Sal LaMattina

LaMattina thinking of running for register of probate

adamg — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 18:23:24 +0000

The Dorchester Reporter breaks the news on City Councilor Sal LaMattina's ruminations. Like the city clerk's job, the register job has traditionally been a haven for city councilors who want to move on - if he runs and wins, LaMattina, who now represents East Boston, Charlestown and the North End, would replace Richard Ianella, who retired last year.

Class is in session

BostonBastard — Fri, 20 Jan 2012 04:00:07 +0000

(This post originally appeared at www.BostonBastard.com)

Just in time for Martin Luther King Jr. Day, the Boston City Council readily presented their version of Boston race relations by making an example out of Charles Yancey, a black City Councilor who committed the egregious offense of actually trying to do his job and look out for his constituents.

The annual release of City Council Committee chairs is always a good way to get a sense of where the councilors stand in the eyes of the City Council power structure and this year was no different.

When Council President Stephen Murphy released his assignments last week, we learned that Matt O’Malley has proven himself as a willing stooge of the status quo, so of course he was handed the chair of the Government Operations Committee, which had been left available when Maureen Feeney finally decided to drop any pretense of giving a shit about her Dorchester constituents and went after a major pay raise.

Another major change was that Charles Yancey was removed from his chairmanship of the Post Audit and Oversight Committee.

Among councilors, Yancey is often criticized for not doing anything, but only because trying to improve the community in Mattapan doesn’t count among City Hall’s paler politicians.

Councilor wants to ban trash bags in the North End

adamg — Sun, 02 Oct 2011 02:11:35 +0000

City Councilor Sal LaMattina (North End, Charlestown, East Boston) says it may be time to require North Enders to put their trash out in metal or plastic barrels rather than bags that can be easily ripped open by rats, NorthEndWaterfront.com reports. There's a hearing on Thursday.

LaMattina: Nobody's going to make Hanover Street one way

adamg — Sun, 13 Feb 2011 22:26:03 +0000

Matt Conti reports the councilor for the North End threw water on a North End Chamber of Commerce idea to stuff more tourists into the neighborhood by turning Hanover into another Charles or Newbury. LaMattina also discussed vexing Hanover issues, from double-parked trucks to selfish valets and taxis that just circle the block, at a recent residents association meeting.

Councilors want smokers to butt out at parks, beaches

adamg — Wed, 09 Feb 2011 13:57:10 +0000

Councilors Felix Arroyo (at large) and Sal LaMattina (East Boston, North End, Charlestown) say it's time to ban smoking at both city and state recreation sites in Boston.

The two say second-hand smoke poses too much of a health risk to other park goers and that "careless smokers who choose to litter their used cigarette butts threaten the environmental integrity and cleanliness of our cherished public spaces."

The city council considers their request for a hearing on the issue today.

City councilors want to unleash a squadron of food trucks

adamg — Wed, 08 Dec 2010 21:04:42 +0000

Councilors Mike Ross and Sal Lamattina propose up to 25 new licenses for food trucks to roam the city, bringing fresh, hot, inexpensive meals to the masses.

What if students living off campus had to sign leases that included a ban on loud parties?

adamg — Sun, 07 Nov 2010 23:21:58 +0000

NorthEndWaterfront.com reports city councilors Mike Ross (of course) and Sal LaMattina are working on an idea to "have students sign leases where certain loud party' terms are included." The idea is to then enforce those terms with fines or outright eviction.

Why is NorthEndWaterfront.com reporting on this? Seems the North End might soon have to rename itself East Allston, based on a rising number of complaints about out-of-control parties run by college students (the more enterprising of whom charge admission).

Report: East Boston all frenzied over idea of Mayor LaMattina

adamg — Fri, 15 Oct 2010 02:12:17 +0000

The East Boston Times reports a "frenzy in the neighborhood" over the possibility that Councilor Sal LaMattina would become city council president, which would make him mayor when Menino quits in the middle of his current term - just like what happened to Menino, except the mayor's expressed little interest in becoming ambassador to the Vatican.

