Category: Comment Letter

Dorchester Bay City Comment Letter

Dorchester Bay City Comment Letter

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December 10, 2020
Director Brian Golden
Boston Planning and Development Agency
Attn via email: Aisling Kerr

Secretary Kathleen A. Theoharides
Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs
Attn via email: Erin Flaherty

Re: Dorchester Bay City (EEA# 16277)

Dear Secretary Theoharides and Director Golden:

Dorchester Bay City has the potential to transform a significant site from a largely vacant expanse of asphalt into a vibrant place that draws people from across Boston and the region. Because the ground lease for the property will provide funding for UMass Boston, the site also carries with it an opportunity to strengthen the City’s most important public university.

WalkBoston has reviewed the ENF and PNF with the knowledge that there is a great deal more planning and design to come. We hope that our comments and questions will help to ensure that the scope for the EIR and PIR will help to make the project truly walkable for all.

We also hope that our comments will help to ensure that the proponents, other nearby development teams, and City and State public agencies come together to design and execute the on and off-site infrastructure needed to bring the site’s promise to fruition. The fact that the City’s CAC has been charged with thinking about the benefits, impacts and public infrastructure needs of a collection of projects is a hopeful sign that this bigger picture planning and investment will occur.

Our comments are focused on four key questions:

  1. How will Dorchester Bay City (DBC) achieve the walking connections to the Red Line needed to achieve the mode split envisioned – with relatively low levels of vehicle use and high levels of walking and transit use?
  2. How can DBC be more robustly connected to its immediate and more distant Dorchester neighbors?
  3. What role and responsibility should DBC take in resolving the significant transportation needs that the project’s success is contingent on?
  4. How can some of the site’s more detailed designs ensure that people walking are comfortable, safe and well served by the project itself.

JFK/UMass Station Walking Connections 

The documents describe the poor and unsafe walking connection between the site and the Red Line Station, but level of intervention described to improve the connection is not commensurate with mode share projection and the need of DBC’s occupants. The walking time estimates (shown with concentric circles) do not reflect the actual routes or the psychological barriers posed by the very busy roads and intersections that must be navigated.  Notwithstanding the improvements proposed for Mt. Vernon Street, WalkBoston remains concerned that the quality of the walking environment between the site and the MBTA station will not be attractive enough to generate the substantial transit and pedestrian mode splits that are projected (and which are needed to meet the City’s and State’s GHG targets as well as to prevent ever worsening congestion).

  • We urge the proponent (along with DCR and other public agencies) to think very creatively about this issue and to develop design interventions for the Mt. Vernon Street/Morrissey Boulevard at-grade and underpass intersections that are transformative.
  • We urge DBC to also look at possible walking connections via K Circle and Columbia Road which may be a shorter and more direct walk for some DBC users. The plans being developed for Day Boulevard Extension and for access to the Boston Teacher’s Union Building (5th Street on Figure 1-32 in the PNF) might serve as a starting point for that investigation.
  • As the project plans move ahead, the proponent should also provide a detailed marketing and program plan that will help to achieve the mode splits that have been shown in the ENF and PNF, including a reduction in the number of parking spaces proposed.

Neighborhood Connections

DBC should be connected to its neighbors and to Dorchester. WalkBoston is concerned that DBC will create an island of shiny buildings not connected to their neighbors or the rest of the City.

  • Harbor Point Walking Connection – The grading plans that are proposed to achieve the needed resiliency to ocean level rise will create a grade separation between Harbor Point and DBC. We request that the proponent provide more design details to describe how the physical and neighborly connection will be made between the sites.
  • UMass Walking Connection – UMass is only a five -minute walk from many parts of the DBC site. We ask that the project design team explore ways in which this connection can be made attractive and explicitly help to build a connection between the two.
  • Dorchester, Moakley Park, Carson Beach Connections –We understand that resolution of the design for Morrissey Boulevard and K Circle lies in the hands of state agencies and will be enormously important to these connection issues. But we urge the proponent to delve deeply into design ideas that could help make the walking connections robust. For example:
    • What wonderful walking path and Day Boulevard crossing could connect DBC to Moakley Park?
    • Are there improvements to walking connections via K Circle and Columbia Road that would also continue under the Southeast Expressway to make the walk to Dorchester Ave and beyond significantly more pleasant and fully accessible?

