Week two of my Tuesday update where I try to break down whats happening at city hall this evening
6pm, Community Town Hall behind city hall
I’m finally in communication with Carlos Vasquez Jr, the person Walter Crocket called the police on at the indivisible protest.
Then we Hear from Jim Miller about the upcoming No Kings day rally,
Then we hear from the general public on what else is going on, discuss a few upcoming events
Inside city hall,
City council tonight is a great example of why it’s kinda ridiculous to only give people two minutes, especially when the public only gets half an hour
I’m not an expert and I might be wrong or miss something important, make sure to check outMike Benedetti’s newsletter too
There’s ten Tabled items, which I always say is where you can look to see what they’re trying not to work on, it’s got rent control from five years ago, supporting a covid vaccination bill held by Bergman of course back in 2021
Two things seeking transparency from the WRTA, held by Candy Carlson, chair of the public works committee back in 2023
A petition of f Gordon Davis request City Council request Standing Committee on Public Safety investigate the issue of systemic racism, tabled by kate Toomey, chair of the so-called safety committee
And then one about the discrepancies between the Department of Justice report and the account of the city, tabled only a month ago
A good city would prioritize these things, not table them, but anyways
So, a lot of these items are
BUSINESS UNDER SUSPENSION OF RULES - Items brought forth under
suspension at the May 13, 2025 City Council meeting
There’s sixteen of those, and they’re the important ones
36 petitions
Which include
My Open meeting complaints
Communications of the city manager
Which has 41 items
Including an overdue report on CSX funding,
a request for a leasing a data center, which probably means they’re overstaying their welcome in the Worcester technical highschool and hosting more of the tools ourselves,
Also, this includes voting on and likely approving the budget, which of course has an increase in so-called public safety which I see as rewarding bad behavior
We’re apparently includes Moving to a new platform for agendas, whichprobably renders the use of constant contact by the city clerks office useless, now they can use it to let us know when trash won’t be picked up
And makes me feel a little better about the city being such shit with their current calendar and agenda website setup
Chairmans orders
34
Councilor Ojeda wants to encourage Worcester Public Schools students to learn and play golf at the Greenhill course
Councillor Haxhiaj is looking to have water bubblers installed in city parks, and a reference source for mediation for tenants and landlords involved in complaints received by the Department of DEI which sounds great, I’m not sure what purpose the complaints really address otherwise.
Colorio is trying to crack dwon and get a legal opinion on when there’s three or more people living in one place who aren’t related, this is likely based in her xenophobia but who knows what witch hunt it is
She’s also asking for a report of park safety complaints over the past five years, which I find comical knowing how bad their record keeping is.
Then Chairmans orders part 2 for some reason,
There’s 23 more of those, and are some of the juiciest pieces, like potentially breaking apart the parks division and public works (do not give Antonelli Jr any more power), seeking a report on hate crimes in similiar cities which Toomey will probably use to contrast the bullshit number of like eight that Chief Saucier spouted at the last Safety Committee
There’s a request for eviction data, and for the feasibility of getting a report twice a year on evictions in the city
Bergman is trying to ask for clarification on how to report it if he feels threatened, (now that’s a mischaracterization, sue me) as well as a bunch of things that will change the rules of city council, and are the beginning of attempts to limit who can speak
There’s a Request City Clerk work with the City Solicitor to ensure the Rules of the City Council are strictly reviewed when making determinations relative to the placement of items on the City Council agenda, and I am wholeheartedly in support of that except it’s discretionary and that circle jerk is already proficient at accountability hot potato.
They’re trying to limit nonresidents from public comment, and Request City Clerk provide City Council with a report detailing how other municipalities
handle signage being displayed within their council chambers, which I of course take credit for.
Bergman is trying to get the city solicitor to opine on whether a majority two-thirds vote entails present members or the council body as a whole - which is absolutely wild if you ask me
There’s a request for a report on the percentage of or number of City of Worcester and Worcester Public Schools employees who are Worcester residents, something local legend Michael madden has been pointing out for so many years - none of the cops live here, but the fire fighters do.
Also, there’s the city manager review, which is an improvement but the bar was low
But none of that matters, the real highlight for tonight is meeting at city hall for 7pm, after public comment and showing our solidarity with LA
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