Flynn's three South Boston hearing orders head to three committees, including one he chairs

City Councilor Ed Flynn's three new South Boston hearing orders were each sent to a different committee at Wednesday's council meeting. One of them, on the O Street block party that drew his objections last week, went to a committee he chairs.

For South Boston residents, the three orders cover a lot of ground: who approves a street closure on your block, how a bike lane gets built and then torn out, and drug use and crime from Andrew Square to Fort Point.

Where each order went

• The block party (docket 2047) went to the City Services Committee, which Flynn chairs. City Councilor Erin Murphy is the other sponsor.
• The O'Connor Way bike lane (docket 2048) went to the Planning, Development and Transportation Committee, chaired by City Councilor Sharon Durkan. Murphy, Brian Worrell, John FitzGerald, Julia Mejia and Miniard Culpepper are also listed as sponsors (our preview).
• Public safety and quality of life (docket 2049) went to the Public Safety and Criminal Justice Committee, chaired by City Councilor Henry Santana. Flynn is its only sponsor (our preview).

The council also placed on file Flynn's Oct. 23 letter to Police Commissioner Michael Cox asking him to cancel the block party permit (docket 2039). Placing a letter on file makes it part of the record; it is not a vote on its contents.

The block party went ahead

The O Street event, a one-day pop-up offering free coffee, took place on Saturday, Oct. 24. It drew more than 700 RSVPs on Instagram, Caught in Southie reported. The organizers told the outlet they used a $300 grant from the city's Spooky Streets program and said no money was made. Some neighbors told the outlet they were surprised by the crowd and had cars blocked in.

In announcing his hearing order, Flynn said an "open invitation to 125,000 followers" was far beyond what block parties have historically been meant for, and that the council should review permitting, public notice and safety measures, Caught in Southie reported. In his letter, he also argued the city should not be funding block party or Halloween grants at all while it faces revenue losses from falling downtown commercial property values and school layoffs.

In September, Mayor Michelle Wu said the program, supported this year by the nonprofit Elevate Cities, aims to make it easier for residents to host gatherings, according to Caught in Southie. City grant-funded fall events run through Nov. 22, the outlet reported.

What our records show

• The council has voted on these grants before. On April 29, Flynn and Murphy's resolution to end summer block party grants failed 3-9, with FitzGerald, Flynn and Murphy voting yes (docket 0879). Our earlier story has the full roll call and the budget hearing testimony on the grants.
• Committee loads. By our count, City Services holds 29 items, 22 of them hearing orders; Planning, Development and Transportation holds 43; and Public Safety and Criminal Justice holds 40.
• Another Flynn item went to Public Safety. His resolution supporting a waiver of the 10-year residency requirement for police civilian employees who become officers (docket 2052) was referred there instead of being adopted the same day (our story).

What's next

Because Flynn chairs City Services, he can call the block party hearing himself. The other two depend on Durkan's and Santana's schedules. Hearing notices are posted on the city's public notices page, and video will be added to our meetings page.