We, the undersigned NEIGHBORS OF ZERVAS SCHOOL, are concerned about the proposal before the Zervas Building Committee. The current plan includes widening the road in front of the school and the creation of a dedicated right turn lane at Beethoven Avenue and Beacon Street. These changes will fundamentally impact the safety of our neighborhood streets, particularly outside of arrival and dismissal times. The estimated cost for these changes is currently about $400,000. This is a questionable expenditure, given that the achievement of the desired outcome--reducing congestion--is uncertain. From our viewpoint, the committee has not sufficiently considered other options (or at least this thinking has not been shared with the public). We do not understand the need to rush this decision. Given that enrollment will be slowly increasing and that there have already been some changes implemented that will help with congestion when the new Zervas opens (e.g. bus driveway on Beacon St. and a new traffic signal with working detection loops), we feel strongly that there is time to study this and determine the best and most prudent course going forward. Some things to consider: 1. The City of Newton recently launched a transportation strategy planning process called Newton-in-Motion (http://www.newtonma.gov/civicax/filebank/documents/73884 ) with a goal of creating a “more equitable, economically, and environmentally sustainable multimodal transportation system”. The proposed street changes on Beethoven go directly against this strategy. 2. Widening Beethoven in front of Zervas brings cars 10 feet closer to the front door, bringing moving vehicles and emissions closer to kids. This also takes away from space that could be allocated to trees, grass, a slightly wider sidewalk. 3. A wider intersection at Beethoven and Beacon St. will increase the time needed for pedestrians to cross. Not only does this increase the risk of a child being hit by a car, it could add to congestion on Beethoven as the longer it takes to cross the street the less time vehicles on Beethoven will have a green light. 4. Wider roads increase vehicle speeds. Faster vehicle speeds increase the number and severity of crashes. We should be working to ensure the streets near schools are as safe as possible. http://nacto.org/docs/usdg/narrow_residential_streets_daisa.pdf 5. More vehicles and faster moving vehicles will make our neighborhood streets less safe and will likely decrease the number of people willing to walk, especially people with young children, further increasing the number of cars coming to the school. 6. A right turn lane on Beethoven could increase crashes with pedestrians, bicyclists and vehicles traveling east along Beacon St as sightlines are poor (obstructed by a fence) and cars may be less likely to come to a complete stop in a right turn lane or at a minimum will have to stop on the proposed crosswalk to see oncoming vehicular traffic. 7. The bumped in blue zone/drop-off area is being suggested as a way to stop caregivers from parking in the blue zone. We believe a wider Beethoven will increase the likelihood that caregivers will park and even double park as they will be able to do so without hindering through traffic. What do we suggest instead? The committee should study ideas to address congestion while enhancing neighborhood safety and walkability. If the $400,000 estimated for the curb changes was instead spent on traffic calming, wider sidewalks and safer crosswalks, the resulting safer street would encourage caregivers to walk or drop off further away. Safe passage from a short distance away would allow drop-off cars without entering the immediate school neighborhood. It may also increase the number of students walking from home. These investments could significantly improve the livability of our neighborhood. Changes could include safer crossings adjacent to Richardson Field on both Beethoven and Allen, bump outs on Allen at Beacon St., and improvements for the life course trail at the back of Zervas. The city should also be studying traffic flow in the whole neighborhood, as changes to Beethoven will impact other streets, especially Allen, Puritan and Evelyn. Sign below if you agree that Beethoven redesign needs more study.

Jamaica Plain has more green space than any other Boston neighborhood, and close to 900 households with dogs, and yet there are currently no city or state-managed dog parks or off-leash dog runs in the area. Self-managed attempts to create dog parks within dense residential areas such as Minton Stable Gardens and most recently at Beecher St. have failed, largely due to abutter complaints. This leaves dog owners with few options to exercise their dogs. By contrast, nearby Brookline currently administers the Green Dog program, which offers a number of recreation options for dog owners. The City of Boston overall lags behind the national trend for the creation of large numbers of dog parks (“Off-leash dog parks are growing faster than any other type of park in America's largest cities” according to The Trust for Public Land). The presence of owners regularly walking their dogs helps keep communities safe, and revitalize areas that would otherwise receive little foot traffic. Creating legal dog parks is a win-win for owners and non-owners alike. [Organizer Updates: -Excuse locational dyslexia above - of course I meant Southwest Corridor, but that part of the petition is no longer editable. -The petition targets listed above are provisional. The hope is to deliver the petition in person to all local influencers in early September. - Word has it that Councilor O'Malley's office is monitoring the petition and reading your comments. Please consider including a message to share your personal perspective when you sign. - According to local resident reports, the Angell Memorial dog park is closed indefinitely as of the last day or two, leaving us with exactly 0 dog exercise options.]

PETITION BACKGROUND [NOTE: When you sign the petition, please include in the Comment field the name of your NASW Chapter.] The Coalition of Concerned Members of NASW, who is initiating this petition, is committed to preventing the consolidation of the Association’s 55 Chapters into its National administrative apparatus. Legal consultation with leading corporate governance lawyers has supported the position of the Coalition that NASW's National Board has overstepped its authority, based on NASW Bylaws, to implement a sweeping reorganization of the Association referred to as "Modernization". Instead, it is the responsibility of the Association’s Delegate Assembly to decide on any such guiding policies of the Association. The Coalition believes that such a reorganization will create a more dysfunctional top-down organization, with far fewer democratic checks and balances, and will result in an Association much less responsive to members in each of its Chapters. It, therefore, rejects the decision of the Board to implement the ‘Modernization’ initiative, and insists that the Delegate Assembly, as representative of the members, is the legitimate body to decide on any such reorganization of the Association. Furthermore, the Coalition recognizes the importance of enshrining the existence and functioning of the Delegate Assembly (DA) as the exclusive body entitled to set overarching policies of the association and create or revise bylaws. It is far more representative of the members than the National Board, which should be focused more on operational matters. We believe that such a simple direct statement, amended to our Articles of Incorporation, will provide the DA authority to decide on its decision making rules, e.g. Robert’s Rules of Order, how often it meets, and how it is conducted, live or online.

