1. Mishka Reports.
2. Official Notice from the website:
3. Your Editor.
4. Contacts, Miscellaneous.
1. Mishka Reports.
I received the following email from Mishka sent by him late on January 8. He was very much up on the destruction at Kendall.
***************************
I’ve seen some tree removal hearing notices today near Kendall Square subway station. The hearing was yesterday. I don't know whether dirty tricks were involved in terms of the timing of posting of the hearing notices, because I did not see those notices on Monday, Jan 6 (but I might have missed them).
This is the notice on the city Web site:
http://www.cambridgema.gov/theworks/newsandevents/news/2013/12/treehearingscheduledforjanuary7.aspx
I don't know whether anyone concerned attended the hearing, and whether any objections were entered. It's a lot of trees.
2. Official Notice from the website:
Tree Hearing Scheduled for January 7
12/27/2013
Pursuant to Massachusetts General Laws Chapter 87, Sections 3 and 4, a public hearing will be held on Tuesday, January 7th, 2014 at 5:30 pm at 147 Hampshire St, Cambridge, Mass., to consider the removal of the following public tree(s):
1. 238 Main St – Removal of 3 pear trees (9.6”, 11.6”, and 13.6”) due to structural issues and streetscape improvement project. Location will be replanted.
2. 1 Cambridge Center (on Main St) – Removal of 5 pear trees (13”, 13.2”, 12.9”, 7.7”, and 6.3”) due to structural issues and streetscape improvement project. Location will be replanted.
3. 3 Cambridge Center (on Main St) – Removal of 6 pear trees (6.3”, 5.7”, 8.7”, 15.6”, 13.8”, and 15.3”) due to structural issues and streetscape improvement project. Location will be replanted.
4. 326 Main St – Removal of 2 pear trees (15.8” and 17.1”) due to structural issues and streetscape improvement project. Location will be replanted.
5. 336 Main St – Removal of 2 pear trees (13” and 15.8”) due to structural issues and streetscape improvement projects. Location will be replanted.
6. 355 Main St – Removal of 7 pear trees (15.5”, 11.6”, 8.8”, 7.7”, 8”, 9”, and 8.1”) due to structural issues and streetscape improvement project. Location will be replanted.
7. 400 Main St – Removal of 2 pear trees (16.8” and 17.9”) due to structural issues and streetscape improvement project. Location will be replanted.
[A number of irrelevant trees omitted. - ed]
The tree(s) identified above have been posted for public inspection. Any objections to their removal must be submitted in writing to the City Arborist, prior to or during the hearing. The mailing address for the City Arborist is Department of Public Works, City of Cambridge, 147 Hampshire Street, Cambridge, MA 02139; phone: 617-349-6433 email: cambridgetree@cambridgema.gov
[Formal entries omitted.]
OWEN O'RIORDAN
COMMISSIONER
3. Your Editor.
“Streetscape improvement project.”
I made a public meeting on “improvements” in Kendall which do not have the stench of this announcement. Naturally, the massive destruction was not mentioned. The discussion explained the project in connection with the Longfellow Bridge project which included totally unnecessary destruction of major trees, of course.
Clearly, there is state money involved. And there is a lot of crap about “replanting”. We are dealing with people to whom mature trees have no value.
Tree City USA does not count mature trees. Mature trees are in the way of saplings. Tree City USA counts saplings. And the contractors love make work.
Similarly, the con from the Cambridge Machine is always: “How dare you discuss this with the Cambridge City Council!!!!”
These people run around using pious words from this destructive Cambridge City Council yelling at the other guy, and they insist the Cambridge City Council should not be bothered about destruction in Cambridge.
Like Hell!
These trees have not been destroyed yet.
They still can be saved.
4. 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.
**********
For people listening to Boston Sierra Club endorsements of environmentally destructive members of and candidates for 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; Cambridge’s definition is that environmentalists protect that which Cambridge does not feel like destroying; the Cambridge pols are oh, so pious using their secret, fraudulent definition;
(2) the former school committee member who just got sworn into the Cambridge City Council fought for the outrages at the Magazine Beach playing fields;
(a) his indignant explanation is that he claims to be only responsible for the good stuff;
(b) that explanation is combined with exactly no demonstration of any meaningful opposition whatsoever to the outrages; and
(c) as is usual in Cambridge, his claims of “improvements” are belied by reality. The playing fields have been decreased in size by his project!!!!! This is to drain off the poisons being dumped to keep alive sickly introduced grasses which replaced healthy grass that survived the better part of a century without poisons; and
(3) 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 a few months ago.
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.
