We hope many of you will agree with some if not all of the points made below. Either way, however, we’d love to hear your feedback in the comments.
![20 Taft Hill Rendering](https://i0.wp.com/walkuproslindale.org/weblog/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/20-Taft-Hill.png?resize=542%2C341&ssl=1)
We hope many of you will agree with some if not all of the points made below. Either way, however, we’d love to hear your feedback in the comments.
Although Centre Street brings thousands of cars daily right through Roslindale, no meeting has focused on or been held in Roslindale — until now. Thanks especially to the efforts of neighbor Carter Wilkie, our representatives in the state legislature have arranged for a fourth public meeting, focused especially on the intersection of Centre and Walter Streets, which has had the majority of crashes in recent years — 46 crashes over a three year period! Traffic engineers have determined this intersection violates state safety standards, but funding for improvements will be hard to secure unless people speak up. Previous meetings about this corridor have demonstrated a lack of care for and attention to pedestrians and bicyclists–it’s important that the planned improvements serve everyone, not just those who might be passing through in a motorized vehicle.
We understand (at least) Sen. Rush, Rep. Sánchez, and Rep. Coppinger will all be present at the meeting, so this is an excellent opportunity to be heard on the importance of pedestrian- and bike-friendly infrastructure in one of the worst-designed parts of our neighborhood. We’ll add to this post if we receive confirmation about attendance from any other elected officials. We should turn out in force and advocate for walkability!
Please spread the word (retweet or like/share this announcement on Facebook). Details below:
Tuesday November 10, 2015 6:30 p.m. – 8:30 p.m.
St. Nectarios Church Hall
39 Belgrade Ave. (and Robert Street)
Roslindale
More background:
We will be submitting a comment letter on behalf of the WalkUP Roslindale steering group tomorrow (most likely).
THAT SAID, everyone here is encouraged to submit their own comment letters/emails before the official November 7 comment period deadline. Public meeting presence and participation count to set the tone about a particular process, but it’s the written comments that really get reviewed and counted in the formal consideration. Take a little bit of time and send in an email with your comments and expression of support (if applicable) to edward.mcguire@nullboston.gov, the BRA project manager for the project. And feel free to let us know when you’ve submitted and even a summary of what you said in the comments to this post. Thanks!!!
Following up on our entreaty to Get Out and Vote to show political engagement, we’re delighted to report that District 5 (the district with the greatest coverage of Roslindale) had the highest number of total votes for district councilor (7,551) in the city, followed closely by District 4, which also covers part of Roslindale, with a total of 7,026 votes for the district councilor position. And to finish out the pack, District 6, which also includes several Roslindale precincts, had the third-greatest number of voters (6,808) for district councilor–for an uncontested seat! Voter turnout in many Roslindale precincts was at or well above 20% — a striking contrast with other parts of the city, e.g., Allston/Brighton, for which the majority of precincts had single-digit percentage turnout, some as low as nearly 1%.
Great job to everyone for doing their civic duty. Now let’s take this level of activation and visibility to continue to demand a more walkable neighborhood.
Congratulations are also due to yesterday’s winners, including Roslindale resident Michelle Wu who finished a strong second in the city-wide at-large contest, District 5 Councilor Tim McCarthy who bested his opponent by a nearly 2:1 margin, District 4 Councilor-Elect and first time candidate Andrea Campbell who likewise had a substantial margin over her incumbent opponent, District 6 Councilor Matt O’Malley who ran unopposed, as well as the other three winners in the at-large race: Ayanna Pressley, Michael Flaherty, and Annissa Essabi George.
Relevant links:
This is a reminder that tomorrow (Tuesday, Nov. 3, 2015) is election day in Boston. You can find your polling location here. Of particular interest to this group should be the city-wide at-large election (five candidates vying for four seats), District 4 (Dorchester/Mattapan/Roslindale – two candidates running for one seat), and District 5 (Roslindale/Hyde Park – two candidates running for one seat). Complete list of candidates here.
This election cycle was lower profile than the last few since only City Councilors are up for election (no higher offices), and many of those seats are uncontested. This does not mean you should just skip the vote, however — to the contrary!
First, a lower visibility election means your vote counts more. The District and At-Large seats could easily be decided on the basis of hundreds, dozens, or even single votes. Most Roslindale residents live in a contested district (D4 or D5), plus the disputed city-wide slots, and thus there is a real race that will be resolved tomorrow.
Second, these offices matter. The impacts of decisions at the federal or even state level on our daily lives are typically dilute. A city councilor can impact what happens right on our streets and around our neighborhoods–playgrounds, sidewalks and crosswalks, paths, stop lights, snow removal, community policing, trash and recycling collection, development and transportation policy, etc. We need competent and responsive people serving; if not, our quality of life will suffer more than if we elect a subpar United States Senator.
Third, neighborhood voter turnout is critical to getting attention from whoever wins. It is basic logic that elected officials listen best to those who vote, and will spend the most time, effort, and political capital addressing the needs of those in voter-rich areas. For this reason, it may matter less whom you vote for than that you vote at all. Even if you live in an uncontested district, you should turn up and be counted for this important reason.
