2026-10-05 - Sub-Committee Meetings

00:42Good evening, ladies and gentlemen.

00:44Welcome to the Monday, October 5th

00:47zoning subcommittee. Please join me to

00:48salute the flag.

00:51>> I pledge allegiance to the flag of the

00:53United States of America and to the

00:55republic for which it stands, one nation

00:58under God, indivisible,

01:00>> with liberty and justice for all.

01:05>> Madam Clerk.

01:06>> Roll call of the members, Councillor

01:08Genzio.

01:09>> Here.

01:09>> Here. Councillor Coggliano is absent.

01:11Councillor Greaney is away.

01:12>> Here.

01:13>> Here. Councillor Kelly is absent.

01:14Chairman Silvestri.

01:15>> Here.

01:16>> Here. Quorum is present. We have two

01:18items on tonight's agenda. The first is

01:20an ordinance further amending the zoning

01:22ordinances of the city of Revere

01:23relative to body art establishments.

01:30>> Do we have anyone here?

01:32Councillors?

01:33Okay.

01:34All right. We can roll call.

01:37>> Uh and just for the audience to know

01:39that the planning board did favorably uh

01:42recommend adoption of the um of the

01:44proposed amendment.

01:45>> Okay.

01:46>> So, on the on the roll call for the

01:48amendments to the body uh body art

01:50zoning ordinance, uh Councillor Genzio.

01:53>> Yes.

01:54>> Yes. The is absent. Councillor Greaney

01:57is away.

01:57>> Yes.

01:58>> Yes, Councillor Kelly is absent and

02:00Chairman Silvestri.

02:01>> Yes.

02:02>> Yes, the ordinance has received a

02:03favorable recommendation for adoption

02:05for the full city council tonight.

02:08And last on the agenda is a motion

02:10presented by Councillor

02:11Greenough-Swigert that the mayor request

02:13the appropriate city departments to

02:14establish a requirement that all

02:16qualifying construction and demo

02:18projects post a clearly visible project

02:20information sign at the property for the

02:22duration of the permitted work.

02:24The sign shall

02:25be posted in a location readily visible

02:27from the public way and shall include at

02:30minimum permit number, permit address,

02:32name of contractor and or developer,

02:34permitted construction hours,

02:36project contact telephone number and

02:38city department contact information for

02:40residents to report complaints or

02:42concerns. The appropriate departments

02:44are further requested to determine the

02:45types

02:46and size of projects that would be

02:48subject to this requirement and

02:49establish appropriate standards for

02:51size, placement, visibility and

02:53maintenance of the signage.

02:55>> Councillor Greenough-Swigert.

02:58>> Thank you, Mr. Chair. Um

03:00So, my intention's not to hurt a

03:01developer um or make things harder to do

03:03business in Revere, but we do already

03:05have an ordinance in place that states

03:08that they have to have signage outside

03:11um

03:12to let people know what's happening, you

03:15know, who who the developer is, what

03:17they're what they're building and stuff

03:18like that. I just want I simply want

03:21residents to know who is responsible for

03:23the construction um in their

03:25neighborhood and when the work is

03:27permitted and who to contact if they

03:29have concerns. Um we already have these

03:32requirements on the books for a permit

03:34placard to be displayed, but that does

03:37not always happen. So, maybe this motion

03:40um should be so the city departments um

03:44ensure that they

03:46when they see that the placard is

03:48missing that they speak to the developer

03:51and make sure that that it is in place

03:53after that. Thank you.

03:56>> Thank you, counselor. Any other

03:57counselors?

03:58Okay.

03:59Um just if I could from the chair

04:01um

04:02I I know that this information is in uh

04:06Citizen Serve and maybe we get something

04:09that uh we ask them to put up a a little

04:11sign that can direct them to Citizen

04:13Serve and then all this information

04:16would be there. Um

04:18but uh for for the motion

04:21and moving forward um

04:24Madam Clerk.

04:37All in favor, all opposed?

04:38So ordered.

04:41There'll be no further business. Thank

04:43you. See you at the regular business

04:44meeting.

