The Massachusetts Water Resources Authority is beginning work on the VFW Parkway in West Roxbury on the Upper Neponset Valley Relief Sewer Project. According to the MWRA, the project is four miles long and runs through West Roxbury and Newton. The existing sewer line is over 100 years old and has caused flooding along the Parkway during heavy rains. Last Tuesday, representatives from the MWRA were at the West Roxbury Neighborhood Council to give the final explanation of the project to the community. As this project unfolds, if you have any concerns or questions, please feel free to post them on here or contact Jeff McLaughlin at the MWRA at 617-788-1170 or jeffrey.mclaughlin@mwra.state.ma.us.

From the MWRA website:

This 100-year old sewer is hydraulically deficient, resulting in frequent community system back-ups and interceptor overflows during wet weather to homes and the Charles River. This project will increase the hydraulic capacity in the Upper Neponset Valley Sewer by 8 million gallons per day through the construction of replacement sewers and will reduce chronic wastewater overflows and surcharging during wet weather and improve service and water quality.

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June 1, 2005 Iannella Council Chamber 9:30 AM
Committee on Ways & Means
Michael Ross, Chair
Docket #0501 City of Boston FY06 Budget Hearing – Public Health Commission and Emergency Medical Services. Cablecast Live on Comcast Channel 51.



June 1, 2005 Iannella Council Chamber 1:00 PM
Committee on Ways & ...   more »

Thanks to Adam Gaffin and the Boston Globe for the Blog Log and their committment to bloggers in the Greater Boston area. I would like to wish everyone a Happy Memorial Day.   more »

Finally, the elusive Jamaica Plain parking bandit has been caught! Our office over the years has received complaints from residents whose vehicles were vandalized by the alleged perpetrator. Councillor Tobin and the whole office is grateful to the outstanding police officers from E-13 who apprehended him. We have invited them to come into the next Council session on June 8th to be recognized for their great work.

A self-appointed traffic judge who allegedly meted out street justice by vandalizing cars in Jamaica Plain for everything from expired stickers to parking violations was arrested yesterday after he was caught on camera keying the side of a police decoy van.

It was graying security guard Robert Feest's love for the law that was his undoing, officials said.

Cops say Feest, 44 - dubbed the ``Parking Nazi'' by local residents - has been terrorizing the Boston neighborhood for years with his ruthless respect for auto etiquette - imposing his punishments while out walking his dog.

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ORDER OF CITY COUNCILLOR JOHN M. TOBIN, JR

WHEREAS: In the City of Boston there are currently three different type of forms for birth certificates; and

WHEREAS: All three of these forms contain personal information that may not have to be shared with the public in instances of registering for ...   more »

ORDER OF CITY COUNCILLOR JOHN M. TOBIN, JR

WHEREAS: Fleet management services are available, such as operation consulting, fuel management consulting,
training, general fleet industry consulting, procurement and financial planning, parts inventory management consulting, management information technology, and maintenance and repair facility consulting; and

WHEREAS: The city of Boston has ...   more »

ORDER OF CITY COUNCILLOR JOHN M. TOBIN, JR

WHEREAS: In September 2003, the City of Boston opened the Boston International High School (BIHS); and

WHEREAS: The BIHS was originally designed to be a two-year program and is now a four year program; and

WHEREAS: The Council has recently received various ...   more »

Boston City Council Television programming is now available on the Internet. Go to the City of Boston website, www.cityofboston.gov, click on the new link to view Boston City Council Television.

If you have any questions, please contact Tom Cohan at 617-635-2208 or via email at
Tom.Cohan@cityofboston.gov.

Boston City Council Television ...   more »

Monday May 23

9:30 – Ways & Means FY06 Budget Hearing – Parks Department (Live)
1:00 – Ways & Means FY06 Budget Hearing – Mayor’s Office, Law Department, New
Bostonians and Neighborhood Services (Live)

Tuesday May 24

10:00 – Ways & Means FY06 Budget Hearing – Police Deparment AM(Live)
1:00 ...   more »

May 18, 2005

The Boston City Council’s Committees on Environment and Historic Preservation and Planning and Economic Development will hold a public hearing on Wednesday, May 25, 2005 at 6:00PM in the St George Orthodox Church, 55 Emmonsdale Road, West Roxbury.

The subject of the hearing is:

Docket #0472 – ...   more »

Hello to everyone visiting the blog to see the almost realtime video blog posts I made from the Boston WiFi Summit.


It was exciting to use the technology of audioblog.com to be able to record and upload video over WiFi as it happened!

Some technical Notes for those who are interested

When someone records and publishes almost live, it relies on the speed and strength of the internet connection. That's why the quality is different than my regular video blog posts.   more »

WiFi Summit John Tobin Closing Remarks

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WiFi Summit Jock Gill Implications for a Connected Community

Jock Gill showed a clip from the Panic Struck Productions Independent Star Wars fan film Revelations, to start his talk.

Thinking about the future of wireless Boston.

We need to aniticpate a system that will support citizen creation.

The ability to create in a rich multimedia function is important to our future.

10 GB connectivity by 2015!

Dare to dream about a possible future that capaults us into a position nof strength and competitiveness.
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The Boston WiFi Summit will be held tomorrow, Thursday, May 19th at 8:45 AM at the Museum of Science.

Please RSVP if you plan to attend.

Boston WiFi Summit Agenda
Thursday, May 19, 2005

8:45 a.m.
Registration, Coffee & Refreshments

9:10 a.m.
What is Wireless? Museum of Science Slide Presentation
Adam Weiss, Member of Current Science & Technology Team

9:30 a.m.
Welcoming Remarks
Ioannis Miaoulis, President and Director, Museum of Science

Boston Mayor Thomas M. Menino
Boston City Councillor John M. Tobin, Jr.

