The Jamaica Plain Neighborhood Council (JPNC) held its regular monthly meeting on Tuesday, February 24. On hand for the session were chair Renee Stacey Welch and fellow members Bernard Doherty, Peter DeCotis, Danielle Sommer Kieta, Michael Reiskind, Chase Brewster, Aiko Miller, Alessia Shelley, Dave Baron, Willie Mitchell, Carla-Lisa Caliga, Alcurtis Clark, Lorenzo Bartoloni, Sarah Freeman. and Erin Ashleigh-Bailey.
State Rep. Sam Montano and District 6 City Councillor Ben Weber also were on hand for the meeting.
As was reported in the Gazette two weeks ago, the JPNC set May 16 as the date for the JPNC’s biennial elections. The members also discussed at length the logistics of the election process.
Nomination papers for the candidates will be available online on the JPNC’s website and at the three libraries in JP and at Curtis Hall on March 18. April 12 is the deadline for submitting the nomination papers with the required signatures.
Candidates for the three area council seats (areas A, B, and C) must submit 25 signatures and those running for an at-large seat must submit 50 signatures. The JPNC consists of 20 members, five from each of the three areas and five at-large.
The JPNC is seeking at least 30 volunteers to help run the election and staff the polling locations, JP Licks at 659 Centre St., the Food Hub at Forest Hills, and the Stop and Shop at Jackson Square.
In other JPNC business, the chairs of the JPNC’s committees presented their monthly reports.
Sommer Kieta presented the report of the Housing and Development Committee. She said that Sheila Dillon from the mayor’s Office of Housing made a presentation about the present state of housing and affordability in the city, highlighting the challenges being faced by city officials because of recent changes imposed by the new administration in Washington. (See accompanying story.)
Another topic that generated discussion among the members is the trend by developers to make changes from their initial plans to the mix of affordable housing in their projects, with developers citing increased construction and materials costs, as well as higher interest rates, over the past few years.
The main concern expressed by the members is that when developers seek to change their previous commitments regarding the number of units of affordable housing, they do not have to undergo a community hearing process.
Weber said he has filed a hearing order with the City Council to address this matter. “One thing I addressed was this exact issue — the changing of projects without public notice,” said Weber. “We’d like to make sure that there is notice and discussion of what is happening with affordability and why it’s now difficult to meet these requirements. We want to make sure that there is a public discussion when an approved project tries to change the affordability.”
Freeman and Mark Freudenberger provided an update on behalf of the Parks Committee. Freudenberger noted that great progress is being made with the DCR to install better signage at Jamaica Pond, especially at the entrance on Perkins St., in order to clearly delineate the walking and biking paths. He also said that the city soon will be undertaking a study of the reconstruction of the boathouse and bandstand at the pind.
Reiskind, the chair of the Public Service Committee, sought a vote from the full JPNC to support the Public Service Committee’s unanimous support for a request by the Ethiopian Cafe, 377A Centre St., for three licenses, “A 7-day Common Victualler license, an All-Alcohol Beverages license, and a take-out license, with a 10:00 p.m. closing hour.”
Prominent Boston attorney Kristen Scanlon had represented the Ethiopian Cafe at the Public Service Comm. meeting. Firehiwot Bekele Zeieke, the owner of the business since 2017, also briefly addressed the committee.
Scanlon at that meeting said that the cafe had been approved by the city for an all-alcohol license in 2021, but none were available at that time. However, the recent state legislation has opened up the availability of all-alcohol licenses in the city. Scanlon also noted that Zeieke has operated a similar establishment in Dudley/Nubian Square since 2019.
After a brief discussion, the full JPNC unanimously endorsed the Public Service Committee’s favorable action. The business now must go before the City of Boston Licensing Commission in order to receive the licenses.
Reiskind also reported that the Public Service Committee discussed its objectives for the coming year and will be seeking to “pare down” its list to achievable goals from the lengthy list that has accumulated over the years. That list includes:
— Improving accommodations for bicycles and Blue Bike locations, including such items as more bike racks, better signage (especially around Jamaica Pond), licensing and insurance for bicycles, and education on bike safety;
— Improving pedestrian traffic flow and safety at crosswalks;
— Adding speed bumps near schools, transit stations, and around White Stadium, and making New Minton St. one-way;
— Additional parking restrictions around White Stadium;
— Advocating for the expeditious implementation of the pending DCR public safety multimodal projects on the Arborway;
— Extending the Green Line to Hyde Square;
— Supporting the use of foot patrols by the Boston P.D. in all “Main St.” districts throughout the city;
— Implementing the master plan for Centre and South Sts. between Jackson Sq. and Forest Hills;
— Improving the cleanliness of the JP business districts;
— Conducting a community process regarding so-called parking “space savers” for parking spaces on residential streets; and
— Improving the brightness of LED street lights