Role and responsibility of DBC in resolving the significant transportation projects

There are very big off site issues that need to be addressed to make this project really work. The proponent acknowledges that the infrastructure needs to match climate resiliency and the scale of the development that is coming on this site and nearby. The projects include JFK/UMass station and service; Morrissey Boulevard, K Circle and Day Boulevard that are re-built as a climate-resilient gateways that serve all modes.

We ask that DBC describe the level of commitment that they will provide to get these projects to successful implementation that goes beyond promises to collaborate and includes firmer commitments in terms of timing, leadership in bringing all parties to the table and funding.

Design Details

We understand that the PNF and ENF show very early stages of design, and ask that the following walking and walkability questions be addressed in greater detail in the DEIR and DPIR.

  • Provide separated walking and biking routes.
  • De-emphasize vehicles throughout the project site – slow them down, make them feel like intruders who have been granted access on good behavior.
  • Provide active places for playing, basketball etc. not just landscaping as a forecourt to buildings. DBC should achieve the lived-in, well-used feel of a neighborhood that feels like a place for everyone.
  • Re-examine the proximity of Building A to Carson Beach, which is public open space and should not feel privatized in any way.
  • Look in a very fine grained way at garage entries and exits, service and loading areas etc. to ensure that they are safe and gracious for people walking.

Thank you for the opportunity to comment on this significant and important development which will occupy on of Boston’s most wonderful sites.

We look forward to working with the DBC Team, the community and City and State agencies to help ensure that a wonderful project is built.

Sincerely,

Stacey Beuttell                                                                                  Wendy Landman
Executive Director                                                                           Senior Policy Advisor

Testimony as prepared for Boston City Council Joint Committee on Planning, Development & Transportation Public Health – Docket #1074, Order for a hearing to discuss speeding cars as a public health emergency

Testimony as prepared for Boston City Council Joint Committee on Planning, Development & Transportation Public Health – Docket #1074, Order for a hearing to discuss speeding cars as a public health emergency

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Testimony as prepared for City of Boston City Council Joint Committee on Planning, Development & Transportation Public Health – Docket #1074, Order for a hearing to discuss speeding cars as a public health emergency and address infrastructure improvements; and Docket #1040, Order for a hearing to discuss pedestrian safety, traffic enforcement, and vision zero for the hearing scheduled on Monday, November 23, 2020 at 3:00 p.m. conducted via Zoom.

My name is Brendan Kearney, and I’m the Deputy Director at WalkBoston. WalkBoston is a statewide pedestrian advocacy organization whose mission is to make Massachusetts more walkable. We work with municipal staff, state agencies, community-based organizations and residents to make walking conditions safer, more enjoyable, and more equitable for all.Thank you to all the city councilors for having this conversation and sticking around. Thank you also for having public comments first. Coming to these meetings and participating on panels is part our job as advocates, so thank you for making sure that community members who showed up to speak are a priority.

Speeding is a huge public safety issue: the Governor’s Highway Safety Association Report “Speeding Away from Zero” released in 2019 shared that 28% of fatal crashes in 2017 in MA were speeding-related. Higher speed, regardless of limit, is a factor in every traffic fatality or serious crash: there is less reaction time for a person driving to brake or avoid a crash, and a fast moving vehicle inflicts higher blunt force trauma on crash victims.

Even though traffic volumes have been down (during pandemic), still increased rates of speed on the streets. Councilor Flynn has already identified here today a number of fatal crashes as well as crashes where people drove at high rates of speed into immovable objects. 

Last week, there was a session during MassDOT’s Moving Together conference about MassDOT’s “Speed Management to Prevent Serious Injuries and Fatalities” project. MassDOT announced that they have committed resources to study how speed limits are set for clarity to users / designers and to be able to base it on the context (meaning having slower speeds around places there are many people: main street districts, schools, senior centers, transit stops). Hope Boston can get to the front of the line on this!