Motorcyclists declare war on Hanover Street restaurants, Councilor LaMattina

adamg — Sun, 04 Apr 2010 03:16:38 +0000

The Wild Bunch set, still fuming over a LaMattina-backed ordinance that dares to tell them how loud their bikes can be, is trying to come up with ways to express their disgruntlement.

A pair of California bikers propose taking all the parking spaces on Hanover Street at 5 p.m. on a Friday to show the restaurants what's what:

... To boycott all of Boston is a very broad target. It appears some Hanover Street restaurants contacted LaMattina to target bikers, so you and your friends should target them back. There are ways to do this, such as showing up in large numbers at 5pm on a Friday night and taking up all parking spaces while you go and visit the Paul Revere House. ...

Of course, the joke's on them because the Paul Revere House closes at 5:15 p.m. Still, can you imagine if they teamed up with the Commercial Avenue Segway guy? Chaos in the streets!

Via Matt Conti.

Rats: Boston abandons idea of limiting hours trash can be on the street

adamg — Thu, 18 Mar 2010 19:13:43 +0000

Matt Conti reports a proposal that would have limited North End residents to 6 a.m. to 9 a.m. for putting out trash died because the city and the contractor couldn't work out the union and contract changes that would have required. Councilor Sal LaMattina initially proposed the idea as a way of reducing the hours during which rats can gorge themselves silly on neighborhood garbage - residents can now put their trash out as early as 5 p.m. the night before each of the neighborhood's three-times-a-week pickups.

Exclusive footage of Sal LaMattina getting hit by a Segway-riding traffic commissioner

adamg — Tue, 02 Mar 2010 02:35:27 +0000

And other news from Chuck Burlap:

Earlier:
LaMattina recounts the impact.

City council to consider banning Segways from busy sidewalks

adamg — Wed, 24 Feb 2010 18:48:58 +0000

City Councilor Sal LaMattina (East Boston, North End, Charlestown) says he knows firsthand what it's like to get run into by a Segway - and wants to keep it from happening to people on busy commercial streets in Boston.

LaMattina told the council today that when he worked for the city transportation department, when Segways were new, he and transportation Commissioner Tom Tinlin went to Segway headquarters in New Hampshire to check them out. Company officials told them a pedestrian couldn't get hurt if hit by one - but he wanted hard proof, so he told Tinlin to get on a Segway and ram him.

"Let me tell you, it hurt," he said.

Maureen Feeney: Professional Pooh bear

adamg — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 13:06:00 +0000

Mike Ball, who actually attended yesterday's City Council vote on term limits (I couldn't take another day of those alleged seats in the council chambers and so watched the procedings from our comfy couch on Comcast Channel 51), didn't think much of Maureen Feeney's performance as chair of the committee on government operations - which had bottled up the term-limits issue for months:

... She clearly found the subject distasteful. She repeatedly reduced the issues to sing-song platitudes. In many ways, she is the Pooh of the body, a bear of very little brain. ...

Not that he found much to love in the other councilors who voted against term limits, including Sal LaMattina, who wanted to put it up to a referendum:

... I really hadn't been paying enough attention to the abstracts. Of course, we are in the territory of MassResistance, the Mass Family Institute and the Christian Civic League of Maine. Let the people vote is the call. It is the perfect way to pass the buck and pretend you are being true to the roots of our nation and commonwealth. Treat each important idea as though it were a town meeting discussion and you don't have to be a leader or be responsible for any resulting decision and its effects. ...

Residents of Roxbury housing project could finally get cable choice

adamg — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 20:35:22 +0000

Comcast told the City Council today it could begin wiring the Mission Main project by April.

City councilor calling slobs in the North End

adamg — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 14:10:34 +0000

NorthEndWaterfront.com reports on a two-hour neighborhood meeting about trash and rats; says Councilor LaMattina has made some calls to particularly offensive property owners to get them to clean up their property. Other offenders get a "Letter from the Councilor" with tips on making their refuse less rat-happy.