Living in Lynn

Too many Tuesday meetings, MBTA hearing's my pick

2012-02-04T12:40:00.000-05:00

EDIT: Just found out from a reliable source that the EDIC meeting was cancelled to attend the MBTA meeting. Where was this posted? Changes made, but I like to keep my edits visible. It's more fun that way.

Tuesday is meeting day in Lynn. Usually, they're staggered so one can make the rounds or go to all of them. This is not the case on Tuesday, January 7th.

From Saturday 2/4 in the Item - "Lynn Councilor upset over timing of CFO candidate meeting"He should be. The MBTA's Public Hearing in Lynn on fare hikes and cutbacks in service is the main conflict.

I can't comment on the qualifications of Stephen Spencer. Perhaps he is the best candidate. However, the quotes in the article about him are for the most part disturbingly irrelevant. I don't know if that's just what the Item chose to run, or if they're all that was said. From my point of view, knowing his family is irrelevant. Having known him beforehand, is irrelevant. The fact that he is from Lynn, is also irrelevant. Cyr more or less says that it's not how it looks. Maybe not. Let's move the meeting.

I understand the article is more about the unfortunate timing of one meeting, ~~but the situation is worse than that. There are three to choose from. The EDIC will be meeting at LHAND.~~

We can not move the MBTA hearing, but we can move the other ~~two.~~ Furthermore, the MBTA service in Lynn is part of the critical infrastructure EDIC would use as a selling point to businesses and residences looking to come here. EDIC ~~should~~ will be at the MBTA hearing.

I'll be at the MBTA hearing, from 6 - 8pm in City Hall on Tuesday.

Wayne Coyne's Eno Tripping at the Gates of Kubrick

2012-01-30T13:01:00.001-05:00

I found this on Gizmodo - a gadget blog run by Gawker Media. It's the Flaming Lips front man channeling his inner Eno with Siri. He's not the first to do the obvious, but this track's simplicity and cohesiveness makes it stand apart even if it's short on originality. It's not a gimmick or hyperactive mash-up for the short attention span set like so many others. Listen to the whole thing, which contains samples from, as Wayne says, "...Lips, Erykah Badu, Siri, and Biz Markie backwards." Also, listen to it sooner rather than later. It's supposed to be pulled after a period of time.

Pulse Film Series Begins Next Month

2012-01-11T18:20:00.000-05:00

Thanks to Nick Parker and Centerboard, a city once home to movie palaces once again embraces film in its downtown. This time, it's free.

Click to enlarge.

They'd like folks to rsvp at pulsefilms.eventbrite.com.

This is not your everyday litter

2012-01-01T23:14:00.000-05:00

The sign says, "DANGER, ASBESTOS..."

Is there an boiler room nearby that no longer carries a fair warning to the dangers lurking inside? It's not a sign to take lightly, nor one that is usually found outdoors and on the ground. I'm even a little afraid to touch it, though it probably hasn't itself come in contact with the stuff.

With one of downtown Lynn's big developers having been indicted on asbestos mishandling and misreporting for one of their Worcester projects, it's a scary thing to see here, peering down from the window of a building they did here -- though this building does not contain any asbestos because it had a reno before Mayo, in the 80's. They do own a bunch of empty properties, though, so who knows? Or, maybe it stuck to someone's shoe coming off a job site -- that's unlikely. Or maybe... oh, I should stop before I get myself in trouble.

How about some music?

This kid Trevor does a really good cover of the Dead Milkmen's Watching Scotty Die, a song about pollution and its consequences. I couldn't find an actual Dead Milkmen or Joe Jack Talcum version with good audio, Besides, Trevor is good, and hopefully one day he won't have to hide in the attic anymore to sing songs.

Random act of art in Central Square

2011-12-29T20:20:00.000-05:00

I found this while heading out to pick up a few things.

Battle of the Barbers, St Michael's Hall in March

2011-12-28T11:14:00.000-05:00

I don't know much about this organization, but this is an absolutely brilliant idea for a fundraiser in Lynn. There's an abundance of barber shops and hair salons, so why not leverage that?

