Cambridge City Council considers rewriting the functioning of the City of Cambridge. III. Major transportation “planning” problems.
1. General.
2. Problems with “reliable” sources. General.
3. Easily explainable but conflicting reports from the same source, the Boston Globe.
A. Red Sox Report.
B. Landsdowne Station Project.
C. Combined.
4. Creation of the Kenmore Superstation and related issues.
5. My photos of the Landsdowne Station complex from June 9, 2021.
A. Brookline Avenue relationship.
B. Relationship of project to Red Sox properties.
C. Relationship of project to Landsdowne Station, I90 and Beacon Street.
6. Relationship of Project to the Urban Ring.
A. General.
B. The Urban Ring Without Cambridge.
7. Summary.
1. General.
This is the third report in a series
A. The first segment was: “Cambridge City Council considers rewriting the functioning of the City of Cambridge. I. A personal prequil,” at https://charlesriverwhitegeeseblog.blogspot.com/2021/05/.
B. The second segment was: ““Cambridge City Council considers rewriting the functioning of the City of Cambridge. 2. Very early history. PARTIAL transportation analysis” at: https://charlesriverwhitegeeseblog.blogspot.com/2021/06/cambridge-city-council-considers.html.
2. Problems with “reliable” sources. General.
I have very severe problems with machinations / “reports” coming out of the City of Cambridge, especially its Development Department, but also from the Cambridge City Council since there is a very strong likelihood that many actions taken by the Cambridge City Council are drafted by the Development Department. They rubber stamp the Development Department, they make themselves responsible for the nonsense they put out. That decision is a decision which they have no business disavowing.
In part II of this series, I apologized about spending so much time on transportation issues. Very quickly after this post, I found a strange combination of excellent graphics and defects in the excellent graphics. The reality is that these conflicts are readily explained, but have not been adequately explained. This contrasts drastically with too much stuff coming out of City of Cambridge / Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation’s hands which deviate from reality and whose deviations look like they are kept as secret as they can get away with.
The core part of the situation relevant to these reports is the reporting of development around the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority’s Landsdowne (formerly Yawkey) Commuter Rail Station.
The Boston Globe published a report on development around the Red Sox’ Fenway Park based on an excellent map from the Red Sox that omitted the Landsdowne Commuter Rail Station construction. Then, researching sources, it develops that the best citation the developer has on its project is a recent report by the Boston Globe on the project.
This project is crucial because it relates to the “Urban Ring” plans. I will go into the conflicts below, the short explanation is that the Massachusetts Department of Transportation is preventing major and irresponsible destruction being fought for by the DCR and Cambridge at the Destroyed Nesting Area / Wild Area. Cambridge and the DCR have given the impression the destruction is for the “Urban Ring” transportation proposal, but the reality is that the “Urban Ring” will not go through Cambridge’s preferred Urban Ring route.
As usual, Cambridge and the DCR are trying to destroy what is in their control IN SPITE OF THE REALITY OF THE fact that the Landsdowne Station project around the MBTA Landsdowne Station destroys the supposed need for that destruction.
I will go into the “Urban Ring” oddities below, but start with the Landsdowne Station information oddities.
3. Easily explainable but conflicting reports from the same source, the Boston Globe.
A. Red Sox Report.
Here is the recent Boston Globe / boston.com map, June 8, 2021, https://www.boston.com/news/local-news/2021/06/07/fenway-park-construction-plans/?p1=recirc_mostpopular, from Red Sox sources. It concerns but omits the Landsdowne Station project.
The Globe’s article and map goes into great apparent detail about development around Fenway Park. The Globe article admits there are omissions. They do not say what, in spite of this major and obvious omission.
The very big project at Landsdowne Station is simply marked with the MBTA’s T logo and identified as Landsdowne Station. The nearest this article’s graphics come to recognizing this major project is a shadow in the area of the graphic. The major streets Beacon Street and Brookline Avenue run at angles from left and left bottom to the top of the graphic, with Beacon Street the upper street and Brookline Avenue the lower, on either side of Landsdowne Station. The report includes several other maps and presents the Red Sox position on development coming.
