City Council — Regular Meeting, September 13, 2021

City Manager's Agenda (26)

• CMA 2021 #186A communication transmitted from Louis A. DePasquale, City Manager, relative to a COVID-19 updateschools📖 read
• CMA 2021 #187A communication transmitted from Louis A. DePasquale, City Manager, relative to a recommendation from the Board of Election Commissioners for the City Council to vote to authorize in-person early voting for the November 2, 2021 Municipal Election, in accordance with Chapter 255 of the Acts of 2020, as amended by Chapter 5 of the Acts of 2021 and Chapter 29 of the Acts of 2021📖 read 📄 PDF
• CMA 2021 #188A communication transmitted from Louis A. DePasquale, City Manager, relative to a request from the Board of Election Commissioners recommending the relocation of polling sites for the November 2, 2021 Municipal Election📖 read
• CMA 2021 #189Transmitting Communication from Louis A. DePasquale, City Manager, relative to the appropriation of a Public Safety Answering Point (PSAP) Leadership Scholarship Program Grant funded from the State 911 Department in the amount of $10,000 to the Grant Fund Emergency Communications Salaries and Wages account ($3,500) and to the Grant Fund Emergency Communications Travel and Training account ($6,500) which will to cover personnel costs, training fees, and travel costs for the employee who receives the scholarship to attend a designated Leadership Certification Programpolice-safety
• CMA 2021 #190Transmitting Communication from Louis A. DePasquale, City Manager, relative to the appropriation of an FY22 State 911 Department Training grant in the amount of $127,597 to the Grant Fund Emergency Communications Salary and Wages account ($89,449), and to the Travel and Training account ($38,148) which will support training of Emergency Communications Center personnel, classroom fees, and training materials
• CMA 2021 #191A communication transmitted from Louis A. DePasquale, City Manager, relative to authorization to grant street obstruction approvalszoning📖 read
• CMA 2021 #192A communication transmitted from Louis A. DePasquale, City Manager, relative to Awaiting Report Item Number 21-21, regarding a report on traffic calming options in the vicinity of Pemberton Street and Fairfield Streetpolice-safetyschoolstransit-traffic📖 read
• CMA 2021 #193A communication transmitted from Louis A. DePasquale, City Manager, relative to Awaiting Report Item Number 21-56, regarding improvements to Jerry's Pond and along Rindge Avenue. PLACED ON THE TABLE BY MAYOR SIDDIQUI IN COUNCIL SEPTEMBER 13, 2021bike-lanesschoolstransit-traffictrees📖 read
• CMA 2021 #194A communication transmitted from Louis A. DePasquale, City Manager, relative to the appointment of the following persons as new Associate Members of the Planning Board for a term of five-years, effective September 1, 2021: Alan Price and Ashley Tan
• CMA 2021 #195A communication transmitted from Louis A. DePasquale, City Manager, relative to a reappointment and appointment of new members of the Central Square Advisory Committee for a term of three years, effective July 1, 2021 - Reappointment: Esther Hanig. New Appointments: Saffana Anwar and Christopher Fort
• CMA 2021 #196A communication transmitted from Louis A. DePasquale, City Manager, relative to a Planning Board report with no positive or negative recommendation on Article 22.000 Emissions Accounting Zoning Petitionclimatezoning📖 read
• CMA 2021 #197A communication transmitted from Louis A. DePasquale, City Manager, relative to a Planning Board report on the Post-Operative Animal Care zoning petition, which recommends the adoption of an alternative zoning amendment to effect the proposed changezoning📖 read
• CMA 2021 #198A communication transmitted from Louis A. DePasquale, City Manager, relative to the appointment of members to the newly formed BIPOC Business Advisory Committee for a term of one-year, effective September 1, 2021
• CMA 2021 #199Transmitting Communication from Louis A. DePasquale, City Manager, relative to the appropriation of the Municipal Vulnerability Preparedness Action Grant in the amount of $268,820 to the Grant Fund Community Development Department Other Ordinary Maintenance Account. The City is working with the Metropolitan Area Planning Council (MAPC), which manages the Metro Mayors collaboration, to conduct a regional project titled Building Resilience to Climate Driven Heat in Metro Boston and will reimburse MAPC for their expenses following receipt of grant disbursements to the City by the Commonwealthclimate
• CMA 2021 #200Transmitting Communication from Louis A. DePasquale, City Manager, relative to the appropriation of $39,292 in Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) Funds to the Public Investment Fund Community Development Extraordinary Expenditures Account ($33,399), and to the Other Ordinary Maintenance Account ($5,893) which will assist with providing affordable housing, revitalize neighborhoods, and expand economic opportunities to low and moderate-income personsaffordable-housinghousing-general
• CMA 2021 #201Transmitting Communication from Louis A. DePasquale, City Manager, relative to the appropriation of $2,024,011 received from HUD as part of the Housing Opportunities for People with Aids (HOPWA) Grant to the Grant Fund Community Development Department Other Ordinary Maintenance Account which will be used for assisted living programs and supportive services; shelter services, rental assistance and housing search serviceshomelessnesshousing-general
