Today's Ward 6 campaign news: Liz Weinbloom's campaign music video; PDS endorses Lance Davis

[ron_newman]

from Boston Magazine: Somerville Alderman Candidate Releases Anti-Gentrification Ukulele Song. It's a music video by Somerville musician Amy Kucharik, in support of Elizabeth Weinbloom. Even if you're supporting another candidate, you'll probably enjoy watching this.

Progressive Democrats of Somerville endorse Lance Davis. (Full disclosure: I'm a longtime member of this organization.) PDS sent questionnaires to all four candidates, and you can read their responses here.

Comments

[keithn.livejournal.com]

They called you a slum but I called you home
A place where I could hold my own
A city built on broken cars,
Shady deals and biker bars
The only rent I could afford
A sandwich shop on every hill
Somerville

According to Weinbloom's bio, she moved here in 2009. My eyes rolled so hard I think I sprained something.

I can't help but feel like people whining about gentrification are whining about people like me moving here (and also probably the two attorneys in the race). I'll cross this candidate off the list. Now to choose from the remaining three.

[ron_newman]

This song was written by Amy Kucharik, not by Liz Weinbloom. I think Amy has lived here for decades, since she mentions the Someday Cafe (which used to occupy the space where Mr Crepe is now)

Also, "a sandwich shop on every hill" is a subtle nod to David Misch's Somerville song from 40 years ago.

[keithn.livejournal.com]

I am aware, but the song was written about Weinbloom's candidacy and was written at her request, and now she's promoting it.

[lizforalderman.livejournal.com]

Thanks for listening Keith, and for thinking about the song's message. Ron is right -- I did not write the song, and the songwriter Amy Kucharik is singing from her own point of view. I do think that the song is a catchy summary of a problem you and I and a great many of us are facing: we came to Somerville because it was cool and affordable, but in doing that we pushed out a previous generation of folks who had a different threshold for affordability. And now the same thing is happening again, as the uke-toting froyo-consuming types are pushed out for the condo-owning send-their-kids-to-private-school types.

Neighborhoods change, and most of the "gentrification" in Somerville has been overwhelmingly positive (better public transportation, more businesses, better restaurants and bars, slow growth of bike lanes, improving schools, etc). But we can't keep allowing the housing market to go up and up and up. I don't buy the nostalgic premise that Somerville was inherently *better* in the past. But I do think that if we don't start investing seriously in the housing market, there will soon be few left who remembers that past... or who remembers today, for that matter.

To see more about the specific policies I would promote, visit here: http://elizabethweinbloom.com/portfolio/affordable-housing/

Elizabeth

[laryu.livejournal.com]

I'm curious if you care at all for the homeowners in Somerville, because you seem to be dripping with antipathy toward them. Perhaps it's smart campaigning but it's a real turnoff for this voting property-taxpayer.

[ron_newman]

Where do you see this 'antipathy' ?

[laryu.livejournal.com]

"Condo-owning send-their-kids-to-private-school types" is a rather crass generalization of recent home purchasers. "We can't keep allowing the housing market to go up and up and up" -- a desire to not allow the housing market to go up clearly works to undercut the interests of homeowners (and isn't the same thing as advocating for affordable housing). That's just one post.

[lizforalderman.livejournal.com]

Housing costs was the intent here. And I apologize for my sloppy attempt at ironic rhetorical parallelism, which clearly failed. I hope you'll refer to my responses to the DAG survey, the DSLJ online forum, and the substantive content on my website (http://www.elizabethweinbloom.com)to better assess my candidacy.

[cos]

> a desire to not allow the housing market to go up clearly works to undercut the interests of homeowners

That's not clear to me at all, as a homeowner (though not in Somerville). Homeowners have an interest in a healthy vibrant diverse neighborhood, from my point of view. Sure, if home prices in my neighborhood shot up dramatically I *could* make a big profit if I wanted to sell the house and move. But I don't want to sell the house and move, and if the housing market goes up to fast it'll hurt my neighborhood - the very reason I chose to live where I do. So I look askance at homeowners saying that "a desire to not allow the housing market to go up clearly works to undercut the interests of homeowners" - I think that's a rather narrow and anti-neighborhood view of what homeowners' interests are, and it doesn't represent the sort of homeowners' I'd want to live near for the most part.

[svilleswift.livejournal.com]

One of the things I have learned as a parent is to respect the decisions of other parents. I don't personally know anyone who sends their children to private school as a status symbol. The people I know sending their kids to private school do so for a variety of reasons but bragging rights isn't one of them. Most of these parents are truly conflicted about not sending their kids to the Somerville schools. But as a good parent, you have an obligation to do what is best for your child. My children attend the Somerville public schools and have had, so far, an excellent education. But if the schools weren't meeting our children's educational needs or, worse, killing their desire to learn, my wife and I would not hesitate to enroll them elsewhere. Your implicit labeling as "gentrifiers", with all it's negative connotations, of people just trying to do right by their children and their community is insulting and mean.

