Keeping the Green Line on track

By Mayor Joseph A. Curtatone

(The opinions and views expressed in the commentaries of The Somerville News belong solely to the authors of those commentaries and do not reflect the views or opinions of The Somerville News, its staff or publishers.)

Somerville is Deval Patrick country. We gave him one of his biggest margins in the state. We support his effort to forge a new partnership with cities and towns. We back his agenda to promote economic growth by supporting transit-oriented Smart Growth development. We’re with him all the way on his campaign to improve health care coverage and manage health care costs. We’re in full agreement with his proposals to invest in education at the primary, secondary and college levels. He’s our guy.

So you can imagine my dismay to have the Patrick administration propose a change in regional transit funding that might result in another two-year delay in the scheduled 2014 completion date for the Green Line Extension from Lechmere through Somerville and on to Medford. As I understand it, the state wants to enlarge the pool of money for regional transit improvements by qualifying for more federal grant money. The Green Line extension is their best shot at getting federal money, so that’s the project they want to bring to the U.S. Department of Transportation for approval.

So far, so good – so long as the current project deadline is honored.  The problem, however, is that the application process would potentially push the completion date out to 2016 – and that’s unacceptable.

There are few issues about which Somerville residents are more united, or care more deeply, than the need to improve our city’s environment, economy and quality of life by building out the Green Line and adding a new Orange Line station at Assembly Square.

The Green Line Extension is already long overdue.  It was part of the commitment the state made to mitigate the regional environmental impacts of the Artery-Tunnel Project.  Seventeen years after it was announced, the Big Dig is finished, but a series of Republican governors has stalled on meeting the state’s obligation to fulfill the mitigation plan. Just last year, the Conservation Law Foundation (CLF), which had been suing to force the state to keep its promises, finally signed a binding agreement with then-Governor Mitt Romney in which the state agreed to honor the 2014 completion date. In return, the CLF dropped its litigation.

Needless to say, the CLF is hopping mad about the latest turn of events. As CLF president Phil Warburg said just last week, “Not only does the Commonwealth have a legal obligation to stop its backpedaling on the Green Line Extension, it has a moral duty to reduce air pollution, spur economic development and expand transit equity for these long under-served communities.”

Our local transit advocacy group, the Somerville Transit Equity Partnership (STEP), is also up in arms about this proposal, and has urged Somerville residents to call and write the offices of Transportation Secretary Bernard Cohen and Governor Patrick to register opposition to the schedule change.

Our entire Board of Aldermen is understandably angered, and its members have urged me to work with them, and with the state delegation, to do everything we can to preserve the project’s current schedule.

So here’s what I’m doing:  This week I’m convening a meeting with Congressman Michael E. Capuano, D-Somerville, our state senators and representatives, CLF and STEP to come up with a joint strategy. Then next Monday we’ll sit down with state officials to present our case. After that, we’ll know whether we’ll be able to work this out amicably or whether we’re taking this issue to court – and, if necessary, to the streets.

Whatever the short-term outcome, two things are clear: The CLF agreement is unequivocal about the state’s obligation to abide by the 2014 completion date. And the Green Line extension is too important to Somerville, Medford and the entire region for any of us to accept any further delay.

Somerville is Deval Patrick country, but if we need to fight the Governor on this, we will.   We’ll be respectful. We’ll be cooperative. But we’re not backing down.                

Comments

[cabbie]

Mr. Mayor,

I don't know how this will play out but I'm giving you a little golf clap right now - well not RIGHT NOW since I'm typing -

This is everything you needed to say.

NOW - Go DO what you just said and you may just get me to vote for you this time around. And frankly right now I'm not planning on voting for you. But the politician who will fight for the Green Line and indeed for Somerville - well that would be amazing. And a very smooth move bringing our former Mayor and current Congressman into the mix. He's an asset to this City. The fact that he's a member of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee should mean something. Don't be afraid to tap that asset, as it were.

[Derek]

Consider me another foot soldier in the streets awaiting orders. Go get em, Joe.

[Somerspeak]

Don't wait too long. Curtatone needs Deval in the future more than he needs our votes in the municipal election in November. Read very carefully what the Mayor has said.

Don't look for him to "rock" the boat too much. Lot's of posturing, not much action.

[Triple Speak]

Joe,
Stop the BS. You and your boy Coupe Deval can't come through. Deval because he knows he has the area by the balls and will always get the votes from this area. You and the rest of the pols from this area because you all lack clout among people in power.

Paging Mike Capuano, Mike Capuano please come back to run this city.

[nobody3]

I'm behind you Joe, bringing the green line to Somerville will be a defining accomplishment of your administration which will lay the foundation for Somerville pride and accomplishment for years to come. This should be one of your highest priorities. Don't let them delay it because a 2 year delay will turn in to more than 2 years (we just had a 3 year delay, wasn't that enough time to seek extra money). We need this to start being built in 2011, as promised. Everyone, please contact the governor's office to complain (see previous message boards posts from Fat Citizen for more info.)

