almost a symbol of what will happen to the city next. Do we stay in a survival mode or do we move on and celebrate a little bit?

I think paving the entire waterfront feels like the old survival mode. All park seems a little “giddy” for this Yankee town. But the idea of half parking and half park seems just about right. We are out of the survival mode, but we are not going to forget what has come before us. Trying to leave behind the old fear thing (that in the survival/restoration years was well founded,) and move on to the cautious optimism thing.

I think too that those parking lots are still sitting there after more that thirty years also says something about the how hard it is to let go thing. It will be interesting to see if in fact we as a city hang onto them for another 30 years or if we can finally let go.

Mary Eaton, Newburyport

An Extra Clarification from Jeremy Gillis on Newburyport’s Waterfront

There seems to have been a great deal of confusion created over my position on the future of the Downtown waterfront. Let me try to make this as clear as possible:

I am not in favor of paving the waterfront but am for a mix of park and parking.

If the question were geared towards the NRA survey I would honestly and unequivocally support option #2 on the survey “Mix of expanded park and parking lots.”

The downtown will not be viable without parking. However it would also not be viable without the waterfront. I am opposed to paving the waterfront and would be happy to answer any questions on this matter. Feel free to call or email me, or just stop by the store. I hope this clears up any confusion about my position.

Take Care

Jeremy

(Editor’s note: Jeremy Gillis’ email address is: ward1issues@yahoo.com, phone number is: 978-463-0660 and the “store” is Port Paint and Paper.)

Newburyport, Waterfront West

In response to Ben Laing’s post, I do not have a Ph.D. in zoning or planning and development, a real amateur here, but as I understand it, the zoning overlay for Waterfront West is to provide the City of Newburyport with some protection for that area.

My understanding is that Waterfront West is the area west of State Street that contains such things as the Fitness Factory and Michael’s Harborside.

The goal is to try and make sure that the land is developed properly and matches the rest of the City of Newburyport, using State Street as the model.

And I think a lot of people in Newburyport share Mr. Laing’s unease about Stephen Karp. (That’s why we need to keep Nick Cracknell as Newburyport’s Planning Director–see earlier post.)

Newburyport, Leadership and The Waterfront

Mayor Moak’s platform touted his “leadership” abilities and his openness. I think a leader listens to his/her constituency, studies all sides of the issue with an open mind, and then formulates a plan/action based on a balance between perceived needs and what’s best for the community.

The role of a Mayor is not to thwart public comment or to only appoint people who mirror his/her point of view. A case in point: Mary Lou Supple has endeavored to educate people, listen to the multitude of opinions about the fate of the waterfront, and help the NRA Board and City reach a consensus as to the best use of the NRA lots. If she is not re-appointed to the NRA, I think we will see a lot of contentious attitudes about the waterfront’s fate.

People come to Newburyport because it is unique; because the waterfront, with its boats (working vessels, sailboats, as well as fancy yachts) reminds us of our maritime heritage; because it’s fun to stroll along the waterfront. There are other areas of Newburyport better suited to parking. If Waterfront West becomes a reality, Mr. Karp should provide parking for any new development; he should not look to the public to provide parking that will benefit him and his investors.

The (new) NRA questionnaire will help the Mayor, City Council, and the NRA decide on the fate of the NRA-owned land. Let’s get the questionnaire circulated (widely) and see what “the people” (once again) would like.

Vicki Carr, Newburyport

(Editor’s note: The NRA survey arrived in my mailbox today along with the City Census. I filled it out. I’m hoping everyone else does too. And thank you Vicki Carr for being a guest blogger.)

Newburyport, Massachusetts, NRA, Waterfront

Jim Stiles (along with a whole lot of other people) is very concerned about the fate of the Newburyport’s Waterfront (see earlier post), an issue that people continue to feel passionately about.

I can see why people might be reluctant to wade into this discussion, because Newburyport’s Waterfront has been so controversial for so long. (You haven’t seen me give an opinion on this one, even though I happen to have a few.) But that doesn’t mean that people don’t care about it a whole lot.

The very, very good news is that the NRA questionnaire is going out with the Newburyport City Census. And this situation might be a little bit like having a very controversial election where you don’t really want to discuss it with your neighbor, but you sure know how you are going to vote. And the nice thing is no one needs to know how you are going to vote, the important thing is that you do it.

The NRA has worked very hard on the questionnaire that will be arriving in our mailboxes. And the very, very good news, is whether or not you want to wade out there and let everyone know your opinion, democracy reigns. (Well, I hope that democracy reigns, that Mayor John Moak would take this questionnaire seriously, even though there are various quotes in the Newburyport Daily News where he says he won’t! But I suppose that the fact that Mayor John Moak might not take this survey as part of the democratic process, might be another post altogether.) You can express your opinion by filling out the NRA questionnaire about the fate of Newburyport’s Waterfront and mail it to the City of Newburyport, Massachusetts.

