City Council Reviews Planning Board Appointees

The Cambridge City Council reviewed new appointees to fill several recently vacated positions on the Cambridge Planning Board—an organization that meets twice a month to review zoning proposals and amendments—at its weekly meeting Monday.

City Manager Richard C. Rossi on Monday appointed three newcomers to the Board: Mary T. Flynn, a manager of facilities management at Massachusetts Water Resources Authority, Louis J. Bacci Jr., a union representative of Laborers Local 151, and Thacher Tiffany, an urban planner and director of acquisitions for the Beacon Communities. Their tenures are set to begin on Dec. 1.

Rossi also re-appointed H. Theodore Cohen and Catherine Preston Connolly, who are already serving on the Board.

Together, the five appointees will serve alongside continuing members Steven Cohen, Tom Sieniewicz, Hugh Russell, and Ahmed Nur.

Rossi said that the new appointees would bring significant experience and diversity to the Planning Board.

“The composition of the new board provides greater balance and representation in terms of neighborhood distribution, diversity of opinion, community perspective, and professional background,” Rossi said in his letter.

Nevertheless, some criticized the Planning Board for not being sufficiently representative of the greater Cambridge community. Heather Hoffman, a Cambridge resident who spoke during public comment, noted that all the appointees and a majority of current Board members hold careers related to urban development. Hoffman argued that it would be beneficial for more of the Board members, who serve five-year terms, to have a broader array of professional experience.

“It would be a huge step in the right direction to have someone on the planning board whose paycheck does not come from the development business,” Hoffman said.

Councilor Nadeem A. Mazen echoed Hoffman’s concerns, citing a need for the increased presence of non-specialist community leaders on the Planning Board to moderate the opinions of architects, builders, and union leaders.

“Take people who are knowledgeable, but share a minority opinion,” Mazen suggested to Rossi.

In response, Councilor Marc McGovern said that a diversity of opinions could still exist, even with a relatively homogenous board.

“You can get two people in the same room from the same profession, and they could have two different views about how to proceed,” McGovern said.

Rossi said that he did not segregate individuals as members or nonmembers of a larger “development community.” Instead, he said he evaluated each member based upon his or her specific dedication and knowledge about planning.

“These are people who really care about Cambridge and they have a deep interest in making the process better,” Rossi said.

—Staff writer Arjun S. Byju can be reached at arjun.byju@thecrimson.com.