-
My name is Matt MacDonald, I moved to Watertown, MA in the spring of 2010. I blog here, muck with municipal data at http://www.nearbyfyi.com and work at http://www.prx.orgI’m interested in learning more about how our world works. I love data, I write software and tools to help explain and visualize that data and I enjoy sharing what I find with others.
If a picture can speak a 1,000 words data visualization can speak 1,000,000. I think visualizations of data can help explain very complex topics and data does not lie.
Category Archives: Government
Our Fast Food Democracy
Hi, There are a number of negative comments made about the effectiveness of our Watertown, MA Town Council / Manager form of government and the decisions made by our Town Manager. A common complaint that I read in the TAB, … Continue reading
Posted in Government, Municipalities, Watertown
1 Comment
Block the Watertown Retirement Board recommendation to increase the Cost of Living Adjustment
Hi, I’m asking that you help me encourage our Watertown, MA Town Councilors to reject the recommendation and request from the Watertown Retirement Board to increase the Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA) base. This vote will have direct long term … Continue reading
Posted in Budget, Government, Municipalities, Pensions, Watertown
Leave a comment
An update on continuing to get Watertown, MA police report logs published
I’ve had an ongoing dialog and Freedom of Information Request with the Watertown, MA police department about getting access to the computer aided dispatch logs. I was asked to call Capt. Rocca after my latest follow up. Please call me … Continue reading
Posted in FOIA, Government, Municipalities, Police
1 Comment
Where does the data at www.nearbyfyi.com come from?
A friend asked me this question in a private email. Here is my response: Hi Phil, This is long so short answers first: Data comes from the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education [1], the MA Department of Revenue [2] … Continue reading
Posted in FOIA, Government, Municipalities, Watertown
Leave a comment
Watertown, MA Town Council public speaking time OPEB benefits and true department costs
Hi, Here is the text for my 2 minutes of public speaking time at the Town Council meeting tonight. Hello Honorable Town Council & Town Manager, I wanted to use my 2 minutes of public speaking time tonight to cover … Continue reading
Posted in Budget, Government, Pensions, Uncategorized, Watertown
Leave a comment
Should our school system get more money, where will it go and how will it benefit our students?
Hi, This spring rumors about the impending collapse of our Watertown Massachusetts school budget were being circulated among parents, newspapers and community members. As a parent I became alarmed about the possibilities and have been spending the past several months … Continue reading
Posted in Budget, Fire, FOIA, Government, Healthcare, Municipalities, Pensions, Police, Schools, Uncategorized, Visualizations, Watertown
Leave a comment
Getting access to Police incident logs from a computer aided dispatch system
I’ve been working for several weeks to get access to the raw police and fire department incident call logs here in Watertown, MA. After a lengthy freedom of information request process it became clear that I would have to get … Continue reading
Posted in FOIA, Government, Municipalities, Police, Uncategorized
6 Comments
Understanding how to get access to line item police incidents
Hi, I had a good conversation with Capt. Thomas Rocca of the Watertown, MA Police Department. I recently filed a freedom of information request to the police asking for raw access to the police logs. After a bit of back … Continue reading
Posted in FOIA, Government, Police, Watertown
1 Comment
What a “Public by Default” government in Watertown, MA might look like
Hi, What if every piece of information that flowed through the local government in Watertown was easily available for public use on the internet? Imagine if every credit card transaction, tax bill payment, arrest report, library book checkout and student … Continue reading
Posted in Government, Municipalities, Uncategorized, Watertown
Leave a comment
Questions about retirement benefits that citizens in Watertown, MA should be asking
This is a letter that I sent to Town Manager Mike Driscoll, Town Auditor Tom Tracy and the Watertown Town Council members. Hi Mike/Tom and Town Councilors, I’ve been reading a document report from the MMA titled “Retiree Health Care-The … Continue reading