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Image via Flynn Auctions
— News and commentary about elsewhere covered by Quincy Quarry News
Land shark, candy gram — whatever …
A file photo
Late in the week the Koch Maladministration rolled out is plan for the City of Quincy buying the former Eastern Nazarene College campus for redevelopment.
The plan is about what was to be expected, especially in the wake of a social media fear campaign which was rolled and poses an unlikely potential of outside sinister interests surely lurking about and at the ready to buy and then exploit the property such that the neighborhood would be overrun by development full of problematic residents.
Truth be told, it is local insiders who pose greater to far greater risks.
Heavy lifting for Sancho
An old etching
Accordingly, the Koch Machine is endeavoring to set up its peerless leader to ride to the rescue of the Wollaston flats even if serious heavy lifting or at least a Department of Public Works snorkel truck will be needed to see him both on top of as as well as astride a white charger to then lead the charge of the white brigade.
What has been posed seems to be a rational and viable plan in spite of the fact that Koch Machine has a suspect record on redevelopment as well as also a blatant one as regards favoring special interests.
The money is not so easy. Not For local tazpayers anyway
An Easy Money Associates/Orion Pictures image
For example, for all the recent construction in Quincy Center and the mayor’s claims that his grand plan would pay for itself with new tax revenue, this venture is on record as looking to run $25 million in the red in coming years before positive revenue starts to chip away at the negative — a negative taxpayers citywide will have to subsidize over decades yet to come.
Even worse, a far greater negative would likely be confirmed given a proper audit but which has yet to happen. Not yet anyway.
As for buying the former Eastern Nazarene campus, a huge concern spotted by Quincy Quarry’s financial and other affairs desk is how the machine’s proposing to use interest only playing Bond Anticipation Note (“BAN”) financing.
For starters, no bank would so cheaply finance a private developer.
Further, going with BAN financing heads off the city undergoing a full credit review at a time when the city’s finances are already under fire for cause.
Also problematic is how the Administration plans to help fund buying ENC by selling off two parcels within the Quincy Center District Improvement Fund special tax district (“DIF”).
(“Need a card?”)
A Cassius Marcellus Coolidge image
Granted, while such would reduce overall city debt, the DIF is a wholly separate proposition and thus the Administration is posing a manner of arguable commingling.
Additionally, the projected sales prices for the two properties are less than half their all in costs, not to mention that the Administration has been trying to sell these parcels for years.
Next up, published reports indicate the mayor has seen over 70 properties bought by the city at a total cost north of $100 million, far more bought than any other municipality in the Commonwealth, including Boston.
A bit over the top …
A file photo
Needless to say, a potential hoarding jones comes to mind.
Granted, some such properties purchased have been put to good use, however, the additional costs needed to utilize other properties as proposed would run into hundreds of millions and yet the mayor now wants to first take on yet another expensive venture.
Speaking of earlier plans, look to the Adams Academy building just down the street from City Hall.
The building was taken via an adverse eminent domain taking five years ago to be the anchor for an Adams family museum; however, as Quincy Mayor Koch did not concurrently take the land underneath the building as he had mistakenly believed the land belonged to the city even though such had already otherwise been decided all the way up to the Supreme Judicial Court.
No. A hard no.
A Paramount Television image
In short, while not quite grand theft land, close enough.
In turn, a whole new round of litigation so resulted and again the mayor lost upon appeal with the matter now in Superior Court to effect a resolution.
Given the length of time the city has illegally tied up the land, $10 million in damages is a solid projection as what local taxpayers are going to have to also cover.
Bottom line: the Quincy City Council should press the mayor to resolve this mess before its consider any more land takings.
Time to Defund the Hacks:
Quincy’s Municipal Farce Needs a Reset. I sat through another Quincy City Council meeting the other night, and the usual theater played out like clockwork. Questions about municipal law, procedure, and basic governance met with the familiar blend of bluster and uncertainty from the City Solicitor’s office. And it got me thinking: why are we still pretending this setup makes sense?
Here’s a modest proposal: defund the full-time City Solicitor positions and contract the work out to an actual firm that specializes in municipal law—like KP Law. You know, the experts the city already calls in every time the in-house team clearly has no idea what they’re doing. At least this way the Mayor and Council could get genuinely independent counsel instead of the current arrangement, where the Solicitor and his crew owe their jobs to the Mayor. Guess whose interests they prioritize when push comes to shove?
The current dynamic is almost comical. The Solicitor’s office operates with all the independence of a palace guard, and the Mayor struts accordingly. Timmins can play smart-ass with the Council because, well, the boss has his back. It’s not governance; it’s a cozy little mutual protection society. Hacks galore, taxpayer-funded.But why stop at the Solicitor?
The real structural rot runs deeper. Quincy—and plenty of other cities stuck in the same tired model—should seriously explore a Town Manager form of government. Gather the signatures. Put it on the ballot. Let the professionals make their case.
Under this system, the Mayor wouldn’t automatically inherit a throne with a built-in $285,000 salary (plus automatic cost-of-living raises). Instead, the city would hire a qualified Town Manager based on credentials, not campaign yard signs. Imagine that: actual competition.
Let Mayor Koch throw his hat in the ring and stack his résumé against people who actually specialize in running municipalities—lawyers, accountants, and administrators with real track records. Worcester and Cambridge figured this out. Quincy still treats the Mayor’s office like a lifetime lottery ticket.
Let’s be brutally honest about the current setup. The “strong mayor” model hands someone with a high school diploma—who was cutting lawns not that long ago—a six-figure executive salary for running a major city, complete with automatic raises. If that same person walked into any competent private company, dropped their North Quincy High School credentials on the table, and demanded $285k, they’d be politely shown the door. Or laughed out of the building. In politics, though? Automatic jackpot.
This isn’t about any one individual. It’s about a system that rewards political connections over competence and treats taxpayer money like an unlimited slush fund for insiders. Quincy deserves better than this revolving door of mediocrity dressed up as leadership.Time to stop rewarding the insiders and start demanding results. Defund the in-house echo chamber. Push for real structural reform. The residents have nothing to lose but more of the same.