By Carol McCracken (Post # 1,033)
John H. Branson, attorney for OccupyMaine, filed an amended petition with the city of Portland earlier today. The eight page amended petition included 8 substantive changes to the original petition filed on November 29th on behalf of OccupyMaine.
“Clear out of the park now and come back with a more reasonable proposal,” advised Public Safety Committee Chair Ed Suslovic. Both Suslovic and councilor John Coyne were adamant in their rejection of the group’s petition. Council David Marshall, who has visited OccupyMaine at Lincoln Park on several occasions, was less obtuse in his rejection of the petition, however. The three member Committee rejected the petition outright. Disappointed as he was, Branson promised to file an amended petition following a meeting with the General Assembly of the group. That amended petition was filed today.
The eight substantive changes include: (1) changing “zone” to “space,” (2) limiting the number of overnight occupants to fifty, (3) discontinuing the use and operation of a kitchen for food services if the city denies OM a temporary food service license, and (4) trying to obtain liability insurance within the next 30 days in the amount of $400,000.
The other four substantive changes involved Park sanitation and stewardship of the park. Beginning today, OM has arranged for and starting paying for more frequent servicing of the two port-a-potties at Lincoln Park. And, within the next week, OM will be renting a dumpster for several days at its expense for seven days. The stewardship plan includes establishing a fund at Five County Credit Union to receive monies to keep the historic Park in good condition. OM will assist in establishing a Friends of Lincoln Park to support and mainain public parks in Portland.
Please see Post # 1,031, dated December 2 for more background on this matter.
The city council will address the amended petition on Wednesday, December 7th in council chambers at 7 pm. and will be televised.