Neil Miller
neilsmiller.bsky.social
Neil Miller
@neilsmiller.bsky.social
85 followers 270 following 150 posts
Former federal gov. data scientist, urbanist, Neilchik
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Reposted by Neil Miller
Powerful letter to reflect on before you go to vote.

Many candidates are running to roll back the progress Cambridge has made - they are explicitly pro-exclusionary zoning.

A vote for ABC's pro-housing slate will help Cambridge go forward, not back.

www.cambridgeday.com/2025/11/03/c...
No, I don't have a count of 2025 registered voters by precinct handy
docs.google.com/spreadsheets...
#CambMA EV+mail turnout is slightly higher in 2025 vs 2023, as of Saturday before election.
Increases in precincts covering Alewife, Rindge, Port, Kendall, CX Crossing, some mid-Camb.
Decreases in Wellington-Harrington, lower C-port
@johnhawkinson.bsky.social
Cambridge 2025 vs 2023 early votes
docs.google.com
Reposted by Neil Miller
@ayannapressley.bsky.social is a nationwide progressive leader who's saying YES in her backyard to proven pro-housing champions! Congratulations Mayor Simmons, VM McGovern, @councillorsiddiqui.bsky.social, Ayesha Wilson, @votejivan.bsky.social, @burhanazeem.bsky.social: all 6 ABC-endorsed incumbents
Reposted by Neil Miller
Canvass TODAY and TOMORROW for our pro-housing slate! More info and sign up here: docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1F...

Hear from our volunteers in 2023 about why they canvassed. Come join us and share your "Why?" for our next newsletter!
A housing proposal at 84-86 Ellery St, #CambMA was blocked in part b/c architect Eleanor Raymond was born there.

In 1981, Raymond said "I grew up alone by myself".

"No, the house I grew up in was not important to me. I got out of it just as soon as I could."
www.newspapers.com/newspage/436...
The Boston Globe from Boston, Massachusetts
Get this The Boston Globe page for free from Friday, October 2, 1981 THE BOSTON GLOBE FRIDAY, OCTOBER 2, 1981 47 The ethic of Eleanor Raymond ELEANOR RAYMOND Selected Ar.... Edition of The Boston Glob...
www.newspapers.com
Following up on an earlier reply, just finished this piece, from Massachusetts:

Police Planning Places for People: how "stakeholder engagement" inflates reduces livability and increases the cost of affordable housing in Massachusetts

open.substack.com/pub/cascadea...
open.substack.com
Police Planning Places for People: how "stakeholder engagement" inflates reduces livability and increases the cost of affordable housing in Massachusetts

open.substack.com/pub/cascadea...
Police Planning Places for People
"Stakeholder engagement" inflates cost of affordable housing in Massachusetts
open.substack.com
Freudian slip? "Chapter 40B has a long history of succession Massachusetts" - home rule must really be important in some places.
www.mass.gov/info-details...
Reposted by Neil Miller
My friend @neilsmiller.bsky.social had this excellent piece published in the Dorchester Reporter on how to get MA's common public benefits app moving. I only just got around to reading it but wish I had earlier! It's very accessible, clear writing on a vital but often wonky topic. Check it out!
Opinion— Let’s get moving on ‘common app’ for public benefits | Dorchester Reporter
Massachusetts wants to cut paperwork for people who are applying to public benefit programs. Ironically, the state is stuck in its own paperwork, harming thousands of Dorchester neighbors. Despite the...
www.dotnews.com
Boston cares!
@bostonchildrens.bsky.social Blood Center sent out urgent need for platelets yesterday afternoon, and they've been full all day today.

Make an appointment to donate: www.bostonchildrens.org/halfpints
@mbta.com @mbtaslowzonebot.bsky.social
Shuttles replaced red line through Kendall-- ok, great. But now the train broke at Kendall, my wife and many others are stuck there. It's late, please help everyone get home!
And in the Hingham example the Board of Zoning Appeals required wider interior roads (at least 24 feet) for emergency vehicle access, parking, and school buses
In 40b developers sometimes pay for infrastructure upgrades. In the Shrewsbury link, a letter from the police chief said building a new development would require the town to hire 1.75 additional officers and buy an additional police cruiser - sure the town would want the developers to pay for that
Not research per se, but plenty of examples where police departments make these requests as part of Massachusetts 40b process. May write about some of these soon:
shrewsburyma.gov/1464/104-Mai...
www.hingham-ma.gov/728/Pending-...
Powerful tour on Underground Railroad and abolitionist history in Boston @ Museum of African-American History. 1854: Bostonians stormed the courthouse where Anthony Burns was being held under the Fugitive Slave Act. May his legacy be a blessing for us today.
img: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anthony_Burns
I did the math, the most "damage" that can be done cancelling Harvard's contracts is half of that amount.

open.substack.com/pub/cascadea...
An anonymous Trump official said they were ending $100 million in contracts with Harvard. Dozens of outlets quoted them. I did the math, and that's not possible. The most "damage" that can be done to Harvard is half of that amount.

New:
open.substack.com/pub/cascadea...
Yeah but it was probably more a pro-Fulop vote, instead of anti-Sherrill 🤷 One family member's worked in JC for 30+ years and likes what Fulop's done as mayor. Not strictly voting on statewide policy
Some of my family voted Fulop, but they probably would've voted Sherrill if he wasn't running. Different bases, votes wouldn't transfer cleanly
The Orthodox community there votes as a block, e.g. leaders say who to vote for and everyone follows their guidance. This year they supported Trump and Gillibrand. Similar pattern in 2020, 2022, not too hard to explain.
www.shtetl.org/article/anal...
Analyzing the Haredi Vote in the 2024 General Election • Shtetl - Haredi Free Press
Getting into the details of how the Shtetl voted.
www.shtetl.org
Reposted by Neil Miller
New in the Dorchester Reporter's opinion section: @neilsmiller.bsky.social says Massachusetts is way behind on implementing a 2022 law intended to cut paperwork for people applying for public benefits like SNAP. www.dotnews.com/2025/let-s-g...
Seems like a debate about messaging - the Politico article called it a "policy research and messaging hub." Just thought there'd be more to it than parsing a memo from November 🤷‍♂️

"Medicare for All" is a good message b/c it's universal, "simple, concrete", not just for specific identities