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SBNA SPRING APRIL 8, 2026 NEIGHBORHOOD MEETING
The Annual Community Meeting was held at Union Church, 485 Columbus Avenue, and convened at 6:30 PM. Approximately 60 neighbors attended. Welcome and Introduction of the Board: SBNA President Joan Carragher welcomed everyone to the meeting, and thanked members for participating in the biennial election of the board. Joan welcomed the new SBNA Board of Directors for 2026-2028: Joan Carragher, President; Janie Wallace, Vice President; Betsy Homa, Treasurer; Lee Steele, Clerk; Claire Dargan, Director and Communications Lead; Adel Labib, Director; Shruti Manglik, Director; and acknowledged outgoing board members Arber Skendaj, Jo-Ann Suna, and Kathie Enright. The Board will serve a term of two years. Neighborhood Updates Blank Street Coffee: Blank Street Coffee plans to open early summer, and expects to promote the feel of a local neighborhood shop. Joan reminded neighbors to check eblasts and Neighborhood Matters for location of the First Tuesday casual meetups, which take place in the morning (for early birds), and evening (for night owls) every first Tuesday of the month. Boston Strong Daffodils: Look for daffodils to brighten the neighborhood Marathon Weekend. The SBNA supports the Boston Strong 2013 Memorial Fund by providing the daffodils. Joan asked that neighbors wait until after the race on Monday afternoon before collecting a pot of daffodils to plant in your yard. Love Your Block: The neighborhood cleanup is scheduled for April 25, 2026. Joan asked volunteers to gather on the corner of St. Botolph Street and West Newton Street in front of Blank Street storefront for tools, instructions and comradery. Light breakfast snacks and coffee will be provided, complements of the Colonnade Hotel. Pizza will be served after the cleanup. Boston Landmarks Commission: Lee Steele, incoming SBNA Board Clerk, and St. Botolph resident for nearly fifty years, gave an overview of the Boston Landmarks Commission. He explained that the St. Botolph neighborhood is one of ten historic districts in the city, and that permission is required for any construction on the exterior of buildings, such as windows, masonry, decks, etc. St. Botolph is represented by four commissioners, who are nominated by the SBNA. Doug Miller, Nancy Russell, and Jim Kutchin serve as our commissioners. There is one vacancy. Randi Lathrop and Irwin Levy have been nominated by the neighborhood to fill this vacancy, pending city approval. Lee acknowledged the many years of service of outgoing commission chair, Susan Trowbridge. Susan served since 2013, and as chair since 2017, and brought her training in architectural design and career in education and publishing to the commission. Lee commented that in all those years, Susan never missed a meeting, and he thanked her for her commitment to faithfully preserving the historical character of our neighborhood. Titus Sparrow Park: Joan announced that SBNA is a proud sponsor of the Titus Sparrow Park Concerts. Titus Sparrow Park will be starting a garden club, with opportunities for neighbors to volunteer to beautify and maintain the park and get your hands dirty. Follow the park on Instagram to donate, and for updates on activities such as Irwin Levy’s walking tours.: titussparrowpark.org 70 St. Botolph: Joan reported that the renovations at 70 St. Botolph continue, and Phase One is on track to finish by late summer. Scaffolding is scheduled for removal in the summer of 2027. Joan remarked on the active relationship that the SBNA has with our neighbors at 70 St. Botolph and anticipates volunteer opportunities to help spruce up the outdoor spaces after the renovations are complete. History of St. Botolph: Our first speaker was Dan d'Heilly, Blackwood Street resident. Dan ran our highly successful walking tour along the fabled Stain Glass Row. Dan will be reprising his interesting talks about our historical roots on May 18, 2026, as he takes us through our “prehistoric” era from 680 to 1881. He’ll answer such burning questions as: is St. Botolph South End or Back Bay? How did St. Botolph become a thriving artist colony? Why was there a concentration of crafts such as Harcourt Bindery, George Vesper Art Studio, and the Connick and O’Duggan stained glass studios. Boston Water and Sewer Commission: Joan introduced Jeremiah White, BWSC Director of Construction, and Ryan Shea, BWSC Project Engineer (for St. Botoph project). Jeremiah explained that the BWSC will be installing a 42 inch diameter water main and valves the length of St. Botolph Street from Gainsborough St. to Harcourt Street. The good news is that the construction will not impact water to individual buildings. The bad news is that there will be some traffic disruption. Jeremiah explained that the preliminary plan is to begin at Gainsborough Street, and progress down St. Botolph