Official WalkUP Roslindale Comment Letter – Roslindale Bicycle Corral Installation

Corner of Corinth and Cohasset, Proposed Location for Bike Corral (Image Courtesy Google Maps)
Corner of Corinth and Cohasset, Proposed Location for Bike Corral (Image Courtesy Google Maps)

Yesterday, we sent an official comment letter to the City in support of a long overdue bicycle corral installation in Roslindale Square, specifically at the corner of Cohasset Street and Corinth Street in front of Fornax Bakery. We encourage anyone who also supports real bicycle infrastructure in our neighborhood to also voice their support via email to Boston’s Active Transportation Director, Stefanie Seskin.

The content of our letter is reproduced below.

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Roslindale Village Walkable Film Series – Making a Killing – Thursday, March 31, 2016 @ 5:30pm

Making a Killing
Making a Killing (Original Art by Andy Cross)

We’re now ready for the third installment in The Roslindale Village (Walkable) Film Series. Next up is Making a Killing: Guns, Greed, and the NRA. This film tells the stories of how guns, and the billions made off of them, affect the lives of everyday Americans. It features personal stories from people across the country who have been affected by gun violence, including survivors and victims’ families. The film exposes how the powerful gun companies and the NRA are resisting responsible legislation for the sake of profit – and thereby putting people in danger.

Check out the poster, original art again courtesy of Andy Cross.

The film will be shown at the Roslindale Branch of the Boston Public Library on Thursday, March 31, at 5:30pm, and continues our experiment of various venues (public and private spaces) for this trial run of the Film Series. RSVP to secure a spot and get a reminder near show time.

Questions or comments to film@nullwalkuproslindale.org.

Roslindale Village (Walkable) Film Series Profiled by RVMS

Check out this Roslindale Village Main Street interview with Kevin Tobin, film curator for the Roslindale Village (Walkable) Film Series:

How did the Roslindale Village (Walkable) Film Series come to be and what is your particular role in it?

Steve Gag — what a guy. I had hiked with him and my father last summer and had expressed interest in trying to create a Roslindale film society, or something similar. Meanwhile, Adam Kessel and Matt Lawlor of WalkUP-Roslindale, had spoken with Steve about doing some sort of “walkable” or walking-inspired series of films. Steve and Laura Gang had hosted films at their home in the past, and, being such amazing organizers and community members, put the two ideas together and started talking to groups and business owners to try and make it happen. And a fine job they have both done! My particular role has been curation (coming up with movies and networking with the filmmakers/producers for access), poster design, and I will be moderating the series. Andy Cross, an old friend, has done a great work inventing surreal sketches and art for each individual film.

We still have four Boston-themed films remaining in our pilot run; RSVP if you’re interested, and stay tuned for more news this summer.

Design Charrette for Sumner School Walkway Improvements – March 13, 2016 at 2pm, Roslindale House

Sumner Walkway
Sumner Walkway

Our good friends and allies at Roslindale Wants to Play have partnered with the Charles Sumner School’s Parent Council to redesign the school’s rear walkway, which provides access to the school from Cummins Highway. This area has the potential to be a vibrant, fun, and educational space that better connects the Sumner School (between Basile Street and Cummins Highway) to the Roslindale community. To this end, they are hosting a design charrette[1]
on March 13, 2016 from 2:00 – 3:30 PM at Roslindale House, 120 Poplar Street. At the meeting, designers will look for ideas for the best play elements for this space and lead the group through fun design exercises aimed at all ages. Children are encouraged to attend! Facebook users can RSVP here.

WalkUP Roslindale encourages everyone to attend this event to provide ideas and feedback and also demonstrate support for community efforts to improve walkable spaces.

Footnotes    (↵ returns to text)

  1. A “charrette” is a meeting for community stakeholders to come together to imagine new solutions and resolve any conflicts. This can be one of the most powerful and effective techniques for launching walkability improvements.

Taft Hill Project Approved by Zoning Board of Appeal

20 Taft Hill Rendering
20 Taft Hill Rendering
We’ve discussed the proposed Taft Hill development several times here and we support the project. This afternoon, the proposal, which requires numerous zoning variances (among others, the project provides 1.0 rather than the required 2.0 parking spaces per unit), was heard by the Boston Zoning Board of Appeal and unanimously approved. Several WalkUP Roslindale members spoke in favor of the project, as did representatives from the offices of the Mayor, City Councillor Michelle Wu, and City Councillor Tim McCarthy. No one at the hearing opposed the project. We expect the developer to break ground this spring.

Report of another neighbor on foot struck by a car in Roslindale

This time at Belgrade Avenue and Walworth Street (near Fallon Field), this morning around 7 am. Only report so far is on Keep Roslindale Quirky’s Facebook page (reproduced below for those without access). The report indicates that an ambulance was on the scene. More needs to be done to put an end to this wave of car on walker crashes. The city’s Vision Zero ramp up this spring can’t come soon enough.

Facebook Rozzie Crash Announcement

We don’t yet know exactly which corner the crash occurred or any other circumstances, although one after-the-fact eye witness reports it may have been near the auto body shop on the back right corner in the image below. Here’s the general area, which, unlike several other recent pedestrian crashes, at least has crosswalks and signals albeit poorly designed (and hence dangerous) due to the odd angles of the crossings:

Belgrade and Walworth Street

 

 

Roslindale Village Walkable Film Series – The Friends of Eddie Coyle – Thursday, March 17, 2016 @ 6:30pm

Eddie Coyle Film Logo
Friends of Eddie Coyle (Original Art by Andy Cross)

We’re now ready for the next installment in The Roslindale Village (Walkable) Film Series. Next up is The Friends of Eddie Coyle,  a classic Boston gangster film starring Robert Mitchum and based on a novel by George V. Higgins. The movie was shot throughout the Boston area, including in Dedham, Cambridge, Milton, Quincy, Sharon, Somerville, Malden, and Weymouth.

Check out the poster, original art again courtesy of Andy Cross.

The free screening will be at a private residence (details provided upon RSVP) on Thursday, March 17, at 6:30pm. Runtime is about an hour forty minutes.

This is a very small screening facility; if all spaces fill up, check back for any cancellations. Questions or comments to film@nullwalkuproslindale.org.

Arboretum Gateway Path Visioning Session March 30, 2016 at 6:30pm

Momentum is growing for the Arboretum Gateway Path, which would create a new entrance to the Arboretum near the Roslindale Square Commuter Rail station, creating access to the park right from the business district (and avoiding the steep incline for the existing entrances), and also providing a shorter “straight shot” multi-use path from Roslindale Square to Forest Hills. To learn more and contribute your own ideas, please join us for a community visioning workshop organized by our community partners at Tufts University6:30pm, Wednesday, March 30th at the Roslindale Community Center (6 Cummins Highway). RSVP and more details here.

Arboretum Gateway Path Alternatives
Arboretum Gateway Path Alternatives

Update 3/7/16 – hot off the presses, check out these posters for this event:

Traffic Calming on American Legion Highway in the News

2016-02-24 Roslindale Bulletin Neighbors say comments needed to calm trafficKudos to the Mount Hope Mount Canterbury Neighborhood Association, Rick Yoder, Lisa Beatman, and the Roslindale Bulletin (especially Jeff Sullivan) for keeping the need for traffic calming in Eastern Roslindale, particularly along American Legion Highway, on the front burner. Check out the latest piece in the Bulletin, emphasizing the neighborhood group’s efforts to catalog pedestrian-safety issues and get “on the map” for Vision Zero.