And Jim Roy, who has never, ever been one to be shy about giving his opinion, has written an article in this week’s Newburyport Current, www.townonline.com/newburyport (it can be found under “Opinion and Letters”,) talking about the NRA survey and issues surrounding the fate of Newburyport’s Waterfront. If you haven’t done so already, give it a read.

Mary Eaton, Newburyport

Some Tips on How to Have a Civil Discussion on the Newburyport Political Blog

In today’s Newburyport Current Jim Stiles has passed on the information that the Newburyport Political Blog would be glad to host a civil discussion on the Waterfront. If that could be accomplished, that would be quite a feat considering that this has been such a hugely divisive issue that has been going on for more than 30 years.

If you do decide to send in a post, please read the guidelines that are at the side of the Newburyport Political Blog.

My goal for all guest bloggers is for your point of view to be heard. So, it helps if you use the first person–“I think, I feel, it is my opinion, etc.” Second of all, the tone of a posting is really important. A civil tone can be achieved by using verbs like “could, would, may, might,” instead of verbs like “should, can, will, must, have to.”

This doesn’t just apply to postings that may (see there’s that verb) come in about the Waterfront. These are tips that would (yup, there’s another one of those verbs) apply to any posting that concerns a controversial issue.

Calling people “idiots, stupid” (you get the drift) is just not a good idea.

And, if I don’t think your post is civil, I will email you back and suggest that you re-read this posting and the guidelines of the Newburyport Political Blog.

I’ll be interested to see where this goes.

Mary Eaton, Newburyport

Newburyport, Massachusetts Waterfront, NRA Survey Not Going Out With City Census

It appears that there is a move afoot to use a political maneuver to kill the Newburyport Redevelopment Association waterfront survey.

As most readers of this blog will already know, mayor Moak has said that regardless of what the results of this survey are, he plans to continue his effort to pave the central waterfront in Newburyport.

Now I have learned that city council has taken what I believe is an unprecedented action with regard to the survey that was presented to them as a courtesy by the NRA – at the request of Erford Fowler they have referred it to committee, in fact to TWO committees, where so far it has languished.

And as long as it is in committee, the acting city clerk has either refused or been instructed to refuse to include it in the Newburyport City Census as has been planned for months. To the best of my knowledge, action by City Council has never before been a requirement for including surveys or other information in the City Census. This action, taken at this late date, is questionable to say the least.

So, PLEASE show up for the City Council meeting tomorrow and insist that this survey be sent out with the Newburyport City Census – either because you believe the information is needed to plan the future of our downtown intelligently, or if you prefer because you object to what appears to many to be political hijinks of the worst sort.

The Newburyport City Council meeting starts at 7:30 at the Newbuyport City Hall. If you do make comments during the “comment” period, there will be a sign up sheet before the meeting. The Newburyport City Council asks that comments be kept to 2 minutes.

Jim Stiles, Newburyport

Reaction to the Proposal to Pave Over Newburyport’s Waterfront

I talked to a number of people about Jim Stiles’s posting and the fact that Mayor Moak would like to pave over the Waterfront and make the whole thing a parking lot.

The response I get is “No, can’t be. Oh, no, I voted for this guy. I voted for the wrong guy.”

Tom Ryan, the editor of the Undertoad was right. Many people in Newburyport who have lived here for a while have met John Moak, an affable fellow, as the City Clerk, assumed they knew what his politics would be, and felt comfortable voting for him. My recollection is that Tom Ryan pointed out that after the election people would be horrified by Mr. Moak’s politics.

So far Mayor Moak is threatening to fire Newburyport’s Planning Director, Nick Cracknell, who stands up to developers (Jim Roy’s words, see earlier post) and would like to pave over the Waterfront.

I’m sure the response I got was not an aberration. Many people who voted for John Moak will be distressed that they did so. I hope they call and email the new mayor and let him know that they are not happy, that this is not why they voted him into office.

Mayor John Moak can be reached at 978-465-4413. His email address is mayor@cityofnewburyport.com.

Mary Eaton, Newburyport

A Commonsense Solution to the Newburyport Waterfront and our Parking Problem

In a recent posting about the nettlesome problem of park/parking for the central waterfront, it was stated that “Unfortunately, unlike the statue of George Washington, there are no obvious or easy answers to this controversy.” I agree with half of this statement – I agree that there is no obvious answer to the controversy.

