Vote Medford 2005

William Carr

Candidate for Medford City Council

candidate email: BillCarrSr@comcast.net   
phone number: 781-395-4668

View the complete City Council questionnaire.

Carr: Q1 - Medford Square Revitalization

I see a revived Medford Square that is the crossroads of the City, a center of activity, a destination place where people come together to eat, socialize and shop. In ten years, Medford Square will be a bustling shopping district where citizens can attend a local theater production at the restored Chevalier Auditorium or a performance at the Springstep Center and have dinner before or after at one of the many restaurants built along the revitalized Mystic River Park and Boardwalk.

In ten years, the Mystic River will have a continuous walking and bike path that stretches from Wellington past the Meadow Glen Mall and the new Schools at Hormel through Medford Square all the way to the Mystic Lakes. The Mystic River will regain its original use as a natural highway that links the city together. The River will give people a refuge from the noise and traffic of the city, a place where people meet, walk their kids to school and shop.

In ten years, I see Medford's rich history rediscovered with galleries which depict its legacy: ship building, Paul Revere, Amelia Earhart and the priceless Civil War photographs displayed in a vibrant new Medford Historical Society Center. Visitors will flock to the Center as part of a Medford History Tour, a popular day trip destination that starts and ends in Medford Square and links by car or foot the Tufts House, the Royall House, the Brooks Estate, and the dozens of significant houses from four centuries of Medford's history. I believe this vision is already in the works. Medford has many city-owned parcels of land in the Square which it can use to leverage new development and pay for the investments needed to make the vision a reality.

Carr: Q2 - Social, Cultural and Historical Assets

Medford is a City with a rich number of diverse cultural and historical assets. On the history front, Medford has several regional and national-level resources like the Royall House, the Brooks Estate and the Peter Tufts House. These wonderful places have all seen a new level of commitment and investment in the past few years and I think Medford should continue to showcase them for both residents and visitors. One specific thing that I feel the City should do is to put together a walking and driving map of Medford that will allow Medford residents and visitors alike to see at a glance the rich places we are so fortunate to have here. In addition to being an educational tool and way to channel tourism, this map can help Medford Square as merchants would ideally be featured on the map and help to sponsor its publication.

On the social side, one of Medford's great strengths is its diverse population and tightly-knit neighborhoods. One of the most important things city government can do is to ensure that the character and scale of the existing neighborhoods are not threatened by out-of-character new development. This was recently accomplished in the School Re-Use process, where we made sure that each neighborhood had detailed input on the fate of their old school buildings, while still providing value for the taxpayers who owned the old buildings.

Carr: Q3 - Encouraging Small Businesses

One of the single most important things that we can do to help Medford's small businesses is to enforce the parking rules so that no one can leave their car in front of a business for an entire day, denying potential customers a parking place. Longer term, Medford needs to completely reform its existing parking system, which is dysfunctional. One way we can encourage business awareness in the community is to have businesses leave some lights on at night so that people passing through Medford are aware of their presence. But government is not the only solution: we need businesses to get more involved in Medford and participate in civic life and events.

Carr: Q4 - On Low- and Moderate-income Families

One of the methods that the city is using to increase affordable housing is to insist that plan for the reuse of the schools include units put aside for a lottery for families who cannot afford to buy in Medford otherwise. Several units have already been built and sold; more are to come. We also encourage all builders of new construction to consider incorporating a percentage of affordable units.

Carr: Q5 - Environmental Issues

Environmental issues are both a challenge and an opportunity for Medford. With fuel prices rising dramatically this year, Medford has to look for ways to save more energy, recycle more of its waste and work smarter with our resources. We are meeting the challenge head-on with Medford’s newly hired Director for Environmental Affairs. This important position in City Hall is where Medford’s many environmental issues get full-time attention. For example, Medford recently purchased a number of electric golf carts that are used in the cemetery and other places to reduce fuel costs. Medford has been a municipal leader on environmental issues: we were recently awarded two environmental awards for “superior energy performance at City Hall” and a Clean Air Excellence Award for Medford’s comprehensive efforts to implement innovative clean energy and transportation policies.” In addition to a strong Environmental Affairs Dept, Medford also fields an excellent Conservation Commission, a well-staffed group with expertise in environmental issues city-wide.

Beyond energy, Medford also has to protect its environmental resources like the Mystic River, Wright's Pond and Brooks Pond, among many others. Almost every new project in Medford has to deal with sensitive environmental issues. For example, the Medford Square Master Plan will involve major rework along the Mystic River with new greenspace and shops along what is now the Ring Road. One of the challenges will be to increase access to the Mystic River while protecting its ecosystem.

Carr: Q6 - Open Spaces, Sidewalks, and Trees

Medford's parks are greatly improved in recent years, like the newly refurbished Columbus Park. Almost every park in Medford has seen major reconstruction or enhancements in the past decade. Maintaining all of parks in Medford continues to be a fiscal challenge, as Medford does not currently have enough personnel to do the job properly. One solution we have used is to ask the many great organizations in the city like Rotary or American Legion (among many others) to "adopt a park" and have volunteers walk the parks to pick up trash and offer helping hands during the spring and summer months. I have called for a ten-year plan for Medford's parks to outline a long-range plan and schedule to maintain the parks for the long-term.

Carr: Q7 - Street Safety

The Traffic Commission meets once a month to review all applications that have been brought to their attention. It is a slow but thorough process. They have to go out to look at the situation, come together and review the findings, and then address the safety issues. So the process takes several months to bring about any changes. In a dangerous, life-threatening situation, citizens can appeal to the mayor and the traffic commission to act more quickly. Whether it is traffic, road conditions or safety, Medford relies heavily on its citizens to be its "eyes and ears" and bring problems to the city's attention when they arise.

Carr: Q8 - Green Line

The potential Green Line Extension to Medford is currently in the early conceptual phase of study. It will take at least a decade or more to become reality, if the funding ever becomes available. At this time, there is almost no solid information that we as residents can use to evaluate a potential Green Line extension -- how far it goes, where potential stations might be, how it ends -- and these questions must be answered in great detail before I will make a decision on the Green Line. It is important that the surrounding neighborhoods most affected by a Green Line extension not be negatively impacted by such a project. We also have to make sure that we do not make existing traffic and parking problems worse. The Green Line is a complex project and until I have more facts and can understand its impact on the neighborhoods of Medford, I will not take a position for or against the Green Line Extension.

Carr: Q9 - Rising Energy Costs

We are already addressing this problem by several small steps. One example is the police department that is is putting two officers in one car to save fuel. But we have to weigh each cost-saving measure against each public safety impact.

As we all know, everyone is facing the increased costs of heating our homes and putting gas in our cars to go to work or to shop. We will all find ways to cut back: keep heat one degree lower, shut off rooms that are not being used, turn off lights, cover windows to prevents drafts, etc. Like private citizens, the city will have to find similar ways to save and in the end will have to shuffle money around to pay the bills. The city will probably run a deficit this year if projected increases actually occur.