WESTFIELD – Carl Vincent effectively stimulated change as an outsider, but now wants to continue his advocacy on the inside as a City Council At-large member.
Vincent was drawn into the governmental process by a simple mission: to have a crosswalk, which had been paved over on South Maple Street in front of the FL Roberts gas station.
Vincent wanted the city to paint new crosswalk stripes over the new pavement, so he went to the Planning Board which was reviewing a special permit petition for FL Robert to build a Jiffy Lube on their site. Vincent was told the board had no authority over crosswalk markings.
Vincent then went to the City Council and was told it was a Board of Public Works issue. So he went to the BPW and told them that the crosswalk had been paved over, but that the signs indicating the crosswalk location were still standing. The signs were then removed.
Finally he was told to go to the Traffic Commission which recommended that the crosswalk be reestablished.
“I started this in the spring of 2011 and I didn’t even know about the Traffic Commission until six months later. It took almost two years of going to meetings to get it done because things fall through the cracks,” Vincent said.
The crosswalk was finally installed in April of 2013 when it was done by a contractor, Burke Brothers, who also had to revamp the slope of the granite curbing to bring the crosswalk into compliance with the American with Disabilities Act.
“I find out information, who you go to get action,” Vincent said. “People get frustrated with the system. It’s too time-consuming and they do not understand the process.”
“I ran for the Ward 2 City Council seat two years ago and met a lot of people who have their own issues, who need an advocate,” Vincent said. “I bring to the table tenacity and the ability to stay with an issue. I have gained the knowledge to be able to help other people resolve similar issues and follow through to final competition.”
Vincent also went to the Traffic Commission to raise the issue of pedestrian lights installed on Broad Street at the intersections of East and West Silver Streets. The state Department of Transportation had configured the pedestrian crossing signal and the traffic lights as a concurrent crosswalk so that pedestrians were in the intersection while motorists were allowed to pass through it.
“The kids are used to the traditional four-way pedestrian lights where traffic stops and pedestrians can cross the street,” Vincent said. “The DOT likes the concurrent crosswalk model because it keeps traffic moving.”
“I had to educate myself on pedestrian signals and traffic controls so I want to a seminar on the Baystate Roads program sponsored by the DOT, the University of Massachusetts and the Pioneer Regional Planning Commission,” Vincent said. “I was one of a very few civilians at the seminar which was for city engineers, planners and public works officials.
The Traffic Commission stepped in to reestablish the traditional four-way pedestrian crossing pattern.
“They also added more time to the pedestrian controls because it is such a wide intersection to get across,” Vincent said.
“I wanted to continue in public service after not winning two years ago and got onto the Planning Board which has given me a bigger picture of our community,” he said. “I’ve continued to go to board and commission meetings to get a broader view of municipal government and how it works.
“I want to be the eyes and ears for people who don’t have the time or knowledge of where to go to resolve problems,” Vincent said. “I believe that is a duty of a City Councilor.”
