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December 19, 2005
PHOTO: THOMAS GRILLO
PHOTO: DANIEL FRIEDMAN
SOUTH END REPORT Residents Review Park Rehab Plan
Panelist Deneen Crosby presents plans for a renovation of Peters Park by Thomas Grillo Courant News Writer
Four dozen supporters of Peters Park braved single-digit temperatures last week to see the latest $750,000 plan to renovate the 3.8-square-acre green space. “Thank you for coming out on such a cold night to help us work on plans for Peters Park,” said Kenneth Crasco, chief landscape architect for the Boston Parks and Recreation Department. “We’re continuing to explore ways to improve the park and we absolutely need your help and the
benefit of your input.” The plans include a Little League field, a child’s play area, 13,000 square feet of dog recreation space, courts for basketball, handball and tennis, green space, a mural wall, a plaza with seating and the possibility of a community garden. “Some of the comments we’ve received from previous meetings centered on how the park didn’t hang together as one space,” said Deneen Crosby, principal of Crosby, Schlessinger and Continued on page 10
263-265 New Hampton Street
More Homes Slated For Northampton St. by Daniel Friedman Courant News Writer
Two developers have submitted proposals to the Boston Redevelopment Authority (BRA) to construct a six-story residential building on property at 263265 Northampton Street. The BRA-owned parcel lies on a mixed residential and industrial
IMPORTANT SOUTH END DATES Monday, December 19. South End/Lower Roxbury Police Panel meeting. District Four, Community Service Office, 650 Harrison Avenue. 6 pm. Tuesday, December 20. Filing deadline for application before the South End Landmark District Commission. Tuesday, January 3. South End Landmark District Commission hear-
ing. Boston City Hall, Room 801. 5:30 pm. ELLIS SOUTH END NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION Tuesday, January 24. Board meeting. Boston Ballet, 19 Clarendon Street. 6:30 pm. For information call 859-0627.
block between Columbus Avenue and Tremont Street. South End-based New Boston Ventures LLC has attempted to link its proposal to a larger concept for the block. The developer owns an abutting property at 255 Northampton, where it started work last month on a six-story, 25 condominium building called SoCo Lofts. By connecting the
two properties, the company says it can alter the character of the street. “We are very excited about this rare opportunity to have a major impact on the revitalization of an entire block of Northampton Street,” New Boston writes in its proposal. The company also Continued on page 22
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Soil continued from page 1 Response Act describes procedures on how to assess the risks for the use of a parcel. If contractors are not digging major foundations, none of the soil will have to go off-site. For example, an above ground parking garage requires minimal digging. In Boston, however, nearly all new garages are underground and require soil removal. “Downtown soil will typically have some contaminates that must be managed off-site,” said Lipman. Among the contaminants found in Boston’s soil include metals such as chromium, the result of improper handling and disposal from metal plating facilities, lead arsenic from leaded gas and lead paint. For non-metals, petroleumbased materials such as heating fuel that leaked from storage tanks and coal ash are common. In addition, pesticides and herbicides like DDT are sometimes found underground. Robert O’Leary, a project executive at the Lee Kennedy Company, the Boston-based firm that is building the Beatley Library at Simmons College, said it is routine for developers to hire a consultant to determine if the soil is contaminated before a shovel goes in the ground. “Most soil in Boston has some kind of contaminants so we’re used to trucking it off site to a landfill or reusing the soil on site if there’s enough land to bury it,” he said. “You just hope that you don’t find really bad soil because
December 19, 2005 then the price to remove it goes up.” The more volatile the soil, the more expensive it is to truck away. The price to remove soil ranges from $5 per ton for lightly contaminated materials to $1,000 per ton for pesticides or herbicides. Typically, fees are in the $20 to $100 per ton range, according to Lipman. Cleaner materials are shipped to facilities in Massachusetts. Following treatment, the soil is used to cap landfills or shipped to asphalt batching plants where they become pavement for future roads. Very contaminated soil is trucked to hazardous waste facilities in Maine, New York and New Jersey, where they are buried or treated and used as asphalt in the final paving stage. Most of the Big Dig’s soil was used to cap 30 of the state’s landfills. One of the biggest sites was Spectacle Island in Boston Harbor. As part of the Central Artery/Tunnel Project, the island, a former city dump, received 3.5 million cubic yards of clay, dirt and gravel that was removed for the Ted Williams Tunnel. The City of Boston and DEP devised a plan to solve an environmental nightmare by using dirt and gravel to reshape the island, over which an 18-inch clay cap was laid. Another twoto five-foot layer of topsoil was placed above the cap allowing trees to be planted on the island. “Many people don’t realize that we ended up with hundreds of acres of new parks and recreational facility statewide thanks to the Big Dig excavation,” said Lipman.
