A. Destruction pending.
B. The record, total lack of value in prior destruction in Kendall Square.
2. Photos.
3. Contacts, Miscellaneous.
1. Mass. Engineers Like Straight Lines.
A. Destruction pending.
We have been following the imminent and ongoing outrage on the Charles River in Cambridge, MA, for many years.
We are at a crucial turning point. The legislature, apparently tomorrow, July 17, 2013, will vote on the destruction of hundreds of trees on the abutting Memorial Drive between the Longfellow Bridge and the BU Bridge.
The lie of explanation is “underpasses”. Underpasses rejected by the Massachusetts Department of Transportation (MassDOT) for the next three bridges over the Charles were pitched without telling the “supporters” that the “underpasses” were used as a con game to get unknowing support for destruction of these hundreds of trees between the BU and Longfellow Bridges.
MassDOT has started destruction of the excellent grove of trees which connects Memorial Drive to the Longfellow Bridge. They have provided three BIZARRE “explanations.” This destruction has also occupied many posts. The most recent is at: http://charlesriverwhitegeeseblog.blogspot.com/2013/07/major-destruction-action-on-charles.html.
The woman key in the fight for destruction of those hundreds of trees has publicly cooed over the commencement of destruction of this excellent grove of trees.
Completion of destruction is imminent.
B. The record, total lack of value in prior destruction in Kendall Square.
MassDOT has already destroyed an excellent grove on top of the Red Line subway line which crosses the Charles River on the Longfellow Bridge and then goes underground under Kendall Square. This excellent grove was at the Longfellow Bridge end of the tunnel under Kendall Square.
The lie here was that destruction of this excellent grove was “necessary” to reroute traffic as part of the project. Traffic going from Boston to Cambridge is being prohibited for the duration of the project. For the first part of the project, traffic going from Cambridge to Boston will be rerouted from the Boston bound side to the Cambridge bound side.
And, according to MassDOT, destruction of that excellent grove was “necessary.”
We are now able to see how “necessary” that destruction is.
MassDOT has created a straight line for that traffic through the destroyed grove.
All MassDOT had to do was pivot the line to the east. That would create a very slight turn as traffic entered the Boston bound side. There are traffic turns all over the place.
The engineers did not have the decency, the honor, the respect for our world to create that turn and refrain from destroying that excellent grove.
This is global warming.
This is the reprehensible Cambridge, MA. This is the reprehensible Commonwealth of Massachusetts.
This fits in exactly with the planned outrages at that excellent grove on the on ramp and between the Longfellow Bridge and the BU Bridge.
Trees are being destroyed because we have terrible governments in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts and the City of Cambridge, MA, USA.
Trees are being destroyed because Cambridge has a belligerently corrupt Cambridge Machine which can be relied upon to run around calling its destructive state and local governments “holier than thou” no matter how much of a lie that is.
No other reason.
They have accomplished major, irresponsible destruction, but a lot of very important trees have not been destroyed.
Contacts are below in section. 3.
2. Photos.
A. The grove on the on ramp.
Before destruction.
After removal of the first two trees.
B. The grove above the red line.
(1) Lovely Pines, June 18.
(2) Lovely Pines Nearby, June 18.
(3) Killed Pines, June 19.
(4) Piled construction junk where the nice pines were, July 15.
(5) Larger View, piled construction junk where the nice pines were, July 15.
Note: You cannot see it, but the next grove they want to needlessly destroy is to the right of the cars in the road.
(6) Even larger view, piled construction where the nice pines were, July 15.
(7) View from above, July 15.
The opening to the immediate left is the one shown in the preceding photo.
The opening behind it is Main Street, Cambridge, MA.
In the middle is the future crossover, now occupied by jersey barriers. No responsible reason whatsoever to destroy that excellent grove of trees. Just create a slight turn, if you are responsible.
3. Contacts, Miscellaneous.
Massachusetts Governor’s Office email form: http://www.mass.gov/governor/constituentservices/contact/.
State environmental people, DES Hotline: ESF.Hotline@state.ma.us.
MassDOT Accelerated Bridges Program: 857-368-8904 or Stephanie.Boundy@state.ma.us
All Massachusetts Legislators’ emails: http://charlesriverwhitegeeseblog.blogspot.com/2013/04/emails-for-all-massachusetts.html.
Cambridge, MA, USA city councilors: Council@cambridgema.gov.
Plus the links provided in the above email.
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For people listening to Boston Sierra Club endorsements of environmentally destructive members of the Cambridge City Council, you should be aware that
(1) using the world’s definition of “environmentalism,” there are no environmentally responsible members of the Cambridge City Council, and
(2) there are Cambridge Machine activists very visible and apparently very active in the Boston Sierra Club.
If you are talking to a person associated with the Boston Sierra Club, do a credibility check. Ask if they are familiar with the “Urban Ring” rapid transit proposal. This is a subway proposal designed to link the existing subway spokes. I have been working on it since 1985. Cambridge raised the project in a comment to an environmental Impact Statement in the last month or so.
If the Boston Sierra Club “expert” answers “yes,” that he / she is familiar with the Urban Ring rapid transit proposal, ask how many rail options there are. If the answer is “one,” you are getting the flat out lie put out by the City of Cambridge.
Cambridge’s flat out lie is that, of the TWO rail options, the only one that exists is the environmentally destructive streetcar option which the City of Cambridge supports. This option would be highly destructive to the environment near the Destroyed Nesting Area of the Charles River White Geese.
The reality is that THE STATE LEGISLATURE HAS SUBSIDIZED THE OTHER OPTION, the responsible Orange Line / heavy rail option, the Kenmore crossing. The state legislature has subsidized the expansion of Yawkey Station as part of the massive Fenway Park area project which has gotten recent press.
Cambridge’s nonsensical proposal would move Yawkey Station three blocks. The Cambridge proposal would not work without moving Yawkey Station. The Kenmore Crossing uses the now subsidized and being expanded Yawkey Station as part of a brilliant megastation.
You should immediately respond to such nonsense from a Sierra Club “expert” by having nothing more to do with this person. Whether the person is stupid or venal is irrelevant, the person has no credibility and is not worthy of your time.
It is frequently difficult to pin these irresponsible people down in general. The deviant behavior in my test is extreme. They are pious in their demands that, if you are politically correct and pro environment, you have to rubber stamp them. Please do not waste your time arguing about destruction they can try to wiggle around.
Turn your back on them and walk away fast.
