Mark Harvey was the guest of honor at JazzBoston’s seventh anniversary celebration, which drew 150 denizens of the Greater Boston jazz scene to Ryles Jazz Club on Tuesday night, Jan. 29. Dr. Harvey, who is also the founder and director of the Aardvark Jazz Orchestra, now in its 40th year, and a descendant of...
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Thank You, Rep. Walz
We in the 8th Suffolk District have been the recipients of excellent representation in the State House of Representatives. Rep. Marty Walz, who will be leaving in February, and her predecessor, Rep. Paul Demakis, both have given extraordinary service to their constituents. For too many political office seekers, being in the State Senate or...
Police Briefs 02-05-2013
Jan. 21 82 Newbury St. – Investigate Person 119 Newbury St. – Larceny, Shoplifting, $200 & Over Newbury Street – Property – Lost Jan. 22 607 Boylston St. – Larceny, Other, $50 to $199 236 Clarendon St. – Larceny, Non-Accessory from Vehicle, $200 & Over 11 Arlington St. – Larceny, Non-Accessory from Vehicle, $200...
Boston in the Gilded Age: Mapping Public Places
The current exhibition at the Boston Public Library’s Norman B. Leventhal Map Center focuses on Boston’s evolving street pattern and emerging park system in the late 19th century. Maps and other graphics trace the development of the Boston Common, Public Garden, Frederick Law Olmsted’s Emerald Necklace, and the development of Copley Square.
Exhibition on Boston Athenaeum’s Key Role in Founding MFA Opens February 13
On March 10, 1870, the trustees of the newly incorporated Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, met for the first time. Boston’s first art museum had no building, no collection, and very little in the way of financial resources. Where would the museum be? How would it be organized and staffed? Who would pay the...
BPS Looking at Three Options for School Choice
Last Wednesday the Boston Public School Department (BPS) presented the External Advisory Committee (EAC) on School Choice’s results for an improved school choice system. Beacon Hill children would be first grouped in the schools that are in the North End and Charlestown. At the meeting members of the EAC said they will be looking...
The Way of the Future
In the days before Proposition 2 ½ crippled local cities and towns, the thought of having private funds being raised to maintain and improve public recreational spaces would have been considered ludicrous. However as the expression goes: that was then and this is now. What brings this to mind is the recent positive local...
Police Briefs 01-29-2013
Jan. 14 176 Newbury St. – Larceny, Shoplifting, Under $50 81 Newbury St. – Investigate Person 140 Newbury St – Larceny Shoplifting $200 & Over Jan. 15 132 Commonwealth Ave. – Towed Motor Vehicle Fairfield Street – Larceny, Non-Accessory from Vehicle, $200 & Over Jan. 16 Newbury Street – Motor Vehicle Accident – Personal...
Short Commute on Snowy Days
When the snow flies, Mike Maida and his sidekick Balki have a short commute from their Back Bay home to their family business, Pawsh Dog Boutique & Salon, on Gloucester Street.
FOPG Installs Tree Labels in Public Garden
The Friends of the Public Garden has begun installing new tree labels on the more than 500 trees in the Public Garden. This project is being funded through a generous grant from the Putnam Foundation. Over the past month, one hundred labels have been installed with a goal of completing the remaining trees by...
Families and Residents Offer Fresh Approach to Opening New Public School
A group of families, residents and supporters are taking a proactive approach to bringing a new public elementary school to serve downtown neighborhoods, even helping the city to identify possible sites for the proposed educational institute. The newly established Downtown Schools for Boston focuses on neighborhoods that currently have no primary schools, including Back...
Remembering Rev. King: A Great Man Who Stood Up for the Rights of Everybody
For those of us of a certain age, it is hard to imagine that 2013 will mark 45 years since the assassination of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King in Memphis while he was standing on the balcony of the Lorraine Motel. Recalling the news of his murder still brings chills and a deep sense...