ground floor would include four artists’ lofts facing the Northampton Street. A proposal by ETC Development Corporation would instead create commercial and community space along the street. ETC says that it will work with Inquilinos Boricuas en Acción, a community group, to offer youth programs there. ETC’s proposal includes 29 condominiums. Six would be available to families earning 80 percent of the median area income, six to families earning 100 percent and six to those earning 120 percent. ETC, which previously built the Villa Victoria apartments, has hired architect CYMA 2. The firm’s mostly brick design includes a glass-covered sixth floor. The proposal would also create a two-level below-ground parking lot. ETC did not publicly disclose the financial portion of its application. Both developers say they hope to complete work in the first half of 2008. Either design will require approval through the BRA’s small project review process. Both developers will present their proposals publicly at a community meeting in January. The BRA will select a proposal following the meeting. The BRA also recently issued a request for proposals (RFP) on a seven-acre site at the intersection of Tremont and Ruggles Streets, which will be developed as part of the Roxbury Strategic Master Plan. The RFP calls for a mix of office, research, light industrial and retail use and for the development to support community and minority-owned businesses.
Northampton St. continued from page 9 states that it is “approaching other property owners on the block to identify properties to complete the renewal.” New Boston wants to use similar designs in SoCo Lofts and its proposed building. It would connect them with a shared entrance, stairway roof deck and parking lot. The 30-space lot would be in the building’s rear and would include a mechanized lift system. The proposal calls for the 263-265 Northampton building to contain 37 residential units, a mix of lofts, one-bedroom units and artists’ duplexes. Seven units would be available to buyers who earn less than 80 percent of the area’s median income. New Boston estimates the affordable units would cost as little as $183,000, with other units costing between $369,000 and $569,000 and penthouses at about $600,000. New Boston previously developed South End properties included Dover Lofts and the Homes at Peters Park. The company would work with United South End Settlements to market the affordable units. It has also hired architect Domenech, Hicks, & Krockmalnic. The building’s design includes mostly brick, but the top floor would be capped with metal. The proposal also features projecting bay windows attached to balconies and a steel cornice along the roof. The
will be considered together. That is too bad. There is much to recommend about Rosenthal’s project, and it should be evaluated on its own merits. He is the rare developer who works collaboratively with his neighbors, and the quality of his project reflects this ethic.
State Rep. Report continued from page 10 Finally, while I do not support the addition of large parking garages behind Fenway Park, my comments should not be construed as opposition to John Rosenthal’s proposed project over the Turnpike along Beacon Street and Brookline Avenue. At the moment, Rosenthal’s project is linked with the Sox’s garages, and it appears they
State Rep. Marty Walz, whose Eighth Suffolk District includes the Back Bay, Beacon Hill, West End and Cambridgeport, can be reached at 7222460 or at marty.walz@state.ma.us.
Crime continued from page 3
Dorm continued from page 7 Northeastern spokesman Fred McGrail said that CLUE’s proposal assumes Northeastern can acquire property that the school has long tried unsuccessfully to buy. The cost of the proposal would also prevent NU from building the number of beds it needs to fulfill the requirements of the MOU, he said. Vasquez argued cost is not his concern. “Universities have a responsibility to house their students on campus,” he said. “It is not the prerogative of the neighborhood to find money for them to do what they’re supposed to do.”