Street. The construction will involve 200 feet at a time, will require loss of parking spaces and traffic diversion for safety reasons. At the end of each work day, a heavy metal plate will be installed, and night time parking will be restored. Randi Lathrop, long time South End/Back Bay resident, asked if there would be dust mitigation, and Ryan responded that dust control measures will be used. Each section is expected to take three to four weeks. The work is permitted from 7AM to 4PM and is planned to commence in late May/early June. It was stressed that these plans are preliminary and that residents should check both the BWSC project website and SBNA’s website for updates and a link to the BWSC’s Project Page. Update - since the meeting the plan has changed and now is scheduled for April and begins from the Harcourt Street end of St Botolph Street - details here Albemarle resident Sarah Zettek asked for confirmation that deliveries would be able to get through, and Ryan confirmed that the traffic diversion would allow for deliveries. He added that contractors can install plates if needed for emergencies. Randi inquired about the communication plan, and recommended preconstruction notification by flyering to residents before construction begins. Joan asked for concerns to be addressed through stbololph.org Speakers: Joan introduced state and city officials. The first speaker was Sgt. Joe Narduzza who reported that serious crimes were down in the D-4 area Sgt Narduzza talked about NEST– an outreach program to address substance abuse staffed by specially trained team that can get patients into treatment (and avoid arrest). Joan encouraged everyone to call 911 to help get neighbors or pedestrians needing treatment through government initiatives. A representative from the Massachusetts State Police announced stepped up patrols on the Corridor (jurisdiction of DCR/MSP). A neighbor asked who should be called with concerns on the Corridor, and Sgt Narduzza explained that residents should call 911 if it is an emergency dealing with people, and 311 for concerns about objects or the environment. Sgt. Narduzza recognized the uptick in package theft and suggested reducing crimes of opportunity. BPD brought brochures concerning steps to reduce package theft and left them at the meeting. Ron Smith, longtime Cumberland Street resident, gave a shout out for BPD alerts, and urged residents to sign up. He also commended the responsiveness of BPD. He noted the prevalence of car windows that were smashed and reminded neighbors not to store anything in their cars. Next, Joan introduced elected officials: Nick Collins, State Senator, John Moran, State Representative, Ray Flynn, City Councilor, Brianna Mollor, Chief of the Mayors Office of Neighborhood Services (ONS), and our new ONS representative, Sam Courage. Ray Flynn spoke first and emphasized his twin priorities of public safety and pest control. Nick Collins reiterated legislative achievements in the Senate of bills passed to make K-12 schools cell phone free, protect data privacy, and commitment to reproductive freedom and protection of librarians and educators. He stopped short of offering any new solutions to high city taxes when questioned by a resident. Ray Flynn responded to that question by offering that cost control measures were needed to reduce taxes and pointed to an eight percent spending increase last year as “unsustainable.” Brianna Mollor of ONS noted that residents can apply for an assessment appeal. John Moran emphasized his efforts in the House to protect freedom of expression for librarians from book bans, and to protect LBGTQ+ children from harassment. He mentioned affordable housing initiatives, and conversion of the Alexandria Hotel restoration. Rep. Moran mentioned that a press conference about new initiatives at Mass/Cass will take place on April 9th. The link to that announcement follows: https://www.boston.com/news/politics/2026/04/09/state-commits-4m-to-address-substance-use-crisis-at-mass-and-cass/ Ray Flynn fielded a question on speed bumps and stated that the program was on pause. Brianna Mollor of ONS stated that Mayor Wu understood that street safety was a priority for the neighborhood and mentioned her St. Botolph walkabout with the chief of streets. Lifelong Durham Street resident Irene Small requested a crosswalk at the end of Durham Street and commented on lost revenue from tax exempt entities such as hospitals and universities. Ray Flynn promised to follow up on the Durham Street crosswalk. He also mentioned that the council was trying to regulate third parties such as Door Dash because the moped drivers ignored the rules of the road, creating safety hazards. Joan thanked everyone for participating and the meeting was adjourned at 8:30pm
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This meeting was held at 70 St Botolph St on Wednesday, April 22nd, 2025.
