Monthly meeting on Oct 10th

A reminder that our monthly Eight Streets meeting will take place one week later this month, due to room availability.  Current agenda can be found at http://eightstreets.org/next_meeting.html   I'll send a final agenda out before the meeting (things often change...)

See you NEXT Wednesday, October 10th.

Membership Renewals

It's time to renew!!

If you haven't yet, it's time to renew your Eight Streets NA membership!!   Our yearly memberships expire on Aug 31* so renewals for the upcoming year are now due.  

Becoming a member of Eight Streets lets us know you want your voice heard in the community. Membership grants you voting privileges at Eight Streets business meetings. Your dues contribute to ESNA support costs, as well as for projects ESNA takes part in throughout our neighborhood.

Renewing is easy.   Head over to our Membership web page.   You can renew right on that page using paypal (your credit card).   Or, on that page is a PDF you can print out and US mail in with a cheque.

Join us and make 2013 a great year!!!


*If you renewed in June or later, your membership will run through the next August.

Color hotel rendering

The Boston Globe has a story and color rendering of the planned hotel/residential building on the E Berkeley/Albany/Traveller lot.  

In the main photo, Albany St/93 is on the left, and Traveller st is on the right.

Power restoration work: Friday night 9/7

On Wednesday night part of Eight Streets and Bradford st NAs lost power.   This section of the neighborhood is currently on a temporary generator.

According to NSTAR, the replacement work will happen tonight (Friday night (9/7) - Sat morning) between Midnight and 8am.

If you lost power on Wednesday (9/5), then expect power outage during this time tonight as they perform the repairs.   They should complete all work by Saturday 8am.

September business meeting

Our next monthly Eight Streets business meeting will be this Wednesday, September 5th in the Boston Ballet 5th floor board room (corner of Warren & Clarendon streets)

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

7-8:30 - Business meeting.  

On the agenda this month:

• Change of occupancy for 257 Shawmut
• (potential) support for rear deck on 286 Shawmut
• Open member discussion.

We have two voting items on the agenda this month.   (Still waiting on confirmation from 286).   

The main focus this month will be during Open member discussion.   The the question is what do you want your neighborhood association to be?  Where do you want it to go?   What do you want us to do?  The Neighborhood isn't me - it's all of you.   We need to give out neighborhood direction and decide what kind of presence we want the association to have.  And we need you to do it - how do we engage more neighbors to come out and be a part of your neighborhood.    

Hope to see everyone there!  

And a reminder that the meeting schedule for the rest of the year is on line -  mark your calendars so you don't miss a meeting!

2012-2013 ESNA Meeting Schedule

Time to dust off the doldrums and get your engines started for the new season of Eight Streets! (I'd make a back to school joke, but those sales seemed to have started on July 5th)

We're also happy the Boston ballet will continue to host us this year. Our thanks to them for being such a great neighbor! And thanks to Michelle at BB for letting us schedule and confirm the whole year now, so our reservations should be good to go.

The schedule for 2012-2013 is below, starting with our first meeting of the new year on Wednesday, September 5th. The agenda will be out as we get closer to meeting time. But here's the year laid out, so you can mark your calendars early.   The calendar can also be found on our Calendar web page.  If you're a google calendar person, you can also add our calendar to yours.  Enter eightstreets@gmail.com  in the "add a friends calendar" on the left, and Eight Streets events will be displayed on your personal calendar.

Please note that three meetings this year will be moved to the second wednesday due to room conflicts.

Eight Streets meeting schedule, 2012-2013: 

First Wednesday of each month, 6:30-8:30pm, Boston ballet 5th floor board room

• September 5 
• October 10 (one week later) 
• November 7 
• December 5 
• January 9 (one week later) 
• February 13 (one week later) 
• March 6 
• April 3 
• May 1 
• June 5

Neighborhood Night at the Gardener

The Gardener museum is having their third in a series of Neighborhood Nights.   Stop by this Thursday, August 9th after 5pm for free admission.   Families are welcome!!

This night's theme is Magical Journey.   For information, please click here.

August 9: Magical Journey
Explore art from Egypt, China, Japan and Spain, and imagine your own journeys. Join in a scavenger hunt to discover fascinating stories and art from around the world. Create your own artwork, and be enlivened by the spontaneous creativity of the Impulse Dance Company.

