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South End publisher vows you can have her space saver when you pry it from her cold, dead hands
By adamg on Wed, 01/28/2015 - 10:00am
UPDATE: O'Connell reports the city will be enforcing the neighborhood ban on space savers.
Sue O'Connnell, co-publisher of the South End News, is outraged this morning over her neighborhood's ban on space savers:
Although good intentioned, the no space-saver movement was not voted on by all members of the South End community. The "decision" to remove space-savers from parking spaces did not take into account the circumstances some residents may have. Elderly residents who paid to have a car shoveled out and who may have great difficulty finding another space and walking distances. ...
If removing space-savers is a main priority, then hold open meetings and have a transparent process (just like we are always demanding from our lawmakers-remember the Biolab?).
This snow storm we would be all better served if instead of picking up a chair, you picked up a shovel. Organize a hot toddy shoveling party and remove all the snow on your block. Call the city and ask for a snow removal truck to pile the snow on to.
Neighborhoods:
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Comments
She does raise some valid
She does raise some valid points...
Handicapped cones
Issue the hanidcapped citizens handicapped spacesavers. All others get trashed.
what happens when those are
what happens when those are stolen or counterfeit?
Print a name/address on those
Print a name/address on those babies...
Same thing as with a placard
If you get caught, you get in trouble. That some people may abuse a rule is no reason not to have the rule.
People abuse the placard all
People abuse the placard all the time, and few if any are caught because the city doesn't enforce it at all. The Herald a year or so ago found all these construction sites full of trucks with handicap placards in south boston, and they caught the people but of course cant fine them. The construction guys apologized but its obvious people are still doing it all over Boston. Walk around city hall, everyone who works there seems to have one.
You do have a point
If the city (i.e. the mayor) is going to essentially legalize space saving by following non-enforcement, then it should do a better job of it. Create an official city mobile/web app where people can register the spot they shoveled. Put an expiration date on each record. Assign every registered spot a permit id. Let people print out "NO PARKING" signs just like with moving permits. Show some leadership.
Really?
I can't think of any good reason why parking spots should sit empty with a space saver all day, especially after a storm when there are fewer spots to be had because there is snow everywhere.
You shovel out a spot so you can remove your car, not so you can lay claim to a spot indefinitely.
I didn't say anything in
I didn't say anything in favor of space saving, and the original article wasn't necessarily in support of it either. Regardless, I think she is on point about public process, if the city (by means of the elected Mayor) has a policy, why should a non-representative group of residents in a neighborhood be allowed to decide they will live under rules contrary to city policy?
The SE Forum outreach on the issue has been lengthy & exhaustive
Just a couple of points of clarification. First, for those that don't know, the SE Forum is an umbrella organization of South End neighborhood and business associations that has been around for a dozen plus years. We have sponsored initiatives on everything from expanded street cleaning to an improved/faster trash contractor pick up environment (including pilot testing new approaches/timing). We are a pragmatic results-oriented group because the15 active neighborhood and 2 business associations represented by the presidents or chairs of those organizations don't have a lot of time or patience for soap boxes or violins.
On the space saver initiative, as with every other issue we tackle in the Forum, we have consensus or unanimous agreement among all members before moving forward. If the combined independent and business neighborhood associations of the South End (with the active participation from USES, IBA, our city councilors, state reps, etc.) do not represent something reasonably close to a common South End voice, then the alternative would seem to suggest every issue decided by referendum.
The Forum has been talking about this initiative for over 4 years. Just in the past 2 years, the issue has been discussed in neighborhood association newsletters, front page of the Globe, in the Herald, in the Boston Courant and at least twice in the SE News. Four different electronic media outlets, including WBUR, Fox25, and Channels 4 and 5, covered our initiative; last year even the NY Times carried the story of the South End Forum's effort to ban the use of space savers. Last month even the Atlantic carried the story. A number of Boston-based blogs have also carried carried the story.
In fact, a SE news reporter was present when we finalized our initiative with the Mayor in person at a public Forum meeting soon after his inauguration. Frankly, I can't think of a single South End issue where there has been more outreach, more publicity, more discussion, more blog commentary than the South End Forum's initiative to make the South End space saver free. To suggest that there has been a lack of open discussion, of "transparency" or lack of publicity or "public process" or that the Forum is something akin to a group of clueless and grumbling vigilantes with an axe to grind and too much time on their hands--on this or any other Forum sponsored issue--would seem to prove the wisdom of no good deed goes unpunished.
