Brian Squadrille, who won election on Saturday for an Area A seat on the advisory board, said the meeting schedule conflicted with his work schedule.
The new-look JP Neighborhood Council met for the first time on Tuesday.
But one of the advisory group's freshly-elected members resigned even before taking his seat.
Brian Squadrille resigned because his work schedule conflicts with Neighborhood Council meetings, Councilor Andrea Howley told fellow council members and spectators at the council's Tuesday meeting at Rogerson House.
Squadrille did not respond to an email from JP Patch. He was a participant in many of the Whole Foods-related meetings and was among those who had a banner ripped away from them by police at a community "town hall" in June. Three people were arrested at that meeting and charged with disturbing a public assembly. On JP Patch, he went by the user name Sureño (Brian Squadrilli).
The other 15 councilors elected Saturday did show up. The 20-member board is much changed from its previous term, returning only seven incumbents after the bruising battle over Whole Foods coming to JP.
Counting Squadrille's abandoned seat, five seats remain to be filled on the volunteer board. It makes neighborhood-level recommendations to city boards such as the Zoning Board of Appeals, though it holds no direct power and is sometimes overruled.
The Neighborhood Council will fill those five seats by appointment after advertising the vacancies. Persons interested must live in either the Area A or Area B council districts.
Squadrille has been a strong anti-Whole Foods voice. He recently signed a letter from the anti-gentrification group Whose Foods that demanded the grocer give 1 percent of the JP's store's revenues to "anti-displacement organizing" and an affordable housing fund.
Whole Foods, which plans to open a store in Hyde Square later this fall, rejected the idea of a signed "Good Neighbor Agreement" put forward by the Neighborhood Council. Instead, the grocer said it follows its own corporate policies about giving back to the communities where they have stores.
Adam Gerard
6:53 am on Thursday, September 29, 2011
Were meeting times a secret? How did he not know about this conflict before the election? Did he just not expect or prepare for actually being elected?
Matt
7:21 am on Thursday, September 29, 2011
Not to attack Mr. Squadrill's character, especially since he already left the JPNC, but "Sureño" is the name of a gang... is there any other meaning? I'm surprised no one brought this up before.
http://goo.gl/y7VbE
James
9:22 am on Thursday, September 29, 2011
Guess Trader Joe's wouldn't let him switch his shifts.
Michael Christopher
9:25 am on Thursday, September 29, 2011
Not to attack Squadrille's (or Squadrill's) character either, but someone who is quoted as "Those lezzie ass-grabbers couldn’t handle our hot bods.” (http://subverses.wordpress.com/2008/12/09/concrete-reveries-feeling-me-up-and-feeling-disappointed/) doesn't really warrant a position on a council that claims to represent its residents.
But in all fairness, not many of us are aware of the working conditions at Trader Joe's (Squadrille's employer - at least when he was so vocally protesting Whole Foods), and it's entirely plausible that his hours there were increased, leaving him unable to serve on the JPNC.
Matt
9:28 am on Thursday, September 29, 2011
Chris Helms (or anyone else who knows) - how will those seats be filled? I know people interested in filling them.
Rick S
9:41 am on Thursday, September 29, 2011
Interested candidates go before the Council. The new Council then gets to to vote on whether or not they approve of you. You should email them at info.jpnc@gmail.com.
Chris Helms
9:50 am on Thursday, September 29, 2011
Hey Matt, a surefire way is show up for the next monthly meeting and introduce yourself. The next one is Oct. 25: http://patch.com/E-DX3 You can also have them email the JPNC at info.jpnc@gmail.com
WhoseFoods
10:16 am on Thursday, September 29, 2011
First order of business for the JPNC: remove the residency requirement for membership! Some of our brothers' and sisters' parents rented them apartments in Fenway.
Fight the tyranny of boundaries!
Bob from JP
10:36 am on Thursday, September 29, 2011
I thought working was wage slavery? He should quit his job and work for the people.
Seriously though, in light of this outstanding individual's exemplary record of homophobic blog posts, does anyone actually believe that the reason he resigned was because of work? Just goes to show how stupid the JPNC really thinks we are.