Sign in

Jay Luker

@jluker.bsky.social
259 followers 906 following 418 posts

Lexington Town Meeting mumbler and Planning Board gadfly also Transportation Advisory Committee and Forever DM (dog mom)

PostsRepliesMedia
Reposted by Jay Luker
mattie lubchansky @mattielubchansky.com · 29/09/2026
awoke this morning with a Vision
that diagram showing  the SUV blind spot in the front but it's lowly worm driving his little applemobile
4989971653
Jay Luker @jluker.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
Found some useful Sightline content, including www.sightline.org/the-pro-home... Instead of talking about "density bonus" I'll say, "the zoning bylaw encourages homebuilders to preserve things that we like, and in exchange we provide the opportunity to build less expensive homes."
000
Jay Luker @jluker.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
Yes, I would like to know what Peter Norton thinks of the blue hill ave project
podcasts.apple.com
The Street Redesign No One Can Agree On
Podcast Episode · Upzoned · September 23 · 50m
000
Jay Luker @jluker.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
What's another term for "density bonus" or "developer incentive" that's not as triggering for the folks who villainize developers?
200
Jay Luker @jluker.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
look i’m not against cold weather, i’m just saying this process is moving too fast and not everyone was notified.
011
Jay Luker @jluker.bsky.social · 22/09/2026
Love this but when you wait until the end to drop the story about how a rando firefighter is responsible for north american elevator sizes it feels like burying the lede.
csindie.com
You should care more about elevators - Cambridge | Somerville Independent
As we replace, renovate and rebuild Massachusetts' aging housing stock, changing the way we think about elevators is a big step in that direction.
000
Jay Luker @jluker.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
The latest Keller piece is really something (derogatory) massterlist.com/p/populist-n...
massterlist.com
Populist NIMBYism on the ballot
Keller on Marshfield, Minogue and the MBTA Communities Act
100
Jay Luker @jluker.bsky.social · 19/09/2026
isn’t it amazing how long the stakeholder list has to get when we try to do anything that’s not about making more cars go vroom?
020
Jay Luker @jluker.bsky.social · 19/09/2026
jokerization intensifying
020
Jay Luker @jluker.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
"SpeedBumperville (complementary)"
NextDoor post that reads, I'd like to submit a proposal that we petition the city of Somerville to change its name. From now on I would like it to be referred to as "SpeedBumperville".
000
Jay Luker @jluker.bsky.social · 16/09/2026
Remember when people were interested in @wutrain.bsky.social‘s advice for the incoming NYC mayor?
081
Jay Luker @jluker.bsky.social · 13/09/2026
i’m only just learning about the historic rat wall but this sure sounds like some typical historical commission fuckery
cambridgeday.com
Unmended wall in Harvard Square needs a few good neighbors
Historic wall in Harvard Square has become “a prairie dog village … but with rats.” And there isn’t money to repair it.
121
Reposted by Jay Luker
Alt Bureau of Labor Statistics @domesticshoggoth.bsky.social · 11/09/2026
My obsession with bike lanes and zoning law is metastasizing. I feel the pull… to write my alderman and attend local political party meetings It’s too late for me. Soon I will become a Local Issues Nut. There’s no saving me now. Save the last bullet for yourself
0171
Reposted by Jay Luker
The Verge @theverge.com · 02/09/2026
As a new Harry Potter trailer makes the rounds, it bears repeating that there’s no way to watch this show without supporting J.K. Rowling’s bigotry and the structural violence she’s inflicting on the trans community.
theverge.com
There is no ethical consumption of HBO’s Harry Potter series
You can’t without supporting Rowling’s transphobic bigotry.
366201019863
Reposted by Jay Luker
Peter Norton @norton.bsky.social · 02/09/2026
Door-to-door school bus routes, two-car families and chauffeured children did not become common because people preferred them. They were the costly consequence of decades of planning that presumed falsely that everyone drives a car.
162
Jay Luker @jluker.bsky.social · 31/08/2026
Microtransit service doing a one year pilot in the very sprawly suburbs of Burlington, Woburn, Reading, Wakefield. My expectations are low! www.burlington.org/m/newsflash/...
burlington.org
The Link Launches in Burlington
Burlington has a new way to get around.Town and regional leaders gathered Monday, August 31, to officially celebrate the launch of The Link, a new free, on-demand, all-electric shuttle service connect
110
Jay Luker @jluker.bsky.social · 31/08/2026
a lot of the reactions to this could be characterized as whomstians with status quo interests co-opting the language of social justice. the goal here is energy efficiency retrofitting. the climate can’t wait for your demolition delay.