Every district and at large councilor and all our state reps and our senator have been part of our on-going discussion (including the support of Councilor Linehan specifically for the South End initiative), We've had discussions with 3 different Commissioners of Public Works on the issue (that's how long it's been under discussion) but it wasn't until a new Mayor Walsh committed to support our effort to launch the initiative as a neighborhood/city partnership with the full cooperation of PWD and the trash contractor that we were able to become the first neighborhood in the city to attempt to become completely space-saver free.
And to our delight, as we suspected, thus far Southenders have greeted the effort with open arms. Truth be told, the effort will take some time to stabilize as a norm for the South End and we fully expect a few hiccups. But we really think that we've done our homework in spades, have reached out to every possible public and private communications vehicle, patiently asked for the cooperation of all Southenders to make this work, and tried to represent what we have been hearing for years is the overwhelming desire of Southenders for a space saver free South End.
Happy to have more discussion today of the issue here on UHub since every mention helps to educate and inform, something we're always trying to do as best we can. But I hope I've helped to give a little detail and history to allay any lingering fears that both the decision-making process and our public/private partnership implementation with our friends in the city has been anything less than wide open and completely transparent.
Useful update, Steve: thanks
Perhaps you could also respond directly to the South End News's criticism about lack of outreach to the neighborhood's disadvantaged, elderly and Spanish-speaking communities. What has been done and what is planned going forward? Same thing for outreach efforts to specific Neighborhood Associations would be handy, too.
While you're at it, maybe you could speculate as to why O'Connell seems so reluctant to take a stand on space savers, pro or con. It's baffling to me.
Thank you for the information, Steve.
And thanks to you and the other members of the forum for taking on this issue. I fully support the ban. Just so you know, the Mayor's hotline was telling people they could not report space savers for pickup in the South End until the parking ban ended. I was under the impression that space savers were not allowed at any time, but it appears that City Hall is enforcing the ban differently. Can you provide some clarification?
Thanks for the heads up
Have let our friends in the city know that this might be happening, and asked for their help to correctly route calls from the South End for space saver removal. We're still working out the kinks in this new approach and trust that with time we'll be able to jointly make it work smoothly. Again, thanks for the heads up.
I can confirm that the Mayor's Hotline is saying,
"We can't remove anything until 24 hours after the parking ban ends". I just called to complain about space savers all over W. Springfield Street.
That doesn't sound like a ban, just half the allowable time to save a space as the rest of the city.
Except
The elderly and disabled can already get handicap parking spots, normally put in close to their residences.
You dont know what you're talking about anon2
Not all elderly are handicapped. It's not true that elderly can get handicapped spots.
What about August?
Do you think that the elderly should be allowed to use space savers in August?
Elderly/disabled
Don't always qualify for handicapped parking. As I know from personal experience, you can have an infirmity that keeps you from being able to shovel that doesn't keep you from being able to walk a block. And you can be able to walk a block in normal weather, but be at risk of serious injury (including life-threatening hip fractures) if you fall on the snowy/icy pavement.
This snow storm we would be
This snow storm we would be all better served if instead of whining online and using the handicapped to argue your point, this blogger would shovel out her neighbors spots.
YES!
It's just that simple! Everybody shovel and everybody will have a space and we'll all sit around and sing Kumbaya.
Stupid snow
How about car owners just putting their car in a garage overnight. No shoveling for you, and the plows can now clear to the curb, so ALL spaces are now free of snow...
Great idea
Be sure to let us know how it works out.
Works out great
My car has been in a lot for 2 days - it will cost me $20 to get it out. Great deal - not on the street - so the plows can plow. Not in my spot so the guys can easily clear it out. Not getting stuck in the snow in the alley so the BFD can come down if needed etc. etc.
If you are not aware - many lots help out the city with $10 a day parking during snow emergencies for local residents. I've never had a problem getting a spot - you do have to show ID to get the break and you have to pick it up promptly when the snow emergency ends - not a big deal and a great piece of community work by the city and the participating lots.
I can't wait to see the
I can't wait to see the photos of your street, plowed clean, curb to curb.
I'll let you know.
Won't be perfect with this much snow, but better than having 500 cars on it.
BTW - my street is an artery - so you can't park there during a snow emergency. Makes for great plowing.
Curb to curb?
