After seeing numerous hearings on contentious issues like Mass and Cass and the hiring of Level 3 sex offenders put on hold because of what the Wu administration claims is a lack of availability, three Boston city councilors say they’ve had enough.
The councilors stated on Wednesday that the justification is no longer sufficient, especially since they believe it is a means of postponing discussion of crucial issues until after the preliminary elections for the city council and mayor on September 9.
They made their comments as Henry Santana, a former employee and ally of Mayor Michelle Wu, canceled a hearing on bus driver hiring and training procedures on Wednesday at the Wu administration’s request. The hearing was called in response to a Boston school bus crash that killed a 5-year-old boy.
Councilor Erin Murphy, a co-sponsor of the BPS driver hearing order, told the Herald that the City Council could not continue to be ignored. Just this week, the administration has canceled three hearings or failed to guarantee that the right agency leaders are there to address these important topics.
It is intolerable that the administration and some colleagues permit this pattern of avoidance and delay to continue, as families, advocates, and community people reschedule their schedules in order to be heard. Instead of constant justifications, the public should be treated with respect, accountability, and transparency.
The chair of the committee that will conduct the hearing, Santana, stated that he decided to postpone the meeting until all decision-makers are present.
“As chair of the Education Committee, it is my responsibility to make sure we get everyone in the room to do that,” Santana told the Herald, adding that Boston families deserve nothing less than a thorough and transparent process where all decision-makers are present and can be held accountable.
I have confirmed the involvement of Attorney Natashia Tidwell, Transdev, and transportation officials from Boston Public Schools, and I am ready to hold a hearing next Thursday when the independent investigative report will be available to ensure complete accountability.
In order for Council employees to publicly notify the hearing, Santana stated that he was seeking confirmation from Murphy and Ed Flynn, the primary sponsors, regarding whether the revised date would work.
According to an internal email that the Herald was able to get, Clare Kelly, the director of the mayor’s intergovernmental affairs team, requested that the hearing be canceled. Santana agreed to the date of August 28, which was proposed by the Wu administration.
According to Kelly’s email, the administration wanted the Transdev contract’s independent investigation report finished for the Council meeting, which caused the delay. The school district’s transportation provider is called Transdev.
Although that hearing will take place prior to the preliminary election if Flynn and Murphy accept the proposed date for next week, Councilor John FitzGerald is skeptical that this will be the case for a hearing he has been attempting to set off-site in the South End, a hotspot for spillover from the Mass and Cass open-air drug market.
Based on Flynn’s resolution requesting a public health and safety emergency declaration, FitzGerald stated that he has been having trouble getting the Wu administration to be available for the off-site hearing he would like to hold on the Mass and Cass crisis that is affecting neighboring neighborhoods.
FitzGerald told the Herald, “The administration asked us to rework that time and try to have it post-primary.” We had a time set for September 4. There are many additional considerations that go into holding a hearing, thus it seems disrespectful to the City Council to have them all either canceled or asked to shift.
FitzGerald believes that other councilors have repeatedly canceled and rescheduled hearings for a date that coincidentally falls after the primary election date due to the Wu administration’s lack of availability. This is an egregious overreach of a manufactured excuse not to hear the issues facing our city.
He replied, “I think this excuse has run its course at some point. You just have to say that.”
After another Wu loyalist and former employee, Sharon Durkan, vetoed Flynn’s motion for a vote on the resolution, the topic was automatically referred to FitzGerald’s committee, Public Health, Homelessness, and Recovery.
At the Council meeting, Durkan stated that there was no need for an emergency declaration, which Wu’s office has stated the mayor opposes, because it would not result in any resources to deal with the situation at Mass and Cass.
FitzGerald stated, “I don’t think we’re being fair to people being affected by certain issues.” For ten years, Mass and Cass people have been coping with this. They are entitled to replies.
He went on to say that the people elect us as an elected body. Reporting to the city’s residents is a requirement of working for the City of Boston; failing to do so is not fair to either our constituents or ourselves.
Flynn was left fuming after another hearing he called to review the city’s policy for hiring ex-convicts was abruptly canceled last Friday. He claims this was done to avoid questions regarding the mayor’s hiring of a Level 3 sex offender. Flynn’s emergency declaration push for Mass and Cass was blocked.
The hearing was originally scheduled for this past Monday, but Councilor Benjamin Weber, who was endorsed by the mayor during the previous election cycle, moved it to September 22 because he believed the Wu administration would be more accessible at that time.
Flynn informed the Herald that the committee chairs are in communication with the mayor’s office, which is requesting that they cancel or postpone these hearings until after the election. By postponing or canceling them, city councilors are not being courteous to the residents’ requests for answers and outcomes.
In a letter to City Council President Ruthzee Louijeune on Wednesday, Flynn also expressed his worries about the three hearing delays and Durkan and other councilors’ regular blocking of any discussion that could offer openness, among other things.
According to Flynn, leadership requires more than soundbites, social media, and drawing attention to national issues. It is not merely for political reasons that our neighbors sent us to this body to discuss these matters.
Louijeune responded with a retort email.
Louijeune remarked, “We are colleagues.” For what seems like the twentieth time, I humbly beg that you call my office or pick up the phone if you would like to discuss a problem. This is what strong leadership and teamwork demand.
“My doors are still open,” she continued. As the previous Council president, you are aware that the body cannot function effectively unless we communicate with one another instead of focusing on making headlines. I sincerely hope you take this seriously.
Related Articles
-
ICE director vows to flood Boston after Mayor Wu s refusal to strip sanctuary protections
-
BPD radio breakdown did not compromise response to overnight violence: Boston Police
-
Wu says Boston won t comply with feds order to dismantle sanctuary protections
-
Two Boston city councilors demand probe into police radio blackout at height of overnight violence
-
Watchdog slams state revenue chief for dismissing claims that Boston is penalizing commercial properties
Regarding the availability explanation that councilors have raised, the mayor’s office stated that Wu administration representatives have participated in 122 hearings this year, including eight this past week, and that the administration makes every effort to have staff available while balancing other obligations that city departments must fulfill.
According to Wu’s office, the administration rarely requests a new date.
According to a city spokesperson, the Boston City Council, being a distinct body of government, is able to hold hearings on any subject at any time without requiring permission or cooperation from the administration. Every day, Mayor Wu and city employees visit the community and speak with locals about the topics that most affect their lives, in addition to attending Council hearings.
