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| The Newsletter of the High Street Hill Association | March 2008 |
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Welcome Spring with our Annual Musicale |
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Bring Family and Friends Admission is Free Make Your Own Sundaes |
featuring Neighborhood Musicians Neil Leonard on Saxophone Julie Boris & Cheryl Berard on Piano |
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Sunday. March 16, 3:30PM Latvian Lutheran Church 58 Irving Sreet |
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On January 27, 1958, in the church at the corner of High and Allerton Streets, over 150 residents gathered to hear two speakers. Mr. John Codman of the Beacon Hill Association spoke on "what a neighborhood association can accomplish." Mr. Harry Toner, from the Brookline Redevelopment Authority, talked about the present status of the "Farm Project," which was threatening to alter the character of the community. After a brief question period, a Mrs. Brooks moved that "Resolved, that it is the sense of this meeting to organize an association to foster and promote the common interests of the residents, property owners and others interested in the welfare of the High Street area." The motion was seconded and adopted and, following the adoption of a set of proposed bylaws and election of officers, the meeting was adjourned at 10:12 p.m. Then, according to the minutes of that first meeting, "in a small building adjoining the rectory, the ladies had prepared coffee and cookies, and many of the group enjoyed a little friendly chat with new found neighbors and friends."
Fifty years later, the HSHA is still going strong. We would like to celebrate our half-century with a series of events throughout the coming year. On May 5, our the Annual Meeting will feature an evening of Pill Hill and HSHA memories with an alumni photo and a 50th Anniversary cake. At our Annual Picnic on Philbrick Square in June, in addition to pony rides, the Brookline Community Band perform and we'll dedicate a new set of park benches. And in the fall, we hope to have an evening of Pill Hill stories.
If you have neighborhood photos or memories to share, or have been a past president (most residents eventually do become presidents, by the way), please contact Betsy Shure Gross at 731-1448.
The Design Advisory Team has met twice to review Children's Hospital's proposed designs for a 125-foot medical/administrative office building on the site of 2-4 Brookline Place. Discussion about major concepts, such as building massing and exterior materials, location of a drop-off area and the need for 624 parking spaces, are continuing. At the next meeting at 6:30 p.m. on March 5 at the Brookline Library, results of traffic studies will be presented. Meetings are open to all. Call DAT rep Rob Daves for more info, 617-566-7334.
CAREGIVER WANTED:
Hospice-level care wanted for predominately Italian-speaking elder.
Please call Anna at 617-383-5785.
Three longtime residents of Pill Hill passed away over the last few weeks.
U.T. Sanders, who lived on Walnut Street, was an organizational development consultant known for easing tensions and helping organizations navigate intense changes. In workshops he conducted for school districts and companies around the state, U.T. Saunders urged executives to tackle major systemic problems regarding race and gender in the workplace. For those of us that met him as we walked by on Walnut Street he was an especially warm and engaging neighbor. His love of jazz will be honored with a musical tribute on WGBH radio during an evening show on Feb. 29 and a memorial service will be held on March 1 at noon at Arlington Street Church in Boston.
Carolyn Hall Wetherbee was a resident of Brookline for eighty years and lived on Walnut Place and then Irving Street. She was very active in the League of Women Voters, served as President of the Brookline Historical Society and was a pillar of the First Parish (Unitarian), where she was the first woman to be named a Deacon in the church's history and received the Clara Barton award for her years of devoted service. For many years she managed the library for patients at the Peter Bent Brigham Hospital.
Alberta Wyluda, mother of neighbor Lynne Beasley was born in Bevagna, Italy in 1913, came to America as an infant, married the late Edward J. Wyluda, and settled in Brookline. She worked for many years in the Nuclear Chemistry Dept. at MIT, and was very active in the Civil Rights, Stop the Arms Race, and Stop the War movements both before and after her retirement to Los Angeles, CA. A celebration of her life was held this past Saturday at First Parish Church.
(portions above adapted from the Boston Globe)
The Brookline Neighborhood Alliance (BNA) presents "Meet the Press." A public forum with Brookline reporters from the TAB and the Boston Globe. 7 p.m., Wednesday, February 27, Police Dept. Community Room.
Art Show and Silent Auction. Bring friends, enjoy a glass of wine, and buy some art. Show opens at 3 p.m. Final bidding will start at 6 p.m. For more info call Anita at 617-522-8369. Saturday, March 1. Latvian Lutheran Church.
BNA Candidates' Night with Nancy Daly, Gil Hoy and Dick Benka. Wednesday, April 2, 7-9 p.m., Devotion School library.
National Park Service Looks Back at "Mission 66." Brookline's two National Park sites -- the former homes of Frederick Law Olmsted and Presedident John F.Kennedy -- and Brookline Adult & Community Education present a special lecture on the 50th anniversary of "Mission 66," a key federal initiative that helped define the visitor experience at National Parks and hastened the development of the modern environmental movement. Landscape architecture professor Ethan Carr of the University of Virginia, will discuss Mission 66 and its implications for the present and future. For info call 617-730-2700. Wednesday, April 16, 7 p.m., Brookline High School.
HSHA Annual Meeting and 50th Anniversary Celebration Kickoff, May 5, 6 p.m., Latvian Lutheran Church.
Sounds and Scenes Family Festival. Celebrate music and landscape at Leverett Pond/Olmsted Park. Children's concerts and activities by local cultural, community, and environmental groups. Saturday, June 7, 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.
HSHA Annual Picnic, featuring pony rides, dedication of park benches and the Brookline Community Band. Sunday, June 15, 4 p.m., Philbrick Square.
Progress has been made since the neighborhood's request to the Transportation Board last fall for a High Street study. At the request of the TBoard, the Brookline Police conducted a "targeted enforcement" on High Street between November 29 and December 4, "stopping every vehicle traveling over the 85th percentile" (35 mph in the a 30 mph zone). Although Captain Gropman, head of Brookline Police Traffic Division, has said that he feels an extension of the targeted enforcement beyond these 8 days was not going to have a dramatic effect on safety because the speeds are not out of the expected norm, HSHA has asked for continued surveillance.
Also, Todd Kirrane, the Town's Transportation Administrator, informs us that crosswalk warning signs have been ordered for the intersections at Irving and Highland Roads and that they will be installed shortly. He also states that the DPW is still on track to do a safety review to improve pedestrian safety and to conduct a speed study to possibly petition MassHighway for a lower posted speed limit.
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.