On your street, Stevil, do they plow curb to curb? I also live on an emergency artery where no parking is allowed during a snow emergency. I was frustrated with the snow removal this storm because they did not clean curb to curb. On both sides of the street, the snow piles are at least 3 feet from the curb. Now that the parking ban has been lifted, cars are being parked on the street and they are far away from where they normally would be parked. I tried to report this via Citizens Connect early on during the storm, but no luck with that....
Space savers are the Ebola of urban living.
We have to stop the disease before it spreads from Southie.
The anti-space-saver movement has been organizing in the South End for a while. How did the publisher of the South End News miss that?
Equality of effort
If everyone did a good job shoveling out their spots, then yes, space savers should be banned.
The unfair part is that if four people do a great job shoveling out the spots their cars were in and a fifth does the bare minimum, for example, just pulls through a cleared space behind or ahead, then one of those four people is getting screwed when the non-shoveler takes their spot, leaving them to park in an un-shoveled spot or to shovel out two spots. To use loaded political language, it's a makers/takers issue. Then again, the demand for spots in my neighborhood is just over 1 to 1 so there's not the same issue that exists in Southie, North/Sound End, etc...
However, if the city really does cap it at 48 hours, then generally that works. The real issue to me is that people tend to mark their spots for many, many days more, which is BS.
it's a makers/takers issue
. All people who park on the public street are takers, some forget this. Makers, in this analogy, would be people who buy or build private spots on private land.
Not my point
I'm referring specifically to the effort put into physically clearing a space on the street. If no private citizen shovels out a spot, even an empty one, then the city leaves it alone until the snow melts away and no-one can use it. There is an aspect of 'creating' that parking spot in the short term aftermath of a snowstorm. My point has nothing to do with your overall right to any particular piece of pavement due to the location of your house, which is nonsense.
An empty spot?
What is this "empty spot" to which you refer?
That's the whole problem with space savers. If there were empty spots, then I would have no objection to space savers, since anyone who wanted a space could have one simply by shoveling out an empty spot.
That's how it is in my
That's how it is in my neighborhood, and probably the reason there's never any problems. However, it's definitely not the norm in the city. Anywhere that's cutthroat to begin with is only going to be more of a problem when the snow comes down.
its worse than that and as
its worse than that and as usual, not as simple as people like to tell themselves.
persons 1,2, 3, and 4 clear out to pavement, help the neighbors, clear hydrant, blah blah, etc. Person 5 does the bare minimum. Then persons 6, 7, 8, 9, and 10 come out of garage parking (for free) when the ban ends looking for spaces. do they take the empty space that needs to be cleared or the empty space that is already dug out? Well first they take the clear spaces, then the crappy cleared space, then dig out a spot that wasnt used during the storm.
So now persons 1, 2, 3, and 4 dont even have the option to park without digging out a spot on a snow emergency street. good luck with that since its completely plowed in and not possible to dig through by hand.
if there is going to be a ban on space savers there needs to be a change in the garage parking and the City needs to actually plow out and clear parking on snow emergency streets so that they can be used when the snow emergency ends.
Interesting
Here in the burbs of Roslindale, we don't have parking garages so that never occurred to me as a problem.
Oh, Rozzie
With its one municipal parking lot.
Much as I hate bringing up whiny New York, maybe it's time to look at alternate side-of-the-street parking for snowstorms? At least, in the more remote parts of places like Roslindale? That way, the plows could really do a good job, rather than carefully drilling out a Sherpa walking trail on our narrow roads with parking on both sides.
that would be great. and its
that would be great. and its not just NYC. We are not the only 2 places with on street parking + snow. Most cities do this.
But again, that would require the City actually plowing it out. and since they dont do the emergency street parking spaces (this is the real issue and why there is a lack of parking after a storm), would they actually clear out the travel lane and parking on one side of all of the streets??
Only if
they also plow the side walks that would be buried by the snow. Otherwise one set of people have to shovel out way more snow than their neighbors across the street, right?
All snow policy should be based on the assumption that people are selfish jerks, even if there are many streets where most people team up to dig out cars and walks.
not if they're organized
there are snow trucks like giant snow blowers. You have one of those with a truck adjacent to receive the snow so it can be carried away. Other cities do it all the time - Buffalo would have school tomorrow if not today.
What will Boston get first?
311 or alternate-side parking for snow emergencies?
Thats what Somerville does
Thats what Somerville does and it works really well, people move to one side or to a lot, the city plows the street and a side, and space savers aren't needed.
