As a long-time Newton resident and environmental activist, I am proud to endorse the following candidates running in contested races for Newton City Council: Garry Miller (Ward 5), as well as three At-Large candidates: Sean Roche (Ward 6), Cyrus Dahmubed (Ward 4) and Josh Krintzman (Ward 4). We need these…
Posts published by “Letters to the Editor”
I read Mayor Fuller’s financial outlook for Newton. The mayor believes that Newton’s debt is stable and manageable. NPS believes that annual budget increases are insufficient. School families want much more spent on our schools. This, according to many, means regular overrides. Unfortunately, Newton taxes are among the states highest. How…
While a member of the Board of Aldermen (now City Council), I was one of the primary sponsors, in 2013-14, of increasing the overnight parking ban fine from $5 to $25. The rationale, at that time, was that a $5 fine was not an effective deterrent to overnight parking when it…
Please accept my compliments on the excellent series of interviews of School Committee candidates that you have published. Competition for these important municipal positions is good for the city and also for the candidates themselves. You’ve done an important public service in helping us learn about their backgrounds, interests, and…
Thanks to Fig City News for the article, Impact of revisions to Newton’s Tree Preservation Ordinance (9/1/25). For the past year, Mothers Out Front Newton (MOFN) has studied the impact of Newton’s Tree Preservation Ordinance. MOFN knows that losing mature trees can reduce the quality of life, resilience, and livability of a whole…
I’d like to commend FCN for its excellent series of interviews with candidates for the Newton School Committee. The thoughtful, well-researched questions provide real depth, and the long-form approach gives voters a much richer understanding of the candidates. Your thoughtful coverage is a real public service, and I appreciate the…
Greg Reibman, President of the Charles River Chamber of Commerce, wrote in his July 11 newsletter that I “scolded” Newton residents who wrote to the City Council about last Wednesday’s Zoning & Planning Committee discussion about strategies to recruit new commercial office tenants. His statement is false. I would never…
I have been saddened by the conflict between the business community and the City Council over the format of the July 9 zoning meeting. Seeing all the back and forth about whether it was a discussion or a presentation, who would be allowed to speak vs. submit written comments, and…
Our children and grandchildren cannot wait until 2050 to break free from the gas pipeline system that is pumping out dirty methane gas. Based on the docket items in the June 18 Public Facilities Committee agenda, we expected the meeting to include “a discussion of The discussion was also supposed to…
A new splash park opened two weeks ago in Upper Falls just in time for the 100+ degree hot spell. It’s a wonderful new summertime amenity, especially if you have young kids. Stop by there any day that is not raining, and you’ll see lots of kids, laughing, splashing, grinning,…
Yesterday as I was walking back to my car after attending a wonderful City of Newton family Fourth of July celebration in the Newton Bowl park with my 7-year-old granddaughter and my dog, we passed an overgrown lot at 1181 Centre Street. I thought that it seemed a bit odd…
I am writing to express deep concern and disappointment over the recent repainting of Adams Street with a standard yellow line—effectively erasing, without notice or consultation, a decades-long tradition that honors the Italian-American heritage of Nonantum. For years, the green, white, and red striping ahead of the annual St. Mary…