[Democracy]

My vote for Mr/ Curtatone will depend on how he ACTS on this. A post here is not enough.

[Somerville Reader]

Dear Mr. Curtatone,

Please, please, please go do what you just wrote about. We cannot afford another delay on the Green Line. The traffic on McGrath Highway gets worse every day and the Red Line is packed during the AM & PM commutes.

Your constituents are passionate about this issue. Everyone wants to see the Green Line come to Somerville. Please make it happen.

[scared]

Im sorry to say but pat has tunnels and bridges to fixx and that cost money,tax money.sueing the state will not work,praying maybe.

[observer]

Somerville has been Screwed again! Today the Journal is reporting No Orange Line. Add this to: A delayed Green Line. A Sludge Plant. A Soccer Stadium. A Jail. Increased Auto Insurance.

At some point- one has to ask- not if we can do better- But who do we elect to get better results? We should expect and demand more from our leaders including the Mayor and the State House delegation.

[Somerspeak]

No Orange line stop at Assembly.

No Green line to Union or the rest of the City.

No massive build out of Assembly Square in the near future.

No tax relief for the property owners in Somerville.

Are you getting the message yet Somerville?

[Democracy]

Get these lazy and corrupt bums out of office. Only way.

[Go Figure]

I agree with both of you completely.

I love how the announcement about the Green Line is made AFTER the deadline to file papers for Mayor.

[Ignatius J. Reilly]

The fault lies with the imbeciles who vote democratic NO MATTER WHAT! Joey "Tickets" Curtatone and Deval know they already have your votes, so why the hell should they care about bringing much needed relief? I told you all that voting for the democrats was a vote for career politicians (read: lying thiefs) who could give a rat's ass about the residents of Somerville.

The democrats have delivered: no T expansion.... Assembly Sq. stays the dump that it is.... no property tax relief.... parking fines through the roof...water bills that make no sense...crime rising... sanctuarary city so all the illegals come flocking in...sludge plant...prison...and our auto insurance is about to go through thr roof.

Hey, but at least Joey gave us fireworks!

[cabbie]

Iggy you may have a point about not always just blindly pulling the D lever in the voting booth (or the D marker if you will since we're on an OCR system for our elections)

BUT

How did all those years of Republican leadership on Beacon Hill change a damn thing with how Somerville is treated by the Commonwealth. Talk about your years, in fact decades of being unfairly treated...if we were a race instead of a city they'd be saying we can build casinos or deserve reparations. And not Mitt, not Weld, not Cellucci did a damn thing to change that.

Yet I'll still say - though I'm an Independent leaning towards the left I don't see how the Dem. domination has any positive effect for the Commonwealth. The two party system is such that when either party dominates such as this it seems to work against the best interest of the people. And working against the best interest of its citizenry seems to be the only thing our government does well anymore. Considering the majority of voters in Mass. are registered as "Unenrolled" aka Independent why can't our State Legislature resemble Germany for example. By that I'm reffering to the fact that at any one time they may have 100 different political parties in their legislature and those parties seem to come and go like Fox TV shows.

[Ignatius J. Reilly]

Cabbie, I'm an independent. I just NEVER vote for the democrats anymore. The democrats have broken too many promises and too much asskissing to special interests for my tastes. The GOP - at least you know what you're getting with them.

[cabbie]

"The GOP - at least you know what you're getting with them"

Right, a hot poker up my behind and the tax laws re-written to favor the rich. Sure, that's a plan.

The way I see it at least the Dems throw us little guys a frickin' bone. Well, at this point when it comes to Somerville and Deval I'd just say bone.

[Go Figure]

I think the point he's getting at is that you give your vote to the person who brings the most to your community. If candidates know you'll blindly vote for them, they're not going to go out of their way to help you. If Kerry Healey promised to bring the Green Line to Somerville on schedulae she would have gotten my vote.

I'll remeber that next time.

[Diogenes]

So much of what really goes on behind the scenes never makes the news. Somerville's winning the Green Line commitment really had nothing to do with any influence from Joe Curtatone. If you understand the decision makers, you will understand that Curtatone had no influence with them.

The victory came from many years of work, week in and week out, by the Somerville Trasportation Equity Partnership and the reviled Mystic View Task Force. In the last few years of the fight, the city's legislative delegation came together and worked hard. The community groups made an alliance with the Conservation Law Foundation, and their lawsuit promised to be as effective as Mystic View's legal actions have been. The Congressman's interventions behind the scene didn't hurt either.

When victory was close, Curtaone used their work to score public relations victories for himslef, posturing as the young mayor, leading the fight for justice.

Since he took underserved credit for the victory, will he now take the blame? More likely, the other players will just keep working as hard as they always have. If they succeed. Joe will pimp off that vicotry too.

[Ert]

There's no need to move to the right if all you want to do is threaten incumbent politicians with the loss of votes. If you truly want to vote for the GOP, fine, but if you're just looking to threaten the Democrats there's plenty of other choices.