That's how Somerville does it
That's how Somerville does it - during snow emergencies everyone parks on the odd side of the street and they plow the even. Unfortunately, they never plow that close to the curb, and then never declare a day to have everyone switch sides and plow the odd side (all the snow piles between spots where people dug out), so the result is still a lot of 'lost' spaces.
We used to
There did used to be an odd/even rule for parking on side streets during snow storms, but awhile back they just stopped enforcing it.
I think it was because there are just too many cars to fit on one side of the street in most neighborhoods. Even the quiet streets that usually have plenty of on-street parking in Roslindale fill up quickly when all the cars from the main roads have to move to the side streets during a storm.
Too bad, because they did a much better job plowing when all the cars were on one side of the street.
The city does have an alternate-side parking policy
The city does have an alternate-side parking policy for clearing side streets after "really big" snowstorms. During odd years they bad parking on the odd side, and during even years they ban parking on the even side, or maybe it's the other way around. This snowstorm definitely qualifies.
They do this in Somerville
They do this in Somerville but they don't even try to plow out the other side of the street to the curb, so it really just makes things worse. At least if cars are parked on the street spaces have to be dug out to move them.
Which parking garage gives
Which parking garage gives away free parking for snow emergencies? We pay a reduced rate, but we still pay.
http://www.cityofboston.gov
http://www.cityofboston.gov/snow/storm.asp?selNeig...
Boston Convention and
Boston Convention and Exposition Center
Free for car owners, zip car
Free for car owners, zip car users pay $10 a year to subsidize this monster and its free parking.
It's not faaaaair!
This is like little kids squabbling about how someone else got a bigger cookie or did fewer chores and it's not faaaaair. Little kids sit and pout because they can't get perfect justice. Adults put on their big kid pants and go do what's got to be done, and don't spend all their time trying to judge whether someone got more or did less. I really think at the end of the day, you'll feel a lot better if you just pick up a shovel and put your mind at rest over the unfairness of it all.
did you bother to read or did
did you bother to read or did you just see somebody disagreed with you and figured youd get on your soapbox.
It has nothing to do with having to shovel out multiple spots. There comes a time when there arent spots that can actually be cleared by hand.
The city parking ban ends at 5 PM. Which means people out of the garages by 7. You think the snow emergency street parking spaces will be cleared by the City then? These cant be cleared by hand after being plowed, mixed with sand/salt, thawing/freezing after a day in the sun.
I disagree that they can't be
I disagree that they can't be cleared by hand. I do this all the time. I did it when I lived in Boston (west Fens), and I do it now that I live in the boonies and have a roof that deposits its contents right outside my kitchen door. I'll put that pile up against anything produced by a Boston snowplow for density and difficulty moving. Now, what you CAN'T do is move it with a car brush or by kicking it with your Uggs or with a flimsy plastic shovel. You need the right tool for the job, which I have in the form of a steel garden spade to chop it up, plus a sturdy plastic shovel to pick it up and move it. An ice chopper also works, but the garden spade is particularly good for this.
If your next complaint is that you shouldn't have to own a steel garden spade just to shovel out your car, at that point you're complaining about the laws of physics. The snow is what it is. You want to park on the street, you need to do what's necessary to clear a space. Same if you have a driveway. Nobody's got a Fairy Snow Godmother doing the job for them.
I agree that they can be
I agree that they can be shoveled out to some degree, but a lot of drivers see no real incentive to do that if they have to do the same thing to another spot when they return from their next drive. So they do the bare minimum and the streets end up squeezed until nothing of any size can get through. My one way street with 2-sided parking ends up with about 1/2 the parking spots gone from a storm (or series of storms) like this one.
Haha 5 pm
There were people parking on the snow emergency streets at 10 am this morning. They will all be full of cars mixed with space savers by 5 pm.
Space Savers?
We covered the space-saver issue in January (link below). The Mayor's announcement yesterday that if you shoveled it you can keep it seemed to exempt the South End. It was clarified today.
My point about inclusiveness stands. Public Housing makes up 30% of the South End. I bet there was no outreach to the residents. Many speak Spanish. I bet there were no notices in Spanish.
We demanded transparency from the BioLab process. Let's practice what we preach.
http://www.mysouthend.com/viewissue.php?id=361
Hey, Sue: how about taking a stand on what's important
here: whether or not space savers should be allowed in the first place?
Transparency and inclusiveness of all voices on the issue by the South End Forum is important, but if you believe in the South End Forum's cause if not its methods, why not come out and say so? If you stand against their cause, shouldn't you disclose that, too? Then you could go about challenging what they stand for, instead of just the way they're standing for it.
