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Candlelight vigil for possibly doomed library branch, call for audit and more BPL news
By adamg on Thu, 04/08/2010 - 2:40pm
Supporters of the Faneuil BPL branch in Oak Square plan to hold a protest march and candlelight vigil in front of the branch tomorrow at 5:30 p.m.
The protest comes several hours after BPL trustees vote on a budget that could include shutting the Faneuil branch and the Lower Mills, Orient Heights and Washington Village branches - along with cuts at the Copley main branch. That vote is scheduled for 8:30 a.m. in Rabb Hall at the Copley library. After the vote, BPL President Amy Ryan will be on WBUR at 1 p.m. to talk about the closings and her plans for "transforming" the overall BPL system.
Mike Mennonno explains why he supports City Councilor Felix Arroyo's bid to block all branch closings until after an independent audit:
... [R]ather than take responsibility for their priorities, and presenting their argument for a leaner, meaner library system, Menino's administration has chosen dirty dealing.
An audit may not turn up anything incriminating, but I agree with Arroyo that an independent party needs to have a look at the books. If anything, it'd send a message to the Mayor about transparency and trust.
Mike Ball: Looks like Boston Mayor Tom Menino and hired gun Amy Ryan will anger the most residents since Bill Buckner's ball bobble. He quotes City Councilor John Tobin as vowing to vote against any budget that includes a single branch closing.
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Comments
Nice-it would be cool if
this turned into an actual showdown between the Boston City Council and Menino. Has such a thing ever happened before?
not really, only those
not really, only those entertaining running against him or trying to get press. the council is made up of dick-less phonies who only care about themselves and their photos in the paper.... as quickly as they bring up issues they fade into kissing the mayor ass... there is no courage in any of them... they walk like lemmings into whatever the mayor wants them to do.... the house or the puppet master always wins.... they forget their main role is to be a checks and balance on the executive... not sure how they look themselves in the mirror at night...
culture of mistrust
Anyone paying attention to the news knows that state and local budgets are in crisis across the country. It may be that some cuts and even closings are necessary under the fairest and most transparent of decision making processes.
But the reservoir of trust runs dry because of the way business is done in this town. And now what's at stake is something very dear to so many people here, their neighborhood libraries.
To compound matters, these proposed cuts come after the Mayor ran a campaign promising something fresh and new in the face of a stiff challenge to his re-election bid. He did so knowing better than anyone else the state of public finances in Boston and Massachusetts generally.
When all is said and done, it turns out that the Mayor's first major post-election initiative is a drive to downsize the public library system.