Three MBTA Green Line branches are created by a split at Kenmore Station. Two of the three go through this area underground. Green Line B is on Commonwealth Avenue, slightly above the map area. Green Line C goes under Beacon Street. Green Line D goes under the T logo which identifies Landsdowne Station.
The first stop on Green Line D is to the left of the map area. It is named, appropriately, the “Fenway Park Station.” Green Line D comes to the surface through a portal which is a little bit to the upper left and off the map from the “Harvard Vanguard Medical Associates” building in the lower left corner. A pedestrian way connects Green Line D and the Fenway Park Station to the HVMA building site and to a side street off the map which ends at the HVMA building site.
B. Landsdowne Station Project.
Here is the massive Boston Globe graphic created by the developers and obtained from their webpage. The graphic dominates a Boston Globe newspaper page which the developer reprints. This reprints relevant pages of the Boston Globe on April 19, 2021. The reproduction by the developer is at https://meredithmanagement.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/041921_Boston-Globe-print_Fenway-Center.pdf.
The two massive buildings on the left are part of the Landsdowne Station projects omitted in the Red Sox area map. They are physically completed, at least on the outside, but are not acknowledged in the 6/8/21 publication. The buildings have principal entrances from Beacon Street and Landsdowne Station with access from Brookline Avenue for pedestrians and vehicles.
The two less large buildings between the larger of the two externally completed buildings and Brookline Avenue, have not been started yet. They are proposed to be above I90. A major selling point by the developer is the transportation access of the project. The developer’s web page shows significantly larger buildings than are shown in this graphic. The graphic appears to be newer than the contrary information. I assume this graphic replaces the webpage’s contrary information.
I took a lot of photos on June 9, 2021. Many are below. The purpose of the photos I am presenting is to establish the relationship of the existing buildings to Landsdowne Station, to local streets, and to the coming Kenmore superstation under the Urban Ring plans, contrasted with the TWENTY YEAR LIE from the Cambridge Development Department that there were not even alternate plans from the plans favored by the Cambridge bureaucrats.
The bureaucrats said that the Urban Ring crossing which includes this, the existing location of Landsdowne Station did not exist as an alternative for the Urban Ring. The bureaucrats, FOR TWENTY YEARS OR MORE insisted that the only Urban Ring version which existed in planning was the bureaucrats’ favorite which would move the station about half a mile from the existing location. No one familiar with the plans agreed with this outrageous lie.
The completed buildings physically include most of the Landsdowne Station platform complex.
The coming buildings will rather clearly include the connection between the Kenmore MBTA facilities (CITGO sign) and most of the rest of the Landsdowne Station platforms. My photos from June 9 go into what that area looks like now, including shots through the area over I90 where one or two coming buildings will be located, at least in part.
The developer’s rendition shows the relationship to Kenmore Square (CITGO sign), and two bridges across the Charles River. The nearer bridge, in the upper middle of the graphic, is the “Mass. Ave. bridge.” The abbreviations are never spelled out in normal usage, but legally, it is the “Harvard Bridge.” Toward the upper right corner is the Longfellow Bridge. The large green facility on the right is the Boston Red Sox’ Fenway Park.
The upper, Cambridge, side of the Charles River is the area which has been deforested by the DCR with Cambridge assistance. The worst destruction SO FAR, occurred in January 2016. More than 150 mostly excellent trees were destroyed between the BU Bridge (off the graphic a few blocks to the left) and the Longfellow Bridge.
The DCR has since planted saplings, partially as replacements for excellence which should not have been destroyed, and partially they have planted saplings which they should have planted decades ago. The Cambridge / Boston Hyatt Regency Hotel is about a block to the left on the Cambridge side. The Destroyed Nesting Area of the Charles River White Geese is about three blocks to the left, with the Wild Area a block earlier.
