CSHCA Meeting Minutes – March 6, 2023

President and Host: Elizabeth Doyle
Vice-President: Eileen Boyle
Minutes: Doreen Miller
Number in attendance on Zoom – 33; in person – 19
Special Guests: Katie Zazzera (MBTA), Ami Bennitt (Artstayhere Coalition), and Matt McArthur (The Record Company)

Katie Zazzera, MBTA, Updates on Bridge Work

  • The MBTA has been meeting with local reps regarding bridge work and safety issues.
  • Two bridges currently being worked on are
    • The Dorchester Avenue bridge over the train tracks
      • This has high priority and is fully funded.
      • The Van Hillern Street retaining wall was structurally compromised and is currently being reinforced and repaired.
      • Before they can demolish the bridge, they need to build a temporary utility bridge.
      • The goal is to demolish the bridge by late spring or if circumstances are unfavorable in the fall and to reopen it at the end of the year. Work will be done on weekends.
      • If the bridge is not demolished by late spring, they will look into reopening it to pedestrian traffic. There are no guarantees.
    • The Savin Hill Avenue bridge
      • Critical repairs are needed.
      • They hope interim repairs will allow them to reopen the sidewalk on the south side leading to the train station sometime in the Spring.
      • The major rehab/replacement will take about 3-5 years.
      • When asked if they could install a temporary protected pedestrian path on the southside as they did on the northside, they claimed they would have to remove one of the planters to do so.
      • Rosemary Powers, president of Cristo Rey High School, voiced concern over the serious safety issues for pedestrians and her students.
        • She has seen people tripping on the black grates on the northside.
        • People walk in the street on the southside of the bridge putting their lives in jeopardy.
        • She emphasized that we need safety measures in place now, not in a few months from now.
        • She expressed frustration that Dorchester residents are generally neglected, put last, and do not get the same type of priority treatment and respect that other communities get. It is a battle we have been waging for years.
      • Questions and Concerns included:
        • One resident has a problem with the bidding process. Accepting the lowest bid only assures poor quality workmanship leading to higher costs in maintenance and repairs down the line.
        • Has the MBTA considered using ABC (Accelerated Bridge Construction) where the replacement bridge is built off site? Katie will get back to us as for the reasoning for building on site.
        • The Savin Hill Station is in disrepair with dangerous, disintegrating stairways that are currently being shored up with wood.
        • One member suggested that the MBTA meet with Rep. Dan Hunt to address safety issues and come to a decision as to how best to make the area safe for pedestrians.
      • The JFK Station
        • The Sydney Street stairway is open and is not slated to be closed.
        • The Columbia Road entrance has now reopened.

The Election Committee volunteer members are

  • Rosemary Powers
  • Mike Szkolka
  • Dianne Lescinskas

Ami Bennitt and Matt McArthur – ARTSTAYSHERE Coalition

  • The Artstayshere Coalition advocates for artists and works to prevent displacement.
  • Center Court is offering the use of the Beasley Media building at 55 Morrissey Boulevard to Artstayshere Coalition for the next two years to help out artists and musicians who have been displaced due to development in other parts of the city.
  • Matt McArthur from The Record Company reported that the 88 rooms opened for rental last Friday, March 3, at noon.
  • These rooms are rented on a monthly basis with artists and musicians sharing space.
  • They are working with Newmarket in providing lots of building security. The building closes every day from 2 AM – 8 AM.
  • They are interested in connecting artists with each other and with community groups. It was suggested that the CSHCA Events Committee could work with artists/musicians there for events that run in the summer such as the Community Picnic at Patten’s Cove. Notices for events such as this could be posted on their internal bulletin board.
  • Their contact email is 55@therecordco.org

WBUR contact for Flooding Impacts on Local Residents

Katelyn Harrop is a producer from WBUR and is working on a story regarding the impact of flooding on Boston’s residential neighborhoods. If you or anyone you know (residents or business owners) have been impacted by flooding on Morrissey Blvd., please contact Katelyn by phone: 971-237-4689.

One Boston Day (Des Rohan)

  • One Boston Day honors those forever impacted on April 15, 2013. The city has put out a call to action for community-based organizations to come together for volunteers events and acts of kindness.
  • Des will fill out the application. Perhaps we can create two groups to cover different areas.
  • Ideas include
    • The clean-up of
      • Dorchester Avenue and Sydney streets.
      • The Malibu and Savin Hill Beach areas and by the yacht club.
    • Beautification efforts and plantings.
    • Graffiti removal.

Update on the ISD Walk-Thru on 2/13/23 (Eileen Boyle)

  • Eileen along with Bill Walczak met with 7 members from ISD to assess problems from Belfort Street to Savin Hill Avenue.
  • Numbers 5 and 7 St. Williams Street have evidence of multiple rat borrows in their yards. These homes are directly behind Ba Le Restaurant on Dorchester Avenue, which has a dumpster that is too small and not secured. ISD will be issuing fines to the restaurant.
  • They looked at the abandoned property at the corner of Elton Street and Dorchester Avenue.
  • ISD is aware of the situation at Walgreens.
  • The empty lot on the corner of Pearl Street and Dorchester Avenue is a mess. Eileen will draft an official letter and present it to the E-board for approval to request that the city purchase the lot and create a much needed municipal parking lot.
  • A member noted that the lot on the corner of Savin Hill Avenue and Sagamore Street is trashy. Eileen will bring this to the attention of ISD.
  • Eileen will follow up with ISD to see what steps are being taken to fix these problem properties.