Bars continued from page 7 dreds of additional apartments. Smaller projects are also in the works. City officials said the new committee would assess how the added bars will affect new and existing residents in the neighborhood. “It’s a highly residential area, so we need to strike a balance,” Pokaski said. “There’s been a lot of planning for residential development [in the area],” said Nikko Mendoza,
While CLUE and other Northeastern neighbors remain opposed to any off-campus dormitories, others have suggested the task force process will likely end with a solution like the one the school outlined in October. Anticipating that Northeastern will build on Hemenway Street, members of the Symphony United Neighbors recently proposed that in exchange the school take steps to limit the dorm’s impact. “The fairest [solution] is to put some of the beds in the Fenway, some in Roxbury and some on Northeastern’s campus,” Richardson said. “I understand some people in the East Fenway don’t want any more dorms in their neighborhood, but I think that’s what is going to happen.”
neighborhood coordinator for the Fenway in the Mayor’s Office of Neighborhood Services. “The mayor wants to take a broader look at how expanding licensed premises... will impact residents in the Fenway and Kenmore area.” Bill Richardson, president of the Fenway Civic Association, a neighborhood group, said the new committee could help inform residents who lack the expertise to know how much capacity can work in a given location. “I don’t know any of the details, but I think it has potential,” he said.
BPD has scheduled nearly 4,600 hours of overtime to add walking patrols in some of the city’s shopping areas for the holidays. Police will use the
L E G A L Legal Notice Notice is hereby given that the Mayor’s Office of Consumer Affairs and Licensing has received an application for the following: An entertainment license to operate and maintain a cassette/compact disc player, 2 widescreen TV’s, instrumental music, 4 instruments, vocal music, 2 vocalists, disc jockey, and dancing by patrons. at: 48 Winter Street, Boston, MA 02108 known as: Mojito’s Lounge The applicant is: Eric Liriano Manager of record is: Vrinda Jody Pekala Mendoza Said entertainment would be operated and maintained daily until: 2:00 AM. A public hearing on this application will be held at Boston City Hall, Room 801, Wednesday, January 4, 2006, at 11:30 a.m. Anyone wishing to speak on this matter is invited to attend the hearing. Sign language interpreters are available upon request. Written comments may be made prior to the hearing by writing to Patricia A. Malone, Director Mayor’s Office of Consumer Affairs and Licensing Room #817, Boston City Hall, Boston, MA, 02201 Telephone (617) 635-4165 Fax (617) 635-4174
Appointment of Executor
overtime to put three additional officers on walking beats on Newbury and Boylston streets from 10 am to 10 pm through Sunday, January 1. In addition to more police for the holidays, Flaherty said he added four officers to help combat the Fenway B&Es.
N O T I C E S LATCH in the State of IDAHO be appointed permanent executrix, named in the will to serve without surety. IF YOU DESIRE TO OBJECT THERETO, YOU OR YOUR ATTORNEY MUST FILE A WRITTEN APPEARANCE IN SAID COURT AT BOSTON ON OR BEFORE TEN O’CLOCK IN THE FORENOON (10:00 AM) ON January 5, 2006. In addition, you must file a written affidavit of objections to the petition, stating specific facts and grounds upon which the objection is based, within thirty (30) days after the return day (or such other time as the court, on motion with notice to the petitioner may allow) in accordance with Probate Rule 16. Witness: Hon. John M. Smoot, Esquire, First Justice of said Court at Boston Date: December 2, 2005 Richard Iannella, Register of Probate Court
Appointment of Administrator Commonwealth of Massachusetts The Trial Court Probate and Family Court Department Suffolk Division Docket No. 05P2643AD1 In the Estate of Kevin D. McCormick Late of BOSTON In the County of SUFFOLK. Date of Death November 13, 2005. NOTICE OF PETITION FOR APPOINTMENT OF ADMINISTRATOR
Commonwealth of Massachusetts The Trial Court Probate and Family Court Department Suffolk Division Docket No. 05P2467EP1
To all persons interested in the above captioned estate, a petition has been presented praying that Michael A. Bass of BOSTON in the County of SUFFOLK be appointed administrator of said estate to serve without surety.
In the Estate of Victor A. Noel, Jr. AKA Victor A. Noel Late of BOSTON in the County of SUFFOLK. Date of Death November 9, 2005.
IF YOU DESIRE TO OBJECT THERETO, YOU OR YOUR ATTORNEY MUST FILE A WRITTEN APPEARANCE IN SAID COURT AT BOSTON ON OR BEFORE TEN O’CLOCK IN THE FORENOON (10:00 AM) ON January 12, 2006.
NOTICE OF PETITION FOR PROBATE OF WILL To all persons interested in the above captioned estate, a petition has been presented praying that a document purporting to be the last will of said decedent be proved and allowed, and that Diane S. Noel of POT-
Witness: Hon. John M. Smoot, Esquire, First Justice of said Court at Boston Date: December 8, 2005 Richard Iannella, Register of Probate Court