• CMA 2021 #202A communication transmitted from Louis A. DePasquale, City Manager, relative to the reappointments of the following members of the Cambridge Health Alliance Board of Trustees, effective July 1, 2021: 3-year terms - Yvette Verdieu, James Henderson, Marian Darlington-Hope, Barbara Guthrie, Katherine Kosinski. 1-year term: Joshua Posner, Alexander White
• CMA 2021 #203Transmitting Communication from Louis A. DePasquale, City Manager, relative to the appropriation of $88,895 received from the Cambridge Housing Authority, to the Grant Fund Human Service Department Programs Salary and Wages account for the Cambridge Employment Program which will be used to maintain the capacity of the Cambridge Employment Program by continuing to fund a vocational case manager to provide career counseling and case management services to Cambridge residents seeking employment, particularly those residing in public housingaffordable-housinghousing-general
• CMA 2021 #204Transmitting Communication from Louis A. DePasquale, City Manager, relative to the appropriation of the Children’s Trust Fund grant for the Center for Families program in the amount of $18,375.00 to the Grant Fund Department of Human Service Programs Salary and Wages account ($16,560.00) and to the Grant Fund Department of Human Service Programs Other Ordinary Maintenance account ($1,815.00) which will be used by the Center for Families to support family programs targeting parents of children up to eight years, which include a variety of family support and parent education programs and resources
• CMA 2021 #205Transmitting Communication from Louis A. DePasquale, City Manager, relative to the appropriation of various donations to the Council on Aging in the amount of $1,585.00 to the Grant Fund Human Service Programs Other Ordinary Maintenance account ($985.00) and to the Travel and Training account ($600.00), which will be used to support services for Cambridge Seniors, including virtual classes and instruction, gift cards, and the provision of minor home adaptation equipment
• CMA 2021 #206Transmitting Communication from Louis A. DePasquale, City Manager, relative to the appropriation of the Cambridge in Motion Grant for $1,000.00 from the Cambridge Public Health Department to the Grant Fund Human Service Programs Other Ordinary Maintenance account which will be used to support the Munching and Moving Program at the Morse Preschool
• CMA 2021 #207Transmitting Communication from Louis A. DePasquale, City Manager, relative to the appropriation of $9,615.00 for the Center for Families program funded by the Cambridge Public Health Commission, Agenda for Children to the Grant Fund Department of Human Service Programs Other Ordinary Maintenance account which will be used to provide Family programming and curriculum development, pre-bagged refreshments for outside and in-person events and activity bag giveaways
• CMA 2021 #208Transmitting Communication from Louis A. DePasquale, City Manager, relative to the appropriation of funds for the College Success Initiative from the Cambridge Community Foundation for $15,000.00 to the Grant Fund Human Service Programs Salary and Wages account which will be used to support part of the salary costs associated with a college success coach who will provide individualized college coaching for students attending UMass Boston and for graduates of the Community Learning Center’s Bridge to College program who attend Bunker Hill Community Collegeschools
• CMA 2021 #209Transmitting Communication from Louis A. DePasquale, City Manager, relative to the appropriation of a Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) grant in the amount of $79,992.00 to the Grant Fund Human Service Programs Salary and Wages account ($47,084.00), and to the Other Ordinary Maintenance account ($32,908.00) which will be used to provide an integrated education and training program to adults in the Metro North area who want to start a career in the Information Technology field and work as Computer User Support Specialists, Help Desk Technicians, etc
• CMA 2021 #210Transmitting Communication from Louis A. DePasquale, City Manager, relative to the appropriation of the Friends of the Community Learning Center (CLC) grant funded by the Cambridge Community Foundation in the amount of $4,500.00 to the Grant Fund Human Service Programs Salary and Wages account which will be used to support the distribution of Chromebooks to CLC students and provide technical assistance to them to connect with the CLC zoom classroomsschools
• CMA 2021 #211Transmitting Communication from Louis A. DePasquale, City Manager, relative to the appropriation of the Massachusetts Housing and Shelter Alliance grant funded by the Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD) in the amount of $118,723.49 to the Grant Fund Human Service Programs Salary and Wages account ($101,480.49), to the Other Ordinary Maintenance account ($14,243.00), and to the Travel and Training account ($3,000.00) which will be used for costs related to the Carey Men’s Permanent Supported Housing Program operated by the Multi-Service Centerhomelessnesshousing-general

Communications (24)

24 resident communications received for this meeting — housing general (8) · trees (6) · zoning (4) · climate (3) · schools (2). Individual letters are summarized in the city's agenda and are not republished here, by policy.

