CSHCA Meeting Minutes – October 3, 2022

President: Elizabeth Doyle
Vice-President and host: Eileen Boyle
Minutes: Doreen Miller
# in attendance: 40

Police Report (Officer Keamy)

  • 9/30 18 Chase Street, house break in between 7:30-9:30 PM, dark-skinned male in mask and black and white Nike’s, caught on neighbor’s video, broke a window, climbed in and began piling things on the porch. Scared off.
  • 9/27 Victoria Street – bikes stolen from shed
  • 9/30 Mayfield Street – bikes stolen from shed
  • 10/3 5:10 PM disabled care at the 1080 Dorchester Ave intersection, 43 y.o. male from Braintree with three warrants out for his arrest from Suffolk Court.
  • Last week, a break in on Savin Hill Lane, around 4:30 PM, homeless white male with dark hair entered home to get water. Was confronted by one of the children and he left. Neighbors have pictures of him in their yards.
  • The recent Open Streets festival – no incidents.
  • For Halloween
    • 10-15 extra officers will be on duty.
    • If anyone has candy to donate, police can stop by to pick it up to be distributed. Let them know.
  • Christmas
    • The Christmas party for 400-500 kids will run depending on the covid stats.
    • The police help 80-90 families in need with toys.

Committee Updates

  • Events Committee (Heidi Moesinger)
    • 10/8 Food Tour from Savin Hill to Fields Corner, 11 AM to 2 PM, 5 restaurants.
      • Co-hosted by CSHCA and Little Saigon.
      • Tickets $50 each to go towards paying for the food. Tickets available via Eventbrite. Limit of 15 total.
      • Budget request of $20 to cover printing of the postcard memorabilia.
    • 10/16 Music in the Park
      • 1-5 PM, 7 musicians: bands, guitar soloists, opera singer, Savin Hillbillies
      • Books and Bulbs table – free books, various bulbs for sale by the Beautification Committee
      • Pantry Pizza is donating 6 pizzas for the musicians.
      • Thanks to Maureen and Briege for offering to supply the electricity.
      • Budget request of $100 for hot cups, hot cocoa packets, snacks, mic covers, printing of flyers.
    • 10/29 Halloween Parade, 3:30 PM at McConnell Park to parade down to Savin Hill Park.
      • Organized by Brianne Gore
      • Activities include 2 ponies, bubble man, Dot Art, candy, toys, snacks…
      • Donation request of $250 to help cover expenses
    • 12/14 The Second Annual Savin Hill Christmas Caroling
      • Wednesday at 5:30 PM
      • Budget request of $400 to cover printing of the carol booklets, hot cocoa, snacks, Santa suit ($100), candles, glow sticks and glowing necklaces for safety, jingle bells, etc.
    • Mayor’s Trolley Tour, Saturday November 26
      • George Huynh says the mayor is okay with McConnell Park.
      • We need to designate a local tree to put lights on.
      • Logistics with gift bags, etc. need to be worked out.
      • More details to follow
  • Outreach and Engagement Committee (Doreen Miller)
    • We are still working on the merchant member campaign, postcards for which should be printed shortly.
    • We are in need of people to help out with this effort. Join the committee and/or come to the next meeting Monday, October 17 at 7 PM. The Zoom link can be found on the CSHCA website calendar.
  • Safety Committee (Dianne Lescinskas)
    • Walgreen’s update
      • The Problem Property task force along with Councilor Baker’s office and the Mayor is involved. This includes the Fire Department, Police, Health and Human Services, and Sanitation Department.
      • Problems with vagrancy, homeless people urinating and defecating on the property.
      • Walgreen’s has been less than responsive.
      • If you see something, report to 311, to build a paper trail.
      • If you witness a crime, call 911.
    • Safe Access to our parks
      • Boston Transportation has been contacted to push for safety signs and crosswalks to Savin Hill Park and to Patten’s Cove.
      • Not having a sidewalk with a curbstone seems to be a problem for them.
    • Sidewalk by The Daily
      • James Baker has been trying to get a proper sidewalk in front of his store.
      • The city put in asphalt and never finished the job correctly with cement.
      • It is uneven and unsafe.
  • Community Benefits Committee (Don Walsh)
    • Approximately $100 million is available.
    • Four CSHCA members on the CAC (Citizen’s Advisory Committee) feel frustrated that they are not being heard.
    • There is an upcoming meeting of the CAC and more updates will be made available after the meeting.
  • Beautification Committee (Elizabeth Doyle)
    • 10/16 Bulbs sale in conjunction with the Music in the Park Event.
    • We will need help bagging the bulbs for sale once they arrive.
    • 10/30 City bulb planting – come help.
      • Ideas for locations: Columbia Road, The T Station, tree pits, Savin Hill wildlife garden, along Malibu beach, other ideas?
  • DAVC Dorchester Ave Vision Committee (Michael Keamy)
    • The committee met last week.
    • Mike has had good conversations with the architects and project managers of the many Dorchester Ave projects.
    • They completed a tree survey of Dorchester Ave that can be used by city’s new urban forestry division.
    • Eight trees were planted on Dorchester Ave. Thanks too Speak for the Trees for watering them all summer.
    • Approached Boston Transportation for improved sidewalks.
    • The JFK/Massachusetts transportation plan will include Dorchester Avenue.
    • The Boys’ and Girls’ Club is working with a landscape designer to improve their frontage. New wooden planters have been installed with more improvements to come.
    • This Friday, Oct. 7, 2 PM, Mike is meeting with Jacob Wessel, the Public Relations Manager, to do a walk-through of Dorchester Ave for improvement ideas. Feel free to join.
    • Thomas McDonough is also getting involved with the new hire for the Office of Equity and Inclusion to generate more ideas for improvement projects.
    • Concerns were raised about the eyesore at 1231 Dorchester Ave. There have been efforts to purchase that propert for years.
