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| The Newsletter of the High Street Hill Association | June 2004 |
A neighborhood tradition! |
Come to the HSHA Annual Picnic on the Green Sunday, June 20 5PM Bring Family and Friends and something to put on the grill Pony Rides and Volleyball Soft drinks and grills will be provided |
The older homes in our neighborhood are sources of pride and beauty for all of us who live in them or stroll past them on spring evenings. But they also are potential sources of danger. Dust and chips from lead-based paint, released during careless restoration or repair activities, are poisonous and can have serious long-term health consequences. Lead is especially dangerous to young children and pregnant women and even small amounts can cause lower IQ's, learning disabilities and behavioral problems.
Federal, state and local governments have set up regulations to minimize the exposure to lead but because workers or owners of old houses are unaware, or as is all-too-often the case, unwilling, to follow the rules, contamination continues to occur. In our own neighborhood there have been instances in which workers illegally power sanding old paint have severely contaminated not only the building that they were working on but also neighboring homes with children. And again this spring there have been more reports of workers clearly disregarding proper lead control procedures.
The Massachusetts Department of Public Health, the Division of Occupational Safety and the Department of Environmental Protection have set numerous safety guidelines and procedures for various levels of renovation or deleading activities. Note that if a child is living at the site of lead removal, special, more stringent, laws are automatically invoked. For us in Brookline, however, the policies of the Health Department add another, more rigorous layer of protection. Sand blasting, power sanding, chemical stripping, power washing and other abrasive methods are not permitted. Until the surface is tested, only hand scraping is allowed. If the tested surface is positive for lead then the paint must be removed by a licenced deleader. Anyone considering having any kind of exterior or interior renovation or repair work performed, including plumbing, electrical or ductwork, would be wise to check the various agencies' websites. Be sure to negotiate beforehand with your contractor that he or she will be in compliance with lead regulations and that the cost of lead remediation is included in the contract price.
If you suspect that paint is being removed unsafely you should report the activity to the Brookline Health Department. Town inspectors can issue a Cease and Desist order and require that the activity stop.
For more info check out these websites:
| President | Betsy Shure Gross | 25 Edgehill Road | 731-1448 | bshuregross@hotmail.com |
| Vice President | Rob Daves | 9 Upland Road | 566-7334 | robdaves@rcn.com |
| Treasurer | Jean Peteet | 100 High Street | 738-8555 | jpeteet@bu.edu |
| Secretary | Fran McElheny | 195 Walnut Street | 232-2975 | brookmac@mymailstation.com |
| Arlene Mattison | 209 Pond Avenue | 232-6083 | abkm@aol.com | |
| Lucy Aptekar | 38 Cumberland Road | 731-8005 | aptekarl@earthlink.net | |
| Lynne Beasley | 51 Upland Road | 232-9257 | lynnebeasley@aol.com | |
| Phyllis Thompson Reid | 30 Irving Street | 879-0741 | peptr@rcn.com | |
| Robb Silva | 30 Cumberland Road | 566-1583 | robbsilva@comcast.net | |
| Elaine Shannon | 230 Walnut Street | 738-7533 | shan612@rcn.com | |
| Nicola Moscufo | 141 Walnut Street | 734-1964 | nimos@katamail.com |
We would like to welcome Elaine Shannon and Nicola Moscufo to the HSHA Executive Board. Also, thanks to outgoing Board Member Seth Hamot for his service to our neighborhood over the past few years. Although he is leaving the Board, he's promised to help out with the picnic. A special thanks for that.
Regular board meetings of the HSHA are held on the second Monday of the month. The next meeting will be 8:00 PM Monday, June 14, at the home at the home of Betsy Shure Gross, 25 Edgehill Road. As always, all neighbors are invited to attend HSHA Board meetings and we welcome any new issues.
On May 3 the Transportation Board, after many months of studies and deliberation, listened to the voices of the neighborhood and voted to install a pedestrian-activated traffic light at the intersection of Walnut, Kenard and Chestnut Streets. The combination of poor lines of sight for drivers and the high use of the crossing by many children outside of regular school hours has made installation of a light the best solution to a difficult problem. It is expected that it will take about a year to complete the $100,000 project.
You may or may not approve of the traffic calming measures and the reconstruction of Walnut Street but many in the neighborhood are upset by the excessive number of signs that line the historic street. HSHA board member Lynne Beasley counted 116 signs and 34 posts in the 0.4 miles between High and Cypress Streets (an average of one sign every 14 feet). Unnecessary signage not only spoils the streetscape but is quite possibly a safety hazard. Efforts by neighbors to get a meaningful response from the Town have been unsuccessful. A petition from the neighborhood is the next step. We hope you will sign it when it comes around.
Since 1958 the HSHA has supported various neighborhood groups and causes. As reported at the Annual Meeting, we recently donated $250 the Lincoln School Library. Librarian Pat McEachen tells us that the money will be used to purchase 14 new titles and they'll be on the bookshelves for the children by September. Your annual dues payment of just $10 goes a long way. We don't charge for our annual barn dance, picnic or musicale. If you haven't done so already, please send your dues to our treasurer, Jean Peteet, at 100 High Street.
Please welcome new HSHA members:
Michelle Lamont, Frank Dobbin. 26 Edgehill Rd.
Ian & Michelle Lawson, 21 High St.
Rhonda Linde, 24 Upland Rd.
William Thomas, 5 Maple St.
Mary Wiellette, 61 Walnut Place
If you want to get a bird's eye view of your own house or just want to spy on one of those large estates in South Brookline you should check out the GIS aerial photos on the Town website. There's an astounding amount of information available for a town researcher or voyeur.
The Highlight is printed several times a year and is distributed on foot or by bicycle by HSHA Board members and their usually willing family members. If you have a comment or contribution contact the editor, Rob Daves, at (617) 566-7334 or robdaves@rcn.com.