Early voting begins Oct. 22
Vol. 20, No. 42
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www.advocatenews.net
Published Every Friday
26th Annual Bread of Life Walk & Run
617-387-2200
See page 5
Friday, October 19, 2018
Housing Families breakfast highlights community’s role in ending homelessness
Longtime Housing Families supporter Dee Campbell-Tompkins and panel discussion moderator Nathan Lamb at this week’s Breaking Barriers Breakfast.
By Barbara Taormina
FAMLY FUN: Isabel, Heather, Karolina and Thorsten Vogel of Malden’s First Congregational Church were among the 100-plus walkers and runners who gathered at Pine Banks Park for the 26th Annual Walk & Run to raise funds to feed many hungry and homeless local residents, held in memory of Fred Rufo. See more photo highlights on pages 12 & 13. (Advocate photo by Al Terminiello)
Breakfast. The breakfast, which featured a pancrowd of friends, concerned citizens, el discussion on the impact of homeadvocates and supporters gathered lessness and housing insecurity on chilat the Irish American Club this week HOMELESSNESS | SEE PAGE 17 for Housing Families’ Breaking Barriers
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Councillors eye free and simple parking sticker program By Barbara Taormina ity councillors were back at the table this week trying to develop a residential parking program, and this time around, it might work. Residents have repeatedly rejected residential parking plans at public hearings and voted
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against it on a ballot question, but the margin of those who oppose seems to be getting thinner. And the proposals now being discussed include some selling points that could convince the city it’s worth a shot. One major difference is that the city now has former Strategic Planner Ron Hogan heading Malden’s new Parking Department, which includes a new parking enforcement team. Those investments laid the necessary groundwork for residential parking. Hogan has provided councillors with plenty of information and ideas about residential parking in other communities, and so far he has managed to keep the Parking Review Committee upbeat and on track. “Think about what problems you are trying to solve,� Hogan has repeatedly told councillors. “With any residential parking program, the execution of it will make or break you.� There are, however, some dif-
ferences among councillors and their constituents about which problems need solving. In the west side of the city, it’s outof-town commuters who clog neighborhood streets when they park and walk to the Malden Center and Oak Grove T stations. And Ward 1 residents have a growing problem with neighbors in Everett who cross city lines at night to avoid their own parking restrictions and requirements. There is also a financial problem involving excise tax that councillors have long felt could be solved with a residential parking program. “There’s a half a million dollars in excise tax out there that people are not paying,� said Ward 2 Councillor Paul Condon, who is chairman of the Parking Review Committee. In the past, residents have balked at residential parking proposals with color-coded zones, sticker fees and additional problems and paperwork for
visitor parking passes. This time, councillors are trying to keep it simple, suggesting no fees for anyone who pays excise tax for a vehicle registered in Malden. The Parking Review Committee is also looking at the idea of license plate scanners, which would eliminate the need for stickers. “It’s a virtual system,� explained Hogan. “People paying excise tax do nothing at all. The city gets the information from the Registry of Motor Vehicles about cars registered in Malden.� That information would be used to create a database for a plate-scanning system that would identify any parked cars that aren’t registered in Malden. Ward 4 Councillor Ryan O’Malley was leery of the license-plate surveillance because of principles of privacy and civil liberties, but other councillors seemed to favor it as more efficient than making members of the parking enforcement team check each ve-
hicle for a sticker. Councillors are also leaning toward a one-sticker program that would allow residents who have paid excise tax to park anywhere in the city. Some councillors favor a program that kicks in residential parking restrictions at 11 p.m. or midnight and runs through to 8 or 9 a.m., which would solve the problem of morning commuters taking up spaces. Others suggested daytime restrictions were the way to go, leaving the streets open in the evenings for people who have visitors. There are still plenty of problems that need to be considered. Visitor parking is still an open question. In the past, residents have objected to a parking program that would limit parties and social gatherings by ensuring that guests would leave Malden with a memento in the form of a $50 parking
PARKING | SEE PAGE 7