  • By-Laws Committee (Heidi Moesinger)
    • The updates are finished and will be presented to the E-board this month.
    • Once approved, they will be shared with the general membership for a discussion in November and a vote in December.
  • Planning Committee (Kristine Hoag)
    • 1121 Dorchester Ave request for a liquor license transfer – the committee supports. No one was in attendance to present, so no vote was taken.
    • 6 Pleasant Street curb cut for parking – the committee supports. No one was in attendance to present, so no vote was taken.
    • 349 Savin Hill Avenue request to renovate the 2nd floor and add dormers to the third floor to increase floor space by 490 square feet. Slides were shared by the homeowner, who intends to live on the top two floors and rent out the first floor. The home will remain a two family.
      • One direct abutter spoke in opposition due to density issues and a change of the building’s character and appearance.
      • One abutter spoke in favor.
      • The planning committee recommends a vote to support the project.
    • 9 Sydney Street’s proposal to raze the 2-family home and put up a building with multiple units was opposed. The project managers reached out to the committee to return and see what might be acceptable by the neighbors.
    • 35-75 Morrissey Boulevard, Centre Court presentation by Eric Plotkin
      • Eric presented the Master Plan submitted to the BPDA.
        • This is a general plan for zoning, parks, building heights and uses, roadways, etc. to align with the original Master Plan developed by CSHCA.
        • There will be 7 buildings: 4 office/science buildings, 3 residential.
        • Proposed are (3) 9-story, (2) ten-story buildings, (1) 18-story, and (1) 20-story building.
      • The first phase to be built out are the buildings and the Community Park space next to Southline.
      • A new supermarket will be incorporated into the new buildings, so that Star Market can remain operational throughout.
      • There will be 4 dedicated parks, a main street with bike lanes that will run parallel to Morrissey Blvd. down the middle of the project.
      • Building E will include community space and job training.
      • Open space is 4.5 acres or about 50% of the development, which includes 1.27 acres of actual green space.
      • The review process will begin soon with public meetings to continue the dialogue.
      • The timeline is approximately as follows:
        • Submission and approval of the PDA Master Plan could take several months.
        • Project review and approval before construction will take several more months.
        • Phase I of the development could begin ASAP once approved.
      • Questions and Concerns from the members
        • With life sciences and lab spaces outpacing demand, do the developers have other options?
        • The park in the back near the Expressway is secluded and would attract drug users and the homeless. It is also loud along the X-way. It was suggested to move it the front along the boulevard.
        • How much parking would be made available for the supermarket? Eric did not have those numbers at hand. However, all parking will be underground for all buildings.
        • Several members noted preferences for taller buildings to be set next to the Expressway with shorter buildings along the boulevard.
        • One member is concerned about the echo effect of the highway noise off the tall buildings. Studies will be conducted.
        • Some were concerned about mixing residents with labs and the toxic fumes and waste generated there.
        • Some questioned the need for a main street as all buildings are accessible from the boulevard via side streets. Could it be more of a pedestrian strip?
        • Don Walsh urged the planners to sit down with the other project managers in the area to develop a comprehensive plan to address infrastructure and other impact issues.
        • Elizabeth Doyle recommended that Eric stay in communication with CSHCA and the CAC regarding community benefits to come to an agreement on how best to use that money.
        • As the design unfolds, someone suggested having neighborhood charettes to gather community input.
        • There was the concern about a foot path and linkage to the neighborhood on the other side of the expressway. The T access is not very accommodating or dependable.
        • What will prevent this community from becoming an island as there is no access from the West, south and north.
  • The Comfort Inn/Pine Street, 900 Morrissey Boulevard meeting update (Eileen Boyle)
    • About 500 were in attendance.
    • The proposal calls for 100-bed transitional housing for older homeless people (50+)with 24/7 staffing.
    • The majority in attendance seemed to be opposed due to safety issues and nearby schools.
    • Others feel that Dorchester/Roxbury/Mattapan are being dumped on to absorb these problems coming from state-wide. Other city areas and other towns need to step up to the plate. The city needs a better plan.
    • If this gets approved and there are future problems, what are our recourses? This was not addressed at the meeting.
    • One resident recommend we read through the well-thought-out plan and think it through. Pine Street Inn is well-run.
    • Another meeting is being planned for late October. Once we have the details, they will be shared with the membership.
    • Concerning politicians: “It’s the number of people who support a position that carries the day.” – Don Walsh

Voted on this evening:

  • $20 for the Food Tour event: 14 supported/2 opposed/0 abstained
  • $100 for the Music in the Park event: 15 supported/ 0 opposed/ 0 abstained/ 2 invalid
  • $250 for the Halloween Parade – 10 supported/0 opposed/1 abstained
  • $400 for the Caroling in December – 13 supported/3 opposed/ 0 abstained/ 2 invalid
  • Project proposal for 349 Savin Hill Avenue – 19 supported/3 opposed/1 abstained
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