A lazy cut-n-paste via SCI Lynn -

Battle of the Hair Salons and Barbers

Submitted by Briana I on Wed, 12/28/2011 - 10:38am

You are invited to the Battle of the Hair Salons & Barbers! This unique event will take place March 31, 2012 at St. Michael's Hall (25 Elmwood Ave in Lynn). Presented by Saving Our Souls Foundation, a faith based organization that is committed to responding to and preventing youth violence in the city of Lynn. Suggested $10 donation. For tickets, call Pamela Burton, Executive Director, at 781.913.0860.

If you are a salon or barber who would like to compete, click here to register.

Click here to view flyer, including participating salons and barbers.

It's also going on the LynnHappens calendar. Thanks SCI Lynn, for having an ear to the ground where I don't.

Morrissey - Hairdresser on Fire

A very web 1.0 idea that can still be cool

2011-12-25T12:11:00.002-05:00

Hey folks,

Yesterday, on a whim, I cobbled together a Central Square cam from some parts I had laying around. I found a driver online that someone made for the PS3 Eye camera to work with a PC/Windows machine and doubled up USB hubs just to get the length I needed to reach the window.
Twenty hours later, the cam is still there. I'm posting from out of state, so I can't do anything about it slowly tilting up as the less than ideal tape I had handy starts to peel off. I suspect by the time I get back this evening, you may have a lovely view of my ceiling.
I'll need a better quality camera, perhaps with fisheye, if I make it a permanent fixture.

Even though it's live, you still have to press play and wait out a 30 sec commercial. If it says "off air," check back later.

Happy Holidays and all that from LivinginLynn.com, LynnHappens.com and UPSIDEMEDIA!

Central Square this morning

2011-12-19T09:42:00.000-05:00

With a trash barrel like this, how can you miss?

(There must be a story behind the lace...one of you knows..)

We have so many trash receptacles, you almost have to try to litter. We just have to train people how to use them, I guess.

Broadcasting Holiday Cheer from Central Square

2011-12-18T18:07:00.000-05:00

So Channel 5 and NECN weren't exactly there to deliver our holiday greetings, but to cover a story that had only slight, if any, relevance to Central Square, according to the Item's map of what happened where, in the story of the Statie and the Hooker. It makes for a better looking live-shot, though.

Also in Central Square that night, 40+ artists, friends and neighbors were having an arts holiday social in Turbine with Harvey Mapcase. The next one is January 20th. In fact, the ratio of good in DTL far outweighs the bad, and generally things are okay. What's newsworthy is what's different from the norm, and almost fifty people, most of them artists, gathered in a single space in downtown Lynn, isn't all that unusual anymore. We'll have to make a bigger noise next time!


Jeff Pearlstein (drums) and Neil Carlill of Harvey Mapcase

Here's Neil Carlill in Delicatessen:

No Fun: "Say your New Year's toast and get the #*@~ out before they shut me down!"

2011-12-14T11:28:00.000-05:00

Tuesday was meeting day. I went from covering a Licensing Board meeting where every excuse was used to prevent bar owners from staying open just an hour later on New Year's, to meeting with the local and mbta police on some Munroe Street incidents, where I mentioned we could have a positive impact on our safety if we were out in the streets at night.

In DTL, we walk to and from bars and restaurants. In DTL, we're trying to build an arts scene. I've never known an active art scene that didn't put on shows or party until who-knows-when. And I don't think most DTL residents came here just for early morning craft fairs. In fact, many of us, including myself, find ourselves in other cities and states attending art events, shows, etc. because of the extended hours of not just bars - but of the art/music venues and food establishments. Elsewhere, we can be out eating something better than fast food (that I can't even eat, anyway) at just about any time. And then, there's Lynn..

The rollback actually hurts our efforts to build a neighborhood. The recent traffic incidents on Munroe? They happened at hours that had nothing to do with the closing of bars. The thefts in the garage? They had nothing to do with the closing of bars. Getting people out there more hours, will do a lot to prevent crime, however.

Yet the Licensing Board, which is heavily swayed by police opinion, instead of looking for solutions with bar owners to both keep the public safe and hold onto businesses, only puts up roadblocks and excuses.

