Dedication of Land Wave

Mayor Menino will be on hand to dedicate the sculpture LandWave - the undulating mass of Land and Sea in Peters Park, next to the ball fields adjacent to Washington street.   The artwork represents the meeting of Land and Sea at what was once the "neck" of boston - the narrow strip of land (often covered at high tide int eh early days) that made the original boston land mass almost an island.  

Join the Mayor at 11:30am on Monday, April 25th for the dedication ceremony.

Complete information on Monday's event and an over view of LandWave.

The LandWave web site

Hearing on Public and Private alleys

On Wednesday April 27th the City Council will hold a hearing on Public and Private alleyways in Boston. the hearing takes place in the City Council chambers, 5th floor of city hall.  This hearing begins at 6:00pm. The hearing is sponsored by Councilors Arroyo and Linehan

We spoke of this hearing at the last meeting - the topic of this hearing is geared toward alleyways that are drive-able.   All Eight Streets alleys are walkable-only, and will not be discussed at this meeting.   Our only drive-able alley is already public - PA705, between Dwight and East berkeley.   (And if you missed the meeting - is due to be re-paved this season!!)

At issue in this hearing is the maintenance of alleys.   As the South End was built, some rear alleys were turned over to the city to become city property; while others remained private.    Private alleys allow the owners flexibility over use of the alley, but maintenance and snow removal must also be privately paid for.

Today, if the owners of an alley would like to turn the alley over to City control, the alley must be brought up to City standards, meaning in a state of good repair, ADA compliance, and conform to other city regulations.   This can be cost-prohibitive for the owners.    This hearing is to discuss this specific issue.

From the hearing flier:

The public is invited to attend and learn form city officials:

How alleys are designated as public or private
What jurisdiction the city has in providing services for private alleys
What duties private property owners have in upkeep and maintenance of private alleys.

Please feel free to attend the hearing.  Even though it is not an ESNA issue, it is a South End issue of concern to many residents.

A Boston.com article on the issue can be found here.

[Update] Two post-meeting articles can be found here:    South End Patch,   Universal Hub.

Egg Hunt Postponed Due to Weather

The Ringgold Park Egg Hunt has been rescheduled due to inclement weather.



Please join us next Sunday, April 24th, at 10 am.

We hope to see you there!

The Friends of Ringgold Park

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email: ringgoldpark@verizon.net

Neighborhood News on-line

Since you're reading this blog, you probably have some intent savvy, and an interest in neighborhood news.  We'd like to remind you our two Press outlets also have a presence on line.

The South End News has a Web page as well as a Facebook Page and Twitter feed.    On the Web Page they also have (at the bottom of the page) and email sign-up, where you can get a weekly email of the weeks' headlines.

The South End patch also has a Web Page, Facebook Page and Twitter Feed, as well as an RSS feed for news stories.  They also have an email newsletter (link is on the upper right of the Web Page)

[[Update - the Patch now has an iphone app (android coming soon) ]]

Both outlets provide news covering the South End, and we hope you follow both and get all your neighborhood news...

Yard waste pickup for Spring

City of Boston press release.   Eight Streets' recycling day is Tuesday


If you don’t have time to compost your leaves or yard debris this spring, Boston Public Works Department will do it for you.  Public Works crews will collect your leaves and yard waste on neighborhood recycling days from April 25 to May 20.

• Residents should place leaves and yard debris in large paper leaf bags or open barrels labeled “yard waste” (no plastic bags).  Yard waste stickers for barrels are available by calling (617) 635-4500.
• Residents should tie branches with string: 3’ maximum length. 1” max. diameter. They should not put branches in barrels.  
• Barrels, bags and branches should be placed curbs:

7:00 AM on your Recycling Day:  April 25 through May 20
Yard Waste will not be collected for two weeks prior to the spring collection (April 11 thru April 22).  Residents should please hold their yard waste until collection begins the week of April 25. 


More Information on Yard Waste Guidelines

April ESNA Business Meeting

Hi Everyone!

Our monthly Eight Streets business meeting will be this Tuesday, April 5th at Project Place (Washington & East Berkeley).  

6:30-7 - Neighborhood Networking.   Meet your neighbors in an informal setting

7-8:30 - Business meeting.   

We have some exciting items on the agenda this month.

• Pops restaurant - Pops is seeking support to extend closing hours from midnight to 1am.   Their hearing was last week - no word yet if it was denied or postponed.   But according to the city they still wish to visit the NA and get feedback on extended hours.

• 10 Bond street - they wish to present information on a planned roofdeck.   There was recently a hearing on the validity of their existing permit, but I have not yet received feedback on how that went.   but this is information only - there is no vote on this issue scheduled at this meeting

• Meet Eric Hill - Eric works at Paul Sullivan housing and will be a regular attendee at our meetings.

We've got some great agenda items this month, so we hope you'll be able to make it.   (A local business also promises to bring some treats to nibble on).   

See you on Tuesday!

Street Sweeping begins

A sure sign of Spring - Street sweeping is here!

As of April 1st, the street sweeping season for local streets has begin (although sweeping was postponed due to snow on Friday).   This week is the "first" week - many of our streets are cleaned on the First Mondays and Thursdays.  A full schedule for Eight Streets and surrounding streets can be found here (let me know if we need any corrections)

So please remember to move your cars this week.   Never mind the potential ticket - our streets are a mess after this long winter, and this is a chance to start the Spring cleanup.