Dog park Approved

The Boston Parks Commission unanimously approved the application for
the Dog Recreation Space in Peters Park. Construction should begin
in the Spring. A representative from the DRS will be at our March
meeting to show us the final design for the park.

For complete information on the DRS, please visit the park at

http://www.peterspark.org

Ellis fundraiser

Our neighboring Neighborhood association, Ellis, is holding a Casino Night fundraiser THIS Friday, Match 2, right at the Franklin Institute.  Casino games, DJ, Live Auction, complimentary hors d'oeuvres, cash bar.   $45 advance/$50 door.

Complete information on their web pages, at http://www.ellisneighborhood.org/

SELROSLT Lecture series

The   South End Lower Roxbury Open Space Land Trust wishes to announce their Spring lecture series.  (SELROSLT is the parent organization and land owner for our own Berkeley Community Gardens (www.berkeleygardens.org).

Wednesday, March 7: Seeding Solutions Indoors with Ellen Wells, horticulturist and writer

Wednesday, March 14: Window Box Whimsy with Lou Whitney of Twig Floral Studio

Wednesday, March 28: V is for Vegetable, Bringing the Garden to the Table with Roger Swain, People, Places, and Plants TV host

Wednesday, April 11: Trees in an Urban Environment with the Urban Ecology Institute and Arborway Tree Care.

 

All lectures are free and start at 7 PM at the Harriet Tubman House of USES, 566 Columbus Avenue (Columbus and Mass Ave).

During Snow Emergencies

The southend.org home page has information on parking rules & restrictions during Snow Emergencies.   Given we may get our first significant snowfall of the season on Wednesday, it might be a good idea to brush up on the rules for parking when a snow emergency is declared.

 

http://tinyurl.com/36j435

 

 

 

 

Plan your Parks

The City Parks Department has put a survey on line.   

 

They are creating a new Open Space Plan, and want to know how you use your local parks.   Visit their site to read the 2002-2006 plan, and take the survey so you can have some input on their next 5 year open space plan.  The survey will ask you question son how you use your local park (either the park closest to you, or the park you use most often).   Ringgold park is in Eight Streets, and Peters Park is our closest park neighbour.

 

Visit http://www.cityofboston.gov/parks/openspace_update.asp for more information and to take the survey  (tinyurl: http://tinyurl.com/28r2v2)

 

South End Buttery

The owner of South End Buttery has asked me to pass along this letter in advance of his presentation at our meeting this Wednesday.

Dear Neighbors,

The press of business this past week has kept me from getting in touch with you sooner regarding some important zoning and licensing matters related to the proposed expansion of the South End Buttery café at 314 Shawmut Avenue.  The exchange of e-mails regarding 550 Tremont Street over the past few days, however, has reminded me how very important it is to me -- and should be to all business owners -- to work with the community on such concerns.

As a Union Park resident for almost 14 years and a business owner on the edge of the Union Park and Eight Streets Neighborhood Associations for the past two years, I am committed to operating a business that serves our community's best interests.  To that end, the Buttery offers a unique dining experience in the South End, offering modestly priced food using the best and freshest ingredients (and organic ingredients as much as possible).  Recently, we have even started creating a number of vegetarian and vegan options to address our customers' diets.  Operating out of our small space, however, has become impossible for the long run and we are looking at increasing our size by expanding into the architecture firm behind us.  Among other improvements, the expansion will allow us to create a better system for waste disposal and will enable us to be more environmentally friendly by reducing the amount of paper and plastic products used to serve food in-house.  In this initial stage of design and planning, we would like to work in cooperation with you to create a space that best suits our neighborhood, as we have since opening a little over a year ago.

More extensive discussions regarding these issues were scheduled by my attorney last week and will take place this Wednesday evening before the Eight Streets Neighborhood Association.  At that time, I will be glad to share a sample menu with you and answer any questions you may have about the proposed expansion.  I welcome your comments throughout this process and look forward to working with you.

Best,
Richard Gordon
Owner, South End Buttery
617-549-2776

February Eight Streets meeting

Evening everyone,

This Wednesday, 2/7 is the next Eight Streets NA meeting. We'll be
at our regular location in the Boston Ballet boardroom, at the corner
of Clarendon & Warren.

We have two big items on the agenda this month.

The Franklin Cafe is looking to expand. They will not be opening a
second location on Harrison avenue, as they had planned. Given
this, they are looking to expand in their current location up to the
second floor. They will be presenting plans at the meeting, and
will be seeking a letter of approval from the NA

South End Buttery will also be before us at this meeting. Even
though they are just outside of our NA, they've been a good business
and want to reach out beyond their immediate borders. The sandwich
and coffee shop is seeing a Beer & Wine license. They are going to
be expanding at their current location and adding kitchen facilities.
As they add more dinner-like dishes to their menu, they feel being
able to serve beer & wine with dinner will enhance their fare, and
allow them to remain competitively with other small restaurants in
the immediate area.

join us 6:30-7 for our neighborhood networking social hour.
Business portion of the meeting will begin promptly at 7.

Hope to see everyone there.

Don't forget to visit our blog for more neighborhood news;
http://eightstreets.blogspot.com

If you're not yet a member, visit our web site for membership and
voting information. http://eightstreets.tripod.com

City Councilor Special Elections

Dates have been set for special elections to replace Councilor
Kelly's position - the Councilor for City District 2, which
encompasses South Boston, Chinatown and our slice of the South End.

Preliminary election - April 17th. All candidates on ballot

Final election - May 15. Top two vote-getters in preliminary
election get on this ballot.

It will be important for all of the South End to turn out for this
vote, and make our voices heard. More details as the election
approaches.

Meet your City Councilors

The Neighborhood Forum, of which Eight Streets is a part, is sponsoring the following two meetings with city councilors

----------------------

Councillor Arroyo (At-Large) is sponsoring his own community meeting to discuss what he has been working and what are his priorities for 2007.
Come and participate in bringing Boston together for good.
WHEN: Tuesday, February 20th
WHERE: United South End Settlement (USES) Harriet Tubman House, 566 Columbus Ave (Lincoln House Room)
TIME: 5:30-7:00pm

CONTACT: Calvin Feliciano, Director of Constituent Services at 617-635-3115

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The Claremont neighborhood Forum in partnership with The Neighborhood Forum, a program of USES, is sponsoring a community meeting with City Councillor Chuck turner. Councillor Turner, the District 7 councillor, represents part of the South End and Lower Roxbury.
Discussion topics will include:
   *       Councilor Role in Government
    *       How City Government is Run
      *       Property Taxes
  *       Youth Resources
*       BU Bio-Safety Lab
       *       Public Safety
Wednesday, February 21, 2007
7:00-8:30 PM
United South End Settlements

Harriet Tubman House, 566 Columbus Avenue