State's cuts leave Greenway wanting

Jul 21, 2010 — The Boston Globe

By Casey Ross

Jul. 21, 2010 (The Boston Globe delivered by Newstex) -- The state is cutting funds for the Rose Fitzgerald Kennedy Greenway by more than one-quarter this fiscal year, leaving managers of the new Boston park unable to finish still-barren sites, install more public art, or hire more maintenance staff.
The funding cut, combined with flat donations from the private sector, puts the Greenway in a precarious financial position just two years after it was created as a result of Big Dig construction.
The overall budget for the 15-acre park system dropped by $1.1 million, to $4.4 million for the fiscal year that began July 1, even though the Greenway's nonprofit management faces higher costs to maintain its high-end finishes.
``It's an unfortunate tragedy that after spending $15 billion to build a new highway, we can't come up with a few million bucks to run a great park,'' said Bud Ris, the chief executive of the New England Aquarium, a Greenway neighbor.
State officials said the government's ailing finances left them with no choice but to reduce Greenway funding.
``There are many people across the Commonwealth who are frustrated by the budget situation we find ourselves in,'' said Jeffrey Mullan, the Massachusetts transportation secretary. "There have been enormous cuts in state services, and the Greenway is no exception.'' His agency's funding to the Greenway is down to $2.2 million, from $3 million the previous fiscal year.
The conservancy that manages the Greenway said it is considering new measures to raise money, including creating a so-called business improvement district that would levy a special tax on commercial property owners in the area.
``The Greenway is not sustainable at this level of funding,'' said Nancy Brennan, the executive director of the Rose Fitzgerald Kennedy Greenway Conservancy Inc. "The state continues to be a partner, but we must find other sources to diversify our revenue stream.''
Even in its unfinished state, the Greenway is a vast improvement over the old elevated highway that used to separate downtown Boston from the waterfront. Greenway sections in the North End and near the aquarium draw large crowds on hot summer afternoons, and the conservancy's recent additions of free wireless Internet service and food vendors have made it more accommodating.
But stretches remain empty, devoid of basic signs, public art displays, or even seating for visitors. One barren site by Faneuil Hall has a half-acre of dried-out grass and a chain link fence encircling a highway ramp. The conservancy's latest plan to put a tree nursery there is on hold because of money shortages, Brennan said.
The conservancy is also short of funds to maintain the park's haute design features, including fountains powered by compressed air and lighting systems operated by computers that were installed to achieve the Legislature's goal to make the Greenway a showcase public space.
The conservancy is considering funding sources used to maintain urban parks in other cities, including selling naming rights to park facilities, collecting parking garage revenues, and renting space on the Greenway to cafes and restaurants.
But a business improvement district - or BID, as it is known - appears to have the most political support.
Mayor Thomas M. Menino has argued neighboring property owners should pay for the park's upkeep because the Greenway has helped to triple the value of their holdings.
``The mayor believes those property owners should be contributing to the future success of the Business Improvement District and the Greenway,'' Menino spokeswoman Dot Joyce said. The mayor is supporting a similar effort in Downtown Crossing, where hundreds of property owners are banding together to raise about $4 million a year to pay for improved maintenance, marketing, and security.
Along the Greenway, though, some property owners said the government should retain primary responsibility for improving and maintaining the park. Ris, the aquarium chief executive, said he would support a new levy, but only as a way of supplementing funding from the state and the City of Boston, which currently does not give money to the park system.
``The city and state should be supporting the Greenway, and have a responsibility to do so,'' he said.
Developer Donald Chiofaro, who built and manages the International Place complex and is trying to redevelop the Harbor Garage on Atlantic Avenue, supports the improvement district. "We've thought for quite a while that a BID was needed in the area,'' Chiofaro said. "And as the largest taxpayer on the Greenway, and the largest abutter, we would be happy to take a committed leadership position and help make it a success.''
Developer Ronald Druker strongly backs the improvement district for Downtown Crossing, where he owns property, but wants more information on the Greenway plan before deciding whether to support it.
About $1.7 million of the state's funding for the Greenway is cash; the rest is in-kind contributions of electrical work and other maintenance. Mullan also said the state is funding salaries for Greenway employees only to the level of their counterparts at the state Department of Conservation and Recreation, the state's main parks agency.
In some cases, Greenway managers are now paid nearly double their state counterparts. The Greenway's director of park operations, for example, receives about $131,000 in salary and benefits, while a senior forest and parks supervisor at DCR receives about $70,000.
``I don't think it's a major issue,'' Mullan said. "But in dealing with public funds you've got to allocate them equitably.''
Brennan said the salaries of Greenway employees are justified by their responsibilities, which include maintaining intricate landscaping and operating complex systems that run the fountains, lighting, and other features.
She said any shortage in state funding for the salaries will be made up through private contributions.
Casey Ross can be reached at cross@globe.com.

Newstex ID: BGL-1035-47145871