They didn't like O'Brien's proposal because they said it allowed for all bars to stay open an extra hour on New Years, but they said they trusted his establishment. Fine. The City Council approves things with amendments all the time. Why couldn't the Licensing Board have amended, and then voted on an amended version allowing for a select number of bars passing a criteria of no trouble in X amount of days to stay open the extra hour?? Somerville has handed out provisional 2am licenses after being a 1am city, and you can't argue with what's happened there.

It's because the answer was going to be 'No' anyway.

Video of the Licensing Board meeting is here.

A breakfast with the Lynn Journal, or the Lynn Editorial...

2011-11-23T10:31:00.001-05:00

Last weekend at Christopher's Cafe, I grabbed a copy of the Lynn Journal, as I often do while waiting for what is arguably the best Spanish omelette in Lynn.

I hadn't read their election coverage, so I started with the front page article, "Looking-At-Large," by Joshua Resnek.

I would like to quote a short section of it, that appears on the front page.

"By the topping the ticket after finishing third in the primary, Phelan showed that he, and he alone, owns the rights to succeed Mayor Judith Flanagan-Kennedy who, many are calling, a one term mayor.

Phelan worked hard to outdistance the up and coming Dan Cahill, who finished second and the very popular first timer Buzzy Barton who came in third.

Net’s victory pushed Paul Crowley off the council, a disappointment for many of us who respect Paul and who like him.

Back to Phelan … he showed how deep his strength is, how broad his base is, and how strong he really is in the final analysis."

Pick up almost any newspaper in America and turn a few pages in, and you'll come across an op/ed page. The Item has one, if you'd like a local example. Compare the snippet above to the paper's editorial and you'll see what I mean.

"Looking-At-Large" by Joshua Resnek is clearly the work of an editorial writer or that of a columnist, even if the use of ellipses makes it appear more like a blog entry ... such as this.

I'm not arguing Resnek's opinion, which he is of course entitled to. I'm not arguing that this opinion does not belong in the Lynn Journal, either. My argument is simply that by starting it on the front page where one expects to find hard, objective news - by replacing hard, objective election coverage with opinion, the Journal does its readership and this city a disservice. But if the Journal and Resnek would rather stick to opinion, than the responsible thing to do is clearly redefine to the public what the publication really is - to label it accordingly on the front page.

I think the Journal does a great job covering school sports, taking photos at local events, publishing obits and the other services a local paper usually provides, though. That's why in my opinion, it should move opinions to a clearly marked editorial page and label columnists as so. It's what an ethical journalist should do. It's what a proper newspaper does. And I don't want Lynn to be a one newspaper town.

Link to original article.

Now only if we had a Sunday paper again...

Neighborfest at Tatiana's Thursday

2011-11-11T14:06:00.001-05:00

I hope to see everyone at Neighborfest on Thursday!

The Neighborhoods at theRat in 1979:

A reaction to a debate I only read about in the Item

2011-10-22T13:41:00.000-04:00

A reaction to Friday's very early Councilor-at-Large debate from only reading the Item.

Thanks for the coverage. I can never make these weekday morning breakfasts and it appears I missed a good one. I'm a business owner (UPSIDEMEDIA/LynnHappens) and Chamber member by night, and public employee by day. While I understand and appreciate the target audience of this debate and the venue, I'm still on the fence over charging an admission fee to be part of a debate audience for a city election.

The topics they sparred about are the sort that I can't help myself from jumping in on. Some - most of the proposed solutions - for bringing businesses downtown, come close to what's necessary but don't quite reach the mark.