Councilor Bok mentioned Systems Fixes, so I’ll try and frame my comments that way.

First, I’ll agree wholeheartedly w/ her suggestion on improving the Signal Policy: Need to improve our signals so they prioritize vulnerable road users – especially people walking – and give consistency from intersection to intersection for everyone with pedestrian-first signals. Councilor Flynn mentioned concurrent signals, which do work well when people driving are doing it at a slower speed so they can appropriately yield to people who have the legal right of way in the crosswalk. There are some exceptions: they are not appropriate at intersections with many turns, or at T intersections where 100% of people driving are turning a vehicle across the path of people walking in a crosswalk. No matter the setup — concurrent or exclusive for people walking — traffic signals should on be a shorter half cycles wherever possible, so that there is less delay for everyone. 

I’d like to also offer a few more Systems Fixes:

1. The City should and can lead when there are multiple jurisdictions. Many of the most dangerous roads for speeding are not Boston owned or have multiple jurisdictions (Boston, MassDCR, MassDOT). Would be great for the City of Boston to take the lead to advocate for changes and lead on some of these mixed jurisdiction places and get the stakeholders to the table to make safety changes. Becca will share more.

2. We need GOOD data. (Thanks for highlighting, Councilor Campbell.)
Boston Police should be fixing their database connections so that they are automatically sharing any crash data reports w/ MassDOT. That still doesn’t happen, though we’ve all been talking about it for years.

Thank you to the City Council for funding a band-aid to the problem w/ a data analyst position so that information is shared more readily with the transportation department, but the systems fix would be to get the BPD crash report system to connect directly to the state’s crash reporting system. The problem is that so much of the content lives within the narrative section. Those police reports have way more info about the crash than what EMS crash dataset includes which is shown on the Vision Zero Crash Map. Having that feeding into the MassDOT Crash Portal will possibly qualify the city for more funding programs to help fix dangerous streets.

Building on the data point, I’m glad that one of the commenters, Matt Lawlor, mentioned concerns around increased officer enforcement. In June 2020, WGBH reported out data showing that black people in Boston accounted for 70% of police stops despite being 25% of the population. 

Another data systems fix: Would also love to see data from those speed feedback signs. Is there a process for it getting collected & shared, or is that looked at when a project is going to happen? Is there an escalation or a next step? Meaning, does a Speed Feedback Sign location get upgraded to a speed hump if people continue to speed down a street?  

3. Figure out snow clearance for pedestrians, too. Important to show safety for pedestrians is key year round – from clearing curb cuts, to prioritizing the clearing of heavily traveled sidewalks and crosswalks. If sidewalks aren’t safely cleared, people walk in the street since those DO get cleared. Raised Crosswalks are a double win: they can slow speeding drivers and also makes it so a curb cut does not flood/freeze. We created a video showing the importance of clearing curb cuts after snow storms, that I’ll share a link to.

4. Councilor Mejia – I agree with your comment that there needs to be more overlap between development and transportation! One example of how we’re helping impact that: Urban Edge, Jamaica Plain Neighborhood Development Corporation (JPNDC) and The Community Builders are redeveloping the Mildred C. Hailey apartments, I recently met with them through an invite from Carolyn Royce and the Egleston Square Neighborhood Association / Jamaica Plain Neighborhood Council during one of their existing meetings, and offered suggestion that a new 4 leg intersection at Centre / Lamartine should include a raised and safe connection for the Southwest Corridor. They already have plans for better connections from the site to the Southwest Corridor, & fixing pedestrian access through the site. 

Thank you for the opportunity to be on this panel, and I welcome your questions.