Streetlights Going Green

The city has informed us that beginning in August, all of our acorn street light fixtures will be replaced with energy efficient LED light fixtures.  This is part of a program to be greener throughout the city, as well as cut the city's energy bills.  All city street lights are slowly being converted.

As you can see from the image on the right, the new lights will look the same.  (Well, if you look close you can see a smaller internal lighting mechanism).  They should put out the same amount of light as the current lights, with less "light trespass" (it should shine in your apartment window a little less).   The light should be white in color - similar to what we have now, but the light son Shawmut will probably be white, rather than the current orange tint they have now.

The regular streetlights on the Dwight Alley (PA705) were replaced a few months ago, and you really wouldn't know the difference unless you looked up at the fixtures.

Update: Shawmut will not be changing at this time.   From the manufacturer: we will be converting only the high cost mercury vapor lights on the residential streets in the South End at this time. We do not have an LED solution yet for the Sodium Vapor lights on Streets like Shawmut Ave at this time. They are in developement and may be available by next year.

Dwight street closed Thursday

Dwight street will be closed Thursday morning, June 28 while a crane is brought in to do some private work.     Closure can begin as early as 7am and should be done by lunch time.   Please plan your travels/parking accordingly.

Bike Safety for Kids

Join BPD for kids Bike Safety Day - A day full of fun and events for families

Saturday, June 23, 11a-2p at 650 harrison Ave (D4 police station)

Bike safety kits and kids helmets while supplies last.

See this Flier for additional information

Milford/Hanson improvements continue

UPDATE:   Due to complications, the sones will arrive Monday morning, not Sunday as originally posted.

The residents abutting the Milford/Hanson alley are following up their alley cleaning with a stone laying effort.   Through group collections, they will be laying gravel/stone down the Milford/Hanson alley this weekend.    Stone will be arriving early Sunday morning, and the rest of the morning will be spent moving and laying the stone down the length of the alley.

Feel free to join them Monday morning to give a hand!   For more information on the project, please contact Michael or Lewis

The alley team adds:

Our plan is deliver and spread the stones on Monday June 11 @ 8.00a.m. onwards. It will likely take most of the day and any volunteers that would like join in the work are welcome, but of course there is no obligation. We will work in the direction of Bond to Tremont.

If you would like to level/grade the dirt in your alley lot please do that before Sunday, since we will spread the stones on whatever surface we find. Please also remove any debris that would get in the way of the spreading. As a recap, we will spread approx 1-2 inches of stones across each yard length, spanning the alley width between Milford & Hanson.

Happy Pride

Happy Pride weekend everyone.

This year the Pride parade has moved the start of the parade back to Copley square, after having started here on Tremont street for the past few years.    As a result Tremont street will not be closed as long this year as in the past.

Tremont from Union Park to Berkeley will be closed around parade time (around noon-2pm).   Please note any parking restrictions as stated on city parade signs posted.  Access to Waltham/Hanson/Milford/Dwight will also be limited during these times.

June meeting: 5th floor of Boston Ballet

Greetings, Boston Ballet has moved us back up to the 5th floor for tonight's (6/6) meeting, but will meet in the Lounge. Take a left as you get off the elevator, and the lounge is the open area near the big window. There will be folding chairs we can set up for the meeting. See you tonight!

June Eight Streets meeting

Our next monthly Eight Streets business meeting will be this Wednesday, June 6th in the Boston Ballet  (corner of Warren & Clarendon streets)

This month we will meet in a conference room on the 3rd floor.   Please see the ballet front desk for directions.

6:30-7 - Neighborhood Networking.   Meet your neighbors in an informal setting. 
7-8:30 - Business meeting.  

On the agenda this month:

• A short introduction by The Kitchen - the new restaurant that will occupy the old Pops location.  They're stopping by just to say hi and introduce themselves to the neighborhood
• 562 Tremont - presentation and vote on addition of rear decks.
• Safety and Community Policing - see below
• Open member discussion.

The main focus of our meeting this month will be Safety.  Our local community service office Sargent Provenzano will join us, as well as director of BPD's community watch unit Carolyn MacNeil.  We will talk about general crime and safety in the neighborhood, and things we can to to help make our neighborhood safe.   Included in this Carolyn will talk about the Neighborhood Watch program.

