A communication from the Joint Committee of the City Council and School Committee hearing to discuss the ways in which …

School Committee Member Kathleen Kelly

The Joint Committee of the City Council and School Committee held a public hearing on April 24, 2018, at 2:00 p.m. in the Sullivan Chamber The purpose of the hearing was discussing the ways in which decisions made by respective elected bodies impact the other, and to communicate topics of mutual interest between the City Council, School Committee, and Administrative Departments.

Present at the hearing were Mayor McGovern; Councillor Siddiqui; Councillor Simmons; Councillor Kelley; Councillor Devereux; School Committee Member Kathleen Kelly; School Committee Member Patty Nolan; School Committee Member Laurance Kimbrough; Louie DePasquale, City Manager; David Kale, Assistant City Manager for Finance; Carolyn Turk, Deputy Superintendent; Kenneth Salim, Superintendent; Jim Maloney, CPSD; Wilford Durbin, Chief of Staff; Elizabeth Liss, Education Liaison.

Also present were Emily Dexter, School Committee Member, Clare Spinner, Michael Black, Tracy Rose- Tynes, Nancy Tauber, Jen Bailey, and Dan Monahan. Mayor McGovern went over the agenda (ATTACHMENT A) and explained the purpose of the Joint Committee by stating that over the years, there has been a lot of discussion from both the City Council and School Committee that the elected bodies don’t communicate as well as they should.

He explained that there have been attempts to address this gap: the Mayor chairs the School Committee; the number of Roundtable/Working group meetings have been increased; and the bodies have added new budget conversation. Despite the steps to improve communications, officials hear that it’s not enough. There are decisions both bodies make that affect the other body, communication and collaboration are vital.

Mayor McGovern said that in an effort to improve communication, he had brought forward a new initiative to come together three times a year and talk to each other about what is going on in the School and in the City. Such opportunities are for conversations that don’t necessarily rise to the level of a Roundtable/Working Group. It is an opportunity for members to hear from each other and talk to each other.

The goal of the Joint Committee is that by improving communication, work can be improved for the people they serve. The Committee has no voting power, and it is not a subcommittee. He said that no motions can come out of this group, but ideas may. It is not a policy making body. Mayor McGovern introduced the first issue, parking for teachers, which he said seems to come up every term. He said the issue came up during his first term on the School Committee.

He wanted to hear from City Manager as to what the issues are. He stated that he don’t know if there is a way to put this to rest, or if it should be revisited every year. Mr. DePasquale said that the City has tried to do what it can for parking. Obviously this a very difficult situation, but wanted to go over some of the options the City had made available. He did not want to perpetuate a teacher vs. other employees equation, but other city employees do not get parking in neighborhoods.

For CPS staff that go to multiple schools as part of their regular work assignment, they 2

have been granted residential parking stickers. He said the City has been working to reduce car trips into the City, but operates Green Street, and overflow parking at Fulkerson. He stated that the School has done a good job of finding alternative parking spots for its teachers. He was not initially aware of how much was done, and while there still may be problems, a lot is being done. For people who want to take alternative transportation, the City offers good programs to encourage those actions.

There is the Hubway system which is offered at free or reduced rate. The City offers MBTA pass subsidies at a 65 percent discount. The City has made carpooling parking available in certain lots throughout the city. He said there was also the EZ Ride Shuttle, which comes from North Point, Kendall, and other locations. Finding parking for everyone in the City is a next to impossible situation, he said, but the Staff is doing the best it can. He said they take it very seriously, but there is no quick fix. Mr.

Maloney said that the lack of parking is not just a problem for administrators and teachers, but a problem for all employers in Cambridge. There is a large and increasing number of bike racks at School, which helps with parking as well, and is used by students and families. It’s every other day that complaints come in to the school about parking. In the new King Open building, there will be a large number of covered parking spots available.

He said that school administrators determine parking in their lots, and they try to ensure that people who have resident parking tickets do not use parking spaces in the lot. If a staff has an injury, they have access to privileged spots. Councillor Siddiqui said that the issue of parking came to the Council through communications from the Amigos School, which alleged the problem was exacerbated by the Fire Department’s decision to start ticketing cars in the lot the school.

School staff and abutters should have been warned that this was happening, she said, and that people were upset about the lack of communication. Councillor Simmons said there may have been complaints about people parking in the fire lanes. Mr. Maloney stated that there were concerns that came up at Amigos earlier this year about the Fire lane being blocked. Chief Mahony came out and looked at the site and made recommendations.

He stated that the result was two spaces were lost in the redesign, and that tandem parking was set up. The Schools worked with director of facilities to reach an agreement at the building. Councillor Kelley said that he realized they were not going to solve this problem overnight, but that he puts teachers and the Schools in a different context that other employers. Children don’t have a choice about whether they are going to be placed in a particular school.

If it is legal to provide residential parking stickers for teachers, it should happen, he stated. He added that he puts teachers and the school department in a different category that other employees, and believed they are owed more than other employees. Committee Member Nolan stated that it was very helpful to hear all the sustainable transportation pieces that are in place, but parking is still needed.

She asked if the City has a list of the number of school teachers and city employees to reference against the number of parking spots available. When a school has open spots, it would be interesting to know how equitably those spots are distributed, she said. Mr. Maloney stated that equity is only one piece of the consideration. If a staff member works at Tobin, they are likely to get a spot. At Fletcher Maynard Academy, that’s not so much the case.