I am starting this petition because elected officials in Camden are failing to listen to the voice of voters who spoke loudly at town meetings against their choice of sending our waste to an incinerator in Portland for the next 20 years. We were given an extension by the MRC until August 31st to make this decision and still be entitled to rebates down the road. The MRC has served us well for the past 25 years and our community deserves a chance to vote on staying with the group.

There are circumstances when it is absolutely essential for members of Congress to set aside their partisan politics. The need for enacting reasonable measures to protect the public health is one of them. It is irresponsible for Congress to not be in session while this emergency funding measure has not been resolved. We can't wait months until Congress reconvenes in the Fall. A mosquito borne viral epidemic does not wait or care, it only spreads farther. Even a single case of microcephaly or other birth defect in a child caused by the Zika virus that could have been prevented would be too many.

We oppose the installation of PNM's "AMI" (smart) meters and equipment, if approved by NMPRC, I intend to Opt-out. I want an Opt-out with "NO" fee and want to keep my old Analog meters. Please watch this 5 minute video on price increases: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=csvmw2frBws and this 3 minute video: "Public Health Physician Warns of Smart Meter Dangers: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n7L21XOC2wA Need signatures from greater Albuquerque area and Santa Fe plus Las Vegas, Clayton, Ruidoso, Tularosa, Alamogordo, Deming, Lordsburg and Greater Silver City. We want 10,000 signatures before October 6th. PNM has not received permission to install them yet. You can help determine the outcome of this hearing, please sign and help spread the word. Case No. 15-00312-UT

New Beginning Animal Rescue needs your help to save it's only No Kill-Shelter in Bronx.

We are very disappointed to hear that SCT is seeking to cut bus routes, one in particular, the S59. It's not right or fair to those in the community who solely depend on public transportation for their work and livelihoods. The bus company can' t do this to people who rely on the buses. There will be a fight to keep our needed SCT bus routes. Another bus that we have heard that will get cut is the 2B and others as well...

I have been a member of the Montana creative community for over four decades. Missoula's downtown has been defined by the distinctive older brick buildings which reflect our history as a small city in the American West. Residents and visitors alike concur that the Missoula Mercantile has contributed to our unique sense of place. The Missoula community is at a crossroads — are we a unique city that honors our creativity and our past or are we Anywhere, USA?

Upon false allegations towards me and my wife since January 8, 2016! We have been attacked by having past experiences in our lives reopened by Harrodsburg, Kentucky's DCBS office, including Bluegrass Comp Care! My wife nor I have not been shown any respect, compassion, or love over my PTSD from a tragic wreck where 3 friends died after a semi ran over us, speeding. I was diagnosed with manic depression and PTSD in 2008! My wife has a chemical imbalance in her brain due to a doctor overdosing her as a child with bi-polar and ADHD! My wife was diagnosed as a child. She also has dyslexia. She draws SSI. I do not, for my IQ, they say, is too high! My wife had a mental breakdown last month after my sister and brother-in-law have had our child since June 17, 2016! She has since received permission from a court-appointed attorney to leave to Florida and get her mind right. Yes, we have argued, but over what these therapist and social workers have pushed to say we are unfit. They did not start following up until March 18, 2016! I noticed they changed the allegations around so they could try to make a case, and they have; getting Judge Petree to order us for mental problems with a doctor. We love each other dearly and we were great new parents, never arguing or fighting until the day they came into our lives! I, Anthony Jay Bast, along with my wife, Kiri Smith-Bast (speaking on behalf of my wife's permission), want our lives especially back with our son. P.S. They never found any proof of the original allegations and stated they were closing the case within 2 weeks. Every other month they have had me take off work to meet with them, only to cancel and want to reschedule every time until the past month. Now it's every two weeks I have to take off work and have another boss bicker at me, telling me I'm on the verge of getting fired for attendance. I've lost two jobs due to social workers' attacks here in Mercer County Kentucky, along with over a thousand dollars already! Can someone please help my family get our lives back, please?

Please sign our petition so that we may gain public support for our cause to offer enrichment services to the community for FREE

The Little Island Park Surfing Beach is in dire need of handicap access to the beach on the north side of the fishing pier. This beach is primarily utilized by families with members that surf at that beach. These families include Moms, Dads, Grandparents, and young children. The access path that provides entry to the surfing-only beach is a soft, deep sand. It is dune-like and has an incline in both directions. It is a tough walk for even the most athletic types, let alone young children and the elderly. I myself, who have a surfing family, am handicapped. I enjoy nothing more than watching my entire family surf on weekends. It is so hard for me to make the crossing. All of us who utilize this beach joke that it is the "death walk". On behalf of myself, and others who are handicapped or aged, respectfully request some type of ramping over the dune so that we can have access to that beach. It is in no way a beach that provides access to people with physical disabilities. All throughout the private housing areas of Sandbridge, there are walkways down to the beach, which provide access for handicap individuals. We also don't have any bathroom facilities at the surfing beach. A handicapped person has to trek a long ways to get to the swimming beach to find a bathroom or a place to rinse the sand off. We ask, and request that the City of Virginia make arrangements to have this section of Little Island Park in Sandbridge be accessible to all citizens, even the disabled, by providing a ramp over the dune, shower, or rinse-off station, and a bathroom.