Rack Attack

Freedom of the press can be so unsightly

By Cara Bayles

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Last week, Mayor Thomas Menino proposed a revision of the ordinance for newsracks, handy dispensers like the one you opened to grab this very paper. The mayor's legislation for the City Council rekindles a long-time debate where free speech pushes up against street clutter.

The city's current ordinance calls for a "one time only Certificate of Compliance fee" of $150 for publishers to place newsboxes around the city. The mayor's revision would require a $300 annual application fee for the certificate, which would be updated every year. He's also tacked on an annual fee of $25 per newsrack. The application itself would be more rigorous (requiring pictures of each location, with specs on the distance from curbs and crosswalks). Currently, the certificate sanctions a distributor "notwithstanding the number of newsracks." The mayor's proposal would institute a 300-rack cap on distribution.

In a letter to the City Council, Menino explained the changes would ensure the safety of pedestrians. "The city will be able to make certain that newsracks do not interfere with street cleaning or otherwise contribute to the soiling of the city streets and sidewalks," he wrote, adding, "This content-neutral regulation does not impede any person or entity's right to free speech protected under the First Amendment."

Not everyone agrees on that point. Richard Karpel, executive director of the Association of Alternative Newsweeklies, says capping newsboxes at 300 raises concerns about free dissemination of information. "This really treads First Amendment grounds," he says. "Cleanliness and safety are legitimate issues the city government needs to respond to, but you can't just throw out the baby with the bathwater. The restrictions need to be carefully tailored to the issues."

Dot Joyce, Menino's spokeswoman, insists that no publication has reached the 300 mark. Employment News has 296 newsracks, the Boston Globe has 294 and the Weekly Dig has 284, according to city records. "This isn't something we picked up randomly. We consulted many different cities, and most have a limit," Joyce says, citing Cambridge and Minneapolis among the model metropolises. "There are only so many streets, and those streets are only so big. There has to be some regulation."

The New England Press Association (NEPA)'s executive director Brenda Reed says some papers are teetering close to the 300 cap. "Once you start limiting rather than addressing the root issue of cleanliness and public safety, you're on a slippery slope," she says. "Today those numbers may be fine. They may be fine forever, but limiting them won't address the root issue."

Karpel says he has witnessed a national trend of newsbox restrictions. "We've noticed it in the last five to 10 years. The response is different in each case," he says. "In San Francisco and New York City, there are certain neighborhoods where they require multi-unit boxes."

In fact, Menino tried to implement a similar policy. Beacon Hill banned newsboxes for historical reasons in 1996. The Back Bay followed suit in 2001, as City Hall floated the idea of "newscondos," six-unit boxes provided by Wall USA, the company that signed a 20-year contract with the city that same year. The Back Bay ban culminated in a federal case filed by the ACLU, NEPA, the Dig, Improper Bostonian and the now-defunct Editorial Humor, which the city won in 2004. Newscondos never went into effect, but the idea was floated again in 2006.

When asked if a newscondo proposal was in the works, Joyce replied, "I know they've looked at it in the past, but I don't know the answer to that."

The mayor's revised ordinance would also make the Department of Public Works (DPW) responsible for enforcement. The DPW is currently responsible for enforcement of violations, which are reported by Inspectional Services. Sgt. Mike Mackan, a code enforcement officer with Inspectional Services, says that of the 337 violations reported last year, some were noticed by officers, and others were called in. "Right now, if they're in violation, we document it and call DPW. DPW notifies the operator. If they fail to fix it within 10 days, we'll go there with DPW, and point out the violation."

Joyce says this joint responsibility confuses communication for the departments and box owners. "We have increased fees for the boxes, so that will go toward any training that's needed for Public Works," she says. "I don't know if all of it will, or if it will flow through the general fund, or straight to coffers."

These fees and the cap could hurt some papers more than others. "It's not just the alternative press, it's any paper with free circulation," says Karpel. "The Globe is delivered by subscription, the Metro pays people to hand out papers. The Phoenix and the Dig are both smaller and use a different business model of free distribution. But ultimately, it's going to affect any publication that uses newsboxes."