In one of her first public appearances since the November election, City Councilor-Elect Lydia Edwards kicked off her promised “thank you and listening tour” at the December 2017 meeting of the North End / Waterfront Residents’ Association (NEWRA).
Edwards will be meeting with the city department heads over the coming weeks and is seeking questions and issues from residents where she can advocate to the various City Hall agencies. Questions and comments can be sent directly to lydiaforboston1@gmail.com.
Developing an AirBnb ordinance is one of Edwards first priorities, along with colleague Councilor Michelle Wu. The Councilor-Elect also described her recent work with displaced families from the recent North End fire to find them services and housing within the city.
In Q&A, the issue of living through construction was raised (06:00 in video), specifically with regards to the upcoming construction of the North Washington Street bridge. A specific request was made for monthly meetings so that residents can weigh in on problems, such as construction noise.
The overwhelming trend of luxury housing development was a hot issue. Residents spoke in favor of encouraging affordable and workhouse housing. One resident asked if the city can use funds from its own property sales as a “bank” for future housing. It was also noted that the site of Knights of Columbus building is likely to be dedicated toward 22 units of affordable housing.
Other items discussed included traffic congestion, street access for emergency buildings and nighttime utility work. Please view the above video to listen to the full conversation.
The jackhammering was happening at night for several weeks due to emergency repairs that had to happen off-hours. I live directly next to the bridge and we’re well aware of the issues. The construction was off-hours to minimize the traffic disruption. I’d rather have a few weeks of restless sleep vs. the bridge literally falling apart. All of the expansion joints were fixed, and the support structure repairs are ongoing under the bridge (day & night).