09:39>> Mhm.

15:24>> Mhm.

21:09>> Mhm.

23:04>> Mhm.

31:28>> Good evening everyone and welcome to the

31:30October 5th meeting of Economic

31:32Development Subcommittee.

31:34Please rise to salute the flag.

31:38>> I pledge allegiance to the

31:51>> Roll call.

31:52>> Roll call of the members. Councillor

31:53Haas is absent. Councillor Kelly is

31:55absent. Councillor Novaselski.

31:57>> Here.

31:57>> Here. Councillor Silvestri.

31:58>> Here.

31:59>> Here. And Chairwoman Greenough-Sullivan.

32:01>> Here.

32:02>> Here. A quorum is present. First item on

32:04tonight's agenda is a motion presented

32:06by Councillor Greenough-Sullivan. That

32:08the mayor request the parking department

32:10and traffic commission to conduct a

32:11feasibility study on offering free

32:132-hour parking at metered spots for

32:16Revere residents 65 years of age or

32:18older who have a valid driver's license

32:20and vehicle registered in their name.

32:26Anyone here?

32:30Hi Tom.

32:31>> Everybody, Tom Skroski, Chief of

32:33Planning and Community Development. I

32:34know um Director Babo wanted to be here

32:37as well to talk on the topic, but he

32:38couldn't be here tonight, so I'm here

32:40somewhat on his behalf as somebody who

32:42coordinates quite often with him on

32:44parking

32:45matters. Um, and I I don't know if you

32:48have um,

32:49Madam Chair, anything else to discuss

32:51with

32:51regard to the context, but I'm happy to

32:53answer any questions or think through,

32:55you know, on the implementation side,

32:57which I think is where most of our

32:58concerns would lie, how this would

32:59operate.

33:00>> Um, as the maker of the motion,

33:04my reasoning behind this was there are

33:05many hair salons, nail salons,

33:07restaurants, and specialty shops along

33:09Broad- the Broadway corridor that could

33:12benefit from more senior customers. And

33:15these visits often take longer than the

33:16quick 15 minutes that we offer them um,

33:20to do their errands. So, 2 hours of free

33:23metered parking would give eligible

33:25seniors time to keep an appointment,

33:28enjoy a meal, and shop without worrying

33:30that the meters going to expire, helping

33:33both the seniors and the the businesses,

33:36the local that are there. So, that was

33:38in the thought process behind it. Um,

33:42I think it could provide meaningful uh,

33:44relief to the seniors worried about,

33:45"Oh, am I going to get a ticket?" Um,

33:48and the way I was looking at how it

33:52could be implemented is giving the

33:54seniors um, looking up their

33:56plates and all that stuff when they when

33:57they come and get their sticker, a

33:59senior placard, which would

34:02differentiate the vehicles from from a

34:04senior vehicle from the city of Revere

34:06as um, as to any other vehicle that's

34:08parked out there. A feasibility study is

34:11what I was hoping for that would come

34:13um, through your department, the parking

34:15department, traffic department, whatever

34:17um,

34:18whatever you guys feel would be, and

34:20then uh, maybe a study for potential

34:25loss of revenue, and then parking

34:27turnover, and I would like to explore

34:29like those types of the

34:30if um,

34:32you have anything further to add to

34:34that.

