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John Hawkinson

@johnhawkinson.bsky.social

3.3K followers 440 following 5.6K posts

Cambridge, MA freelance reporter, usually for @CambridgeDay. MIT; public recs; data; legal news Lately: immigration. [email protected] 617.797.0250

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John Hawkinson @johnhawkinson.bsky.social · Sep 3

Just back from a big #immigration win by @aclum.bsky.social: Judge Talwani rules that a Special Immigrant Juvenile, arrested on July 4, can't be held in mandatory detention under the Laken Riley Act, if, as here, no charges were brought.
She orders he must be given a bond hearing within one week.

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John Hawkinson @johnhawkinson.bsky.social · 1m

Just one metal detector!

John Hawkinson @johnhawkinson.bsky.social · 8m

Boston has allowed laptops and phones for reporters since at least before around 2010 when I started covering federal court cases here!
Providence also does now, I don't know for how long that's been true.

John Hawkinson @johnhawkinson.bsky.social · 33m

And as to this, it is extremely variable. In many if not most of the biggest federal courts (DC, SDNY, etc.) there is a provision for reporters to use laptops.

But every district has a slightly different rule.

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John Hawkinson @johnhawkinson.bsky.social · 34m

That's not QUITE right. All federal appeals courts provide oral argument audio, most livestream it. And some significant district court proceedings allow remote audio; not for evidentiary or criminal matters though, mostly*. (Recording is always prohibited, but that's a different inquiry!)

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John Hawkinson @johnhawkinson.bsky.social · 12h

(Planning Board meeting adjourned, after a post-2072 discursion about window decals in retail spaces vis-a-vis sign ordinance compliance.)

John Hawkinson @johnhawkinson.bsky.social · 13h

The Planning Board was strongly supportive of the new 2072 design and proposal (not that their support is required — it's an advisory consultation!), but there's clearly more design work to be done and they had several ideas. The project will return for another consultation in a few months.

John Hawkinson @johnhawkinson.bsky.social · 13h

Yeah, I should have been more clear that it was clearly a conflation of the 2021 plan. But since it's obvious that the 2025 plan is quite different, it's hard to understand the excuse for the confusion.

(Also, the 2021 single elevator was absolutely code-compliant & architects told me it was fine.)

John Hawkinson @johnhawkinson.bsky.social · 14h

I'm not liveposting this meeting, and definitely not liveposting public comment but…
where do these weird rumors come from?

That the building doesn't have stairwells and has a single elevator?

Both are obviously untrue!

(stairwells in yellow, double elevator bank just on plan south from STAIR 01)

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John Hawkinson @johnhawkinson.bsky.social · 14h

Obligatory zoom screenshot?

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John Hawkinson @johnhawkinson.bsky.social · 14h

2072 Massachusetts Avenue is back at the #cambma Planning Board tonight.

I guess it is just in time for the election season, since this affordable housing development project (on the KFC site at Walden St.) was crazy-controversial last time and ultimately was killed by the BZA in pre-AHO times.

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John Hawkinson @johnhawkinson.bsky.social · 1d

Meeting adjourned, 10:06:22:pm.

Good night.

"choo-choo, ch-ch,"
someone says into the microphone.

John Hawkinson @johnhawkinson.bsky.social · 1d

No meeting next week, Indigenous People's Day / Columbus Day.

EDS announces David Murphy's appointment tonight as Superintendent of Schools.

John Hawkinson @johnhawkinson.bsky.social · 1d

Announcements…

John Hawkinson @johnhawkinson.bsky.social · 1d

turns out there was an underlying order in the dangerous dogs committee report that needed passage.

Moving on to late resolutions…John Joseph Quinn and Kathleen Cummings. Both deaths [late late?]

John Hawkinson @johnhawkinson.bsky.social · 1d

OK, home stretch. (dangerous dogs item placed on file)

John Hawkinson @johnhawkinson.bsky.social · 1d

We are construing the sending it to committee not as motions but rather as an "amendment."
« Bah. »

Amended: 8-1 (PFT against, CZ "reluctantly" in favor)

MM "We don't have to vote it as-amended so that's finished."
« What? Am I getting what I want? I don't even know. »

On to the dangerous dogs…

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John Hawkinson @johnhawkinson.bsky.social · 1d

PN queries MP in a fashion which confused me.
PN seeks to send it to the health+Environment committee simultaneously.

« I always think sending an item to multiple committees is a mistake. »

John Hawkinson @johnhawkinson.bsky.social · 1d

BA: I don't think this will likely get passed this term…I think they are functionally the same, making it explicit.

BA moves to send it to the Housing Committee.
PN: This is really hard for me. Worried it'll slow it down [too much].

John Hawkinson @johnhawkinson.bsky.social · 1d

MP notes one such zoning change might be the question of maximum unit sizes in zoning that was raised a few months back.

John Hawkinson @johnhawkinson.bsky.social · 1d

PFT says he gets the sense that a month from now, when the report comes back, Councillers are going to come back against it. And that would be a waste.

BA suggests sending it to committee to merge with some other zoning proposals (multifam. housing tweaks?). Also height, setbacks, compensation?

John Hawkinson @johnhawkinson.bsky.social · 1d

PFT sounds like he's against: "Is there any way that you can provide relief for solar on the 5th and 6th floor, without reducing the amount of units in housing that would become available in a project?"

MP: "The Q is, is there a way to protect solar without affecting housing production? No."

John Hawkinson @johnhawkinson.bsky.social · 1d

Whoever is running the camera is really phoning it in tonight. Normally we have closeups on the speaker…

John Hawkinson @johnhawkinson.bsky.social · 1d

Solar up.
BA gives the floor to CZ, who "would like to withdraw my amendment."
She favors data and wanted more specifics, but "I've been convinced by colleagues maybe it would be best to advance the recommendations of [planning staff] as proposed."
She reiterates: data.

John Hawkinson @johnhawkinson.bsky.social · 1d

We're done with regular policy orders and have made it to the Calendar, including the charter-right from last meeting about the solar protection zoning proposal.

John Hawkinson @johnhawkinson.bsky.social · 1d

The vote call:

MM: "On the policy order as-amended"
(clerk whispers):" — by substitution"
MM: "—by substitution"

« Bah humbug. »

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