The City Council's License and Permits Committee is going to do a bit more research before voting on whether to approve a fee increase request for in-town cab rides by 30 percent.
Seacoast Taxi asked the City Council to increase in-town rates for cabs by 30 percent as a way to combat increasing gas rates.
The city sets in-town rates for taxis and must approve any changes. Right now, Bonnie Roberts, the company's co-owner, said the minimum price for an in-town ride is $4.20. The maximum — a ride from west of Interstate 95 to the northern tip of Plum Island — is $12.90.
The average ride in Newburyport is about $5.10.
With a 30 percent increase, the minimum would increase by $1.26 to $5.46 and the average would increase to $6.63 per trip.
City Councilor Kathleen O'Connor Ives said that before the License and Permits Committee votes, she hopes to compile information about the cab rates for cities and towns similar to Newburyport.
She said the information aims "just to get a feel about what normal is, what is average for in-town taxi rates."
Ives said the committee will likely vote on the issue during a meeting Aug. 11 before the a regular City Council meeting. A committee vote is a recommendation to the full council.
nnn
It's fast becoming the Achilles' heel of city workers: the Achilles' tendon.
A second City Hall worker, Gary Calderwood, the building inspector, ruptured his Achilles tendon recently, an injury coming just several weeks after Mayor John Moak was hobbled by the same injury while running on the beaches of Florida.
Calderwood's injury, though, was while on the job, which means he is out on worker's compensation for an unknown period of time, Moak said.
In response, the City Council last week approved two appointments by Moak to fill in for Calderwood while he is recovering from his injury.
"We had to get a couple of part-time people in to handle his work for him," Moak said.
The two part-timers include building inspectors from nearby towns.
Meanwhile, Moak — whose position as the city's top elected leader did not get a part-time fill in — is still recovering from his injury, but is off crutches and rid of a therapeutic walking cast.
nnn
The council's Budget and Finance Committee will meet at 6:30 p.m. Thursday in council chambers to discuss this year's Community Preservation Committee recommendations for grant money.
The committee is recommending the city award $501,100 in grants in its annual distribution, with the city Planning Department's affordable housing program earning the biggest award.
Mike Dissette, chairman of the Community Preservation Committee, said the top amount — $150,000 — will go toward centralizing the planning and programming for affordable housing initiatives in the city through a Municipal Housing Trust.
The funding is available through the Community Preservation Act, which allows the city to add a 2 percent surcharge on property tax bills and spend it on grants for three types of preservation: open space, which includes recreation; affordable housing; and historic resources. The state provides matching funding.
It is a resource that is often used in the city, including for the restoration of City Hall and extension of the harborwalk.
Councilor Donna Holaday, chairwoman of the Budget and Finance Committee, asked that the recommendations be considered by her panel before getting a vote from the full council.
In all, 12 projects or initiatives received money from this year's community preservation grants. The committee received 16 requests from various groups, totaling $1.27 million, but the pot of money is shrinking due to more communities joining the system and decreasing the shares for each city and town.
nnn
At least one good thing about Newburyport parking tickets these days is that offenders don't have to waste gas money to pay them.
The city is now accepting payment of parking tickets online — saving disobedient drivers the hassle of driving to City Hall to pay the tab.
As part of the city's new Web site design, those who get tickets and those who pay property taxes can pay bills at www.cityofnewburyport.com.
nnn
The following meetings are planned for this week:
Today:
Moseley Woods, Institution for Savings lending office, 6:30 p.m.
Tomorrow:
General Government Committee, mayor's office, 6 p.m.
Zoning Board of Appeals, council chambers, 7 p.m.
School Committee retreat, Lowell's Boat Shop, 1:30 p.m.
Wednesday:
Redevelopment Authority, council chambers, 7 p.m.
Thursday:
Community Preservation Committee, council chambers, 6:30 p.m.
Budget and Finance Committee/Committee of the Whole, council chambers, 6:30 p.m.
Local Historic District Study Committee, police station conference room, 7:30 p.m.
Sewer Commission, Department of Public Services office, 5:30 p.m.
Stephen Tait covers Newburyport City Hall for The Daily News. He can be reached at 978-462-6666, ext. 3234, or by e-mail at stait@newburyportnews.com.
Obama Scraps Birth Control Mandate
US Airmen's Killer Sentenced to Life in Germany
Navy Names Ship for Gabrielle Giffords
Raw Video: Deadly Blasts in Syria
Romney Slams President Obama at CPAC
Gingrich: Pres. Obama 'waging War on Religion'
5 Killed in Wrong-way Crash on I-10 in La.
Uzbek Man Pleads Guilty in Plot to Kill Obama
Denver's Largest-Ever Drug Bust Nets Dozens
Marines: No Punishment for Nazi-like Flag
Vets Look to Translate Military Skills Into Jobs
Raw Video: School Bus Burst Into Flames
LA School Reopens Amid Sex Abuse Scandal
$25B Settlement Reached Over Foreclosure Abuses
Pentagon: Allow Women Closer to Front Lines
LA School in Sex Abuse Scandal Reopens
Raw Video: Italy's Mount Etna Bursts Into Life
Greeks March; Angry Despite Debt Deal
Air Force Airlines: Leaders Get Polished Service
Ga Girl Fights Off Kidnapper at Walmart