Streamlining the processes in city hall and providing a road map for permitting that doesn't have business owners running in circles: YES. This just may be issue #1 because it benefits all other issues, and every candidate seems to agree more or less, but we also need a clear road map towards implementing any solution. Also, employee training is important, but not good enough on its own. I've had to take a lot of hollow professional development courses in my own field. That's not a guarantee that anything's going to change as far as this taxpayer is concerned. How about a poster-sized chart on the wall with 'stops' along the route one must take towards their grand opening? No course is needed for that, and it won't cost much. It can mirror one online, and one in pamphlet form. Hand people a checklist version to note progress along the way. A proper graphic designer would know how to keep it simple. Then, have the Mayor's feedback forms nearby, and simply ask City Hall employees to be as welcoming as possible to newcomers. After all, they are putting money into our city, and we need it. Lastly, make it possible to run the route - faster. That doesn't have to mean you skip over essential parts of the process. For example, if a variance is needed, a fair hearing taking in the necessary considerations should be held, but a hearing should not be a brick wall stopping progress in its tracks, it should be a way to figure out how to go forward so that more people benefit than not - and even if it means scheduling more ZBA meetings, it should happen soon.This is an important issue. Fixing it and becoming more resident/business/newcomer friendly can bring more revenue for schools and other services. It only helps everything!

We have rather large municipal lots. Councilor Duffy, we don't need, nor want, angled parking downtown. The streets are not wide enough in most cases, except perhaps Market Street, and knowing how to parallel park is simply part of knowing how to drive. The clear solution for anyone with a distaste for street parking is a make-over of the downtown lots and the way they're run, and Dan Cahill's push to replace the Off Street Parking Commission with a standard Parking Department that has greater oversight from the Mayor and Council is one important part of the solution, because it makes the Parking Department slightly more accountable to the voters. Duffy, if you prefer to park at an angle, maybe have the municipal lot spaces angled, and a stretch of Market Street. It would work there. (I once pointed out an issue of poor/confusing signage downtown and neither Parking Commissioner Jay Fenton nor Council President Phelan seemed aware of exactly what was on the signs downtown. I was asked to take photos to show them. I at first was agreeable, but then refused to do the homework. There's two individuals in City Hall who first need to spend more time downtown before they begin to think about what's best for downtown.)

On non-profits, I believe there is some misdirected blame, here, but some legitimate frustration as well. It's not right to lump all of the non-profits together as a group. Some non-profits have brought large numbers of employees downtown and have helped to fill the streets with lunchtime customers while also performing services that people need. Some hold regular events in Lynn establishments as paying customers, and have become involved as catalysts for the arts. Some are arts organizations, even. We need that. We need the jobs they provide, too. But we also need businesses occupying more spaces downtown. What we shouldn't have, is too much of an imbalance. If you include the numerous religious organizations in storefront and office spaces downtown, then perhaps there is an imbalance. And when you consider that some Lynn non-profits consistently hold gala events, fundraisers and more outside of Lynn, one has to wonder who their target audiences really are. What do we need? Another non-profit with a mission to attract for-profits? If we fix number 1 on this list, we may not.

This one's not covered in the debate as far as I can tell from the article, but we need to get rid of residency requirements for City Hall and city department employees. (I'll tackle residency for police/fire some other time.) It's absolute nonsense that this city can not hire the grant writer it wants because the prospective hire doesn't live in Lynn. It's not the sort of position that should require living here. Neither are most of them, if they are to be judged on job performance rather than having been "Life long Lynners" of known families. I think it's so ingrained in the culture here, that people don't even realize their preference for sticking with the people and families they know half the time. And lets stop the practice of declaring oneself a "Life long Lynner," or saying "I've lived in Lynn my whole life" at the start of any debate, or even at the podium at Public Hearings in City Hall. I wasn't born here, nor was I raised here, but as long as I pay taxes here what I have to say is just as valid.

Buzzy, I think I agree with you that we need to spend money to make money, but this is where it isn't simple. This is where the city has to stop hiring its local friends and look for a marketing firm located elsewhere, preferably in the midst of where our target audience is. We're not going to bring new businesses to Lynn by marketing to our selves. Secondly, while a worthy endeavor, this task is very, very, hard. If the message isn't crafted just-so, a marketing campaign will do more harm than good. Again, another argument for looking beyond our borders for the best of the best so that we can defy people's expectations of Lynn and the more immediate North Shore (closer to Boston). We have some stereotypes to battle.

Getting back to issue #1, Phelan, we need a guide, but not a "guidebook," not even a booklet. If it's not short and simple, we're doing it wrong. Cahill, we agree on many things, but something else is wrong if we need our City Hall employees to take extra "Professional Development" courses in how to be City Hall employees. Frankly, if there's enough material to put together a course on in how to steer people through City Hall, then the process is just broken. Well, maybe taking all of City Hall on field trips to see how other cities are doing business might not be half-bad. We might have something to offer them, as well.

