August 1, 2002
Dear ABN members and friends:
We can celebrate an important -- an almost incredible -- victory today! The Greenway Trust legislation was not released from Committee for action this session. There was too much opposition from conscientious legislators, and a growing sense of public perception of this as a deeply flawed law.
In the next few months, there will be opportunity to work on this issue; we will work with the other public interest advocacy groups to think through what kind of a stewardship arrangement would be best for the artery. There will be 3 or 4 public hearings during the fall, when people are in town and able to participate.
Key assistance in this victory came from Representative Paul Demakis, who as a member of the Joint Committee on Transportation spoke consistently and eloquently for genuine public process, and for protection of the public interest and democratic public domain, and stood up for us in a very pressured environment.
Other very supportive Committee members included Senators Susan Fargo, Therese Murray, and Pam Resor.
Representative Sal DiMasi and Senator Robert Travaglini provided critically important testimony on the bill's legal and financial flaws, and on meaningful community representation in the future decision-making of the surface artery restoration. They and their aides have been very responsive and thoughtful on this issue, and will continue to work on it during the coming months.
The City Council wrote to the legislature opposing the betterment tax; this was extremely important, and they deserve our recognition for protecting their constituents and the city as a whole. This was a great contribution to this victory.
I heard several times that public officials were hearing from constituents (that would be YOU!), and it made a difference.
This was a victory for democratic process, and we should all be heartened to see that it can work when people get involved, and when we support our public officials in doing the right thing. Thanks to everyone who helped!
Shirley
Shirley Kressel
27 Hereford Street
Boston, MA 02115