000
Jay Luker @jluker.bsky.social · 29/08/2026
I guess I’ve been sleeping on the Belmont Community Path project, now estimated to cost nearly $50 million for 1.3 miles of bike path? 😅 This is from 2022 when it was still only going to be $21M. www.belmontcitizensforum.org/2022/05/08/b...
Most of the Belmont path is located on MBTA property, in some cases within 13 feet of the Fitchburg Line tracks. Thus every aspect of the project will require close collaboration with the MBTA, which has a reputation for bureaucracy and inefficiency, notwithstanding support for the path from top management. 

As an example, securing permits to drill for soil samples on MBTA land at Alexander Avenue (necessary for design of the tunnel) took more than a year, apparently because of miscommunication between Keolis, the company that operates the commuter rail system under contract to the MBTA, and the MBTA property office, and perhaps partly due to the pandemic. In consideration of the expected complexity of working hand in glove with the MBTA, the Belmont path budget includes not only a customary 10% contingency for unanticipated events, but an additional 10% contingency added by MassDOT, plus an additional 5% to reflect the cost of close cooperation with the MBTA.
120
Jay Luker @jluker.bsky.social · 27/08/2026
My first and last contribution to petfluencing, although I can’t imagine I invented this.
A can of pumpkin, a can of dog food, and some (1/2 cup?) unsalted peanut butterMixing it all up with a potato masherFreeze it in baby food ice cube traysShove the frozen cubes into a Kong toy
100
Jay Luker @jluker.bsky.social · 26/08/2026
i think Dean’s mistake here is not accurately labeling what he’s describing as Total Boomer Luxury Communism
000
Reposted by Jay Luker
JM =^D @jm539581.bsky.social · 25/08/2026
Same.
Daniel Huang
Dream Job: Retirement
143191594
Reposted by Jay Luker
Jim Aloisi @jimaloisi.bsky.social · 20/08/2026
If you live in #mapoli's Second Middlesex District, I heartily recommend that you consider voting for Burhan Azeem @burhanazeem.bsky.social for State Senate. Burhan is the most talented & impactful young leader I've met in a very long time: smart, creative & knows how to get things done.
02911
Jay Luker @jluker.bsky.social · 20/08/2026
quick question: what the fuck is going on? i thought cyclists not getting killed was back in again.
120
Jay Luker @jluker.bsky.social · 15/08/2026
how is this allowed and why would you even? sunrise is benefitting from the bikeway curb cut / ramp, and it’s just a parking lot!
sign at an entrance exit to the minuteman bikeway in arlington heights that says, 

SUNRISE,
SENIOR LIVING
RESTRICTED ACCESS RESIDENTS AND EMPLOYEES ONLY
PLEASE
000
Jay Luker @jluker.bsky.social · 13/08/2026
shirtless male suspected of polishing his powder horn in public
Lexington, MA – Investigation of Potentially Armed Individual
On Friday, August 7, 2026, at approximately 3:20 PM, the Lexington Police Department Dispatch
Center received a report of a shirtless male with a gun in the parking lot of Grace
Chapel located at 59 Worthen Road in the Town of Lexington.
Responding officers quickly established a perimeter and had the building put on lockdown, which was
populated with numerous programs including those with children. A systematic search of the campus
was conducted. A short time later, officers located the individual. An on-scene investigation revealed
that the subject was waiting to pick up his wife who works in Grace Chapel. While he was waiting, he
was polishing a powder horn, which is a musket-era container in the shape of a bull’s horn used to store
gunpowder. The subject is an avid period reenactor. Due to the heat, he was doing this outside of his
vehicle. Security video was able to corroborate his account.
This incident required a strong police response which resulted in multiple cruisers responding to the
scene and the closing of the parking lot and parts of Worthen Road during the investigation. It is
understandable that this would cause a great deal of concern to members of the community, especially
parents with children in these programs.
The Lexington Police Department hopes that the release of this information will help alleviate any
concerns surrounding the incident and convey that there was no threat to anyone in the building or on
the campus at the time of this incident.
000
Jay Luker @jluker.bsky.social · 13/08/2026
Eh, ok. Looking at the source & methodology, out of a pool of 250 Gen Z Betterment survey responders identified as “traders”, meaning they were doing more than the basic 401k stuff, 26% of those said sports betting was part of their overall financial plan.