My video on this portion of the ongoing outrages may be viewed at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pTplCCEJP7o.
C. Combined.
The Red Sox graphic shows other developments proposed around Fenway Park. Plus it shows streets on the far side of Fenway Park from the Landsdowne project. The big shadow toward the left in the Red Sox version would appear to be a general acknowledgment of the Landsdowne project. “David Ortiz Drive,” marked in the area identified as “Brookline” is, I understand, a public street connecting Landsdowne Station and the project to Brookline Avenue. A connecting pedestrian walkway is to the left of David Ortiz Drive, albeit with more physical separation than would normally be seen for a sidewalk.
The Landsdowne developer rendition puts things in a much broader perspective than the Red Sox. The Red Sox provides detail of proposals, around Fenway Park, other than the Landsdowne project.
Both graphics are accompanied by new reports explaining the graphics.
4. Creation of the Kenmore Superstation and related issues.
The area of the Landsdowne project at Brookline Avenue is key from a transportation point of view. This is the area where a tunnel connecting the Landsdowne Station project (and Fenway Park) to Kenmore Station needs to go to create the Urban Ring’s Kenmore Superstation consisting of the three Green Line branches and the MBTA Worcester Commuter Rail and a new, heavy rail branch of the MBTA’s Orange Line subway, the “Urban Ring.”.
Going outbound, the Worcester Commuter Rail’s first stop west of Landsdowne Station is at Boston Landing. The Boston Landing station straddles the historical boundary between Boston’s Allston and Brighton neighborhoods. It is perhaps a mile beyond where Harvard University wants its own private Commuter Rail station to be built.
Inbound from Landsdowne Station, the first stop is Back Bay Station. The Worcester Commuter Rail line terminates at South Station. From South Station, there is DIRECT bus connection to Boston’s Logan Airport and parts of South Boston and Boston’s North Shore by the “Silver Line.” The buses are designed for tunnel usage as appropriate. There is also direct Red Line subway service at South Station connecting to the MBTA subway system. Above the tracks in the South Station terminal and connected to the South Station facility is the main Boston bus terminal. The bus terminal is in the process of a 50% expansion bringing it even more into the South Station transportation complex. MassDOT has been hoping to add tracks to the South Station terminal for new train service which could possibly now end at Back Bay Station.
In addition to the Green Line, its branches and the Landsdowne Commuter Rail, the Kenmore Superstation, under the “Urban Ring” plan which includes Landsdowne Station in place (and is the obvious winner of the two Urban Ring alternatives in spite of more than two decades of lies from the Cambridge bureaucrats)
● would have a new subway connection to downtown Boston by an “Urban Ring” Orange Line spur which would fork off the MBTA’s Orange Line at Ruggles Station and have an intermediate stop at the Harvard / Longwood Medical Center.
● As part of the existing Orange Line, the new line would connect to the Red Line at “Downtown Crossing,” one stop from the increasingly massive South Station complex and
● have a direct Commuter Rail connection to South Station at Ruggles Station.
● Plus South Station has direct “Silver Line” channelized bus service to Logan.
Below I will analyze the “Urban Ring” plans and how this project interrelates with and PREVENTS destructive tricks supported by the City of Cambridge.
5. My photos of the Landsdowne Station complex from June 9, 2021.
A. Brookline Avenue relationship.
This photo is taken from the Fenway Park side of the Brookline Avenue bridge over I90. The divider crossing Brookline Avenue is the edge between the bridge and that portion of Brookline Avenue closer to Kenmore Square. Seen in the distance are the two buildings so far constructed of the Landsdowne Station project. The building visible to the left is between the Landsdowne project and Brookline Street. Its exact location is spelled out in the Red Sox graphic above.
Here is a closer photo from the sidewalk seen in the prior photo.
The object at the bottom of the picture almost certainly contains utilities normally buried under public streets. My estimate is that the utilities will wind up as part of the final building in that portion of the Landsdowne project, built in air rights. A tunnel to the existing Kenmore Square station is likely planned to go in this location as part of the project building fronting on Brookline Avenue. Visible above the highway in the distance is Beacon Street on which the two existing Landsdowne Station project buildings front.