[lizforalderman.livejournal.com]

Goodness, that wasn't at all the intent! "condo-owning send-their-kids-to-private-school types" is rhetorical parallelism to balance "uke-toting froyo-consuming types." Neither meant as an actual description of real people, just a poorly utilized rhetorical device leaning on common stereotypical portrayals of segments of the community.

My apologies for the poorly phrased comment that rankled. This is a rather intense week.

[bobobb.livejournal.com]

Eh, agreed, this finks me out. I appreciate that the square has gotten nicer over time and my property values have gone up. Then again I'm not a rent gouging landlord, so there is that...

[lizforalderman.livejournal.com]

Thank you for being a good landlord! One of the main programs I support for easing our housing market is a benevolent landlords program, in which good landlords are recognized and rewarded by the city (and landlords on the brink are incentivized to be positive contributors to the community).

[bobobb.livejournal.com]

I like incentives and rewards...tell me more...

[lizforalderman.livejournal.com]

I feel like it's worth pointing out that "anti-gentrification" comes from Boston Magazine's headline, not from anywhere in the song or the surrounding materials from my campaign. I would summarize the song as pro affordable housing. I mean, for pete's sake, it's a ukulele folk song, how clueless would we be to use a ukulele to whine about hipsters?

Elizabeth

[lanze108.livejournal.com]

Affordable housing is a huge issue, and not just because of some lawyers moving into the city. There has been a lack of action on the city to combat rising rents. There's a real risk of losing the wonderful artist community Somerville is known for.

It's unfortunate that the Globe wrote a misrepresenting title. I think you are the only candidate that has come up with any solution for it that has some weight. I don't know why no one else here is acknowledging that.

*correction: Boston Magazine was the one that wrote the misrepresenting title

[lizforalderman.livejournal.com]

Thanks for this, Lanze. The misleading headline is unfortunately undermining the utility of an otherwise excellent article that discusses my real policy ideas in a way that none of our local publications have.

Elizabeth

[keithn.livejournal.com]

On the other note - given that Gewirtz hand picked Lance Davis to succeed her, and given that Gewirtz founded PDS, does anyone really care about PDS's endorsement? I bet Lance's mom endorses him, too.

[ron_newman]

I actually expected PDS to fail to endorse, since they required a 2/3 majority, and (in my opinion) three of the candidates are in broad agreement with PDS's principles. This endorsement surprised me.

[somertricky.livejournal.com]

Does anyone really care about Chisholm's endorsement by the Somerville Times, for that matter? At least PDS gave the appearance of an open process. Given the field, I'm also surprised Davis got two-thirds of the vote required for an endorsement.

The Times endorsement was the biggest nothingburger of an editoral I've seen since the last time Chisholm ran against Rebekah Gewirtz for Alderman in 2007 (among other things, no mention of any of Chisholm's opponents). The Somerville News (a precedessor to the Times) ran an incredibly florid column in praise of Chisholm that year, including mention of his campaign material from his 1989, 1991 and 1993 campaigns against Jack Connolly as "some of the most memorable political literature in local political history." Hoping Ron can unearth some of this material...

[ron_newman]

I assume you're referring to this in 2007 and this in 2015.

I don't have any copies of Chisholm's literature from any of his four previous Ward 6 alderman campaigns....but it's just possible I may be able to come up with some soon.

[lanze108.livejournal.com]

Ron Newman- I'm not sure how highlighting over and over again how many times Charles Chisholm ran for office is a negative. He also successfully ran for office twice. I don't think how many times you run for office is an indicator of your value as a candidate. The legendary Harvey Milk ran for office three times before winning. He had a lot of trouble because he didn't get the backing of the establishment, but the people ultimately galvanized around him.

[somertricky.livejournal.com]

Spectacular. I'm almost speechless.

But I'll toss this out: I highly doubt Harvey Milk would have campaigned against a Sanctuary City back in the day.

[jdh0625.livejournal.com]

I don't think the Times holds much sway at all in Ward 6. There probably isn't a ward in Somerville whose preferences are more out of step with the Times.

In their endorsement of Chisholm, they mainly referenced repeatedly that he's lived in Somerville a really long time, which is probably entirely what it came down to for them since they barely mentioned issues at all. No way would they ever endorse people who have been here for 15 years or less.

[cos]

I'm fairly sure more than 2/3 of Somerville residents have been in Somerville for less than 15 years, but my past experience on a number of campaigns in Somerville also tells me that the majority of those who *vote* in municipal elections have lived in Somerville for longer. What I wonder, and don't have the data to answer, is whether Ward 6 bucks that trend. That is, are voters in Ward 6 more representative of the population in that a majority of those who vote have been in Somerville for fewer years, just as a majority of those who live there have?