It was a long, long meeting, so let’s get straight to it. Councilor Hapworth was absent.
General Matters
The Starbucks on Canal St. is now open, and council approved their requested hours of 5AM–11PM. They will likely continue to close at 9PM, but they wanted the option. The Starbucks rep promised to look into the ramp access. All the Election Day voting times and places were approved. As a reminder: Election Day is Tuesday, 2 November, and you can vote for FOUR at-large candidates, one mayor, one ward councilor, and THREE school committee members.
Money, Money, Money
Council unanimously approved ~$17K on repairs, equipment, and chemicals (fertilizer/pesticides) for the golf course. They paid an overdue bill to the Salem News for advertising ($3300). They allocated funds to vacation and sick time buy outs. And, they did a little bond-order three-card monte to save the city money. All routine matters, no drama.
Redistricting
Michael Owens from the Secretary of the Commonwealth’s office joined the meeting to discuss the new ward maps (image below). The 2020 Census showed growth in Ward 2, and the new maps made allowances for that growth in surrounding wards (primarily Ward 6). Owens explained the process and the parameters. No precinct can have more than 4000 members, nor can it be larger than the average city precinct size, which is determined by dividing the total population by the number of precincts. The new maps need to go to a three-person commission, who will review the maps against the legal parameters for change. Salem’s maps appear to be in good order and Owens fully expects them to pass easily. The Secretary’s office will help the city with notifying any voters affected by these changes. These changes will not be in effect for this election cycle.
Faircloth Amendment
The mayor and Councilor Morsillo put a resolution forward that calls for the repeal of the Faircloth Amendment. The link takes you to a pretty good recent article with the history and most recent movement on this law, but in very, very simple terms, it prohibits housing authorities from constructing, acquiring, orotherwise maintaining any more subsidized or public housing units than they had in 1999. Morsillo pointed to the long waiting lists for housing, and underscored the city’s need for federal funding support to provide safe and affordable housing to vulnerable populations. The Board of Health also reviewed this resolution, acknowledging the lack of adequate housing as a public health concern, and they unanimously endorsed it. While a resolution is often snubbed as having “no teeth,” as Councilor Dibble noted, Morsillo said that this is the type of endorsement that can be used to apply pressure to Rep. Moulton and Sens. Warren and Markey. Dibble was also dissatisfied with the last “whereas” clause of the resolution and moved it be struck, that motion failed. The council ultimately endorsed the resolution as written unanimously.
Odds and Ends
Safety enhancement zones were extended from 22 October through 2 November (triple parking fines), though I personally worry about the extension through election day. A wicked long time was spent on parking. The home rule petition for electric bikes was moved to the Ordinances, Licenses and Legal Affairs committee. The Polish flag will fly on 10 November for Polish National Independence Day. The committee on Government Services will co-host a meeting to hear what the public art commission has been up to lately, and what they have planned. The liquor license at the Loring Jaho will remain with OLLA because of zoning (Ed note: let’s review and revise the zoning everywhere, already! It’s an outdated patchwork, inadequate, and in many places, inequitable.)
That’s all she wrote, folks!
Respectfully submitted,
Jen Lynch