I frankly don't understand your priorities here. If you really are a social-justice warrior, fighting for the rights of the disadvantaged and disenfranchised, shouldn't you be fighting space savers first, and then the methods of well-intentioned people who are also fighting them second?
Space saving
Please can it with the public housing and Spanish speaking nonsense. First, from Villa Victoria, to Castle Square, to Methunion Manor, to Cathedral protects, all have copious amounts of off street parking that those living in crazy expensive private housing do not have. They already get the benefit of living in one of the most expensive and desirable neighborhoods in the country and it's incredibly selfish and greedy for them to feel entitled to take even more public property for their own, and obnoxious of you to defend them that entitlement.
Second, if you don't speak English, then you better well learn if you want to get by. At the moment, I'm in South America and don't speak a lick of spanish and it is not the job of the locals to know English just to please me. That would be absurd.
I think real issue is that you don't have off street parking and you are using the poor, the spanish speakers, the elderly, and the infirm as straw men to bolster your conviction that you are entitled to preserve a spot for your private vehicle on OUR public streets.
You are not.
Either rent or buy an off street parking space, get rid of your car, or move. I paid more for my house, and thus pay higher taxes than my neighbors who lack off street parking do because my property is valued higher than theirs. Why should they get to preserve public property for their own, even for a minute? Once you move your car, you lose that spot and I don't care if you shoveled day and night.
By all means, go ahead and put out a space saver in your spot. I'll be right behind removing it as soon as you leave.
This space saver nonsense has got to stop. The street cleaning schedule should be year round for the purpose of clearing the streets of whatever matter is blocking them.
Amen. This is my second
Amen. This is my second winter I "southie" and the space saver culture is toxic. They were everywhere after saturday's dusting, which was mostly melted by Sunday morning.
A space saver is actually a threat of physical violence or destruction of property if violated. FI'll stop. That's what hizzoner is endorsing with this shortsighted policy. These savers will literally be out for the next 3 weeks if not more.
As a former resident of the South End, I say stand fast against this pernicious practice and keep it quarantined in South Boston
And the unlucky elderly or disabled without a spot already?
What if you had to leave town during the storm, or what if you just couldn't find a spot on your block Monday night because you were at work?
Not everyone was lucky enough to even have a spot to shovel out. They just get screwed.
If you didn't have good parking Monday night, the space saver system ensures that you won't get good parking for the next three days.
Or ANY parking.
nt
Didn't the city council
Didn't the city council make space spacers totally illegal a few months ago in response to the Haystack app? That was the public and transparent debate and vote on the issue.
That and $1.85 will get you a cup of coffee
Walsh has simply announced that he's not going to enforce that law as regards space savers. (except in the South End, apparently)
Call the city and ask for a
This is an option? Saver-wars aside, I'd be more than happy to get out there with my neighbors in Dot and at least clear up some sidewalks. The biggest issue is finding a place to put all the snow...a truck would be great.
Hmmm
Interesting that she didn't voice her outrage when the neighborhood associations were asking for opinions or feedback. Nor did she voice her outrage when this was announced months ago.
The Mayor's mis-announcement
The Mayor's mis-announcement that savers would be open the discussion again.
Must have missed it
When did any area of Boston vote for spacesavers?
O'Connell is picking the trivial battle instead of the real one
I pressed her on her stance on space savers (on Twitter), and she refuses to offer an opinion on them. I told her I think her priorities stink: she's fighting the trivial battle for more transparency by the South End Forum, instead of the far more important battle to keep space savers from infecting the South End.
She makes some noises about helping the disadvantaged. I shot back that space-saving exacerbates a resident parking shortage that is far more harmful to the poor than saving a shoveled-out space helps them. Oppose space savers, especially if you're concerned about social justice, then knock the Forum for not being more inclusive in promoting its otherwise laudable aims.
It all seems moot for now, as Marty reiterated the fact that he'll enforce the ban on space savers in the South End.
yeah
just don't argue with her, when she doesn't like what you have to say (or just disagrees with you) she blocks you or ignores you. Like I said below, she's a battle axe broad who's been around the block far too many times. I really take what she says with a grain of salt these days.
When cornered on her stance on space savers, O'Connell
countered by attacking my Ebola reference (above), wondering, "Do you think making Ebola jokes makes [the South End's public housing residents] feel welcome?" I conceded that my crack was hyperbole in bad taste, but that was the moment I sensed she's not exactly a paragon of reasoned discourse.