Fourth, voting is a social event. Meet your neighbors! In fact, meet the people you’re voting for (and against). This is the official opportunity to connect with other engaged citizens and be part of the process.
WalkUP Roslindale doesn’t endorse candidates. We will note that we have met with a variety of candidates (both serving and hoping to serve) and thus far the reception has been all positive. The most useful thing you can do tomorrow to help bring continued attention and more walkability to Roslindale is cast your ballot.
We’d also ask that you retweet and share/like this entry on Facebook once you’ve voted (or even if you plan to vote).
A group of citizens have been acting to protect and enhance the green space corridor in the American Legion Parkway area of Roslindale. Thus far, the response from the community and elected leaders has been overwhelmingly positive. But to really appreciate the area’s potential, you need to see it firsthand. Please join us for a brisk sunny bicycle tour, tomorrow morning (Sunday, October 18) at 8am, starting at the Stop-n-Shop Plaza (Walgreen’s end) on American Legion Highway near Hyde Park Ave. Complete details in this PDF flyer; meeting point pictured below. RSVP or questions to Laura Smeaton or Lisa Beatman.
Everyone is encouraged to attend the upcoming community meeting on the proposed new development at 20 Taft Hill Park, next to the municipal parking lot just north of the Square. Per the BRA, which will be hosting the meeting, essential details are as follows:
Date: Wednesday, October 21, 2015
Time: 6:30 to 8:00 pm
Location: Roslindale Community Center, corner of Washington and Cummins
Information on the proposal as submitted by the developer can be found on the BRA’s website HERE.
Basic project numbers shown there are as follows:
Five things to consider/watch for in the meeting and in discussions over this project:
A top WalkUP Roslindale initiative is a new multi-modal “gateway path” into the Arnold Arboretum directly from Roslindale Square. An introduction to our vision is below; you can also print this PDF flyer as a quick introduction to the project.
The Arnold Arboretum is not only Roslindale’s greatest park, but among the most beautiful urban open spaces anywhere. In 1880 Frederick Law Olmsted wrote: “On (these) acres much the best arboretum in the world can be formed.” Today, some of Olmsted’s “emerald necklace” plan has been realized, but much remains to be done.
We envision a new entrance to the Arboretum close to Roslindale Square, to make the park more visible and accessible to residents and visitors. The Rozzie Gateway Path would start adjacent to the commuter rail platform, and continue at grade into the park, allowing access to the open space without the need to surmount the large hill that lead to the Mendum Street gate.
The Path will continue straight parallel to the commuter rail tracks toward Bussey Street, and then connect up with the Bussey Brook Meadow path and on to Forest Hills.
Key Benefits
Discussion of the full route is still very much open. The crossing at South Street and Bussey presents the biggest challenge, although not an insurmountable one. For the penultimate section on the north side of South/Bussey, the route could proceed on either side of South Street subject to consideration Boston Water and Sewer Commission and flood-plain issues. With these caveats, below is one of the paths we are considering:
We have made significant progress in moving from idea to reality; if you’d like to learn more, please join our email list or contact us directly. We’d love to hear your suggestions or other feedback!
WalkUP Roslindale strongly supports increased and improved open space, green space, and play space in the neighborhood (ideally all three together!). Indeed, one key benefit of moderately higher-capacity housing should be to allow more space to be left over, greater more political clout, and a more stable tax base to provide enhance shared recreational space for all of us. To that end, we encourage community members to attend an upcoming meeting to about improvements to the Healy Playground (off of Florence Street).
The meeting will be Monday, October 19, 2015, 6:30pm-8pm, at the Roslindale Community Center at 6 Cummins Highway. The Parks Department is interested in what the community has to contribute to the
design process. Following a brief presentation, community members will be able to offer
input regarding the material presented and the design process.
Spread the word, and see you there!
Election day is November 3, 2015. There are only a few contested races this time around; five candidates for the four “at-large” city council positions, as well as two candidates running for for District 5, which covers much of Roslindale, and District 4, which touches on a corner of the neighborhood. Even though there is no high visibility office up for grabs (e.g. Mayor, Governor, President), it’s absolutely crucial that we all get out and vote — elected people pay close attention to which areas vote in the highest numbers, so just getting to the polls at all helps our neighborhood get the attention it needs from the city. Moreover, election season is the perfect time to bring top priority concerns to candidate’s attention–such as our goal to make Roslindale the most walkable neighborhood in Boston.
Against that background, Progressive WRox/Roz is hosting a city council election forum next Wednesday, October 14, 6:45pm, at the Roslindale Community Center. Voters can meet and hear from the five candidates running for City Council At-Large (Annissa Essaibi George, Michael Flaherty, Stephen Murphy, Ayanna Pressley, and Michelle Wu), the contenders for District 4 (Andrea Campbell and Charles Yancey, TBD), and the candidates for District 5 (Tim McCarthy and Jean-Claude Sanon). District 6 Councilor Matt O’Malley will also participate, although he is running unopposed. The evening will include mingling with candidates at the start and end, statements from the candidates, and Q&A. The evnet is co-sponsored by a number of Roslindale and West Roxbury neighborhood organizations and local media.
Please show up to this forum and make sure these candidates know that walkability is a top concern in our neighborhood!