WalkBoston Comments on DCR Arborway Parkways Improvement Project

WalkBoston Comments on DCR Arborway Parkways Improvement Project

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November 6, 2020

Jeffrey R. Parenti, Program Manager
DCR
Division of Planning and Engineering
251 Causeway St.
Boston, MA 02114

Re: WalkBoston Comments on the DCR Arborway Parkways Improvement Project

Dear Jeff:

WalkBoston is enthusiastic about the direction that DCR is taking for the Arborway Improvement Project, both the range of choices that you have shown and the approach of providing opportunities for extensive public comments and input well before any decisions have been made about the project design. We look forward to working with you and the design team to arrive at a truly transformative design for this beautiful but dangerous piece of the Emerald Necklace.

Our comments are framed from the standpoint of design options and operations and are therefore not focused on the specific concepts that have been illustrated to date. As you and the designers have noted, the drawings are indicative of design approaches rather than design specifics.

  • We applaud the Common Features proposed in all three alternatives as outlined on the project website, including: the focus on safety for all modes, vehicle speed reduction throughout, increase in the amount  of parkland and reduction in the amount of pavement, and special care given to the landscape design and trees along the corridor.
  • We understand that the project is still in its early phases of planning and design, but echo the comments at the public meeting that the travel data for all modes is needed to better understand the pros and cons of each option. We caution that pedestrian and bike volumes will likely be understated if existing conditions are the baseline because so many walkers and cyclists avoid this portion of the Arborway in its present configuration. We hope that DCR and the consultant team can provide some understanding of how future conditions might reflect the likely increase in pedestrian and cyclist use of the project area.
  • We believe that separate walking and biking paths must be provided throughout the project area. The Arborway is an important bike commuting corridor, and mixing pedestrians and commuting (higher speed) bicyclists reduces the safety and comfort for both groups. Once the improvements to the Arborway are made, we believe that the corridor will see significant increases in both pedestrian and bike usage.
  • We like the introduction of a signalized pedestrian crossing between Kelley and Murray Circles in Alternatives B and C, and think it is an effective way of slowing traffic and making it clear to drivers that this is an area where there will be many pedestrians and cyclists.
  • We believe that eliminating the traffic circles at Murray and Kelley Circle will provide significant safety improvements for both pedestrians and bicyclists. As noted in MassDOT’s September 2020 Guidelines for the Planning and Design of Roundabouts, locations specifically called out as places where “roundabouts may not be advantageous” include those with “intersections with a heavy concentration of pedestrians and bicyclists,” and “intersections with acute angles between approaches.” Since the Arborway project is being specifically designed to address pedestrian and bicycle safety, and because its geometry may pose problems, we believe that the elimination of the traffic circles is an important element of project design.
  • While the different concepts show improved pedestrian crossings in many locations, we are concerned that there are still quite a few unsignalized slip lane crossings that remain in each of the alternatives. Significant design features, and possibly signals, will be needed to make these crossings safe for walkers and bicyclists.

In addition to our comments on the concepts and the broad conversation that DCR is undertaking, we also urge DCR to engage in more detailed conversations and outreach with the neighbors directly adjacent to the project whose travel patterns will be affected by the changes to the Arborway. We know that there is a long history of high concern by neighbors, and hope that intensive outreach can both answer questions and reduce anxiety about potential changes.

WalkBoston looks forward to continuing to work with you on this exciting project, and we also look forward to walking safely along a rejuvenated part of the Emerald Necklace from Jamaica Pond to Forest Hills in the (relatively) near future.

Sincerely,

Stacey Beuttell, Executive Director

Wendy Landman, Senior Policy Advisor

 

Cc: Nate Lash, nlash@hshassoc.com

WalkBoston comments on 819 Beacon Street

WalkBoston comments on 819 Beacon Street

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October 16, 2020
Director Brian Golden
Boston Planning and Development Agency
Attn via email: Edward Carmody
Re: 819 Beacon Street

Dear Director Golden,

The proposal for 819 Beacon Street is admirable for its attention to the many uses of the site by people on foot. WalkBoston commends the proponent, Boston Children’s Hospital, for its focus on developing pedestrian facilities at three edges of its site in addition to a significant amount of open space with walkways as a focus of the development.