Take a stand, Sue. It's pitiful that you're ducking that question while making a stink about the South End Forum.
My stand is transparency and
My stand is transparency and involvement.
Making jokes about Ebola is like making jokes about HIV/AIDS. Would you have said, "Space-savers are like HIV/AIDS? Let's stop the spread..."?
Again, my issue was with the process, which was reopened with Walsh's mistake announcement.
Yes, I've conceded that my reference was hyperbole
and in bad taste.
Now, stop ducking the issue of where you stand on whether space savers should be allowed at all.
Oh, because Ebola is a black
Oh, because Ebola is a black thing instead of a highly infectious and toxic disease? And white people don't get it? Good to know.
No. Because it's insensitive.
No. Because it's insensitive.
Yes. Very insensitive
It is very insensitive and selfish to insist that you have a right to personally control common public property and a scarce resource that you pay nothing for.
Very insensitive, very selfish indeed.
Insensitive how, exactly?
Insensitive how, exactly? Ebola is toxic, highly infectious, spreads rapidly and is hard to stamp out. There's nothing good about it. How is saying that a practice that is also toxic, highly infectious, spreads rapidly and i hard to stomp out "like Ebola" insensitive? And why are you so very determined to make hay out of this? You know it's not the central issue. Is that why you're making so much out of this "Ebola" comment?
Thanks, lbb: that's the analogy I was going for.
But I get how the Ebola metaphor cuts a little too close to a very recent and tragic pandemic: it is in dubious, too-soon taste at best.
Given its kinship with a toxic pathogen that spreads silently and wreaks a lot of havoc before many people even know what's going on, I should have compared space-saving to Chlamydia.
point of view
Funny - they were interviewing Southie people on the news last night vis-a-vis Space Savers. Someone said that people who haven't shoveled their cars out and moved are being insensitive - they should move their cars to open up spaces for him. Apparently you can't win no matter what you do.
I don't think I have ever
I don't think I have ever blocked or ignored anyone. Correct me if I'm wrong.
Battle Ax? Sexist much?
Battle Ax? Sexist much?
You can email me at sue.southendnews@gmail any time. Would love to have coffee with you.
You're right about that. It
You're right about that. It is a sexist comment.
the city's responsibility
I'm against the space savers - I lived in a neighborhood where the long time residents thought the parking spaces were theirs and damaged cars that violated that concept (not southie - the north end). I'm lucky enough to have my own parking spot now but even when I parked on the street, my philosophy was to dig out completely so I could park - free exercise and I wouldn't need help to get my car out the next day. Once abandoned, it wasn't mine anymore. Other people not digging out not my problem. If enough people did this, eventually there'd be more spaces available. Everything else was outside my control and not worth getting worked up about.
The discussion above has me thinking though, what is the city's responsibility? They're removing space savers because, rightly, no one person can lay claim to public property. In the same vein though, shouldn't the city be cleaning out the snow in parking spots? The comment about them not even plowing parking spots on snow emergency lanes where you would get towed if parked made me think of this. How frustrating is it to encounter a snow pile the size of your car in what would otherwise be a great place to park, especially when the snow was pushed there by city workers in large trucks? Even if the snow hasn't hardened yet, my little shovel is no match. What about people who don't dig their cars out, impeding adjacent parking spot AND the lane of travel? Two land roads become one lane and single lanes become dangerous to drive on.
I'd be in favor of alternate side parking after snow emergencies to get spots cleared. I'd also be in favor of ticketing and towing of buried cars - the fee could pay for the city to dig out the car. It could be structured so the elderly and infirm aren't penalized. I know it's easy for me to say since I have a spot at home but I do occasionally drive the car too.
The comment about them not
Where I've seen this happen, it's because someone left their car parked on a snow emergency artery and it hadn't been towed (yet). Yes, the plows SHOULD come back and deal with it, but it was pretty obvious that they were angling around some idiot who left their car there.
you lost all credibility with
you lost all credibility with this statement, what complete BS from an admitted suburbanite.
most of downtown boston doesnt even have all the travel lanes plowed an hour before the ban is lifted, much less the parking lanes plowed.
Parking on emergency streets is never plowed by the city. Its the cause of all the post snow parking angst.
ugh.. Sue O'Connell
Yeah.. just ugh. She's a battle axe broad.. she's been around for a while. She's also the publisher of Bay Windows. Just ugh.. I'll keep more of my comments about her to myself except "ugh"
" battle axe broad". Wow.