Policy Orders (16)

• POR 2021 #173That the Executive Assistant to the City Council confer with the Dedication Committee to consider the request for a street corner dedication at the corner of 159 Lakeview Avenue at Huron Avenue in honor of John and Carol Donaghy
• POR 2021 #174That the City Manager is requested to direct the appropriate City staff to create a new section on the City Council’s webpage devoted to clearly outlining the various steps of the dedication request process
• POR 2021 #175That the City Manager is requested to direct the Director of the Traffic, Parking, and Transportation Department and the City Solicitor to review the City’s residential parking permit program to determine whether the criteria for this program can be modified to speak to the above-referenced concerns and to develop recommendations that speak to these modificationstransit-traffic
• POR 2021 #176That the City Manager isrequested to direct the appropriate City departments to draft a report on the City’s rodent and pest control efforts since February 2020, to outline what metrics are being used to determine the effectiveness of these efforts, and to issue recommendations as to whether increasing the budget for these efforts, as well as creating new incentives and penalties to ensure community compliance with regulations around rodent control, would lead to a greater level of success in resolving this issuebudget
• POR 2021 #177That the City Manager is requested to consult with the appropriate City departments regarding the feasibility of installing lights at all Cambridge dog parks
• POR 2021 #178That the City Manager is requested to confer with the Traffic, Parking and Transportation Department regarding the feasibility of installing speed bumps on Inman Streettransit-traffic
• POR 2021 #179That the Executive Assistant to the City Council confer with the Dedication Committee to consider the request for a suitable dedication for William “Bill” Sage
• POR 2021 #180That the City Council go on record as being willing to work with the Governor’s Office and any non-profits in helping to settle Afghan refugees in Cambridge should it be needed
• POR 2021 #181That the City Manager is requested to confer with the Cambridge Community Development Department, Cambridge Department of Human Service Programs, Department of Public Works, local non-profit organizations, Cambridge businesses dedicated to locally sourced produce, farmers, and resident gardeners to study the feasibility of spending Coronavirus Local Fiscal Recovery Funds to address food insecurity by installing raised garden beds throughout Cambridge and providing free, fresh, locally-grown food for residents in need
• POR 2021 #182That the City Council go on record recognizing September, 2021 as Recovery Awareness Month in the City of Cambridge
• POR 2021 #183That the City Manager is requested to work with all relevant City departments, the City Council, the Black community, and the general public in Cambridge to implement the attached proposal to establish a Commission of Racial Justice and Equity
• POR 2021 #184In response to the Election Commission request for a summary argument in support of proposed charter amendments, that the City Council authorize Mayor Siddiqui and Councillor Nolan to submit language to the Election Commission before the deadline on September 20, 2021
• POR 2021 #185Ordinance #2021-19 - Amendments to the Cannabis Business Permitting Ordinance📖 read
• POR 2021 #186That the City Manager is requested to work with the relevant City departments, the contractor, and the community to take another look at ways in which Sennott Park construction could be contained or compartmentalized in such a way that would allow for various sections or elements of the park to remain safely accessible during the construction period while they are not actively being worked on
• POR 2021 #187That the City Manager be and hereby is requested to instruct the Law Department to review the proposed ordinance regarding Renter Choice (Ordinance #2021-18) and provide feedback on implementationhousing-general
• POR 2021 #188That the City Council hereby declares that there is an emergency involving the health and safety of the people of Cambridge or their property, pursuant to G.L. c.43, §20that necessitates the passages through all stages of ordination on this day

Resolutions (17)

