On Brookline

The TAB’s Jessica Scarpati reports that the US Attorney’s Office in Boston is investigating the Brookline DPW’s water division on suspected public corruption charges.
Rumors have been circulating for months that federal agents were poking around town government. Town Counsel Jennifer Dopazo now confirms it, and says the town is “fully co-operating with the investigation” [...]

Here’s what you won’t hear in the debate concerning a Proposition 2.5 over-ride for Brookline - the miserable job the town does in caring for low income children.  Why?  Because we’re in denial that they exist in our toney burb of million-dollar houses. 
Wait a minute, I take it back.  We will hear how special education [...]

The Tab’s Neal Simpson is reporting that a “study group” advising the Clueless Five (i.e., Brookline Selectmen) on a Proposition 2.5 over-ride has officially recommended an $8 million ballot question bailout of the town’s finances.
Gee, almost half of that ($3.5 million) will go to covering an operational deficit.  But where did this “operational deficit” come [...]

It seems that Brookline PAX met last night to discuss “strategy” on the Arthur Conquest matter. Typical PAX, addressing the issue a week after the Brookline Selectmen vote to deny Conquest an appeal of his complaint into police mis-conduct from the May 24th Brawl at Town Hall.
Maybe they’re gearing up for Nancy Daly’s “White [...]

The more I learn about the St. Aidan’s housing project, the more it looks to me like a scam.
It’s not clear to me that meaningful affordable housing will result from the public investment of $6 million [see previous post]. And now there’s another development that doesn’t pass the smell test.
In an October 19th memo [...]

What might Arthur Conquest had told the Brookline Board of Selectmen had they let him rebut the Police Chief Dan O’Leary’s nonsensical presentation into events on May 24th? Well, Conquest sent the message below to the private listserve (more secrecy sponsored by taxpayers) of the Town Meeting Members Association.
I’m reprinting it here for those [...]

The Globe’s “City Weekly” section covers last week’s whitewash of police actions toward Arthur Conquest and says the matter is, “not likely to go away soon.” Amen to that.
And like many things is Brookline, there’s more to the story than this one incident. Consider this passage from the Globe story:
“In the 12 years [...]

Here’s an interesting item on the agenda for next Tuesday’s meeting of the Clueless Five (i.e., The Brookline Selectmen):
PROPOSED EXECUTIVE SESSION: Town Counsel Jennifer Dopazo and Human Resources Director Sandra DeBow will appear to request authorization to settle legal claims.
Well golly, that’s interesting. By the time a legal matter reaches settlement, all parties have [...]

So, how did “Massachusetts’ best run community” (the Brookline town hall slogan) handle yesterday’s snowstorm. Not so well.
A $200 million municipal budget (of which 35% goes to schools) and not a snowplow in sight during a rush hour storm - though cars were being towed (by private contractors) with great efficiency.
No wonder town government [...]

Need more proof that Tuesday’s decision not to pursue a hearing on appeal into the abuse of power by Brookline PD during May’s Brawl at Town Hall was a sham?
Well, consider this.
On the matter of pursuing an assault charge against Arthur Conquest, Police Chief Daniel O’Leary told selectmen that it was former ZBA member Lawrence [...]

In case readers have missed the fundamental point on the matter of Arthur Conquest and his travails with the Brookline Police, here it is - Conquest was about to be charged with assault (by an officer who is nephew to the complaining witness) through evidence gathering (i.e., statements) that the police admit did not consider [...]

I’ve held off on mentioning this until now, because I didn’t trust that I heard things right last night. But at the end of last night’s hearing on the Brawl at Town Hall, Selectmen’s Chair Nancy Daly moved to “dismiss the [Conquest] appeal but proposed hearing from Mr. Conquest and [Brookline Police] Chief O’Leary [...]

I suppose that there is more than one story line coming out of last night’s decision by three Brookline Selectmen - Nancy Daly, Jesse Mermell and Robert “The Mensch” Allen - not to hear more evidence on alleged police mis-conduct from May’s Brawl at Town Hall.
There’s the all-in-the-family angle with the sergeant nephew being a [...]

Selectman Gil Hoy: “Chief, all of the witness statements I have read say that the officer was quite rude.”
Brookline Police Chief Daniel O’Leary: “You have to look at the facts.”
Owwww, the stupid…it burns.
As predicted, the three intellectual lightweights on the Brookline Board of Selectmen quashed a hearing on appeal to Arthur Conquest’s complaint on police [...]

While we cover the Brookline Selectmen’s march to St. Petersburg (circa 1830) on the matter of granting Arthur Conquest a hearing on the nonsensical internal report that purports to address his handling by the Brookline Police on May 24th, other stories are surfacing on St. Aidan’s and the Brookline School Department’s humiliation of a long [...]