If we have enough interest, the neighborhood can start a Neighborhood Crime Watch program  (read more about the program at http://www.cityofboston.gov/police/crimeprevention/crimewatch.asp) 

Crime Watches are very neighbor based - so we wouldn't necessarily have a watch for the whole neighborhood, but probably start with a street or section of Eight Streets.  But we would need all neighbors to be involved to start any neighborhood watch program.  Come to the meeting if you can, and read up on the crime watch web page if you're interested in getting more involved.

Hope to see everyone there!  Actually I have other commitments, so I won't see you there, but hope you'll be as great for Jim as you are for me!

next Ringgold Park community meeting

From the South End News:


Wednesday, June 13, 6:30 p.m.
Blackstone Community Center 
2nd floor Computer Room, 
50 West Brookline Street, South End.

The Boston Parks and Recreation Department and the Mayor’s Office of Neighborhood Services invite the public to the third in a series of meetings to discuss upcoming playground improvements to Ringgold Park in the South End.  The proposed project includes improvements to the play areas.  For further information, please call (617) 961-3058

A Little History

The South End History blog does a little research on the history of the Old Dutch Candy building, slated to come down in the near future.

May ESNA Meeting

Our next monthly Eight Streets business meeting will be this Wednesday, May 2nd in the Boston Ballet 5th floor board room (corner of Warren & Clarendon streets)


6:30-7 - Neighborhood Networking.   Meet your neighbors in an informal setting. 
7-8:30 - Business meeting.  


On the agenda this month:

• Decks on deck.   Building construction at 26 Milford and 21 Dwight are both seeing support for rear decks on their buildings.   A vote will be taken on each proposal
• Trash talk.   We've talked about the problem - let's talk about solutions.   How can we get our residents to put our trash correctly?  Any volunteers for a 'trash education' committee?
• Open member discussion.

Hope to see everyone there!

Ringgold Fountain - Grand Opening

This Saturday, May 6, Ringgold Park will have the Fountain Placa Opening Celebration.    Join Mayor Menino as we celebrate the latest addition to our local park as the fountain is officially opened.   The Mayor will also be there for his coffee hour, and will provide free coffee & treats for the celebration.

Stop by and join the fun!

Sunday, May 6, 12:30-2pm.

• Ringgold Notice on the event
• Mayor's Coffee Hour Notice for Ringgold.

In addition, on Tuesday, May 10, there will be another community meeting for Ringgold Playground improvements.

The Parks Department is very interested in what the community has to contribute to the design process. Representatives from Copley Wolff Design Group, as well as a Parks Department official, will be on hand to give a brief presentation of the project scope and existing site conditions. Following this brief presentation, community members will be able to offer input regarding the material presented, the program for the park, and the design process.

May 10th, 76:30 pm, Blackstone Community Center - 2nd floor computer room

Ringgold Notice for the playground meeting

Trash talk

There's been a lot of talk about trash in the local papers and in the South End blog world.  Most of this has been in response to increased trash regulation enforcement in the South End.    Trash was a hot topic of discussion at an Eight Streets meeting earlier this year.  At that meeting we met with Public Works, and discussed what the sanitation workers responsibilities are, and what Residents responsibilities are.

If you'd like a copy of the flier we handed out, here is a listing of good trash practices for us, and some examples of good and poor trash disposal on our curbs.

Good Curbside Practices

One of the sources of loose trash on the streets is due to trash being put out incorrectly on the street.   Trash should be put out in a trashcan with a lid, or in a heavy duty black plastic bag.   But take a good look at the neighborhood on trash mornings:   trash put out in very thin white kitchen bags, which tear very easily.   Even worse - trash put out in a CVS or Shaws type bag.   This is not only against trash regulations, but it doesn't do a good job of keeping the trash secure.

While we can put trash out as early as 5pm the night before - it's best to put your trash out early the morning of pickup.   Aside form having to look at trash all night long - a lot happens at night.   Wind can blow over bags.   Pedestrians can kick bags if they're not looking.   Squirrels, raccoons and other night critters can easily tear thin bags to get at dinner.  All of this can create a mess of even the best contained trash.   Whenever you can, putting your trash out in the morning of collection day goes a long way to keeping the streets a bit cleaner.