The proponent has outlined the development of a large residential building to provide temporary housing for families of patients in Children’s Hospital in about 50 units and provide 499 small units with kitchenettes for students or nurses to use for either long or short term rentals. The site of the building is a large parking lot over the MBTA’s underground Green Line D branch which leaves the main underground Green line at the boundary of the site.  The D line occupies space under much of the site’s north and west sides, resulting in a proposed building which skirts the subway and occupies the east and south sides of the property. The portion of the property not occupied by the building will be largely landscaped open space.

The pathway proposed by the city to connect the Emerald Necklace to Kenmore Square runs directly along the south side of the site. This path is entirely off-road, and will connect the T’s Fenway Station and provide an option to pass under Park Drive to the Landmark Center and the Green Line Fenway Station. The path continues to Maitland Street, the east boundary of the 819 Beacon Street site. At Maitland Street, the path reaches David Ortiz Way, which connects to the new Lansdowne commuter rail station, to Brookline Avenue and the gates of the Red Sox Fenway stadium.

The proponent has indicated considerable enthusiasm about the connection to the proposed path, by including the path layout in its drawings and by showing landscaping of a long row of trees along the path for shade. The proponent also proposes path and sidewalk connections between the Necklace-to-Kenmore path and Beacon Street along the east side of the parcel. We hope and trust that the proponent will commit to its proposed landscaping along the path, and also commit to the permanent maintenance of the portion of the path along its southern boundary.

Access between the site and other Children’s Hospital locations – several less than a mile away from this site – will be enhanced by the path which makes the walk pleasant and safe. Access will also be provided by shuttle vans or buses that will pick up riders at the corner of David Ortiz Way and Maitland Street. The street crossing here will need additional study to make certain that crossings are protected and safe for walkers seeking wheeled access.

Thank you for the opportunity to comment on this important project. Please feel free to contact us for further explanation of our comments and suggestions.

Sincerely,

Stacey Beuttell

Executive Director

People’s Pike October 2020 Letter to Secretary Pollack

People’s Pike October 2020 Letter to Secretary Pollack

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October 30, 2020

Secretary Stephanie Pollack
Massachusetts Department of Transportation 10 Park Plaza, Room 4160
Boston, MA 02116

Dear Secretary Pollack:

The decade of construction and final result of the Allston Multimodal Project will have lasting impacts on every community between Boston and Worcester. It will change how people travel on the Commuter Rail, on I-90, and on local streets and paths. It will also change the quality of life and health for nearby residents, and the ecology and accessibility of the Charles River.

We recognize the significant challenges and complexities this project presents and your urgency to move forward. In this spirit, we recommend that you advance the project for environmental review in the following ways:

1. Select the ​Modified All At-Grade Option​ as the ​Preferred Alternative ​because it works for all modes of transportation and yields long-term benefits for the adjacent community, for commuters, for the river and parks, and the environment.

We reiterate our opposition to the Highway Viaduct, both the no-build option to repair the existing viaduct or the build option to construct a new Modified Highway Viaduct. We agree with the September 23 letter from BPDA Director Golden and Chief Osgood that the All At-Grade option is the right choice to leave a lasting positive legacy for Boston and the region. The All At-Grade option merits the most focus over the year ahead with detailed analyses about ways to minimize impacts to the Charles River.

The ​Modified All At-Grade Option​ has many advantages over the other alternatives, including the following:

  • Only the All At-Grade option relieves the toll payers on the Mass Pike and the taxpayers across the State from the very expensive burden of maintaining, repairing and eventually replacing a lengthy viaduct—a cost we are all bearing today.
  • While each option seeks to address the noise from the thousands of cars and trucks that can be heard across sections of Allston, Brookline, and Cambridge, only the All At-Grade option eliminates the additional noise generated by cars and especially trucks accelerating up and braking down the slope of an elevated viaduct, and takes away the raised platform from which this noise is projected.
  • It is the best choice to connect Boston and Brookline to the Charles River. It improves the urban design and development potential of the entire project area and it has the most support of any option under consideration both from the Allston residents who are most impacted by the highway and the hundreds of people from across the region who have voiced a preference during years of comment periods and public meetings.

