Saturday, February 23, 2013
At-Large City Councilor John Connolly is gathered community leaders' perspectives to gauge whether he should run for Boston mayor come fall.
On Wednesday At-Large Boston City Councilor John Connolly tweeted that he was considering running for mayor of Boston and for people to contact him with ideas and questions. With all signs pointing to Boston Mayor Thomas Menino gearing up to run for a record sixth term - does that mean Connolly is ready to take on the Menino Machine? "I haven’t decided yet," said Connolly to Patch. So what was the goal of his announcement with an article in the Globe and a follow-up interview with WCVB? "I think mainly to see what the response is. Also to call and reach out to a lot of supporters and opinion leaders and to gauge their sense. That’s the process I’m in right now. I’m making calls and asking people what they think, and if they would be …
Tuesday, January 29, 2013
The city councilor wants to see the Boston Public Schools system easier to navigate for parents.
While Boston Mayor Thomas Menino is pushing three new proposed student assignment plans, At-Large City Councilor John Connolly said he wants to see more. "The EAC [External Advisory Committee on School Choice] has pushed BPS [Boston Public Schools] to offer two creative options that move beyond arbitrary lines on a map. I'm still concerned about the lack of a real plan for quality, the complexity of a system that needs to be easier for parents to navigate, and the likelihood that limited capacity will prevent BPS from offering real close to home options," Connolly told Patch. School officials offered three options in mid-January, different than the five plans they originally presented last year. One option would create 10 community-…
Friday, December 28, 2012
The new city ordinance requires all owners to register all rental units of more than six units.
A new Boston rental inspection ordinance will require all owners and landlords with more than six units to register in a citywide registry. Mayor Thomas Menino has pushed for the ordinance, which the city estimates will provide a proactive method for inspecting about 140,000 rental units, comprising more than 85 percent of Boston’s approximately 167,800 units. During the next five years, every unit under the ordinance will receive an approved inspection or be entered into an Inspectional Services-approved alternative compliance plan. More than 10 inspectors are expected to be hired, as the city plans on tackling units owned by landlords with a history of noncompliance in the first year of the program. The ordinance first had to be …
Thursday, September 27, 2012
Boston City Council's Education Committee Chairman John Connolly attended BPS' meeting, and had some major concerns about the five plans.
Boston City Councilor At-Large John Connolly credits the School Department with doing a lot of work on their proposed five plans for changing school choice - but the Council's Education chairman also has major concerns with the proposals. "First it was clear from the presentation that the 'no zone' plan and the '23-zone plan' are not under real consideration. And it seems as BPS wants to drive the process towards a compromise on the '6' or '9' zone plans," said Connolly, in an interview with Patch. "My second concern is that there were not a lot of specifics on upgrading quality across all schools. And so I think those are the big factors going forward. The citizen advisory committee needs to push for some different options," said …
Thursday, September 20, 2012
Mayor Menino rejected the previous redistricting map submitted by the Boston City Council, citing it "concentrates our many citizens of color into too few districts."
The Boston City Council passed a second redistricting map today in a 7-6 vote, which now needs to be passed or vetoed by Mayor Thomas Menino. Menino rejected the previous redistricting map passed by the Council in a 7-6 vote on Aug. 23. He said the proposed map "concentrates our many citizens of color into too few districts, and in doing so may limit their equal opportunity to elect candidates of their choice." Several city councilors warned of possible litigation being brought against the city if the map did not accurately reflect the demographics of the city. City Council Tries Again District 7 City Councilor Tito Jackson reintroduced the map he and District 6 City Councilor Matt O'Malley created. (The map is attached to this article.) …
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Thursday, September 13, 2012
West Roxbury's Tony Saroufim was among members of the World Lebanese Cultural Union today with city councilors and Mayor Menino.
Today Boston Mayor Thomas Menino was gifted a ceremonial Lebanese flag by members of the World Lebanese Cultural Union at City Hall Plaza during the flag raising ceremony. West Roxbury resident Tony Saroufim was among the World Lebanese Cultural Union members. West Roxbury's District Councilor Matt O'Malley, as well as At-Large City Councilor and West Roxbury resident John Connolly also participated in the ceremony.
Monday, July 16, 2012
Superintendent Johnson admitted she was wrong for not disciplining a school headmaster who is on probation after allegedly assaulting his wife.
A City Councilor is calling for Boston Public Schools Superintendent Carol Johnson to be removed after she did not discipline a school headmaster after he was arrested for assaulting his wife. Meanwhile, more than 200 Johnson supporters rallied at Jamaica Plain's Bethel A.M.E. Churchon Saturday, according to the Globe. Rodney Peterson was the headmaster at the John D. O’Bryant School of Mathematics & Science in Roxbury, was placed on administrative leave after he was charged with choking his wife last June, and has since left the Boston Public Schools system. Johnson has apologized for her handling of the situation, telling Deborah Becker on WBUR's Morning Edition, “I made a mistake. I wish I had done things differently. In retrospect, I…
Friday, June 22, 2012
The At-Large Boston City Councilor responded to readers' questions about the Boston Public School system, the Casey Overpass project and more.
Boston City Councilor At-Large John Connolly answered questions from Boston Patch readers during an online chat midday Thursday. The chat covered a wide range of hot-button topics. Here are some of the highlights from that discussion. "I've been hosting a series of parent sit downs over the course of the last three months and will continue to do so throughout the summer. If anyone is interested in hosting or participating in an upcoming meeting please find more info here:http://www.connollyforboston.com/events/upcoming-parent-meetings/ Similarly, BPS has a series of public meetings ongoing about changing the student assignment process. The schedule can be found at www.bostonpublicschools.org/choice." More on City Council Education …
Thursday, June 21, 2012
The Irish Social Club continually applies for temporary alcohol licenses after a board member mistakenly gave back the club's alcohol license.
The Boston City Council unanimously supported a homerule petition to give the Irish Social Club of Boston a permanent special full-alcohol license from the state, months after a member mistakenly returned the club's previous license. If granted, the license would only be for the Irish Social Club of Boston and would not be transferrable. Councilors Matt O'Malley and Stephen Murphy petitioned for the state homerule petition, which would need to be approved and signed by the governor, for the Club to get an alcohol license immediately. At the Council's regular Wednesday meeting, O'Malley spoke of the Club's beginnings in Roxbury, 65 years ago, and eventual move to Park Street in West Roxbury. Last April, the club's former leadership …
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Join our live conversation with Boston Councilor-At-Large John Connolly Thursday at 11:30 a.m..
Patch will chat with Boston City Councilor John Connolly at 11:30 a.m. Thursday. Feel free to ask him your questions about the neighborhood, citywide issues or whatever else has you concerned. You can submit a question by entering it in the widget above. Please use your real name when writing in. Depending on time and the number of questions submitted, we cannot guarantee your question will be asked (but we'll try to get them all in).
Lucy
4:07 pm on Friday, September 28, 2012
I was very excited around prospect of returning to neighborhood schools. However, after the proposals and the Deputy Superintendant dismissing the nozone, 23 and 11 zone proposals because they create two white zones. I felt completely defeated. Looking over the demographics of each proposal, I don't see one that creates a white zone. The highest percentage of white students in one plan was around… more ›