34:34>> Yeah, I think a feasibility study would

34:37be a good first step. You know, I I know

34:39our peers

34:41next door in Everett have just started

34:43doing this and I think you know, we're

34:45in many respects pretty similar uh

34:48with them in regard to population and

34:50percentage of seniors representing the

34:52total population. Um you know, they have

34:54a lot more traffic uh or a lot more

34:56parking meters. Um so, it's a somewhat

35:00different comparison there, but

35:02um

35:03I think

35:05it would be good to learn from them

35:07after a year of this in operation. And

35:09then for us, I think another good reason

35:11we wouldn't want to take action on this

35:13immediately, but maybe take a little bit

35:15of time as we do have with the 15-minute

35:17meters both on Broadway and Shirley

35:20Avenue, a new policy that will have

35:22revenue implications as well. So, if we

35:24were to have a year of that pro- program

35:28under our belt and understanding how

35:29it's affecting our revenues. And then in

35:31addition to that, in that time we could

35:33look at Everett and see how it's

35:34impacted their revenues. It's about 15%

35:37of our population, so it's not an

35:38insignificant number. Um

35:41and I think it's it's worth it

35:42exploring. I think we're all sympathetic

35:44to the concern and want to make sure

35:45we're keeping Broadway and and Shirley

35:48Avenue um in livening corridors for

35:51business, but also want to make sure the

35:52parking department has enough revenue

35:54and can think through some of the

35:56implementation concerns that might come

35:57along with this.

35:59Thank you.

36:00Councilors?

36:04>> Thank you. Thank you, Madam Chair.

36:07Um I I agree with Tom

36:08100%. Uh

36:10there's a lot of concerns about how it's

36:12going to be enforced. And

36:15we have to remember

36:17the more we give away, we have to offset

36:20it somehow. So, sometime down the future

36:22once we realize how much it cost, we may

36:25have to increase the price of a meter.

36:28You know, right now I don't know I don't

36:29remember what it is now or buck and a

36:31half an hour or something like that. So,

36:34so you know, so if if that somebody was

36:37going to utilize the meter for 2 hours,

36:41so we're losing three bucks. I know it's

36:43when [snorts] I'm talking small money,

36:45but we're talking three bucks a person

36:46if we're talking 15% of our population,

36:49you're talking a significant amount and

36:52it's going to be taken away from the

36:54parking department for to help their

36:56operation and upgrading any equipment or

36:59anything they have. So, I don't mind

37:01going through the feasibility study, but

37:03I want to make sure that we're not

37:06on route to passing this.

37:09So, that's where I stand. Thank you.

37:12>> Councilor Vesty.

37:14>> Thank you, Councilor. Um I I agree with

37:16the feasibility and let's see where what

37:19we what we can find out, see how much

37:21it's going to cost and and how what well

37:23we can get this implemented. But Tom,

37:25thank you for your time tonight.

37:26Appreciate it and uh to Director Bobo,

37:29thank you for your time and input.

37:34>> Thank you. Um

37:35how how would the committee feel about

37:38leaving this in committee

37:40um until we do finish a feasibility

37:42study and then bring it back up?

37:45How would Mr. Will feel?

37:46>> Madam Chair. I don't mind leaving it in

37:49committee, but we have a time frame,

37:50too. You know, I don't I don't want it

37:52to sit here for a year and a half.

37:54You know, it's to the end of this

37:56session

37:57and just having it sit there. So,

37:59uh I don't mind

38:01moving ahead with the feasibility with

38:03through the council

38:05>> That would be great.

38:06>> and get it you know, get it on the move

38:07and then we'll worry about when it if

38:09once they come back with their

38:10feasibility study, then we can react to

38:12it.

38:13>> Perfect. Mad- Madam um

38:15clerk, can you please call call the roll

38:17on doing a feasibility study for this

38:19pi- pilot program?

38:21Thank you.

38:26On the motion for a favorable

38:27recommendation, Councilor House is

38:29absent. Councilor Kelly is absent.

38:32Councilor Obzelski?

38:33>> Yes.

38:34>> Yes. Councilor Silvestri?

38:35>> Yes.

38:36>> Yes. And Chairwoman Green-Suaia?

38:38>> Yes.

38:38>> Yes. The motion has received a favorable

38:40recommendation to be forwarded to the

38:41City Council tonight.

38:43Uh

38:43>> [clears throat]

38:43>> next motion up

38:44is presented by Councilor Green-Suaia

38:46that the mayor be requested to establish

38:48a municipal innovation pilot program to

38:51solicit innovative ideas from residents,

38:53businesses, city employees, and students

38:56for improving municipal services,

38:58reducing costs, enhancing public safety,

39:00and improving quality of life with

39:02selected proposals implemented on a

39:04pilot basis and reported back to the

39:06City Council annually.

39:12Thank you.

39:13Um

39:22Do any of the members like to speak?