Moving to the other end of the bridge, here is a better view of the relationship of Landsdowne Station to the Landsdowne project, to I90 and to Beacon Street. Pedestrians cross over the tracks from the David Ortiz Drive (left) side of the station to get to the outbound platform. The largest project building is better shown above and below.
Here is a closer view of the not yet covered portion of the station platform. It is taken from the parking lot of the building between the station and Brookline Avenue. I90 is visible beyond the station. The largest project building is at the upper left. The bridge connecting the outbound tracks to the inbound tracks and David Ortiz Drive is the thin structure parallel to the top of the photo. Nearer buildings on the right face on Beacon Street. Boston University facilities are located in all or part of the buildings.
This is a reverse view from the station’s upper structure. Note the grass which is visible in prior pictures. Also note the bridge which is Brookline Avenue.
B. Relationship of project to Red Sox properties.
Here are two photos of the Brookline Avenue view of the two completed buildings.
The first shot is down David Ortiz Drive with the plaza of the big building and the station entrance straight ahead. The building to the right is the one also shown in the upper photos.
The second shot is from the pedestrian way next to David Ortiz Drive.
The parking lot, David Ortiz Drive and the walkway are identified as “Brookline” in the Red Sox graphic in the Globe presentation of the Red Sox plans. I parked in the parking lot several times as part of a my multiple day Spooky World gig in Fenway Park during the 2011 Centennial of Fenway park. That was my third season acting on Spooky World.
While I was shooting these photographs, a bus from the Harvard / Longwood Medical Area made a run down David Ortiz Drive and past the station entrance.
C. Relationship of project to Landsdowne Station, I90 and Beacon Street.
Here are two photos of the project’s plaza showing relationship to the station, to Beacon Street and to Beacon Street properties. Note in the first photo that the staircase to the right connects the station facility to the outbound station platform without connecting to the plaza. Also note the curved top fence to the right next to the building. The access to the plaza from the station is through doorways that look like they could be secured.
Here is the relationship of the plaza to the station outbound platform, to I90 and to Beacon Street. Note, once again, the internal station staircase to the outbound platform and note the fence with the curve at the top protecting plaza users. There is an elevator in the station building. Looking straight ahead, there is a staircase directly to the plaza from the outbound platform of the station, located not far from Beacon Street. There is a, closed during my shoot, companion staircase to the inbound side from the plaza. The structure vertically between the plaza and the platform would be a roof to protect passengers from the elements.
6. Relationship of the project to the Urban Ring.
A. General.
I initially started work on the Urban Ring subway proposal in the 1980's. At the beginning, the plan crossed the Charles River THROUGH the Wild Area located east of the Destroyed Nesting Area of the Charles River White Geese, destroying the Wild Area.
This struck me as wildly wasteful. Additionally, the southern, Boston / Brookline side of the Plan was highly controversial and even more destructive.
In 1986, because of the irresponsibility of the proposed subway crossing I proposed the subway cross the Charles River further east in a configuration which became called the Kenmore Crossing. The Kenmore Crossing was adopted as an alternative plan by the MBTA in the early 1990's. This definitely looks like the winning alternative.
FOR MORE THAN TWO DECADES, the Cambridge Development Department consistently did not acknowledge the existence in planning of the Kenmore Crossing when talking about the very major Urban Ring planning. They clearly only told people about their favored plan, giving the very clear communication that their favored plan was the only plan in existence.
In the mid 2010's the Cambridge City Manager in an analysis to MassDOT of South Station redevelopment reaffirmed Cambridge’s interest in the “Urban Ring.” In Cambridge’s established world of fake meanings for terms, it is impossible to tell if “Urban Ring” as used by that City Manager included both official Urban Ring alternatives or just the only alternative recognized by the Cambridge Development Department, the original Cambridge-preferred route which would destroy the Wild Area. The Cambridge preferred alternative would also move Landsdowne Station to a location about a block from Marsh Chapel, the heart of Boston University’s campus, a distance of perhaps half a mile from the location under the Landsdowne Station development.
