The Wharf District Council held their September meeting on Tuesday evening at the Norman Leventhal Center at 30 Rowes Wharf. A number of notable reports and community updates were included as part of a full agenda.
Greenway 10 Year Anniversary Celebration: Keelin Caldwell, Director Of Programs & Engagement announced that Greenway Week will be held from October 4th through the 10th. Reviewing this year’s milestones, highlights included the addition of banners all along the Greenway route, an urban wildflower meadow set to evolve over a period of three years, beehives, various horticultural improvements, augmented reality art, and colored LEDs as part of the lighting upgrade for The Rings fountain.
Wharf District Neighborhood Projects & Plans Update:
The State Street Reconstruction Project is currently in a data-gathering phase. Traffic counts are being conducted along with parking inventories to guide the design process. One of the goals of the project is to bring sidewalks up to compliancy for easier pedestrian use. Next steps will be performing a curbside use study. The project planners are also experimenting with the idea of a one-lane road, but this proposition was met with concern due to potential traffic issues.
Long Wharf Subsurface Utility Easement Legislation:
Deputy Director for Climate Change & Environmental Planning Rich McGuinness spoke on the recently filed Long Wharf Subsurface Utility Easement Legislation. Legislation was filed in order to allow subsurface utility easements to the State Street portion of Long Wharf to be given by the BPDA to utility companies servicing the Long Wharf area. Legislation is required for easements under open space protected by Article 91 of the Commonwealth’s Constitution.
WDC members asked for clarification on the scope/timeline of the proposed project. An estimated few days of dedicated drilling is expected. The end result will be a restoration of the surface of the State Street section of Long Wharf to its original condition.
Climate Ready Wharf District: No new business. An overview of the Climate Ready initiative was undertaken. The recently released BPDA Flood Resiliency Guidelines were discussed, and a Climate Ready North End draft report is forthcoming.
Northern Avenue Bridge: No new updates. Susanne Lavoie and Mark Margulies recapped the City of Boston’s June 3rd Community Meeting at District Hall, expressing reservations in terms of size and scale. One proposed width, measuring over 64ft, captured concern due to the fact that, in having to come down in order to allow maritime traffic through, doing so would affect Hook Lobster and Atlantic Avenue.
Update On The Public Realm Video: WDC President Marc Margulies stated that the finished Public Realm video will be shared at the next meeting.
Final Item: Mike Manning, Chair of The Friends Of The Boston Harborwalk provided information on Celebrating The Harborwalk At 35.
The next Wharf District Council meeting will take place on Tuesday, October 15th, 2019.
