I attended the Cambridge Conservation Commission meeting last night, February 14.
The Cambridge Pols apparently had a bunch of people out for the 7:45 hearing on a project west of the Fresh Pond area shopping centers. I was there for the 7:30 hearing on railroad work south of the main Alewife reservation. It develops that the work is totally within the currently developed area. Basically, they are straightening out tracks to speed up the trains.
The area being discussed in the 7:45 hearing, generally, is separated from the main Alewife reservation by the train tracks.
The Cambridge Pols, as usual, seemed to be lying about which side they are on with regard to environmental destruction.
I was there because I was concerned about possible encroachment on the Alewife reservation by the railroad in the area to the south of the reservation. My concerns, apparently, were unfounded.
The Cambridge Pols have fought for years for the destruction of the main Alewife reservation while yelling that they are protecting a whole bunch of stuff which are long shots. The Alewife reservation could have and still can be protected because it is the City of Cambridge which is destroying it. The Pols are fighting for the destruction of the main reservation for flood storage that should be placed under a parking lot just north of the tracks. The soon to come destruction of the reservation is exactly where the Pols are coming from.
The project they got the troops out on is apparently another example of being on the wrong side when it counts but sounding oh so pious when it is too late.
A developer is destroying a small industrial building generally west of the western of the two shopping centers to put in a massive housing complex. I did not waste my time on this meeting. I attended the last one.
The current issue is that the developer is building in phases and, at the request of the Cambridge Development Department is allowing a street to be constructed between phase 1 and phase 2. Phase 2, toward the tracks and the Alewife reservation, would be grass in the interim. There are technical problems with approvals. My understanding of the last meeting was that the organization of the project was creating the technical problems.
The Cambridge Pols supported an irresponsible upzoning of this area a few years back with a con game that protections were being provided closer to a housing area near Belmont. The con game was that the supposed protections obviously would disappear after gross overdevelopment was accomplished in this area.
When that zoning was passed was the time to kill this development. I opposed the upzoning and offered a responsible alternative. The Cambridge Pols played games in which they supported the key lie and sounded pious. So, of course, they got out the troops years after they did the damage through that irresponsible zoning change.
I was there for the railroad and its destruction next to the key area the Pols are fighting now to destroy, the core Alewife reservation.
The Pols can still prevent the destruction of the core Alewife reservation.
The Pols looked like they were playing con games as usual. “Don’t look at the pending irresponsible destruction we are fighting for. Look at us fighting against irresponsible construction we fought for when it counted. Now don’t we sound great!!!“
No they do not sound great, if you live in reality. Reality, however, is the last thing that counts when you are dealing with the Cambridge Pols.