Here is a crop of the developer’s graphic from the Globe report showing the developer’s Landsdowne Station project.
The Urban Ring was slated to run in the Grand Junction railroad right of way and originally continue to the Wild Area, destroy the Wild Area and then cross the Charles River.
The tall building on the Cambridge side near the left edge contains Massachusetts Institute of Technology graduate student married housing. The green area to its right is MIT’s athletic fields.
Beyond the married housing and the athletic fields is Vassar Street and then were some small buildings. Beyond the small buildings is the Grand Junction right of way. At the top right is the Mass. Ave. Bridge. The bridge becomes Massachusetts Avenue in Cambridge and crosses the Grand Junction right of way.
My proposed Kenmore Crossing would have the Urban Ring subway turn toward the river after Massachusetts Avenue, travel under the playing fields and under the Charles River to Kenmore Square (marked by the CITGO sign) amd then go under Brookline Avenue and meet up with the portion of Urban Ring shared by both river crossing proposals.
The Kenmore Crossing rather clearly is now the winning route for the Urban Ring subway route. Detailed analysis below.
The Cambridge bureaucrat favored initial Urban Ring alternative was intended to have connections to Green Line B and to the Commuter Rail. The connection to Commuter Rail required moving Landsdowne (then Yawkey) Station to wherever the Urban Ring wound up. That location became the intersection of Mountfort and St. Mary’s Streets, a block from Boston University’s Marsh Chapel. The Cambridge preferred alternative had major problems creating direct access to all the Green Line branches.
At this relocated Landsdowne station, it would connect to the Commuter Rail and connect to Green Line B in the middle of Commonwealth Avenue at Marsh Chapel by a tunnel under St. Mary’s Street to the southern sidewalk. Passengers would cross the inbound side of Commonwealth Avenue to get to Green Line B.
B. The Urban Ring Without Cambridge.
I communicated the Cambridge wishes to move Landsdowne Station to the Landsdowne developer at a show and tell of his project in a meeting room in Fenway Park. He was shocked. Not that long later, as these things go, the legislature put a lot of money into upgrading Landsdowne Station to its current full station status. In my photos, I have shown the connection to the Urban Ring project, Kenmore Station, and the Kenmore Crossing.
In the meantime, MIT has built a massive new dorm between Vassar Street and the Grand Junction right of way in the area shown above, as I commented with regard to my cropping of the developer’s graphic. This massive new building greatly increased the cost of using the Kenmore Urban Ring River Crossing because of major changes in the tunnel caused by the size of the building.
The Cambridge City Council gave MIT very major zoning benefits to build that massive dorm. The Cambridge City Council and MIT shot themselves in the foot.
The Urban Ring was being considered to go from Ruggles Station on the Orange Line south of downtown Boston to Community College or Sullivan Station on the Orange Line north of downtown Boston.
Cambridge and MIT have greatly increased the cost of running the Urban Ring Kenmore River Crossing route through Cambridge with the construction of that building. BUT converting the Urban Ring into a spur off the Orange Line at Ruggles to the Harvard / Longwood Medical area and then ending at the Kenmore Superstation satisfies the most important goals of the Urban Ring:
(1) Excellent transportation for the Longwood / Harvard Medical Area. The value of this one stop to the metropolitan Boston area and the Commonwealth of Massachusetts greatly exceeds the value of all Cambridge stops on the Urban Ring. The Longwood / Harvard Medical area is one of the largest revenue producers in the entire Commonwealth of Massachusetts, and it is growing rapidly. That growth is the reason for the likelihood that Harvard Medical School will be moved to Harvard’s coming Allston Village - Soldiers Field Road campus.