Finally, life-long Lynners, please don't take offense. Some of you are my friends. Just put yourselves in the shoes of someone who grew up elsewhere, if you can. Try to see things from the perspective of a new arrival to Lynn. Why? Because we need to attract more businesses and their employees to our city, for jobs, for our schools, for our quality of life, for the money for DPW to clean up parks, and to invigorate ourselves with the vibrancy one should expect for a diverse city of 90,000 people at the gateway to the North Shore.

One more thing - I said my top post would remain the previous one until it was resolved. I'm not running for office, so I can go back on my promises. However, I'm not going back on the issue. Stay tuned.

Because we've come so far (a little public shaming)

2011-08-25T22:40:00.001-04:00

The newly decorated control boxes by RAW and the enlarged photographs by SPIN are faring very well. No one's touched them. If you follow this blog or LynnHappens, you know the good stuff.

There's more work to be done.

Now, we need to address the condition of some of our vacant storefronts.

I'm going to post some photographs of tagged or unkempt properties and their owners. 33 Central gets a pass right now, and I hope to be able to report why soon enough. The building on the corner of Spring Street and Exchange Street, right by Lynn Arts, gets a temporary pass because I hear LynnArts is hatching a plan to renew the faded old construction paper in those windows. I just hope the next window exhibition doesn't look like my first grade teacher put it up.

My primary focus is on tagging. Not graffiti, but ugly, hardly legible monochromatic scribbles just barely an evolutionary step above peeing on something to mark ones territory. Second to that, there are some simple and cheap measures to beautify property and to at least give off the impression of wanting to lease or sell it.

The owner of most of the properties below has supposedly been made aware of the issue by proper channels, or so I've been told. But this owner has an office one block over on Washington Street, and just yesterday a landscaping company was working in the Central Square island their sign adorns, because they supposedly are the ones who care for it. Yes, I'm talking about Mayo Group. They're down here every day. They could maybe take a few minutes even to address the simpler fixes.

Mayo Group Parking Lot in Central Square. This scrawl has been here for several years, now.

How hard is it to put something nice in the window? I may even have an extra curtain, but I'm not loaning Mayo anything.

Another one that's been here a while. 46 Central. Mayo Group property.

The doorway of 46 Central Square. Mayo Group.

The other entrance way to 46 Central. Since Mayo is using the building, perhaps they should put a door there.

Union Street, just around the corner from Central Sq. Mayo.

Looks like someone was playing with white out. Also, at least paint the stairs, Mayo.

Same Union St. Property. The soap is awful, too.

Union St.

Wide view for context.

Tags, soap, faded falling signs on Exchange Street, right across from LynnArts. Mayo Group.

More Mayo mess.

I think Mayo gave up on leasing 64 Exchange Street, or at least the faded sign would have you think so. Soaped up windows look terrible.

Now, the rest of these tags are on MBCR property. I hope they are dealt with quickly, too.

This one's making a comeback as the paint chips away. That's another issue.

I'm starting with Central Square, perhaps because I notice it more, living here. But also because it's where DTL's arts organizations and artistic initiatives are concentrating. Between LynnArts and the organizations housed within it, RAW, Arts After Hours, the Lynn Museum, SPIN, Turbine, Capital Diner and others, one would think the city would apply a little more pressure to keep up appearances. Lots of out-of-towners and even big name talents pass through Central Square (WFNX is one reason as well). Besides, I live here and I have to see it. That is not to say I only care for Central Square. I want to see improvements radiate outward, towards City Hall Square, up Union Street, down towards Market Street and over to NSCC, and anywhere else they're needed.

Almost forgot the video:

Photos from AAH's Back Yard Bash with Mean Creek, The Cinnamon Fuzz & Black Dog Brother are up on LynnHappens

2011-08-22T22:41:00.005-04:00

There were a few photographers there, including an official one and some video taken - not sure what will or won't be released. But, here's something.

