Charlesgate Alliance

Wednesday, June 12, 5:30 pm – 7:00 pm – Brainstorming Meeting for a Dog Park – NEW LOCATION

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The Charlesgate Alliance and Landing Studio will be holding a meeting on Wednesday, June 12th, in conjunction with the Back Bay Dog Park group, from 5:30 to 7:00pm at a meeting room at 91 Bay State Road (to the right as you enter the building) for a brainstorming session about a dog park. This is the first Charlesgate Alliance meeting devoted solely to the dog park element of the future Charlesgate Park. If you are interested in attending this or future meetings, please e-mail Rachel Bakish at charlesgatealliance@gmail.com who will be chairing a Dog Park committee for the Alliance.

Monday, November 5, 6:30 pm – 9:00 pm – DCR Charlesgate: A Template for Creative Spacemaking

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On November 5 at 6:30 pm, Ron Mallis of Boston APP/Lab will present a design workshop to address questions of access when developing public spaces and public art. Using the emerging vision of Marie Law Adams and Dan Adams of Landing Studio and the universal design practices of Charles Baldwin at the Massachusetts Cultural Council, The Charlesgate Alliance invites you to this experiential workshop on art, access, and design. The Fenway Community Center, where the event will take place, is on Jersey Street, around the corner from Blaze Pizza in the 1282 Boylston Street building. The event is free, but please RSVP here so that we can get a sense of how many people are coming.

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Tuesday, April 10, 10:00 am – Commonwealth Avenue Mall, Today and Tomorrow

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The April meeting of the Garden Club of the Back Bay will take place Tuesday, April 10 at 10:00 am at The College Club, 44 Commonwealth Avenue in Boston. GCBB past president Margaret Pokorny will speak on the single most important horticultural feature in Back Bay, and perhaps Boston: The Commonwealth Avenue Mall. See old pictures, plans, and learn of the conditions which affect growth. Learn about the original designs and tree plantings, and what has been done to preserve and support the Mall’s health and character.

Margaret is a landscape designer focusing on urban parks and greenspace. Currently she is chair of the Commonwealth Avenue Mall Committee and serves on the boards of the Friends of the Public Garden, The Neighborhood Association of the Back Bay, the Esplanade Association, and The Garden Club of the Back Bay. Recently she has been involved in the new group, The Charlesgate Alliance.  GCBB members may rsvp to jolinda.taylor@gmail.com. If you are interested in staying for the optional lunch following the meeting ($25), visit http://www.gardenclubbackbay.org/shop/

Marlborough Street Tree Project

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The controversial BBAC approval for the removal of a large Ailanthus tree on Marlborough Street between Massachusetts Avenue and Charlesgate East served to focus the Garden Club of the Back Bay’s attention on the lack of street trees on this block. With the support of both The Neighborhood Association of the Back Bay and the Charlesgate Alliance, the Garden Club has been working with the Parks Department to plant 23 new trees on this block this spring.  There are very few trees on the north side of the street and NO trees on the south side.  Working with Max Ford-Diamond of the Parks Department, we proposed 23 plantable spaces marked on the image accessed here: SKM_C284e18012212530, although final locations are contingent on the location of utilities, light poles, and signage.

Residents of the block have been contacted to volunteer to water the trees near their homes. The Garden Club will put “gators” after the planting that need to be filled with a hose once a week over the summer.  Residents have also been asked to allow the use of their hose connections.

Anyone interested in helping defray the cost of this project is encouraged to make a tax-deductible contribution to The Garden Club of the Back Bay to help pay for continued maintenance, pruning, and fertilization of the trees for the first three years after planting. Checks may be made payable to The Garden Club of the Back Bay and mailed to Margaret Pokorny, 384 Marlborough Street, Boston, MA 02115, or you may donate online at http://www.gardenclubbackbay.org/donate/

For more information on the project, email mpok384@gmail.com.

Volunteer Opportunity – The Charlesgate Alliance

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The Charlesgate Alliance is a new neighborhood organization dedicated to improving Charlesgate Park and to knitting together the Charlesgate district. It promises to become an effective new force to defend and serve a diverse and dynamic neighborhood, connecting Kenmore, Back Bay and the Fenway. The group is actively soliciting new members. A short term goal is to develop the notion of Charlesgate as a neighborhood while creating safe, pedestrian friendly public “parklets” and to improve the Muddy River water quality. Ultimately, a long term goal is to restore Charlesgate Park.  For more information visit https://charlesgatealliance.org/