Chair - Joan Carragher, President, SBNA Panel Attendees
1. Welcome and Introduction The Meeting was opened by Joan Carragher, President of SBNA who thanked 70 St Botolph for hosting the gathering and welcomed all. Joan called for a moment of recognition for Joe Coppola, owner of Copley House, who recently passed away. As a long time supporter and friend of the neighborhood, and city, Joe will be honored with a proclamation to be presented to his family at a future date. 2. Community Updates Neighborhood Cleanup Initiative SBNA organized a "rat safari" to address trash management issues in the alley between Fallon and West Newton. Northeastern University donated 25 new trash bins. Claire from SBNA, Mary Decker and Meghan Chiasson from the nearby condo association, organized distribution throughout the alley. The results are improved trash practices in the alley and increased community participation in subsequent cleanup events. ‘Love your Block” Neighborhood Clean Up The clean up on April 12th was a huge success despite the weather. Photos up on the SBNA photo gallery on the website. It was supported by The Colonnade Hotel, Copley House and City of Boston. Winter debris was removed in hard to reach areas, trees were mulched and new faces joined up. It was a fun event with neighbors catching up. Problem Property Update at 231 West Newton St Meghan Chiassan from the Condo association gave an update. There has been a court ruling and the owner is no longer allowed to reside in building. She confirmed police will escort him out if he returns. The ruling didn't apply to the second owner (he has not been served). It seems likely he is looking to sell property to pay off substantial legal fees owed. The mortgage company is working with the condo association on a potential foreclosure on the property. The situation has been quieter since the court action and Meghan expressed her gratitude to the community for all the support. She promised to update residents with any new developments. 3. Updates from Elected Officials Reggie Stewart (Director of Community Relations, District 7,) is the newly appointed Director of Community Relations. He offers assistance with neighborhood issues (rats, trash). There will be no special election for the Boston City Council vacancy for District 7. The position will be on the regular ballot in the fall. The Preliminary election will be in September and the general election in November. Riley Nichols (Senator Collins' Office) listed her office’s key priorities which include policy and public health in the South End. Senator Collins conducted a walk through near Mass & Cass with state police. The Legislation updates include:
Require patients who received opioid reversal medications to meet with social workers Require justice hearing before discharge from state-run hospitals John Moran (Suffolk District State Representative) provided updates on areas he's working on. Budget changes he pushed for include:
Requiring committees to get reports out within 60 days, ensuring public committee votes and all information be available on MAlegislator.gov. Other areas include he is working on are substance use disorder, anti-book banning legislation and raising income limits for senior tax relief. More details available from the MA legislators website https://malegislature.gov/Legislators/Profile/JFM1 Ed Flynn (District 2 City Councillor) reiterated that he is focused on quality of life issues including enforcing the ban on public use of drugs and getting drug sellers arrested. He remains committed to the nuts and bolts of community issues including making sure the city works for all residents. He is currently working with his colleagues on budget items Officer Francis (Boston Police D4) provided the latest crime statistics for district 4. He noted the following:
Lydia Hausle, and Daniel Milbrand from Boston Transportation Department gave an update on upcoming transportation improvements happening in the neighborhood. The following streets are scheduled for repaving (late summer):
4. Community Discussion and Action Items Joan opened the meeting to the floor and the following items were discussed: Federal fund Cuts Concerns were voiced about potential federal funding cuts. John Moran pointed out that the State has $9 billion surplus in "Rainy Day Fund" but agreed with other officials about the potential impact on
Safety on the Public Roads A big concern raised was the use of mopeds for delivery and the challenge of enforcing traffic rules. It was noted that the particular challenge was the lack of identification on bikes. There was a general concensus that any delivery bike should be insured and licenses filed with the city. There was interest in illuminated crosswalks with motion sensors. Residents had issues with lack of enforcement of speeding offenders and trucks who regularly violated the 2-ton weight limit on neighborhood streets. It was noted that Logan Express buses and tour buses frequently drove through the neighborhood despite the “no trucks” signage. Everyone was urged to report truck violations via 311. Suggestions to prevent trucks using our streets, included using technology to prevent GPS routing of large vehicles. Residents were urged residents to get in touch with their representatives with issues reminding everyone that the City Councillors -at large have responsibility for all districts. This meeting which was held at 70 St Botolph St on Wednesday October 23 2024.
