Dear Members and Friends:
Wow, what a busy weekend we had! Great to see so much activity outdoors, and to see everyone enjoying the neighborhood.
We wish to thank the Mission Hill Fenway Neighborhood Trust for awarding the FCA a grant which will fund music for three of our upcoming free events: The Rose Garden Picnic, Swingin’ in the Fens, and the annual Tree lighting – and support two months of free, certified-instructor led park fitness classes! We are grateful for the support and proud to facilitate these joyful community events.
For this and more, read on:
THE WEEK AHEAD
1. Monday, June 12, 6 p.m. Virtual Public Meeting, Fenway Corners
Join neighbors at this public meeting to learn about supplemental filings associated with the WS Fenway Corners Project. To learn more or to submit your comments visit https://www.bostonplans.org/news-calendar/calendar/2023/06/12/fenway-corners-public-meeting
2. Tuesday, June 13, 9:30 – 10:30 a.m., Mayor Wu’s Coffee Hour at Symphony Community Park, 39 Edgerly Road
Mayor Wu’s Neighborhood Coffee Hours are a unique opportunity to speak directly with the Mayor and staff from City departments about open space and their neighborhoods. Dunkin’ will be on-site to fuel the local community with freshly brewed iced coffee and assorted treats. In addition, each family in attendance will receive a free flowering plant provided by the Boston Parks and Recreation Department, while supplies last. To learn more, visit: https://www.boston.gov/calendar/neighborhood-coffee-hours-fenwaykenmore
3. Wednesday, June 14, 7:10 p.m., Neighborhood Night at Fenway Park – thanks to the Red Sox for donating some tickets to FCA members!
4. Thursday, June 15, 10 a.m. – 11 a.m. Park Fitness: Chair Yoga with Michelle – at Symphony Park, 39 Edgerly Road. Repeats weekly on Thursdays through August 31. Participate in a free fitness class offered by a certified instructor. Classes are sponsored by the Boston Parks and Recreation Department, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts, and the Boston Public Health Commission.
SAVE THE DATES
1. Juneteenth – click to see 5 events celebrating Juneteenth in Boston
2. Monday, June 19, 10 a.m. – 5 p.m., Museum of Fine Arts Boston free admission for Massachusetts residents in celebration of Juneteenth. Tickets, provided in partnership with Citizens, will be available on a first come, first served basis. Visitors can check out the newly opened exhibit “Hear Me Now: The Black Potters of Old Edgefield, South Carolina,” celebrating the pottery made by enslaved people in Old Edgefield in the 1800s. The day will also include art-making activities, a Spotlight Talk, and performances.
3. Tuesday, June 20, 6-8 p.m. Fenway Civic Association Rose Garden Picnic!, This year’s picnic is dedicated to honor the memory of Edward J. Burke. Memories, flowers, friends, food & music, all you need to close out spring in a perfectly Fen-way. (rain date, June 21st)
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT…deals and developments
Deals: At a recent community meeting, Kenzie Bok announced a deal made with the City of Boston and the Red Sox to cap Fenway concerts at 12, with a promise to give the neighborhood some event-free weekends over the summer, here are the 12 announced concert dates: FenwayConcerts. Fenway Park Concerts Neighborhood Committee (“FPCNC”) formed to comment on the impacts of the increasing use of Fenway Park, and the stress it puts on our neighborhood. Some areas of concern which will be monitored: Communications Plans with residents and concert attendees; Security and Life Safety; Traffic and transportation management; Sound management and Monitoring; Neighborhood Trash Cleanup Plan; Parks Mitigation to monitor conditions at the Emerald Necklace and Fenway Victory Gardens as impacted by crowds.
Developments: To see Boston development projects & plans on the BPDA page click here.
DESIGN STAGE
Back Bay Fens Pathways Visit this website to see the recorded series of meetings and get a great overview of the work to come, and the thought processes and discussions that shaped the development of this work.
UNDER REVIEW
Fenway Corners WS Development is proposing a 5.32-acre redevelopment of 13 privately-owned parcels of land on four development blocks around Fenway Park.
165 Park Drive Development of two 7-story residential buildings behind the Holy Trinity Orthodox Cathedral at approximately 117,559 SF, to include 115 residential units. Building 1: 48 residential home ownership units, 100 per cent as affordable units. Building 2: 67 market rate apartments.
409 Huntington Avenue Proposal to redevelop an existing five-story, apartment building into a nineteen-story mixed use residential building comprising up to 157 dwelling units, up to 2,300 square feet of street-level activated retail space along Huntington Avenue, and improvements to the currently underdeveloped pocket park at the corner of the site along Huntington Avenue.
1400 Boylston Street (Fenway Star Market) approximately 553,000 gross square foot project, including 498,000 sq ft office/research space, 20,000 sq ft retail/restaurant/service/facilities on ground-floor, 30,000 sq ft enclosed loading and back of house, 5,000 sq ft civic/cultural space, and over half an acre of landscaped green space, with underground parking
2 Charlesgate West Approx. 254,000 square feet of mixed-use programming, comprised of 400 residential housing units, 3,000 square feet of ground floor retail, and 75 below grade parking spaces.
APPROVED PLANS
Simmons University Living and Learning Center
The Living and Learning Center will include a student dormitory with over 1,000 student beds, meeting, and social spaces along with office support spaces and a 500-seat dining facility. In addition, an athletics and fitness facility will include a pool, gymnasium, rowing tanks and weight room. The building will also accommodate an existing central electrical plant and emergency generator, which serve the academic buildings on the existing campus. Work will begin on the Living and Learning Center in May 2023 and is slated for completion in September 2026.
Longwood Place 305 Brookline Avenue The approximately 5.8 acre site consisting of approximately 1.7 million gross square feet of residential, office/laboratory, retail, restaurant, commercial, community space, and parking. Work slated to begin in 2026, after completion of the Living and Learning Center.
NOTICES
Red Sox… need to know when they’re in town? printable calendar
MBTA – Symphony Station Accessibility Improvements click here for details on this ongoing project
OFFICE HOURS
Senator Will Brownsberger
Zoom Mondays – 4-5:30 p.m.
Schedule an individual 15-minute online Zoom appointment with Senator Brownsberger to discuss a legislative or individual state-related matter on Mondays between 4:00 and 5:30 p.m. Not sure who your legislator is? Visit: https://malegislature.gov/Search/FindMyLegislator
Representative Jay Livingstone
See flyer attached with office hours and locations.
Maggie Van Scoy, Mayor’s Office of Neighborhood Services
You can reach Maggie by email at: margaret.vanscoy@boston.gov
ONGOING
Fenway Cares food distribution. Need food? Fenway Cares distributes fresh produce, grains, and more at Fenway Community Center and Symphony Community Park. For more information, visit: https://fenwaycommunitycenter.org/fenway-cares/. Repeats every-other Wednesday. Volunteers needed! https://forms.gle/mqo5YoxbmhcL9Ckm8
Next dates: Wednesday, June 21 – 3:30 p.m.
Thursdays – Park Fitness: Chair Yoga with Michelle – 10-11:00 a.m. Symphony Park, 39 Edgerly Road. Repeats each Thursday until August 31, 2023. Participate in a free fitness class offered by a certified instructor. Classes are sponsored by the Boston Parks and Recreation Department, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts, and the Boston Public Health Commission.
See you around!
Promoting a vital and sustainable neighborhood
Fenway Civic Association 