 Committee Reports

  • Events Committee (Michelle Miller)
    • Members are encouraged to fill out the Events Survey posted on the CSHCA website and on Facebook.
    • She highlighted the return of the Community Picnic at Patten’s Cove and the possibility of working with The Record Company musicians and artists at the Beasley Media building.
    • The Easter Egg Hunt, Saturday, April 1, 3:30 PM was presented by Brianna Gore.
      • They need to purchase 4,000 eggs, candy, trinkets, etc. and will need volunteer help in placing them throughout the park.
      • Artists and activities include
        • Jim the Bubble Man
        • A photo booth run by Derek and his wife.
        • 2 Easter Bunnies – one in the photo booth and one walking around.
        • DOT ART sponsored by UMass Boston
        • Keytar Bear
      • A motion was made, and a vote was taken to donate $250 to fund this event.
        • In-person votes unanimous – 18 in support.
        • Zoom attendee votes also unanimous – 12 in support.
  •  Safety Committee (Jennifer Deabler)
    • She thanked Katie from the MBTA on the bridgework updates.
    • Walgreens has been responsive with weekly communication and timely updates on measures being taken. Overall, the interaction with Walgreens has turned positive.
  • Community Benefits Committee (Elizabeth Doyle on behalf of Don Walsh)
    • This committee continues to advocate for comprehensive planning for our area and to outline how the community benefits money should be spent.
    • The next meeting is Wednesday, 3/22, 7 PM at the Savin Hill Yacht Club on Morrissey.
  • Beautification Committee (Elizabeth Doyle)
    • The next meeting will be mid to late April to plan for the plant sale in late May/early June.
    • Over email they will decide if they will have a presence at the Easter Egg Hunt on April 1.
  • Planning Committee (Kristine Hoag)
    • 37 Pearl Street
      • They had an abutters’ meeting at which only 2 abutters attended.
      • People seemed satisfied that the main house was being maintained and the addition scaled back somewhat.
      • There will be a vote on this proposal at the Planning Committee meeting next week.
    • 9 Sydney Street
      • Both the Planning Committee and General Membership voted nearly unanimously to oppose this project proposal.
      • Elizabeth Doyle presented our reasons for opposition at the ZBA meeting.
      • The ZBA didn’t even ask her any questions and simply voted unanimously to approve this project.
      • The mayor’s office declined to comment, deferring judgement to the ZBA.
      • Once again, strong community opposition was ignored. Members feel disheartened at this very undemocratic process.
    • Dorchester Bay City
      • The developers presented the most recent updates and changes to their master plan for the point, which include:
        • An increase in on-site affordable housing to 20% of total.
        • A 37.5% increase in commitment to off-site transportation infrastructure.A 10% reduced density on the Bayside parcel.
        • A 32.4% increase in open space and public realm by nearly 3 acres with the creation of Dorchester Green.
        • A 76.9% increase in the Community Benefits Fund.
        • A 60% increase in commitment to civic and cultural spaces to 20,000 SF.
        • A commitment to climate resiliency that includes:
          • Raising the Harborwalk at Harborpoint
          • A raised ridge from Harbor Point to Moakley Park
          • Raising the project site to 21.5 feetCreating a new storm water management system
        • Their vision for re-imagining K-Circle by eliminating the rotary and the overpass bringing it down to street level and creating a major intersection.
          • The off ramp of I-93 northbound, from which you can presently only turn right, will need to be reconfigured to allow a left turn to get to Dorchester Avenue.
      • Questions included
        • Can some of the project material delivery be done via waterway? The open bay and tidal changes make this unfeasible. They will work to mitigate impact on the surrounding neighborhoods.
        • Will there be fast e-chargers for EVs? 25% of the planned parking spaces will be EV equipped.
        • What about crosswalks for Dorchester Ave, Columbia Road, etc? These improvements are also being taken into consideration.
        • What is the timeline going forward?
          • Public meetings have ended although there may be one more if needed.
          • The goal is to get BPDA approval for the master plan this summer, but with changes for the BDA and Article 80 being pushed by the major this may take longer.
          • The updated plans were submitted last week.
          • Once the master plan is approved, plans for the individual buildings come back to the public for review and approval via the BCDC process.
          • The developers expect full build out to take about 15 years.
      • The Planning Committee has scheduled two meetings to further discuss the DBC master plan with community members.
        • Tuesday, March 7, 7 PM on Zoom.
        • Monday, March 13, 7 PM in person at the Savin Hill Yacht Club on Morrissey.
        • If you are unable to attend either meeting, you can email your comments to Kristine Hoag: kristinehoag@comcast.net

 Other Business

Des Rohan pointed out that over half the street lights at K-Circle are not working with two street lamps completely downed.  Rep. Dan Hunt should put in a request to get the lighting in that area fixed.

Next month’s meeting will be on Monday, 4/3/23 at 7 PM.

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