Several recent mayors have attempted to get obvious solutions accepted and have failed, badly. I can only hope that the current mayor will also fail to gain acceptance for the obvious solution he is promoting – if he succeeds I can only imagine the comments of residents ten years from now on how extraordinarily foolish people were to place a parking lot in a beautiful waterfront location that will by then be at the middle of massive waterfront development that will span from the Gillis Bridge (Rt. 1) almost to Joppa Park.

People scoffed (with some justification) about the recently proposed Green Street location making downtown Newburyport look like Haverhill. However, making a parking lot the centerpiece of an otherwise beautiful downtown is so utterly lacking in vision as to beggar the imagination.

Fortunately, there may just be a relatively easy solution. It entails moving beyond a one-size-fits-all solution like a new large central parking lot/garage, and breaking to parking problem into pieces.

First off, the city government must come to understand that a very large number of parking spaces in the downtown are used only rarely – the best data indicates that except for 2 days a year, there are approximately 200 unused spaces (although personally I think it may be a bit fewer). These 200 spaces alone would make it possible to greatly expand the waterfront park. This would leave the city short 200 more spaces for massive concerts and for the Yankee Homecoming parade day, but it is beyond foolish to preserve parking spaces that are used only twice a year.

Next, the best data indicate that there are over 200 people who work downtown who park illegally every day. I believe that a solution should be found for these parkers.

I feel that the most likely solution is to find places to shoehorn in dedicated parking spaces for these parkers here and there. In my walking about in the downtown, I have come to believe that this is very doable (I am happy to share these ideas with anyone who is interested).

Now, my math says that this totals in the 400 parking space ballpark – just what the doctor ordered for a really great waterfront park.

This leaves one problem unsolved – parking for major events. For these few days, I would suggest that we explore shuttle service with MVRTA or other interested parties. Between large lots at the train station, along Storey Ave, Merrimack St. and elsewhere, I believe that on these days it should not only be possible, it should be easy to intercept cars on their way to downtown and shuttle their passengers in from there.

The numbers work. Getting this solution would take some time and money, but for what I believe would be small money, we can have plenty of parking when and where we need it plus a great central park.

Plus, 10 years from now we will not have to look back with profound regret at what we have permitted to befall a downtown that could have been great, but instead is put to shame by nice places like Haverhill.

Jim Stiles, Newburyport

A Story from Todd Woodworth and Why I Don’t Think the Newburyport Waterfront Will be Solved in my Lifetime

Todd Woodworth, one of Newburyport’s beloved local historians, told me a fascinating story. Now, because Todd Woodworth told it to me, I believe it is true. (I’ll admit, I haven’t double and triple checked it with Todd.)

Todd Woodworth told me a story about the statue of George Washington that is at the Newburyport Mall (which for those of you who have never been to Newburyport, is on historic High Street above Newburyport’s historic downtown.)

Apparently after completing the statue of George Washington, the artist was so upset with the people of Newburyport that he put his own name below the statue on the marble pedestal instead of George Washington’s name.

According to my conversation with Todd, it took the Newburyport Historical Commission 50 years to get the City of Newburyport to change the name from the artist and put George Washington’s name below the statue instead.

What fascinates me about this story is what did the people of Newburyport do to make the artist so angry that he put his own name below the statue instead of George Washington’s. As well as the fact that it took 50 years for the City to put in the statue’s correct name.

For approximately 30 years Newburyport has been debating on what to do with a piece of property downtown that goes along the mouth of Merrimac River called the “waterfront.” The debate continues with yet another administration.

Unfortunately, unlike the statue of George Washington, there are no obvious or easy answers to this controversy. I figure if it took the City of Newburyport 50 years to put the correct name under the statue of George Washington, it’s very likely that the waterfront won’t be resolved in my lifetime.

Mary Eaton, Newburyport

A new parking model on its way from the mayor’s office

Over the weekend I caught wind of a new analysis of parking being done by the mayor’s office. Presumably it will be the basis for the mayor’s effort to promote making parking on the waterfront lots permanent.

This morning Lois from the mayor’s office responded to my weekend voicemail saying that the study should be available in a couple of weeks. Of course until then, any reports of what is in it are tentative, but my understanding is that the mayor is seeking to cap parking fees for downtown employees at $2 a day, and that he wants to use parking revenue for maintenance costs of streets and public services in the downtown area. If this is true, it would mean paid parking (in the lots, not on the street which would remain free), no parking garage, and no new parkland.

Needless to say, I am eager to get hold of the report when it is released. And I wonder how the timing of the release will play with the distribution of the NRA parking survey.

Jim Stiles, Newburyport