Introduction Joan thanked 70 St Botolph for donating the room. She thanked the elected officials and public servants who gave of their time and their commitment to work on neighborhood issues: Attending the meeting were Deputy Chief of Streets Julia Cambell and Transportation Planner Daniel Milbrandt, Liaison Maccon Bonner from the ONS, Assistant Commissioner Environmental Services John Ulrich and Boston Police D4 W Newton/St Botolph Intersection - Pedestrian and Traffic Safety Deputy Chief of Streets Julia Campbell and Transportation Planner Daniel Milbrandt took questions and listened to concerns about traffic, pedestrian safety and future plans for the main intersection of the neighborhood. A follow-up meeting will be scheduled in the spring to present plans and solutions. There continues to be utility work on Huntington, but by spring that should be concluded and plans to repave West Newton and update the crosswalks is already planned - it is hoped is that there will be plans to included improvements to the intersection before the re-paving happens. Joan promised to keep neighbors informed via the website and newsletter. Dealing with Rodent Problems The ever-present issue of rats is an ongoing problem and John Ulrich, Assistant Commissioner of Environmental Services for the City of Boston, talked about the importance of education and enforcement about how to reduce the rat population and steps that can be taken to make a difference: Neighbors were urged to read up on best trash practices and sign up for a free composting bin from the city. When the regular trash is not smelling with food waste, it doesn’t attract the rats! Rat informational meetings with neighbors was encouraged. The SBNA will help residents coordinate. Neighbors along West Newton and St Botolph who share the alley off of Follen St. already have one planned and SBNA and John Ulrich’s team have been invited to talk about specific needs. General Safety in the Neighborhood The police listened to oncoming concerns about activity on the corridor- specifically drug use, camping out and other complaints about a specific location. D-4 continues to work with state officials to monitor the corridor and show up when there is a problem, but neighbors were urged to remain attentive. SBNA are working on a follow-up meeting and will keep you posted. In the meantime, neighbors were urged to please call 911 if you see suspicious or blatantly illegal behavior - and call 311 if you come across needles, drug items, or if there is a cleanup needed. Please remember how important it is to make those calls and reports - the BPD needs to know how often this is happening and need data to track incidents - it helps us all in the future when we document the present. The annual community meeting was held on Wednesday April 17, 2024 at the
Colonnade Hotel. SBNA board for 2024 - 2026 The SBNA board, as voted on by SBNA members for the next 2 years was confirmed: President- Joan Carragher Vice President -Arber Skendaj Treasurer -Lorraine Steele Clerk -Kathie Enright Board Directors -Claire Dargan, Adel Labib, Jo-Ann Suna, Janie Wallace Introduction Joan thanked the Colonnade Hotel Management for donating the room and refreshments. She thanked the elected officials and public servants who gave of their time and their commitment to work on neighborhood issues: Attending the meeting were Councilors Tania Anderson and Ed Flynn, State Rep John Moran, State Sen Collins’ Legislative Director Riley Nichols, Chief Brianna Millor and Liaison Maccon Bonner from the ONS, and Officer Pagan from BPD D4. Joan confirmed that the Midtown project is on hold indefinitely and that Northeastern University will continue to lease the building as a dorm. It was confirmed that the renovation project at 70 St Botolph St Apartments is under way. SBNA participated in the Boston Strong Daffodil program for the Boston Marathon as part of the Copley House’s annual beautification gift to the SBNA. Panel of Speakers The panel of Speakers each gave a two minute presentation on their role and aims Tania Fernandes Anderson, City Councilor, District 7 Of note to attendees - Tania’s office has created an app for district 7 which can be downloaded. Tania urged residents to start dialogues with the at large councilors on the city council. Ed Flynn, City Councilor, District 2 Of note to attendees - Ed is committed to quality of life issues including rats, constituent services and the nuts and bolts of city services. John Moran State Representative for 9th Suffolk District Of note to Attendees - John is focused on ensuring protective reproductive Justice and LGBTQ , combating the humanitarian crisis facing neighbors suffering drug addiction and homelessness by focusing on ensuring adequate budgeting is passed. Riley Nichols Legislative Director Office of Nick Collins Of note to Attendees - Nick’s priorities include Public Health and safety including supporting the recent bill to have all pharmacies stock Narcan. Maccon Bonner Office of Neighborhood Service Ward 4 Brianna Millor Chief of Community Engagement Of note