(2) Connection to the Orange Line, to at least 3 of the 4 Green Line branches, and to Commuter Rail, both at Landsdowne Station and at Ruggles Station where the Orange Line spur would fork off. Plus better service to Fenway Park. The fourth Green Line branch, Green Line E, goes up Huntington Avenue above the Urban Ring subway route. It is a block from the Harvard / Longwood Medical Area Urban Ring station.
The value of the Landsdowne and Ruggles transfers cannot be overstated. Massachusetts is in the process of extending the Worcester line to Springfield, increasing the value of Landsdowne. Ruggles connects to the Providence / Rhode Island T.F. Green Airport by direct service and to the Amtrak Northeast Service either by transfer or by an upgrade of Ruggles. As of fall 2023 Commuter Rail is scheduled to provide direct service to South Station from Fall River and New Bedford. Direct Ruggles connection and a shorter trip from Fall River and New Bedford is in planning for the 30's. The complexities in the latter are way beyond the scope of this report.
Green Line A would readily join Green Lines B, C and D in connecting to the Urban Ring at the Kenmore superstation.
Note also that Green Line A would provide direct transportation to Harvard Medical Students coming from Harvard’s campus in planning at Allston Village - Soldiers Field Road to the Harvard / Longwood Medical Area. This would be accomplished WITHOUT THE MASSIVE EXPENSE OF HARVARD’S RED LINE DEEP BORE SPUR. Harvard’s proposal WOULD ALSO REQUIRE REBUILDING HARVARD STATION. And really be a private shuttle for Harvard with little other use.
Here is my Green Line A proposal.
Is the Cambridge portion of the Urban Ring really necessary?
In any case, the BIG cash cow, the Medical Area, gets badly needed transportation, including access to Logan through the Orange Line with Red Line Connection at South Station to the Silver Line to the airport, or with Commuter Rail connection directly at Landsdowne Station (also outbound to the Worcester line) or Ruggles Station (several train lines outbound) to South Station and the Silver Line.
C. The Urban Ring Alternatives.
Here are graphics received from the MBTA which have been posted on this blog before on multiple occasions. These are two maps of the Cambridge part of the Urban Ring analysis, and one map of the Boston part of the Urban Ring analysis.
(1) Cambridge.
(A) Cambridge bureaucrat preferred route.
Here is the City of Cambridge bureaucrats’ preferred route in Cambridge.
Here is a photo of the excellent Wild Area on the Charles River which would be destroyed by this route:
Cambridge and the Department of Conservation and Recreation are still fighting to destroy this excellence. Now they call it a bike path. In the typical Cambridge maneuvering, they have a committee supposedly reviewing the bike path. At last check, all plans (and many exist) between Memorial Drive and the Charles River are kept secret. In the meeting I attended a question by a concerned committee member about tree destruction was talked around, multiple possibilities 'being considered."
Here are the destruction plans, taken from the plans for the January 2016 outrage, but not done then.
The Wild Area is on the right. ONE TREE IS SHOWN out of this thick woods. Obviously given the dishonesty which is normal from Cambridge and the DCR, the balance are planned to be destroyed.
The destruction is rather clearly being included in "Phase 3" destruction plans by the DCR. Public hearings were fraudulently conducted claiming the project’s east boundary to be the BU Bridge.
The following slide was included in the presentation, providing the, as usual, SECRET definition of “BU Bridge.”
The right hand (eastern) extreme includes the Wild Area.
NOTE THE LOVELY DESCRIPTION. It says a lot.
My recent analysis of the fake bike path is posted on the Charles River White Geese page with a link at http://www.friendsofthewhitegeese.org/ar1.htm, The official Cambridge publication is at http://cambridgema.iqm2.com/Citizens/FileOpen.aspx?Type=1&ID=2394&Inline=True, pages 131 to 161.
(B) Kenmore Crossing.
This crossing is described in detail above. The Mass. Ave. bridge shows over the Charles River to the right of the route.
There is a dot on the route at Mass. Ave., the second dot to the right of the turn. The first dot shows the turning of the Urban Ring subway to go under the MIT playing fields.