Recycling

Boston now has single stream recycling.  This means your paper and plastic can all go into the same container.   When they started single stream, they also made clear plastic bags the standard for recycling materials.   Such bags are available at Foodies and Shaws as well as other local retailers.   The City will also (shortly) introduce a heavier duty plastic bag for recyclables.   Please, use the clear plastic bags for all recyclables.  it might be easiest to buy a second small kitchen trash can and line it with a clear plastic bag.   On trash day just collect both bags and bring them to the curb!

While Eight Streets residents still have their blue bins, the city is phasing those out.   Paper easily blows out of the blue bins, and a stray kick from a pedestrian can knock recyclables all over the sidewalk.   Even if your bin is filled nicely, too often a neighbor or passer by will use your open bin and dump additional paper, or even trash into it, again leaving a mess.   Moving to clear plastic bags is the easiest step to make the neighborhood cleaner.

You can not put out paper recycling in a paper bag, or stuff it into an open cardboard box.  It's too easily  knocked over.   Becomes a terrible mess if it rains or is windy out.   And it's against city trash regulations.

Cardboard boxes?   Break them down and lay them flat on the ground.  Any freestanding open cardboard box will be taken away as trash.  Why?   First, it may contain styrofoam packing, which cannot be recycled.   (put the foam in a trash bag)  Second, many people use open cardboard box as a place to put their own trash bags, or the trash that's in their hand as they walk down the street. That TV or computer box could be full of household trash.   the recycling folks don't have time to lok inside every open box, so they leave them for the regular trash.    Break boxes down, and put your recycling clear bag on top of it to hold it down.

If you are recycling bottles and cans that have a deposit on them, please don't put them in your recycling bag or your trash bag.  Trash picking is a problem that won't be easy to solve.  but face it - people rip trash bags open looking for cans because they find cans.    Leave your returnables next to your recycling bag.   Someone will pick them up before long.


Enforcement

 Trash put out in improper bags, and recycling in open containers is a large contribution to the messy streets and sidewalks we have in the South End.  It's easy to blame trash pickers or wind or "it's not me, it's the guy down the block", but take a look at the streets next trash day.   You won't walk a dozen doors down before you find something put out improperly.  a Foodies bag with trash in it.   A paper bag full of newspaper that's been knocked over already.   I have 4 "don't" trash photos on the trash flier.   I didn't have to look far for that improper trash.  I got all 4 on my street in under 2 minutes.  Really - next Tuesday look at everyone's trash as you go to work.

Both the neighborhood and the city have tried education.   The city distributes fliers and booklets yearly.  We've produced fliers and delivered them door-to-door.   We've had DPW at meetings.   just last February, the city again distributed fliers door to door with trash regulations.  While a few people may change behavior, for the most part behavior doesn't change.   (And it's not just Eigth Streets - this is South End wide).   The next tool in the trash toolbox is enforcement.   Every Tuesday, starting at 7am, code enforcement will be out and about in the South End, ticketing people for improperly stored trash.   Now if you have a nice thick black trash bag that had gotten ripped open, you probably won't get a ticket.   But if your recycling bin that looks like it exploded - you'll probably get yourself a green ticket.

Click here for Boston City trash regulations web page

A List of Recycling regulations, including what you can and cannot recycle

A Clean neighborhood

If everyone put their trash out in a secure can or bag, and put those bags out on the morning of trash collection.   If everyone had their recyclables in clear plastic bags.  if everyone picked up loose trash in front of their building, regardless of where it came from.   If everyone swept in front of their homes on street cleaning day.

if we all work together and do our own little part, all the little parts would add up and give us a cleaner neighborhood.

Meet your senator

Have some time before our May meeting?   State Senator Sonia Chang-Diaz will her South End neighborhood office hours this Wednesday, May 2nd from 4-5pm at the South End Library.  This is a great way to get involved and express your opinions to your government representative.

"Senator Chang-Díaz encourages any resident or interested party to attend and discuss any community, regional, or statewide issue that may concern them."


" If you cannot attend these office hours and would like to speak with the Senator, please contact her office at 617-722-1673 or stop by her State House office, located in room 312-D on the Third Floor of the State House for assistance at any time.  Our office and staff will do the best we can to assist you in any way."