Go to LynnHappens to see the whole gallery.


The Cinnamon Fuzz on Aug 18th, AAH's BYB in the Lynn Museum Park

Music and art go well together, like the Velvet Underground and Andy Warhol. Here's a track from Lou Reed and John Cale's musical tribute to Warhol, Songs for Drella.

Make sure you hear the studio version as well.

You will want to come to Lynn on Thursday. Here's why.

2011-08-15T12:36:00.002-04:00

Arts After Hours, which I will disclose, I've been involved in, is celebrating its first birthday at its second annual Back Yard Bash at the Lynn Museum, 590 Washington Street, in - you know - Lynn.

There's a great music line-up with Mean Creek, The Cinnamon Fuzz and Black Dog Brother. Plus, artists will show off their wares and demonstrate what they do in the courtyard, and local chef and food consultant Greg Gray is on the grill!! Following the bands, we'll go to the lot next to the Museum for Spiral Glyphics fire spinning, and then all march over to the after party at Turbine Wine Bar in 56 Central Square (Lynn). Rumor has it there may be after-after parties in private spaces as well.

There's just one difference between this and other rock and roll shows, though (besides all the artists ...and fire), it's going to start on time and there's other stuff to do, see, and food. So, you'll want to get there by 7pm. Downtown Lynn is the easiest downtown to park in, perhaps besides Pawtucket, but that's not in Mass. Anyway, if you're a-feared of street parking it's only $3 for the 24hr MBTA garage almost across the street.

For more info:

Story in LynnHappens
Arts After Hours web site (tickets available here!)

Trans-Atlantic Fantastic tonight at Turbine

2011-08-12T13:24:00.000-04:00

-----------------------------------------------------------------
Seth (US) & Scott (Sco) vinyl night

9-10 Scott spinning California Soul & more
10-11 Seth spinning British Invasion, Northern Soul & more

back to back on the turntables
all night long until 1am!
should be fun!
----------------------------------------------------
Set in a beautifully renovated 1890s building in Downtown Lynn, Turbine Wine Bar offers a moderately priced menu of American cuisine to accompany its more than 40 wines by the glass. It is a shining example of urban transformation. - Zagat 2010

Citations of the Good Kind

2011-08-10T11:18:00.000-04:00

At last night's City Council, two girls Babe Ruth softball teams were awarded with a citation. It's a good thing for the kids to go up before their city, on television (and LynnHappens video), and to be recognized for something positive. Generally speaking, sports are a healthy pursuit.

Of all my time covering City Council for LynnHappens, I can only think of two - possibly three times groups of kids were honored for something other than athletic prowess and sportsmanship.

Where are the art and literary clubs? Where are the other positive activities? Not just in Lynn, but our society as a whole doesn't celebrate them enough. Or, maybe being in the shadows is a good thing for art. I'm not always sure. Sometimes it's good to be a geek in the shadows where there's more to draw inspiration from. I mean, if being an artistic superstar means having a print of your work in the lobby of every Holiday Inn, maybe that's not such a good thing.

But at least the Item is featuring a scholarship winner from RAW in today's paper.

I don't dislike sports. I'm just disinterested. I respect people who play them and I understand the values they can help instill.

I'm just saying there's more than one way to keep a kid off the street. Or, an adult.

This past weekend I saw the Battle for Brooklyn documentary and couldn't believe how gaga people went over a basketball stadium, to the point of an obscene amount of public subsidies. That's taxes! Can the arts see a little bit of that action? Just a fraction would be more than they receive, now. Or better yet, don't put our public monies in private enterprise at all, and just ease up on restrictions holding the arts back.

And how about showing our young people that art and intellectual pursuits matter, too. (and not in an MCAS scores sort of way)

And again, this is not to take away from the girls accomplishments.

How to Speak Hip - a reblog from WFMU's Beware of the Blog

2011-08-05T14:31:00.000-04:00

WFMU's Beware of the Blog is a gift that keeps on giving. Of course it is, that's why it's linked in the blogroll on the right.

So, if you want to learn how to speak like a hipster (orig. vers), go to the post and you can freely download the whole album!

