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Storrow Tunnel, falling down. . .
/1 Comment/in Better Government, Blog, News /by…and the Longfellow Bridge isn’t looking too good, either. This week, both the Globe and the Governor (see below) have confirmed what everyone else who drives, rides, walks or breathes already knew: the state of the state is shaky. And leaky. And rusty, potholed and occasionally scary. From the State House News: Responding to a question about the Boston Globe’s front page story on the 56-year-old tunnel’s lack of waterproofing when it was first built, Patrick said, “It’s another example of the persistent neglect of our transportation infrastructure that goes back many decades.” …Patrick said the problem points out the importance of paying attention to the upkeep of the state’s roads and bridges “an ongoing basis and not just on […]
Dinosaurs Becoming Extinct, Slowly
/1 Comment/in Better Government, Blog, Blog: Better Government, News /byHurrah, the State Police have finally stopped giving driving tests to 16 year olds in Massachusetts!!! A full 15 years after the merger of the Registry Police with the State Police, the Commonwealth has finally figured out (as part of collective bargaining, of course) that we probably don’t need trained, armed (and highly compensated) officers giving these exams.
Thoughts on the State Budget
/0 Comments/in Blog, News /by Liam DayThe final 2008 state budget came out of committee and was signed by Governor Patrick a little over a week ago. Below is our partial response, composed by another of the extraordinary Pioneer interns, Lincoln Rathnam. (Again, though I would like to take credit, I can’t.): “The Massachusetts state budget for 2008 is praiseworthy in several respects but also gives us cause for serious concern. In May Pioneer called on the legislature to reject the governor’s proposed addition of $500 million in taxes and fees and to work towards a solution to the state’s public employee pension and retiree health care liabilities. The new budget begins to fund those liabilities. Citizens of Massachusetts can also be thankful that the legislature […]
How to watch and listen to Gov. Patrick’s BGC address
/0 Comments/in Better Government, Blog, Economic Opportunity, News, Related Education Blogs /byOne of the highlights of last month’s Better Government Competition was Governor Patrick’s well-received keynote address. We’re pleased that the speech will be broadcast on C-SPAN Radio, XM Satellite Channel 132, at 10 am on Sunday, July 22. If you can’t bear to wait that long, the audio is here, and also enjoy YouTube clips one, two and three.
The new math of convention madness
/0 Comments/in Better Government, Blog, Economic Opportunity, News /by Scott W. Graves and Micaela DawsonThe Boston Business Journal today reports that the Massachusetts Convention Center Authority is issuing an RFP to expand the Bonston Convention & Exhibition Center. The request for proposals is for the development of a master plan for the BCEC that will provide an envelope for future expansion of the facility. Gloria Larson calls the BCEC “as successful as we hoped.” Golly, Gloria, one might call that a pretty big plea from low expectations. She notes, in fact, that The building has exceeded our expectations, and it is the right time to explore what we should do with the undeveloped portion of the property. A master plan is the best way to start the dialogue. In a previous post, I noted that while […]
Congrats to Steve Poftak
/1 Comment/in Blog, News /by Liam DayTo those of you in the blogosphere who miss the witty and sometimes irreverent posts of our research director, Steve Poftak: Steve has been blog-silent for good reason. He and his wife are celebrating the birth of their second child. All of us at Pioneer wish Steve and his family the best, even as we miss his wit and banter around the office.
A Path to Solvency for the DCR?
/2 Comments/in Better Government, Blog, News /by Liam DayThough I have been unable to leave the BGC behind (it really was that good an event), I cannot take credit for the following post. It comes from one of our summer interns, Katharine Sheehan, a senior year BC: “The Northern Virginia Regional Park Authority (NVRPA), runner-up at the BGC, has transformed its operations in just a matter of years and cut operating costs while increasing usership and revenues. As a result, the NVRPA is now a self-sufficient agency, producing enough revenue that it no longer relies on state and local funding. The key to its success is simple: the NVRPA reinvented itself by implementing a market-focused strategy. Here in Massachusetts, the DCR, which oversees the state park system, has […]
Whom would you like to address the BGC dinner next year?
/0 Comments/in Better Government, Blog, News /by Liam DayNow that it’s all said and done, we at Pioneer have a moment to reflect on the BGC. Though admittedly biased, we do believe it was a great success: 280 contest entries, 360 awards dinner guests, and 2 very fine speeches, delivered by Springfield (MA) Mayor Charlie Ryan and Governor Deval Patrick. (As an aside, our condolences to Springfield on losing out to Springfield, Vermont in the contest to host the world premiere of the upcoming Simpson’s movie. A red carpet in Vermont? Who would’ve thunk it?) Looking to the future, we have already started kicking around the office names of people we would like to invite to be next year’s guest speaker. As some people expressed, shall we say, […]
Stop with the running!