Geeta Pradhan, Director, The New Economy Initiative, The Boston Foundation
Emcee for the Day: Brian Worobey, Vice President, Museum of Science

9:50 a.m.
BTS Partners Presentation
Doug Schremp, Chief Technology Officer, BTS Parners

10:20 a.m.
Panel I ~ WiFi: Implications for a Connected Community
Moderator: Doug Schremp

Nyvia Colon, Director of Technology Programs, Madison Park Corporation
Vinit Nijhawan, President of TIE –Boston, Director of airwide solutions
Robert Tumposky, Deputy Director Management Information Services, Boston Redevelopment Authority

11:05 a.m.
Panel II ~ What’s Best for Boston’s Future?
Moderator: Jock Gill

Michael Oh, Tech Superpowers Inc., Co-founder of BostonWAG.org
Russell Newman, Campaign Director, Free Press
Richard O'Bryant, Professor and Research Fellow, Northeastern University

11:50 a.m.
Audience Question & Comments

12:25 p.m.
Conclusion & Next Steps
Boston City Councillor John M. Tobin, Jr.

Neighborhood residents interested in the future of wireless technology in Boston attended a WiFi community forum on April 19 at the Boston Public Library to contribute to the planning of the city's first WiFi Summit.

The Boston WiFi Summit will be held this Thursday, May 19th at 8:45 AM at the Museum of Science. Please RSVP if you plan to attend

Here's a video of the opening statements by Michael Oh of Boston Wag and Boston City Councillor John Tobin.

Following that is a Q&A session with Michael Oh and Pat McCormick of Boston WAG.




Note:
To see a larger version in QuickTime click here. [ QuickTime 79 MB ]

The City of Boston invites you to attend the Boston Wi-Fi Summit this Thursday at 8:45AM at the Museum of Science to discuss the recent analysis of wireless technology in the City of Boston and models to increase Wi-Fi capability in the future.

The event is the outgrowth of an order filed in August 2004 by City Councillor Tobin, who represents West Roxbury and Jamaica Plain. Councillor Tobin’s order called for hearings to discuss how the City of Boston could use wireless technology to bridge the “digital divide” and provide the infrastructure to support residents’ growing need for access to new technology.

RSVP Online to reserve your seat at the Wi-Fi Summit. There is no cost to attend this event. You can also RSVP on the phone by calling Councillor Tobin's office at 617-635-4220.

Adam Gaffin mentioned this blog yesterday in the Sunday Boston Globe's Blog Log section. It's always great to see some recognition for the site as we continue to improve it and utilize it to outreach to constituents. Everyone is encouraged to respond with comments on any issue you may need help with or just want to sound off on. Here's a snippet of what Adam had to say:

Could this be the Year of the Blog for Boston City Council candidates?

John Tobin, the incumbent councilor for West Roxbury and Jamaica Plain, has an ambitious site at www.votejohntobin.com. Set up by JP blogger and videographer Steve Garfield, it features not just the usual news releases but daily blog postings from staffers (all of which anybody can reply to) and video clips of the councilor.

Tobin himself has yet to post any direct comments. Garfield says: ''He doesn't have to type text onto the blog to communicate. That's the whole breakthrough of video blogging. Video gives you an up close and personal look at the person, much more so then your average text-based blog."

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Councillor Tobin was featured in a Boston Globe piece by Robert Preer today about his neighborhood office hours. He holds them weekly in Jamaica Plain and West Roxbury. In Jamaica Plain, you can find him at Emack and Bolio's on Centre Street from 8-9am on Monday mornings. In West Roxbury, he's at Anna's Donuts on Centre Street from 8-9am on Friday mornings. Anyone can walk in to meet with him or can call the office at 617-635-4220 to set up an appointment. The Globe featured a recent morning in West Roxbury:

Friday morning at Anna's Hand Cut Donuts: Customers line up for coffee and a sugary treat to go. Some sit on low cushioned stools at a Formica counter, sipping and chatting.

On a seat next to the front window, District 6 City Councilor John M. Tobin Jr. talks with a constituent upset about the city's school-assignment policy.

''I'll go in with you," Tobin reassures Sarah Abramson, who is hesitant to speak in front of the Boston School Committee.

As they talk, Abramson, a nearby resident, leans down to wipe chocolate frosting off the cheek of her son, Sammy, 4. Daughter Juliana, 2, sits quietly in her stroller.

This is Tobin's weekly office hour in West Roxbury, from 8 to 9 every Friday morning.

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Here's a video blog post from Boston City Councillor John Tobin out on Centre Street in Jamaica Plain where the Green Line used to run down the street on the tracks.

The trains were taken off the tracks in 1985 and a promise was made to the community that trains would come back on these tracks. The trolleys are still not back.

"We have historically supported the Green Line extension coming back here to Centre and South Streets as a one seat ride into town.

When the trolleys come back they can't use these existing tracks.

We're saying lift them up or at the very least pave them over.

Keep the people in Jamaica Plain and people from out of town safe."

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ORDER OF COUNCILLOR TOBIN

WHEREAS: Coyotes have been sighted in neighborhoods of Boston, including Jamaica Plain and West Roxbury; and

WHEREAS: Coyotes have been known to attack dogs, cats, and other pets and pose a potential threat to residents, particularly small children; and

WHEREAS: The MassWildlife Department suggests various steps ...   more »