Endorsements

News from Bill

I am a candidate for Councillor At Large in the City of Waltham. I am running because I feel that some fresh ideas and a different perspective are needed. Over the last several years, our city has had a tremendous amount of growth. Unfortunately, the infrastructure has not kept pace. I began talking about this issue three years ago in a a letter to the News Tribune. Others in this race will tell you they are running to control development. Where have they been for the last three years?

The city council has talked about a master zoning plan for years and finally this year, one was passed. It is a good start but falls far short of presenting a vision of what I believe we want Waltham to evolve into over the next decade and beyond. The plan, as passed, shows what Waltham could be, if allowed to build out. The council has talked about parking problems downtown, but has done nothing. Traffic is gridlocked around the city most days but nothing is done about it. In fact, no traffic studies were done as part of the master plan project. A comprehensive master plan would have addressed these issues.

The leaders of the city should be deciding what type of development will benefit Waltham and then solicit developers who will build it. Instead, we have a steady stream of developers who come in looking for zoning changes and special permits to build more than they are allowed by right. This piecemeal way of doing business will, in the end, be disastrous for Waltham.

Look at what is going on at the west end of the city. Two major developments are in the works: Green Street and the Polaroid property. With a comprehensive master plan in place, we would have been able to evaluate how these developments would affect the rest of the city. Under the current master plan, each will do their own traffic study. They will both show how they will mitigate the traffic issues from their individual project. Unfortunately, how the two together will affect the neighborhoods will be missing.

Another issue that is only discussed as an after thought is affordable housing. In my mind there are two major reasons why the city should be proactive on this issue. The first is simple. It’s the right thing to do. The second is that it is important to stay above the 40B threshold so no more large developments, that are not beneficial to the citizens of Waltham, are forced on us.

Affordable housing does not just mean building low rent units. It can also be offering homeownership to first time buyers. This can be done working with groups like WATCH and Habitat for Humanity.

Parking on Moody Street and Main Street is awful. This is an area of the city that everyone brags about as a success story and it is. Its’ success will be short lived though, if the parking issues resulting from that success are not addressed.

Maureen and I chose to buy our home in Waltham shortly after we were married. We did so because Waltham has so much to offer, from great parks like Prospect Hill to a multitude of restaurants on Moody Street. However, I feel we can do even better.

If you click on the Letters bar above, it will take you to letters that I have written that were submitted to the News Tribune. Also, click on the Issues bar where I express my thoughts on many issues that affect our city. Between them it will give you a better understanding of how I feel about the issues. I hope after you look at all the candidates, you will cast one of your six votes for Councillor At Large for me in November. Together we can make a difference!

Supporters holding signs at Lexington Street
and Totten Pond Road