" battle axe broad". Wow. Second time you've said it. Scared of women much?
Love to meet you and discuss issues concerning the South End. Or my battle axe broad-ness.
That's pretty funny, since...
That's a pretty funny comment and I'm guessing you have no idea why (no reason you should, it's kind of a UHub inside thing)
I'll leave it at that
To quote Louie Prima...
Ooooooh I wanna be like Suuuuue!
To HAVE space savers was never voted on either!
I have lived in the South End for over 20 years, and use of space savers has never been wide spread in the South End.
URGENT Climate Change Warning
While shoveling etc., please don't idle your motor vehicle for more than 5 minutes. It contributes to climate change, and is thus illegal in Massachusetts. Its a $100 fine for the first offense and $500 for subsequent offenses.
https://malegislature.gov/Laws/GeneralLaws/PartI/TitleXIV/Chapter90/Sect...
If you see any violations, please report it immediately to police, the DEP (Department of Environmental Protection), the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and the Conservation Law Foundation (CLF).
I can't handle any more global warming this week!
Here's another reason not to
CO is poisonous and your exhaust may be blocked.
(that, and read your owners manual, which says not to warm it up or idle for long periods, even for a diesel)
Suburbanites
Do any of you commenters even live in the city and have to deal with street parking? It's easy to armchair quarterback this thing. All my coworkers that live in the suburbs and have driveways seem to have the strongest opinions about space saving.
I agree. City planners a danger
The current fad in city planning is to have minimal setbacks of buildings from streets, to engage pedestrians and encourage walkability or something like that.
The sad thing is that these planners are reality challenged or following rules ill suited to where it snows. The same thing happens with road design. Narrowing intersections to reduce pedestrian crossing distances for a theoretical (only) safety advantage makes roads more dangerous in winter where high snow banks on narrowed openings reduces visibility of crossing traffic.
Plus, all these long, gentle wheelchair ramps produce longer puddles of slush to try and jump over to get to the sidewalk, so people walk in the street more, endangering themselves and bicyclists. In places where there is no snow, ramps are just fine, but here there are negatives too.
The city planners advocating zoning rules removing setback space are at work in suburban town centers too.
I know, right?
Who the hell wants Boston to be pedestrian-friendly? Now Phoenix...Jacksonville...Houston...those are cities that work for everyone, car driver and truck driver alike.
Not any more. I lived in the
Not any more. I lived in the west Fens for twelve years. That good enough for you?
(it was an awesome neighborhood, and no space saving. I don't know if it's changed)
It's funny how
the super liberal equality-for-all types that live in MA becomes strict "what's mine is mine" types when it comes to parking spaces that they have shoveled. It's quite comical as an outsider living here.
Do you have any proof at all that ....
... "super liberals" provide a significant portion of the support for space savers ?
My guess is that you've never lived in Southie, polarbare
I have, in City Point, not one of the new yuppie-condo corners. It's a very conservative neighborhood, scant few liberals on my block, yet my neighbors are extremely dedicated to space-saver culture, which Southie pretty much invented.
So, you know, you might be talking through your hat there.
wouldn't be the first time
but having friends and extended family in the neighborhood to add to my insight makes me think I'm not totally wrong on this.
Or you are bringing a prejudice against liberals
to a phenomenon which has no political affinity one way or another.
Logic and Fairness can and should prevail in the South End
THANK YOU, Steve and South End Forum members for prompting our city leaders to apply logic and fairness with regard to our public ways. The prevalence of space saving in parts of our city is highly inappropriate, and creates more problems than it solves. One does not own claim to a spot by virtue of digging it out… tradition or not, this concept isn't fair or logical to me, nor does it represent the concept of a "community" in which one might take pride. Our neighborhood is to be commended for taking the correct stance. As others have made the point in their comments, we never got a vote to say YES to space savers… so why should the practice be allowed? Kudos to the Forum for a thorough discussion on the matter and for nipping it in the bud before it became more widespread in the South End.
Sue, it's very disappointing that you seem opposed to this correct new policy and to see your misplaced criticism of the process that has lead to its correction. Surely there are better ways to use your platform to address this subject.
Mayor Walsh and our city councilors, please look to the South End as a model to the way this city should behave. Have the political courage to say NO to those who claim entitlement. Correct the misconception of ownership (even temporary ownership).
