Showing posts with label Cambridge MA. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Cambridge MA. Show all posts

Wednesday, July 16, 2014

Harvard University Construction Is Done. It Must Be A Dream



A regular meeting of the Cambridge Planning Board. Town gown meetings are held in the Senior Center.

Most recent prior entry on this repeating problem is at this link 
http://enoughroomvideo.blogspot.com/2014/06/fogg-museum-construction-continues.html?m=0

And one before that
http://enoughroomvideo.blogspot.com/2014/02/harvard-university-continues-deceiving.html

7:30 AM Wednesday July 16, 2014. Loud banging noise outside my window, which faces the new Harvard Art Museum, formerly the Fogg Museum. A few months ago at a town gown meeting with the City of Cambridge Planning Board, Harvard University's PR flacks announced, boasted that construction is done on the Museum project bringing relief to neighbors who endured three years of construction noise. Problem is that construction was not finished. The mitigation team told me they meant to say "outside" construction. But that was not, and is not done either. I used to attend those meetings and video tape them for city residents. I've seen how Harvard University's PR flacks stretch the truth just as well as the President's PR flacks mislead the nation. 


Video of 2008 Town Gown Harvard University presentation
http://enoughroomvideo.blogspot.com/2008/02/2008-town-gown-report-harvard.html

Previous discussions with the mitigation team requested (three times) that if it was necessary to park large noisy trucks on Broadway which is a "No Stopping" zone on both sides of Broadway, why can't they park on the museum side? Their usual first response is "Why are you the only one [who complains]?" I've seen trucks back into the driveway next to the former Sackler Museum and park on the museum side of Broadway. It can be done. Yes, they can. Cambridge police allow these repeated traffic violations, because they are Harvard University, which has a special constitutional exemption from complying with inconvenient laws. It is the same exemption enjoyed by Obama-Holder-Johnson in Washington DC. 

Example of how Harvard University spins their facts from 2007
http://enoughroomvideo.blogspot.com/2009/09/harvard-cgis-knafel-center.html
If not viewable on Google, use this link instead
https://vimeo.com/25049113

Nonetheless it is annoying and shows how arrogant Harvard University and their mitigation teams are. The last time they told me (as the PR flacks told city officials) that the construction is done, and that the museum is no longer the responsibility of the mitigation team.  Harvard University operations, which is the Harvard University campus police, is who I should call. They are even more abusive, if that is possible, than Harvard University Housing which ignores laws and tenants' rights every day. When I did call the operations officials, they told me to call the mitigation office. At many meetings with city officials Harvard University representatives make promises that they will perform one or another act in the future. But no one ever follows up to see if they do. It is why Harvard University is able to say anything at these meetings and no one ever checks to see if what they say is accurate. Just as the main stream media fails to ensure what the Obama-Holder-Johnson triumvirate says has any connection to reality. Oh wait. Did Obama attend Harvard Law School or something like that? 

So instead of wasting my time calling to any of the Harvard University employees wasting my energy, and not needing to be insulted any more by their omniscient employees, I decided to post these images for all to see how deceptive, misleading and abusive Harvard University is, with all of its money and all of its prestige. With all of its progressive credentials, generating politicians who led the nation into its current despair, cynicism and disgust, the most prominent university in America is no different than most corporations in the world. But Harvard University has a better image.


Metal pneumatic arms of the truck used to lift the dumpster seen below. You can see a Skanska construction employee wearing his bright Skanska vest. Skanska is the company which managed the three-year-$500 million renovation. 


Here is the dumpster which was dropped on Broadway next to the residential building, after construction was "done." Ahem! This is a "No Stopping" zone on Broadway


Here is the cab of the truck with its pneumatic lift arm showing.


The lift arms with the loading dock for the museum in the background. 


Skanska employee walking toward the museum. His vest says "Skanska."

Saturday, June 21, 2014

Dragon Boat Festival 2014: 1 OF 3 Boats and Crews


The 35th Boston Hong Kong Dragon Boat Festival was held on Sunday June 15, 2014 on the Charles River with cultural events on the Cambridge Banks near the Weeks Bridge.  This is one of three posts of images from that event, Boats and Crews.








Massachusetts State Police Patrol Boat


Crew From Harvard Pilgrim Health





Drum Crew Mingles With Boat Crew



Massachusetts State Police Patrol Boat











University of Massachusetts Boston Crew








Massachusetts State Police Patrol Boat Turns Back Pleasure Boat


Massachusetts State Police Patrol Boat Intercepts Pleasure Boat


























Color Coded Crew





Northeastern University Crew Discussing Strategy


Dragon Boats Neck and Neck


Resting Crew With State Police Guard 























Monday, June 16, 2014

Jose Mateo Dance Festival 2014


This was the sixth annual Dance for the World Community Festival. It was presented by the Jose Mateo Ballet Theater June 13-15, 2014.
See their web site at

danceforworldcommunity.org  

Mass Avenue between Bow Street and Remington Street was closed by the city to allow performance tents on the street. These were in addition to tents in the parking lot of the Old Cambridge Baptist Church. 


“Let us read, and let us dance; these two amusements will never do any harm to the world.”
Voltaire





Banner announcing the three day festival


Always looking for new partners


Ethnic dancers show their stuff 


Some of the crowd on Mass Avenue


Slow movement rising from the prone position


Recruiters for Dance Friday


A little football practice during the show


Colonial strutters


Dance to the cello


Boston Dance Alliance recruiters


All dressed up waiting to go on


More of the crowd of watchers on Mass Avenue