The Jamaica Plain Neighborhood Council (JPNC) held its regular monthly meeting last Tuesday evening, November 25. Chair Renee Stacey Welch presided over the session that was attended by JPNC members Peter DeCotis, Danielle Sommer Kieta, Bernard Doherty, Michael Reiskind, Carla-Lisa Caliga, Willie Mitchell, Dave Baron, Nick Chaves (who announced he was stepping down from the JPNC because he has moved to West Roxbury), Gert Thorn, Sarah Freeman, and Purple Reign.
Also on hand were Bonnie Delaune, Chief of Staff for District 6 City Councillor Ben Weber, and Caroline Peters, the community liaison to JP from the office of Mayor Wu.
Welch opened the meeting by noting that a number of individuals who have indicated that they would like to become council members (to fill the five announced open seats on the JPNC) were on hand for the meeting.
Those individuals were Erin-Ashlei Bailey (who has lived in JP for the past four years); David Brewster (who has lived here for 85 days); Alessia Shelley (who is 16 years old and is a lifelong resident of JP who attends the Noble and Greenough School); Aiko Miller (who has lived in JP for three years and works with Action Boston Community Development); and Bianca Terry (who has lived in JP for 27 years).
After each gave a brief talk about why they would like to join the JPNC and answered questions from the members, the full council unanimously voted to elect all five to the council.
In addition, Alcurtis Clark, a well-known, long-time resident of the Stonybrook Neighborhood Association (SNA) who has been active in the community for many years and who has been a member of the JPNC’s Zoning Committee for the past nine months, offered her candidacy for one of the two newly-open seats. A vote on her nomination will be held at the December meeting.
Baron presented the report of the Zoning Committee of which he is the chair. He said the committee took up four matters in November: 2A Rossmore Rd./3520 Washington St. (a request for a conditional use variance to open a boxing gym in the former space of the Wishing Well bar); 49 Oakview Terrace (variances needed for the interior expansion of a single-family home); 174 Forest Hills St. (a request by the Laurel Ridge Rehab and Skilled Nursing Center to in-fill an existing porte cochere for additional therapy and dining areas for residents); and 6 Brookside Ave. (dimensional variances are needed for construction of a three-story, single-family home).
The Zoning Committee gave all four of the applications its approval (with the allowance of tandem parking for the 6 Brookside Ave. project) and Baron asked the full JPNC to ratify the Zoning Committee’s recommendations. The JPNC voted unanimously to approve all four matters. The owners of the properties now must go before the Boston Zoning Board of Appeals (ZBA) in order to obtain their variances.
Reiskind presented the report of the Public Service Committee. He said there was a continued discussion on the general topic of package stores in the neighborhoods. Reiskind also shared the committee’s list of requested street improvements that it has made to the city’s DPW over the past 12 years, some of which date back to 2013. He noted that about 30 percent of the list has been accomplished to date and that the Public Service Committee will be sending a new list to the DPW in the spring.
Sommer Kieta presented the report of the Housing and Development Committee. She noted that the committee heard from Joe Bamberg, the Chief of Planning, Construction, and Development for the Boston Housing Authority (BHA), regarding the BHA’s plans for renovations to the Doris Bunte Apartments complex in Egleston Square.
The Bunte is the landmark 20-story, cylindrical tower at 1990 Columbus Ave. The Bunte originally was known as Walnut Park before being renamed in 2013 in honor of Doris Bunte, the longtime community activist, BHA administrator, and elected official. The building, which was constructed in 1970, has been determined as eligible for listing in the National Register of Historic Places based on its unique architecture and community development significance.
Sommer Kieta said that the BHA’s plans include slightly reconfiguring the present mix of 105 studio units, 52 1-bedroom units, and eight 2-BR units that will result in a slight reduction from the current total of 165 units.
The BHA’s plans to revitalize the building will enhance energy efficiency and will allow residents to age in place. Bamberg had noted that the Bunte, which serves senior citizens and non-elderly disabled persons, will convert from the present federal public housing subsidies to Section 8 subsidies, “which are a much more robust and generous stream of subsidies.”
The proposed work will involve no changes to the exterior of the building. The renovations will ensure that the building will be fossil-fuel free with electric heating and cooling systems. There also will be modifications to balconies and railings to meet 2025 building codes. In addition, there will be enhancements to site security with added fencing and secure gates. Sommer-Kieta added that the present residents will have priority if they wish to remain and that the rents will be affordable for the lowest-income groups.
Sommer-Kieta concluded her presentation by noting that the Housing Committee discussed proposed legislation that will benefit renters.
Doherty and Thorn spoke briefly about the ongoing efforts to address concerns at Jamaica Pond regarding the safety issues presented by bicyclists dangerously using the pedestrian walkways. The latter are closer to the pond than the path for cyclists, which traverses across the top of Jamaica Pond. However, the signage is either lacking or not clear, especially at the Perkins St. entrance at the Brookline end of the pond.
The meeting concluded with community announcements: Clark noted that the SNA will hold its annual Holiday Stroll on Sunday, December 7, from 4:30-7:30, starting at the JP Community Room at 141 McBride St.; Peters announced that the mayor’s annual Holiday Trolley Tour will stop at two locations in JP (the only neighborhood in the city where it make two stops) on Saturday, December 6, at 2 p.m at Hyde Square and at 3 p.m. at the Monument and will include tree lightings; and Delaune added that Councilor Weber will be holding office hours on Saturday, Dec. 6, from 9-10:30 at Oda, the new coffee shop near Forest Hills.
The next meeting of the JPNC is set for Thursday, December 18, at 7:00.