• RES 2021 #189Resolution on the death of Richard P. “Lefty” Fields
• RES 2021 #190Congratulations to Lorraine Vendetti on her retirement from the Cambridge Health Alliance
• RES 2021 #191Congratulations to Molly Seidel on earning a Bronze Olympic Medal
• RES 2021 #192Resolution on the death of David W. Costa
• RES 2021 #193Resolution on the death of Brian T. McMahon
• RES 2021 #194Resolution on the death of Antonio Jose Correia
• RES 2021 #195Condolences to Pat Taylor on the death of her son Kirk Taylor
• RES 2021 #196Resolution on the death of Joseph M. Patten
• RES 2021 #197Resolution on the death of Margaret M. “Peggy” M. Creamer
• RES 2021 #198Condolences to the family of Wilhelmina Haynes
• RES 2021 #199Congratulations to Christine Elow on being named Acting Commissioner for the Cambridge Police Departmentpolice-safety
• RES 2021 #200Resolution on the death of Herbert "Herbie" Kuelzer
• RES 2021 #201Resolution on the death of Michael S. Medeiros
• RES 2021 #202Thanks to Ann and Taft Murray for their hard work and dedication the community both at Thomas Graves Landing and beyond, and wish them the best of luck in future endeavors
• RES 2021 #203Congratulations to Paloma Sequeira, Imogen Cabot, and Lettie Cabot for their well-earned and remarkable victories in the 2021 'World Rowing Junior Championships' in Plovdiv, Bulgaria, and the Under-23 World Rowing Championships in Racice, Czech Republic
• RES 2021 #204Resolution on the death of David Keefe Feeley
• RES 2021 #205That the City Council formally go on record in observing National Hispanic Heritage Month from September 15 – October 15 throughout the City of Cambridge

Applications & Petitions (4)

• APP 2021 #38An application was received from Carol Fournier representing Abroad Modern, requesting permission for a projecting sign at the premises numbered 292 Concord Avenue. approval has been received from Inspectional Services, Department of Public Works, Community Development Department and abutter📖 read
• APP 2021 #39An application was received from Christopher Vuk representing Rock & Roll Daycare, requesting permission for a projecting sign at the premises numbered 1969 Massachusetts Avenue approval has been received from Inspectional Services, Department of Public Works, Community Development Department and abutter📖 read
• APP 2021 #40An application was received from Paulo Correia, requesting permission for a curb cut at the premises numbered 851 Cambridge Street; said petition has received approval from Inspectional Services, Traffic, Parking and Transportation, Historical Commission and Public Works. No response has been received from the neighborhood association. CHARTER RIGHT EXERCISED BY COUNCILLOR TOOMEY IN COUNCIL SEPTEMBER 13, 2021 PLACED ON THE TABLE BY COUNCILLOR TOOMEY IN COUNCIL SEPTEMBER 20, 2021transit-traffic📖 read 📄 PDF
• APP 2021 #41ORDINANCE 2021-17: A Zoning Petition Has been received from Francis Donovan, regarding Advancing Housing Affordability (AHA) zoning petitionhousing-generalzoning📖 read

Other Business (9)

• AR-21-54Report on exploring the feasibility of providing Equity Roadmap with regular funding for Friday Night Hype
• AR-21-55Report on assessing what is driving this new activity, and to deploy the necessary resources to tamp down on the gun violence being seen in the above-referenced areaspolice-safety
• AR-21-56Report on the feasibility of committing financial resources to assist in redesigning and/or reshaping the outdoor public ways, natural space and infrastructure including sidewalks, protected bike lanes and tree canopy at the southern edge of Jerry’s Pond along Rindge Avenue to make it more accessible, more green and more equitable and to create a welcoming entryway to Cambridge from the westbike-lanestrees
• AR-21-57Report on how the city is working to get City staff to 100% vaccinated and decrease the likelihood that COVID-19 spreads via City staff and in City Buildings
• AR-21-58Report on addressing increased gun activity

• communications from Tanya Ford, Executive Director of the Cambridge Election Commission regarding support and in opposition of the proposed charter amendments to be included in a mailing to voters prior to the November 2, 2021 Municipal Election 📖 read 📄 PDF 📄 PDF 📄 PDF 📄 PDF
• a memorandum regarding the current three-year term as City Clerk expiring on May 31, 2022 📖 read
• an explanation of the proposed amendments to the Cannabis Business Permitting Ordinance 📖 read
• (untitled) 📖 read

Committee Reports (5)

• Ordinance Committee hearing of 2021-01-27 — Accepted [Unanimous]
• Human Services & Veterans Committee hearing of 2021-04-07 — Accepted [Unanimous]
• Civic Unity Committee hearing of 2021-05-27 — Accepted [Unanimous]
• Ordinance Committee hearing of 2021-09-01 — Accepted [Unanimous]
• Committee hearing of (unknown date) — Passed To A Second Reading [Unanimous]