
The Wharf District Council (WDC) held its August meeting on Tuesday, August 18th via Zoom. A number of notable reports and community updates were included as part of a full agenda.
Construction Work Along Surface Rd. and Atlantic Ave. Crosswalks
John Romano Sr, Municipal Affairs Liaison for Massachusetts Department of Transportation (MassDOT) reported regarding ongoing construction work in the Wharf District. Schedules for both overnight work cycles are listed below.
Proposed milling timeline (Subject to change based on rate of work. All work is being done overnight. Crews will attempt to not impact outdoor restaurant areas until after 11 p.m.)
- August 16: Broad St. & Surface Rd. intersection
- August 16: High St. & Surface Rd. intersection
- August 16: Oliver & Purchase St. intersection
- August 17: Clinton St. & Surface Rd. intersection
- August 17: Crosswalk area near Carousel on Surface Rd.
- August 17: State St. & Surface Rd. intersection
- August 18: Milk St. & Central St. at Surface Rd. intersection
- August 18: India St. & Surface Rd. intersection
- August 19: India St. at Atlantic Ave. & Surface Rd. intersections
- August 19: Milk St. & Central St. at Atlantic Ave. intersections
- August 20: State St. & Atlantic Ave. intersection
- August 20: Crosswalk area near Carousel on Atlantic Ave.
- August 20: Crosswalk area on Cross St.
Proposed paving timeline (Subject to change based on rate of work. All work is being done overnight. Crews will attempt to not impact outdoor restaurant areas until after 11 p.m.)
- August 23: High St. & Atlantic Ave. intersection
- August 24: India St. & Atlantic Ave. intersection
- August 25: Milk St. & Central St. at Atlantic Ave. intersections
- August 26: State St. & Atlantic Ave. intersection
- August 26: Crosswalk area near Carousel on Atlantic Ave.
- August 26: Crosswalk area on Cross St.
- August 27: Clinton St. & Surface Rd. intersection
- August 27: Crosswalk areas near Carousel on Surface Rd.
- August 31: State St. & Surface Rd. intersection
- September 1: Milk St. & Central St. at Surface Rd. intersections
- September 2: India St. & Surface Rd. intersection
- September 2: Broad St. & Surface Rd. intersection
- September 3: High St. & Surface Rd. intersection
- September 3: Oliver & Purchase St. intersection
Harbor Garage Project
Rob Caridad from the Chiofaro Company discussed the Harbor Garage Project. With no firm dates in place for future meetings, Caridad instead opted to provide a general outline and some informational updates.
The Chiofaro Company filed its Environmental Notification Form (ENF) with the Massachusetts Environmental Policy Act office. This comes following the filing of the the PNF (Project Notification Form) in January.
Caridad stated the next meeting will likely be a virtualization of the town hall style meeting convened in February during the week of August 31st or September 7th. An Impact Advisory Group (IAG) meeting will likely take place in early September as well.
Virtual open house style meetings are also in the works for a potential mid-September debut, and would be centered around an introductory theme with breakout rooms to discuss specific details on tower design, transportation, resiliency, and more with project members.
Caridad will report back to the WDC with official meeting dates as soon as they’re finalized.
Emergency Preparedness
Debuting the Wharf District Council’s Emergency Preparedness Initiative, board member Sheila Willard introduced Kyron Owens, Director of Communications for the City of Boston’s Department of Emergency Management (OEM), and Joe Christo, Senior Resilience and Waterfront Planner at the Boston Planning and Development Agency (BPDA).
Owens and Christo discussed their roles within the OEM and BPDA and offered a number of observations and best practices for keeping well-informed and suitably prepared in uncertain times. With diverse voices weighing in, the WDC will continue to explore emergency preparedness procedures and collaborative efforts with the goal of increasing and enhancing community awareness.
Friends of Christopher Columbus Park
Joanne-Hayes Rines from the Friends of Christopher Columbus Park (FOCCP) provided an update. The FOCCP’s Horticultural Co-Chairs Robyn Reed and Terese O’Connell recently received the Golden Trowel Award for the “Garden of Hope”.
The Greenway
Rachel Lake from The Greenway announced that the augmented reality art exhibit will be coming to a close at the end of August.
Climate Ready Project
The Climate Ready Boston Project team will present their latest findings on September 15th.
State Street Renovation
Ashley Biggins, Project Manager for the State Street Renovation Project, checked in on the temporary bike lanes and provided a presentation link.
Voting 2020 and Boston Public Schools
Members were reminded about the State Primary Election taking place on September 1st and the Presidential Election on November 3rd. Read more about registering to vote, mail-in ballots, and early voting here.
BPS (Boston Public School)’s reopening 2020 plan was also briefly discussed.
View the full meeting by clicking here. Use password: q+Hq7S?A