2. Prioritize transit-centered mitigation and build for a transit-centered future.

A strong mitigation plan will benefit Metrowest residents and people living and working in Allston, Brookline, and Cambridge as well. A construction mobility plan focused on improved rail and bus services, with increased parking at suburban locations, is needed to provide realistic alternatives for the commuters who will be impacted by the reduction in turnpike capacity during construction and reduce cut-through traffic that threatens to overwhelm roads in Allston, Brighton, Newton, Cambridge, Brookline, and beyond if drivers seek routes around the Allston interchange during construction. MassDOT should identify when I-90 lane closures will begin and what transit improvements can be implemented before this impact occurs. Additionally, it is important to ensure that two Worcester Line tracks and six Turnpike lanes are available for peak travel throughout construction. Increased transit service during and after construction, along with other mitigation measures, must be binding and not subject to negotiation with the contractor.

Transit enhancements are supported by and benefit all stakeholders. We strongly recommend building a four track, three platform West Station as soon as possible in the construction process. In this project, MassDOT is currently not planning to include reconstruction of the Grand Junction Rail Bridge crossing the Charles River to accommodate two-track service. Extension of passenger service to Cambridge and beyond using the Grand Junction corridor is an important future project that will serve the Commonwealth’s economic development, climate change, and mode shift goals. Completion of a two-track bridge over Soldiers Field Road for the Grand Junction (Little Grand Junction Bridge) as part of this project is an important next step toward implementing this service, while also providing space for extension of the Paul Dudley White Path under the rail bridge and removing a segment of the path out of the narrow river channel.

3. Take a holistic approach to resilient design to fortify the Charles River, Allston neighborhood, and beyond from the impacts of climate change.

Recent comments by MassDOT suggest the agency views the highway viaduct as the most resilient option because of its elevation above future stormwater flooding. However, flooding is only one component of the many interrelated effects of climate change. The biggest contribution the Allston Multimodal project can make toward the Commonwealth’s ambitious carbon reduction goals and climate resilience is to encourage commuters to reduce single-occupancy vehicle trips by prioritizing high-functioning, affordable mass transit options during and after construction.

A resilient design for the I-90 Multimodal project is one that prioritizes the health and needs of neighboring environmental justice communities that have been disproportionately affected by the existing I-90 highway, provides access to parkland to neighboring communities to support neighborhood health, maximizes tree canopy and minimizes impervious surface to mitigate heat effects, improves the water quality and ecology of the Charles River, considers the carbon footprint to build and maintain transportation infrastructure, and address flooding by providing green stormwater infrastructure storage and treatment. ​​These objectives are best achieved by the Modified All At-Grade Option.

To explore how all of these elements can be achieved within the Modified All At-Grade plan, several of the below signed organizations have been working with landscape architects and urban planners at Perkins&Will and CBT (please see the attached document for more details about the variety of strategies and design approaches that should be evaluated to find the best solution). ​The ecological restoration strategies suggested by ​Perkins&Will and CBT​ for the I-90 project build off the Charles River Riverbank Vegetation Management Plan (RVMP) that has been adopted by other state agencies. If MassDOT adopts similar strategies for this project it will lead to a healthier river system and a more holistic rejuvenation of the river and river banks.

The river and public access must be protected during construction to safeguard the incredible public and private investment in the river over the last three decades. Mitigation measures must be thoroughly and transparently considered for each alternative in the Draft Environmental Impact Statement to ensure the least harm and most benefit to this important regional resource.