/0 Comments/in Blog, News /by Scott W. Graves and Micaela DawsonAnother post on running?! Well, this one is on running afoul of intellectuals because of running! The TimesOnline, grazie tante to the Arts & Letters Daily for this one, reports that President Sarkozy has fallen foul of intellectuals and critics who see his passion for jogging as un-French, right-wing and even a ploy to brainwash his citizens. Attacks on Mr Sarkozy’s pastime, which he has made a symbol of his presidency, began on the internet as soon as he bounded up the steps of the Elysée Palace in shorts when he took office in May. That moment has become the icon of his hyperenergetic administration. The grumbling has now moved to television and the press. “Is jogging right wing?” wondered […]
Slow to act
/0 Comments/in Better Government, Blog, Economic Opportunity, News /by Scott W. Graves and Micaela DawsonPost haste it is not. I received a few days ago a letter from a friend in DC. She had apparently cut out a newspaper article from May 2nd and sent it to me. Now, I don’t know what blue plate special it got stuck under, but it took almost two months for me to get it. Speaking of slow to act, how about the contents of said article? Let’s start with the title of the article in The Current: “Old convention center site to host 700 housing units.” Seems that the 10-acre parcel southwest of Mount Vernon Square where the Washington Convention Center was (New York Avenue and 9th, H and 11th streets) is being redeveloped as a Town […]
An even happier Fourth
/0 Comments/in Blog, News /by Scott W. Graves and Micaela Dawson… and perhaps an unhappy fifth. The deed is done. I made it through the Arnold Mills four-miler far faster than I had thought, executed with aplomb and a fine Pioneer-esque strategy. I gave due consideration to the Greek psychology (mine), which is based primarily on avoidance of shame. I thought of what was achievable and paced myself. To be specific, I made my way to a place within eyeshot of a teenager, who I had overheard telling her dad how she was training but just couldn’t take it seriously. Music to my ears. I stayed throughout the race within eyeshot and came away right smack in the middle of the 500-plus runner race. I feel good, red-faced and ready […]
Jim on WGBH – Housing
/0 Comments/in Blog, Housing, News, Related Education Blogs /by Scott W. Graves and Micaela DawsonAt 7 p.m. sharp (in three minutes), with David Wluka of the Massachusetts Association of Realtors and a developer who is seeking to use the market to produce housing for folks in the 65 to 80 % of median income range. Discussion covers: the continued impact of regulations that restrict supply; the arguments made by municipalities (impact on property values and, ugh, we cannot afford the schools costs that come with kids!); and how cities can address these issues (long-term contracts with municipal employees, pension reform, and insuring employees through the Group Insurance Commission). Munis, if you have problems, come to Pioneer. We have the solutions. Just look at what Springfield’s been able to accomplish. 5, 4, 3, 2, 1…
Give me a break – and a Happy Fourth
/0 Comments/in Blog, News /by Scott W. Graves and Micaela DawsonOver the weekend, someone was on the T griping about how people have started to say “Happy Fourth!” in that bright-eyed, bushy-tailed American way. I am sure my fellow rider was impressing her Eastern European-sounding interlocutor. Perhaps it is better to say “Enjoy the time off,” “I hope you enjoy the 4th with your family,” or something similar. But give me a break: Why not “Happy Fourth”? We are constitutionally constructed around the ideal of the pursuit of happiness as defined by citizens, so I think it is absolutely great to have a happy 4th, and I intend on doing just that — back in li’l old Cumberland, RI. Happiness on the Fourth in Cumberland means: A 4-mile footrace in […]
Revenge of the status quotists
/0 Comments/in Blog, News, Related Education Blogs /by Scott W. Graves and Micaela DawsonIn his letter to the editor (“Ed board shuffle: a lesson in irony,” July 2, 2007), Dan French trots out a number of myths long perpetuated by supporters of the status quo in education. He contends that Governor Weld packed the Board of Education, overlooking the fact that changes on the board had strong support from a Democratic Legislature alarmed at what was then the slow pace of education reform. Weld appointed John Silber as the chairman of the Board, who, notwithstanding the views some may have of him, was the largest vote-getter among recent Democratic gubernatorial candidates until Governor Patrick’s election last year. He contends that five of the nine members had ties to Pioneer or other free-market think […]
Progress after Education Reform
/0 Comments/in Blog, News, Related Education Blogs /by Scott W. Graves and Micaela DawsonSo the “revisionistas” (a.k.a. status quotists, special interests, etc.) are trotting out the view that Massachusetts’ school system was always the best in the country, even before the Ed Reform Act of 1993 (and before standardized testing, accountability and innovation through charters). As my 6th grade American Civics teacher used to say in his baritone drawl: That’s mullarky! See my previous post on the NAEP scores. How about Massachusetts’ performance on the SATs? As former Senate President Tom Birmingham, one of the architects of Ed Reform, noted at a November 06 Pioneer event entitled “Has Education Reform Stalled?” If you had told Weld or Roosevelt or me on that hot day in June 1993 that more than 90 percent of […]