000
Reposted by Jay Luker
Miser @misernyc.bsky.social · 08/08/2026
Cities aren't loud
013347
Jay Luker @jluker.bsky.social · 12/08/2026
some people will do anything to avoid building 34 units of housing in a walkable town center with a commuter rail stop. winchesternews.org/20260814_win...
winchesternews.org
Winchester Select Board member’s removal was timed to affect housing boards
Legal documents Select Board members filed with the state — and later withdrew — explain what was happening behind the scenes during the permitting of 33 Mount Vernon St.
110
Reposted by Jay Luker
Kenny Uong @kennyuong.bsky.social · 08/08/2026
Before Mass. voters approved the millionaire’s tax in 2022, only one fixed-route bus crossed into New Hampshire: @mevatransit.bsky.social Route 13! It connects Haverhill, MA & Plaistow, NH, which launched in 2020! 🚌 In April 2026, MeVa Transit Route 28 began connecting Lawrence, MA & Salem, NH! 🤝🏻
161
Jay Luker @jluker.bsky.social · 08/08/2026
a quote from the intro to jane jacobs’ death and life of american cities “ bureaucratic timidities owing to accepted practices, and in unexamined public attitudes hardened by time”. rendered using the now that’s what i call music logo generator https://pixelframe.design/now-thats-what-i-call-music-logo-font-cover-generator/
010
Jay Luker @jluker.bsky.social · 08/08/2026
Today I’m learning about the time Chicago’s mayor, Jane Byrne, moved into the Cabrini Green public housing project. It did not go well, but, based on my at this point extremely superficial knowledge of the situation, it feels like you kinda gotta hand it to her. headstuff.org/culture/hist...
headstuff.org
Welcoming the Mayor to Hell | The Story of Jane Byrne and Cabrini Green
In 1981, the Mayor of Chicago moved into the impoverished neighborhood Cabrini Green. How did her attempted intervention only make life worse for residents?
110
Jay Luker @jluker.bsky.social · 07/08/2026
Not to defend AI but before everyone loses their minds about this the HC doesn’t have purview over interiors. This is essentially lorem ipsum filler.
020
Jay Luker @jluker.bsky.social · 06/08/2026
Not refusing to order the Sweetgreen Alice Water's Peach & Goat Cheese Salad because she's a NIMBY. That sh*t sounds yummy.
010
Reposted by Jay Luker
Jake Berman @lostsubways.com · 03/08/2026
this is not true. there was no conspiracy. it didn't matter whether the streetcars were publicly owned (seattle, detroit) or private (los angeles, atlanta). a thread (because i wrote a whole-ass book on this): 1/?
852853986
Jay Luker @jluker.bsky.social · 03/08/2026
Save some rage for the engineers who put a shared-use bike/ped lane in the path of drivers turning left across two lanes of speeding traffic.
020
Jay Luker @jluker.bsky.social · 01/08/2026
Not sure if it’s anything like here where there’s a long road between proposal and shovel in the ground, but this could be a hoot to follow. Are there site plan review hearings with public comment streamed on local cable? Tremendous content potential.
110
Jay Luker @jluker.bsky.social · 30/07/2026
what would jacob’s say about teenagers riding e-motorcycles on busy center sidewalks? there is a perceived safety issue (voiced by a minority) but an overall reluctance to engage in mutual policing.
But it is not so simple to achieve these objects, especially the latter. You can't make people use streets they have no reason to use. You can't make people watch streets they do not want to watch. Safety on the streets by surveillance and mutual policing of one another sounds grim, but in real life it is not grim. The safety of the street works best, most casually, and with least frequent taint of hostility or suspicion precisely where people are quene tant of hostility or suspicion precisely where people are using and most enjoying the city streets voluntarily and are least conscious, normally, that they are policing
000
Jay Luker @jluker.bsky.social · 24/07/2026
Lexington would be such a perfect place to live if it wasn't extremely cursed. lexobserver.org/2026/07/23/t...
lexobserver.org
An AI-driven private school wants to open in Lexington
Even though the Alpha School is private, it needs the local School Committee’s approval to move to Lexington under state law.
000
Reposted by Jay Luker
Shoshana 🏳️‍⚧️ @shoshana.bsky.social · 22/07/2026
We have sanctuary cities, but for whom? States like Massachusetts, California, and New York offer essential protections for marginalized people. You can't be a sanctuary for vulnerable people if you don't build the housing they need and can afford.