Here's a teaser clip: Introduction

Make Use

2011-08-01T13:58:00.001-04:00

I get into many conversations about the city of Lynn. It's often my fault, and the banter usually leads to what we need. Sure we need things, but we also have stuff.

When Arts After Hours was getting started, we talked about making use of the Lynn Museum, LynnArts, and anything else we might be able to turn into a venue or our events. This past Saturday, Arts After Hours along with SPIN hosted an intimate cabaret-style concert with Carolyn Cole backed up by Rusty Scott in the black box theatre in LynnArts. The Spelling Bee musical was produced there, as well as a couple of other great AAH events. AAH also makes extensive use of the Lynn Museum and its grounds, returning for the third time for August 18th's Backyard Bash.

Hodgepodge makes use of the Lynn Woods Amphitheater, one of the best outdoorsy-yet not overwhelmingly huge outdoor concert spots I've ever known, thanks to its natural slope.

The Friends of Lynn-Nahant Beach make use of Red Rock Park for a Summer season of Thursday evening concerts. I love live music by the ocean. I only wish they'd book more original artists in addition to the usual rotation of area cover bands. I'll offer to help.

Lynn opens its City Hall auditorium to larger touring acts and even serves beer and wine in the lobby area. (I'd like to know when they'll start serving during City Council meetings - that's a joke) When that happens, concert goers often make use of our downtown restaurants and bars. There are several to choose from already.

That's only to name a few, so please don't feel left out - or jump in below.

I know not all is perfect with every venue, but the more they're used, the more likely they are to have their kinks worked out and the capital to improve where needed. I'm thinking about better, more reliable electrical service for Lynn Woods concerts, A/C in the Auditorium (possibly in the works already), more staff at LynnArts to better accommodate late night use, and easier and more routine permitting for street festivals. The proof is that it's happening already. The Lynn Museum is more than halfway through reconfiguring its ground floor for more flexible use.

I also hope more original performing and visual artists start knocking on the doors of area bars to move aside their karaoke and cover band routines for a night or two a month, to have something new and different. Walnut Street is Lynn's best original music venue, but I also believe it will continue to excel in what it's doing as others open up, due to its intimacy. It's my observation that we're really on the cusp of being able to have profitable original music nights at a Lynn bar on a regular basis, in part because of what's happening already and in part because our neighboring cities have more demand than they have room to book for. We have places they can use...

...and the more we use what we have, the more likely it is we'll get some of what we need.

Make Waves

2011-07-12T17:20:00.004-04:00

Another post from the Now, This is What I'm Talking About files.

I've long said that to get people to come to DTL, you have to offer things other places are not. These things are destinations. Going with the same kinds of offerings found in other cities and towns in the region probably won't help, because why should folks come here for what they have near them?

This approach can be applied to just about anything, including dining, arts, entertainment... with just a smattering of the familiar for the members of the crowd who may have been reluctantly dragged along and less adventurous locals.

I believe we'll draw more people by making waves, as artist Constance Hockaday has done with her Boggsville Boatel and Boat-In Theater in Far Rockaway, Queens.

The Ramones famously sang, "It's not far, not hard to reach" but the truth is, it's a rather remote outpost of NYC and it's not the vacation destination it was in the 1800's anymore - by a longshot. So, why is the Boatel booked solid? What's pulling 'em from Brooklyn to the Rockaways?

Simple. It's a bunch of cobbled together boats. It's affordable. Its quasi-legal and/or loopholed status makes it cool for some. They show movies and host lectures. The whole thing is supposed to be art.

I'm not saying to copy what they do. That would be wrong, and also not fulfilling the purpose of offering something different. I'm saying we need to innovate, because it works - and it's fun. Who wants to innovate with me?

Here's links to others talking about what I'm talking about:

In the Village Voice

Flux Factory post

NYT

And now for the obligatory..

Now This is what I'm Talking About!

2011-07-04T12:41:00.003-04:00

Keep your suburban out of my urban!

I just caught this post over on UniversalHub.com - Not everybody wants to live in the City that always sleeps: Neighbors implore developer to come up with bigger project.