The existing Allston neighborhoods north and south of the Pike and the new neighborhood that will rise in Beacon Park must be walkable and bikeable neighborhoods with better connections to the Charles River. This can be accomplished with:

  • Footbridges to the river at Agganis Way and at the Commonwealth Ave and Boston University Bridge nexus.
  • A linear buffer park that connects the Agganis Footbridge and a new Franklin Street Footbridge.
  • A widened Paul Dudley White Path with separate biking and walking paths that are integrated as part of the reconstituted river’s edge and potentially on a boardwalk or elevated path where necessary.
  • Improved conditions for the edge of the river esplanade complementing the Magazine Beach across the river, and remediation of the current degraded condition of the river bank, and contaminated runoff that now flows untreated into the Charles River.
  • The new local streets being designed as part of this project should be designed for the City of Boston speed limit with as few lanes as possible to accommodate projected traffic, cycling, and parking requirements.

All of these improvements are essential mitigation for the highway elements of the project, and must receive a firm commitment as integral components of the Allston Multimodal Project.

4. Continue, expand, and improve the project’s advisory process.

While not always a perfect process, the existing Task Force has been an invaluable outlet for community members, impacted stakeholders, and MassDOT to communicate directly with each other about this project. An advisory process should be established and maintained for the entire duration of the project in the following ways:

  • Continue the Allston Multimodal Project Task Force through the completion of the Final Environmental Impact Statement, the certification by the Secretary of Energy and Environmental Affairs and Massachusetts Environmental Policy Office that the project meets all state environmental requirements, the completion of all environmental permitting, and the filing of the federal Record of Decision.
  • Convene a Construction Mitigation Group immediately. Such a committee is essential for this project to provide guidance on the mitigation plan; oversight of construction mitigation measures, including noise, air, and vibration impacts; traffic disruption; and interim public transportation measures during the lengthy construction period. This group should include stakeholders from MetroWest as well as members of the Allston, Brookline and Cambridge communities, and those focused on the interests of the river.
  • Establish an Environmental and Design Oversight Committee for the duration of construction. The Big Dig had an effective oversight committee throughout the construction phase, ensuring that environmental project commitments were accomplished substantially as approved. Allston and Brookline contain state-designated environmental justice populations. The advisory committee should include a majority of individuals from the environmental justice population and representatives who are most directly impacted by the project.
  • Create a Working Group on Charles River Restoration and Climate Resiliency. Effective rebuilding and restoration of the edge of the Charles River that considers climate change impacts will require significant involvement of agencies outside of MassDOT, including the Department of Conservation and Recreation, the Department of Environmental Protection, including its Waterways and Wetlands Sections, and the Army Corps of Engineers. In addition, advocacy organizations and private groups representing the boating community, park and pathway users, and the health and ecology of the river and its watershed should be an integral part of this Working Group, which will have a major set of tasks to identify, analyze, and decide on the best future of this valuable regional resource.

Taking a comprehensive approach that begins with an All At-Grade throat that minimizes impacts to the Charles River, ensures a strong mitigation plan for the Allson and MetroWest communities, and repairs the damage the highway and viaducts have caused to the nearby residents and the Charles River over the last 50 years is necessary and achievable.

We look forward to continuing to work with you to ensure the success of this project.

Sincerely,

350 MA Transportation Working Group
A Better City
Allston Brighton CDC
Allston Civic Association
Allston Brighton Health Collaborative
Boston Cyclists Union
Boston Society for Architecture
Brookline GreenSpace Alliance
Cambridge Redevelopment Authority
Cambridgeport Neighborhood Association
Charles River Conservancy
Conservation Law Foundation
Friends of Leverett Pond, Brookline
Kendall Square Association
LivableStreets Alliance
Massachusetts Bicycle Coalition
Massachusetts Sierra Club
MASSPIRG
Pioneer Institute
Transit Matters
WalkBoston
Worcester Chamber of Commerce
Harry Mattison, Allston resident and I-90 Task Force Member
Jessica Robertson, Allston resident and I-90 Task Force Member
Fred Yaloris, Cambridge resident and I-90 Task Force Member

Attachments (combined as one PDF):

●  City of Boston letter
●  Boston City Council resolution
●  City of Cambridge letter
●  Cambridge City Council resolution
●  Town of Brookline letter
●  I-90 Allston Interchange Riverfront Analysis and Design Exploration Presentation