827872
Reposted by Jay Luker
StreetsblogMASS @mass.streetsblog.org · 22/07/2026
We’ve Been Waiting For Over A Year For @mayorwu.boston.gov's Administration to Honor State Public Records Laws #mapoli mass.streetsblog.org/2026/07/22/w...
mass.streetsblog.org
We've Been Waiting For Over A Year For Boston to Honor State Public Records Laws - Streetsblog Massachusetts
For the past year and a half, StreetsblogMASS has been waiting for the City of Boston's public records office to release city emails, calendar appointments, and other documents related to Mayor Wu's e...
1199
Jay Luker @jluker.bsky.social · 22/07/2026
Our bicycle committee* does some mythbusting on why you can’t bike on Lexington center sidewalks. Screenshot from a memo to the Select Board. * really just one guy: my hero, Tom Shiple
It has been reported that in July 1967 a pedestrian was struck and killed by a cyclist near the present-day CVS, and that the Lexington by-law prohibiting cycling on Center sidewalks was a direct consequence of this incident. After extensive research, we have not been able to find any mention in the historical record of such an incident, but it remained an open question of why and when our current bike by-law was enacted that prohibits cycling on business district sidewalks.
110
Jay Luker @jluker.bsky.social · 21/07/2026
me when the kids want to go to the good pizzeria regina
planner complaining to jane jacobs that the north end is a slum because the density is 275 units per acre
010
Reposted by Jay Luker
Brandon Stanaway @bstanaway.bsky.social · 20/07/2026
Incredibly disappointed and infuriated to read this 'article' in MassterList this morning: massterlist.com/p/keller-may... My Letter to the Editor is attached. Unsubscribing @massterlist.com.
0327
Reposted by Jay Luker
De-ICE Action Network @de-ice.bsky.social · 17/07/2026
Citizens Bank has announced it will exit its lending agreements with CoreCivic and GEO Group. This is an incredible win for everyone who refused to let a major bank finance the human suffering caused by ICE detention! Community resistance matters ✊
Graphic titled 'BREAKING' announcing that Citizens Bank is exiting its lending relationships with for-profit ICE prison companies CoreCivic and GEO Group. The background photo shows protesters outside a Citizens Bank branch holding signs reading 'Citizens: Get Out of ICE OR We Get Out of Citizens,' 'Citizens Bank No ICE Prisons,' and 'Citizens Bank Has Blood On Its Hands.' The 'De-ICE Citizens Bank' campaign logo appears in the bottom left, with the URL www.de-icecitizensbank.org in the bottom right.
6312110
Jay Luker @jluker.bsky.social · 17/07/2026
I’m personally happy to see the changes to variance requirements, even though I’m pretty sure I wasn’t the main target beneficiary (and it’s too late to benefit me anyway). www.remainplaces.com/post/a-flurr...
remainplaces.com
A Flurry of Housing Activity as the Massachusetts Legislative Session Nears Its End
As the Massachusetts Legislature races toward the end of its session later this month, a flurry of housing policy proposals is moving through Beacon Hill. Here's a quick rundown of what's happening.On...
110
Jay Luker @jluker.bsky.social · 17/07/2026
A small correction: the 3-2 vote on the first waiver was enough to pass. Still waiting for details on why there was some confusion about this. Non-zero chance it was only me that was confused.
000
Jay Luker @jluker.bsky.social · 16/07/2026
The Senate's version of the econ dev bill: malegislature.gov/PressRoom/De... I came for the housing stuff but caught this at the end. Do food trucks not have have ... regular health inspection requirements?
Promotes Trust in Food Trucks. Supports the vibrant food truck industry by calling for appropriate health regulations that promote public trust. Directs the Commissioner of Public Health to create regulations that include annual health inspections of food trucks and standards for cleanliness.
000
Jay Luker @jluker.bsky.social · 16/07/2026
This is correct. Speed cameras simply cannot function as a revenue generator because they work too well as a behavior influencer.
010
Reposted by Jay Luker
The War on Cars @thewaroncars.bsky.social · 16/07/2026
The writer, Paul Schimek, is a longtime devotee of John Forester and an adherent of "savvy cycling" or "bicycle driving," other terms for vehicular cycling. As the first bicycle program manager for the City of Boston, he is a big reason the city was behind on installing protected lanes for so long.
1539770
Jay Luker @jluker.bsky.social · 16/07/2026
jfc come on. what are we doing here? hms.harvard.edu/news/traffic...
article headline reads Traffic Accidents Increase the Day After a Mass Shooting
Findings suggest distress, fatalities extend to roadways nationwideThe researchers believe the acute psychological stress can impair attention and judgment, although the study does not distinguish between psychological distress and media distraction. The findings add to the growing evidence base surrounding the potential impacts of driver distraction on motor vehicle collisions.
111