The flood of former suburbanites returning to cities has unintentional consequences. People who have grown up on quiet streets suddenly realize they're not compatible with all the hustle and bustle of urban life and begin to tame the city. The bars and cafes they moved there for and used to frequent, become the annoying neighbors they call the cops on at night. Ordinances are passed that not only hurt cafes and restaurants, but the arts and all that's interesting - everything that revived the area in the first place.

It's a big "mixed-use" failure. Salem has curtailed its hours. Not all is congenial in Lynn City Hall's favorite waterfront yard-stick, Quincy's Marina Bay (we can do better than that). Some lameness has even been imposed on NYC's Lower East Side. You know what? Not every neighborhood needs to be a family neighborhood. Let's have a variety of neighborhoods, for everyone!

But weren't classic urban neighborhoods always full of shops and restaurants on the ground and apartments above? They were. They might have been lower rent, or occupied by the area shop owners. People might have been more accepting that this was life in the city. Or maybe, they were just used to it. What's different now, is that the real estate boom and bust brought the condos, and gosh darn it people paid big bucks for them and they're going to have life the way they want it.

I bought a condo in a downtown, too. But, I fully expected city life and that's what I'm going to fight for. Downtown Lynn is perfectly situated for it and has the right kind of built environment. I hope Lynn takes a lesson from successes and failures elsewhere, and understands the recent blowback against the suburbanization of our urban spaces. A little extra planning (and soundproofing) can go a long way in creating a successful "mixed-use" area, as well.

And here in Downtown Lynn, we're saying no more VNA's - I mean the office park-style structure they're putting up in DTL without storefronts. The organization's cool, but their new structure is ruining the chance to rebuild/restore our entrance to DTL and outright ignores the recommendations of our Market Street Vision plan because it is anti-urban. Next time, we'll take inspiration from the South End and put up stronger opposition.

Wish I knew about this before it happened!

2011-05-24T08:57:00.001-04:00

I would have traveled, possibly, to my old Boston Neighborhood of Jamaica Plain, instead of running around from one big box store to another in search of a specific steam cleaner. Boy, that was fun.

As reported in Universal Hub, the JP Record Swap happened yesterday.

Not surprisingly, an Anon poster decries "Hipsters," but really, record collectors come in all shapes and sizes. I'm not sure anyone's really met a record collector until they've met an elder Jazz fan, anyway. Or Reed, who runs In Your Ear Records on Commonwealth Avenue in Boston. Now, he's a record collector.

Hipster? It's not typically a fashion statement to collect records. Anyone who collects them for fashion won't last very long in the pursuit, and I'll be happy to take them off their hands when they move on to the latest-greatest. And if for the time being, a few supposed hipsters are buying records, that's good for record stores and great for music. Hipsters, as far as I can tell, aren't hurting anyone. The backlash against them is...almost as uncalled for as... retro neon plastic sunglasses. And most of them are just victims of marketing, just like you and me. And if you're sitting in your preppy, sporty, Nike or Abercrombie, or other marketing-defined style, posting anonymous negative comments about another youth marketing exploit, congratulations, you've fallen for it. The battle is manufactured. It can all be bought at the same mall.

Back to the record swap - It's about time one of these happens north of Somerville, am I right? One of New England's best record stores is Mystery Train in Gloucester. Salem has a treasure trove in the Record Exchange. Maybe they can work together to boost interest and stir up area collectors.

I sure hope there's one in Lynn, but I'd settle for anywhere on the North Shore. It's a big pain to get to JP during baseball season and I don't want to have to bother learning when the home games are.

Artist: The Records
Song: Starry Eyes

(vid will post later - blocked at work)

Field Trip

2011-04-22T01:04:00.000-04:00

I'm DJ'ing at Gulu-Gulu Cafe in Salem today, starting 8pm. There will be lots of off-the-beaten path tunes, from modern indie bands to rare 60's garage, and including post punk, new wave, power pop, and the occasional what the #$(^ is that!?

Now, do the crazy Belgian grid dance:
(video from Operating Tracks re-edited for GVDT by a fan)

EDIC to host Arts and Culture District Meeting May 10th

2011-04-20T14:58:00.002-04:00

Click to enlarge