39:27>> Madam Chair, if I may, um

39:30you know,

39:31it's a great idea, uh but again, I don't

39:34want to force the mayor into

39:36establishing something that we don't

39:38know how much it's going to cost.

39:40So, I would say

39:41instead of asking him to establish it,

39:45to look into it, look into the

39:46feasibility of doing it.

39:48So, I would I would ask that we change

39:50that wording that he look into the

39:53feasibility of this happening.

39:57>> That's fine.

39:59Councilor Silvestri, do you have

40:01anything to add?

40:04>> Madam Chair, can you change the word to

40:06look into the feasibility?

40:09>> So, it'd be that the mayor be requested

40:11to investigate the feasibility of a

40:13municipal innovation pilot program.

40:16I did speak with the mayor regarding it

40:18today and he he actually liked the idea.

40:23Um

40:24the pilot program gives us an

40:26opportunity to look at new and creative

40:27ways to improve how our city operates.

40:31Some of the best ideas can come from our

40:33city employees, our businesses,

40:35students, and even our residents. So,

40:38just a suggestion box is what my um

40:42I thought what the thought process would

40:44just have a the small, simple suggestion

40:46box at City Hall,

40:48uh where residents can submit ideas for

40:51consideration.

40:53And um those shouldn't really cost any

40:56money to be doing something like that.

40:59And that was that was the I don't think

41:01there would be a big cost to something

41:04um with just a suggestion box. And then

41:07then from there, we would be looking at

41:09them periodically and see if there's

41:11something of importance that we could

41:13actually, you know, think is a great

41:15idea or a good idea and we can have a

41:17test program.

41:19And that's where the intention behind

41:21that motion came from.

41:23>> If I may, Madam Chair,

41:24I I

41:25I understand what you're saying. For

41:27some reason, I remember a suggestion box

41:29being in City Hall. I don't know

41:30whatever happened to it, but

41:32>> before me.

41:33>> It used used to be.

41:36And I know there used to be a suggestion

41:38box is a fine. I have no problem with

41:39that, but uh

41:41you know, I I still want to

41:43see what else

41:45other avenues he would he would look at

41:47to make it happen.

41:52>> How is the

41:55committee's will?

41:56For favorable recommendation

41:59as amended.

42:00>> As amended.

42:01>> Yes.

42:04>> Shall the Economic Development

42:05Subcommittee offer a favorable

42:07recommendation on the motion as amended?

42:09Councilor Hass is absent. Councilor

42:11Kelly is absent. Councillor Novoselsky?

42:13>> Yes.

42:13>> Yes. Councillor Silvestri?

42:15>> Yes.

42:15>> Yes. And Chairwoman Green-Ruwayha?

42:17>> Yes.

42:18>> Yes. The motion has received a favorable

42:20recommendation as amended.

42:22>> [clears throat]

42:26>> And lastly on tonight's agenda, motion

42:28presented by Councillor Green-Ruwayha,

42:30that the mayor request the appropriate

42:32city departments to establish a policy

42:34whereby any resident or applicant

42:36seeking to open a new business in the

42:38city of Revere be provided with the name

42:40and contact information of the ward

42:42councillor representing the ward in

42:44which the proposed business will be

42:45located as part of the initial

42:47application process.

42:51>> Thank you, um, Madam Clerk. Um,

42:53I would like to speak with, on this

42:55motion. Um, my sole purpose of this

42:58motion was to help new businesses know

43:00who represents their

43:02neighborhood. It was

43:04something to be voluntary, not a

43:06condition of accepting, processing, or

43:09approving

43:10any application. The intention behind

43:12this motion was just to guide the

43:14applicants who may not understand the

43:17process. Um,

43:19nothing more than that. But, since

43:21understanding that it may be a conflict

43:24of interest, I would like to withdraw

43:25this motion if it's okay with this

43:28committee.

43:32Madam Clerk.

43:41>> During the regular city council, we will

43:44withdraw this motion. Um, there is no

43:46further business.

43:48Thank you. We stand adjourned.

44:44>> Mhm.