Not a Great Idea: Regional Housing Authorities a Disservice
Everything in life has its pluses and minuses. But in our view, whatever the pluses may be of Gov. Deval Patrick’s proposal to eliminate the 240 local housing authorities and consolidate them into six regional offices are far outweighed by the negatives. We simply would note that it has been our experience that corruption...
Police Briefs 01-22-2013
Jan. 7 85 Marlborough St. – Assault with a Dangerous Weapon – Gun 176 Newbury St. – Embezzlement 575 Boylston St. – Robbery – Other Weapon – Bank Back Street – Larceny, Non-Accessory from Vehicle, $200 & Over 333 Boylston St. – Larceny in a Building, $200 & Over Jan. 8 150 Newbury St....
Misty Morning River Run
Along the river run those who’ve resolved to keep fit in 2013 and those who have been getting up and getting out for so long they no longer have fitness resolutions but rather a fit way of life.
Hundreds of Flu Shots Distributed
After giving out thousands of flu shots already this season, the Fenway Community Health Center, which services Back Bay resident, distributed hundreds more Saturday as part of a citywide effort to get more people vaccinated. This year’s flu has already claimed 18 lives in Massachusetts and last week Mayor Thomas Menino and the city’s...
More Panels Removed from Callahan Tunnel
After removing 117 wall panels from the Callahan Tunnel last month, which connects the Back Bay to Logan Airport, MassDOT tested and removed an additional two-dozen panels from the adjoining Sumner Tunnel last week. In December a 100 lb. wall panel in the tunnel fell off the wall of the tunnel and landed in...
Area D-4 Sees 10-percent Reduction in Violent and Property Crimes in ‘12
Area D-4, which includes the Back Bay, South End, Lower Roxbury and Fenway, saw an approximately 10-percent reduction in violent and property crimes in 2012 from the previous year, according to Boston Police. Between Jan. 1 and Dec. 30 of 2012, 4,365 incidents of Part One crime were reported, compared with 4,834 during the...
Police Briefs 01-15-2013
Dec. 31 607 Boylston St. – Larceny in a Building, $200 & Over 100 Newbury St. – Larceny, Shoplifting, $200 & Over 935 Boylston St. – Investigate Property Jan. 1 913 Boylston St. – Assault and Battery with a Dangerous Weapon – Knife Massachusetts Avenue – Service to Other Police Department inside of Mass....
A Tree for All Seasons
The Whitebarked Himalayan Birch shines in the winter. It is said to have the whitest and most beautiful bark of all the birches. This variety was discovered by Sir Joseph Dalton Hooker during a mid-1800s trip to Tibet.
Esplanade Playspace Gains National Prominence
The Esplanade Playspace opened a little more than a year ago, but the state-of-the-art playground has already gained national prominence, even gracing the pages of the Wall Street Journal in November. “This is now becoming the new standard for play in this country,” said Tani Marinovich, who co-founded the Playspace with Jean Egan and...
Murphy to Lead City Council
At-Large City Councilor Stephen Murphy was unanimously elected by the council Monday to serve another two-year term as the body’s president. After being elected Murphy immediately appointed Beacon Hill City Councilor Sal LaMattina to serve another two-year term as his vice president. “I’m honored to have the opportunity to again lead the body,” said...
Welcome Back, Mayor Menino: It’s Nice to Have Tom Menino Back on the Job
We wish to add our voice to the chorus of residents who have been delighted to see the return of Mayor Tom Menino to his office at City Hall. For one thing, it will be a relief to see an end to the speculation about this or that possible scenario by the pundits and...
Police Briefs 01-08-2013
Dec. 23 Newbury Street – Larceny, Shoplifting, $200 & Over 15 Arlington St. – Fire Report – House, Building, Etc. Commonwealth Avenue Motor – Vehicle Accident – Property Damage 551 Boylston St. – Service to Other Police Department inside of Mass. Berkeley Street – Fraud – Larceny by Scheme 312 Commonwealth Ave. – Larceny,...