It's inconvenient when it snows, and we live in an imperfect world. To those seeking to make it more perfect and fair, please look beyond a folding chair.
Few thoughts:
- The SE Forum is indeed elected, if indirectly. Each neighborhood association board is elected, to the best of my knowledge. Those board members then make up the SE Forum. On most issues, when a conversation/topic emerges, the boards (to the best of my knowledge) poll or otherwise chat with their members, then bring back their vote. Also, to my knowledge, recent meetings have been advertised and open to the public. Older meetings may have been a bit less advertised but were never 'closed'. So yeah, it's as close to a democratic organization as we can get, without a formal referendum. And oh yeah, those folks are volunteers and try to do the right thing, so thank you from me to our neighborhood association leaders.
- My Neighborhood Association has invited reps from a local housing project, but they never attend. We also hang flyers, but nobody from that project signs up for the mailing list. I believe (but can't say for certain) that the SE Forum has also invited them to participate. I wish they participated, but for whatever reasons they don't. Can lead a horse to water... (Please don't yell at me for the horse reference. It's an expression)
- Agree, it's a shame the city doesn't plow snow-arteries to the curb. That is terrible and should be fixed.
- Also agree with Sue. Now that the dust has settled, and especially if the temp ever hits 33 again, the most neighborly thing anyone can do is to try to clean out the mounds of snow left between parking spots. [Don't tell anyone this but once the streets are down to black pavement, I sometimes shovel out these mounds and just spread it in a thin layer on the pavement. The sun and remaining salt melt it much faster than it ever would sitting in a mound, and cars just drive right over it. Shh. ]
- Disagree with Sue on most everything else above. I can see the intention behind space savers, but the problems are more numerous. Implied threats. People who went into a garage or were out of town during the storm would NEVER get a spot, space savers are left forever, and on and on. Also, I don't recall, but if she's this passionate for space savers, I hope there was a big editorial to that effect before the local ban was ever put into place.
- The battle axe and ebola words are a mean, especially the personal attack on Sue. Those comments aren't helping anything. That said, they're just words, let's not let some petty verbal insults detract from the larger discussion. And yes, Ebola is a pretty accurate analogy for a bad thing that spreads rapidly. I don't think it was meant to be an insult to specific people.
Having said all this, I hope I can get a spot tonight after work...
The good old days
I heard Mayors Walsh & Flynn on BUR talking about the good old days - before space savers - when you everyone in the neighborhood knew each other and respected the spaces people shoveled out in front of their houses. What went unsaid is that you probably get a neighborhood beat down if you did park in front of the O'Connell's house in "their spot" — snow or no snow.
We now have condo developments where we once had three deckers. Every household has a car. Or two. Or three.
We have more resident parking than spaces.
South End News will be focusing this year on the car/parking/transportation issues.
Also, I fear the growth of "Two South Ends". A South End where 30% of the residents are not represented in the largest neighborhood group.
Why? Why don't they join? What are their issues?
Are issues of institutional entitlement being addressed? Are their barriers to attendance or membership that are not being addressed?
I was a founding member of the Mission Hill Civic Association back in the early 1990s, when Mission Main was being renovated. We welcomed children to our meetings so parents could attend. We had a Spanish speaker on hand and posted signs in Spanish. We held meeting in the Mission Main development. We appointed an advisory board with members from each housing development, (public + private). We sent meeting notes, by mail or hand delivered, to residents. We held cookouts in Mission Main. We held a "stand out against crime".
I'm not saying the Forum didn't or did do these things, and I'm not saying they should. I'm just raising my experience and the success we had in Mission Hill as a group that represented all of Mission Hill.
Thanks for all your comments. By the way, my feelings don't get hurt, and I respond to personal or offensive attacks only because I feel they take the distract from constructive conversation. Also, as a woman, I find gender specific insults are harmful to all. In other words, I'd rather be called an "idiot blowhard" than a "battle axe broad".
Agreed: space savers encourage vigilante enforcement
in the form of violence and vandalism. I also believe that space savers are more harmful to disadvantaged citizens than the more privileged citizens of the South End: they increase pressure on a constrained resource. The only way an overtaxed set of public parking spaces possibly functions is if those spaces are available to everyone, not reserved and vacant while one person is at work. If a wealthy South Ender gets fed up enough with lack of parking, she's going to find a private alternative, an option less-fortunate citizens do not have.
So I'm still puzzled, Sue: why the hell aren't you taking a stand against space savers already?