to Attendees - To eliminate silos between residents and city hall. Brianna overseas various Community Engagement departments at City Hall including 311, the Office of Civic Organizing, (ONS) SPARK Boston - (empowering 20 -35 to play a greater role in planning for the City’s future) and more….. Sgt Pagan from Boston Police District 4 (was standing in for our new liaison officer, Sgt Joseph Narduzzo as our former liaison officer, Sgt. Matthew Hogardt, has been promoted to Lt.) Of note to Attendees - District 4 assigns community liaison officers to neighborhoods. They act as liaison between the police and the community - the liaison officer will take community information to District 4 personnel for action. Contact information on the safety page . RE: Trash and Rodents within the neighborhood The SBNA continues to encourage residents to use responsible and appropriate trash disposal practices! During the meeting there was a lively discussion about some of the worst culprits: residents who are either ignorant of or disregard rules, and management companies and absent landlords who do not provide proper bins. Many attendees encouraged our city councilors to work for a budget that includes a commitment to a dedicated department for dealing with this. The SBNA will continue to encourage management companies to provide buildings with the appropriate bins for trash, recycling and food waste program. The city was encouraged to make it easier for residents to avail of city programs such as the recycling program and the food waste program. RE: Situation at 231 W Newton: It was good to know that the city, the DA, the state (due to proximity of Southwest Corridor Park), and Boston Police Department are all focused on this property. Joan has been invited to the ongoing discussion group led by Bob Barney of the Claremont Neighborhood Association and will continue to support and validate the residents of the building and neighbors who are dealing with this. RE: Intersection of W Newton & St B concerns:
SBNA's President Joan has been added by John Moran to an ongoing discussion about street improvements. RE: Parking ONS committed to reviewing parking enforcement and ratios of metered/resident spaces. RE: Widett Circle Homeless shelter proposal ONS and Councilors promised to get back to us with the status of this. RE: Street Cleaning ONS and Councilors promised to look into extending street cleaning Mar-Dec and supporting the efforts with towing cars that do not move for street cleaning. Great to see so many of you at the April, 12th 2023 Community Meeting
Many thanks to our friends at the 70 St Botolph St Apartments and Director Monica Daniel for hosting our forum! Thanks also to our Councilor (and Council President) Ed Flynn and D4’s Sgt Matthew Hogardt and Det.Thomas Hopkins for attending and taking our questions, as well as our fantastic St B Landmarks Commission representatives! And we also enjoyed meeting John Moran, who is running to fill Jon Santiago’s MA house seat (More on that in a minute!) Questions? Problems? Complaints? Compliments?- feel free to contact me at [email protected], Ed Flynn at [email protected], Gabbie at Landmarks at [email protected],Sgt Hogardt at [email protected], or our fantastic Office of Neighborhood Services, Maggie Van Scoy at [email protected] AND NOW, we need to roll… We on the SBNA board agree that there are two topics that need to be followed up on - if you agree, please join us in officially reaching out to the city council as they set the 2022-2023 budget. First, STREET CLEANING. The South End street-cleaning schedule goes until the end of December, while the St Botolph neighborhood currently ends in November. We’ve been told it’s a budget issue, so if you would like to see an additional month of cleaning our streets too, please consider sending an email to both Ed and Tania, so they know there is interest. We’ve put together a sample email that you can copy and paste, so if you want cleaner streets, let your voice be heard about it. Second, PARKING AND STREET SAFETY. We need a reevaluation of the allocation and amount of resident parking spaces, an effective plan to deal with so much truck traffic on our “truck prohibited” streets, and we need to revisit the flex post installation at the corner of St B and W Newton – while they were installed to keep pedestrians safer and provide greater visibility of the crosswalks and stop signs, they are also encouraging worse truck behavior and are regularly disregarded. Do you support the city allocated funds to improve the parking and streets? If so, we'll be sending out the newsletter with links to copy and paste a template and send it to Ed and Tania in order to recommend funds for these items, they need to hear from as many people as possible before the budget process ends - PLEASE EMAIL THEM BY FRI, APRIL 22! |
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You can find News & Updates at our bulletin board outside the 7-Eleven at the corner of Saint Botolph and West Newton Street. |
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