The massive dorm since built by MIT with MAJOR upzoning benefits provided by the Cambridge City Council is on top of the curve below the first dot between the Grand Junction railroad and Vassar Street. My analysis is that the construction of this building makes an Urban Ring terminal at the Kenmore superstation highly appropriate, as stated in detail in the analysis.
(2) Boston Side.
The Cambridge bureaucrat preferred crossing is to the left, the Kenmore crossing to the right.
There are two lines showing these routes before they merge. It is easier to notice them backing up from the shared area. The shared area includes the curve at the bottom left of the map. That curve is at the beginning of the Harvard / Longwood Medical Area. In this configuration, it would go under a building of the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center which used to be the Massachusetts College of Art.
Moving up, a broken line curving to the top left if visible, plus another straight broken line going diagonally up to Kenmore Square is visible. The former is the Cambridge preferred route. Landsdowne Station would be moved a half mile to a mile from its current location to the corner of St. Mary’s and Mountfort Street, a block from Marsh Chapel, the heart of Boston University.
The latter line is the Kenmore Crossing. This line becomes quite solid before becoming broken again at Kenmore. The top of the solid line is the Landsdowne project. The broken portion of the line above the solid segment depicts the portion of the Urban Ring subway proposed to go under the Charles and to pass under Kenmore Square.
The other end of the Urban Ring route is at Ruggles Station on the Orange Line and on other Commuter Rail lines. An Orange Line spur could readily be created. Transfer would be necessary to Commuter Rail should that be wished rather than going to the Red Line and traveling one stop to South Station.
Should MassDOT scrap the portion of the Urban Ring in Cambridge, expenses of the route would be greatly reduced by ending the Orange Line spur without building it under the Charles River and under the existing Kenmore Square complex. Note my extended discussion above.
7. Summary.
The Cambridge City Council is studying whether to change its form of government.
It is my opinion that Proportional Representation worked well UNDER RENT CONTROL because there were two parties which kept an eye on each other.
There is a lot of dishonesty in the development planning bureaucracy and its friends. The two party system helped protect Cambridge from that dishonesty. I have multiple zoning victories in Cambridge were made in front of the Cambridge City Council under Rent Control. Almost all of my victories were opposed by the city bureaucracy. My victories included about 85% of Massachusetts Avenue between Harvard and Central Squares on Massachusetts Avenue. One of the victories was filed in response to a City Councilor request when we persuaded the City Council to defeat a destructive piece of zoning drafted by the Development Department.
The outrage associated with Urban Ring planning includes at least 20 years, mostly post Rent Control, in which the Development Department FLAT OUT LIED about the alternatives in Urban Ring planning.
That nonsense is further demonstrated in planning for the Grand Junction railroad which has been an integral part of Urban Ring planning.
The only way that the TWENTY YEAR LIE have the results Cambridge was fighting for would be for the Cambridge preferred Urban Ring alternative to prevail. That would move Landsdowne Station in spite of state involvement in upgrading Landsdowne Station at the apparent request of the developer after I informed the developer Cambridge wanted to move it. And the developer is in the process of spending a very large amount of money based on that station remaining where it is.
I have not wasted the reader’s time on the many other defects in the Cambridge bureaucrat preferred alternative.
The reality is that the Kenmore Crossing is excellent without stating more, and I have spelled out why.
The progress of the Landsdowne project reaffirms the bankruptcy of that TWENTY YEAR LIE. That TWENTY YEAR LIE would be unlikely to work in a situation not as corrupt as the government situation in Cambridge. Elected members of the Cambridge City Council, because of the “transfer” system have very major reason to get together on a story that they will all tell the voters. There is no incentive for city councilors to worry about nonsensical development claims being proven nonsense by one or more other members of the City Council.
The divisions created by the two party system were definitely helpful in my zoning victories..
The government system in Cambridge desperately needs to end the encouragement of fraud on the voters on development issues.
