Tag: Allston

Event: Charles River “Throat” Site Walk

Event: Charles River “Throat” Site Walk

By |

RSVP now and save the date – September 12, 2018 5:30pm – join WalkBoston, the Charles River Conservancy, Charles River Watershed Association, and the Esplanade Association for a site walk of the Charles River path’s “Throat” area. We’ll meet at ‘BU Beach’ (grassy area on Boston University Campus near Marsh Chapel) in front of the pedestrian overpass to the Charles River path, before crossing over to the river side and gathering in an accessible location for very brief presentations. From there, we’ll walk to the first overlook to experience the narrow path and un-parklike existing conditions along the path and view the eroded river bank, before returning to the gathering area for questions and next steps.

This will give you a better understanding of why this narrow stretch has an outsized role in MassDOT’s Allston I-90 Interchange Project — and how it could help #UnchokeTheThroat in the years to come.

Getting to the meet up location by transit:

Green Line ‘B’ Branch – BU Central stop – the roundtrip walk from this location is 1 mile.
#57/57A Bus – Commonwealth Ave @ Granby stop

PLEASE NOTE: The pedestrian bridge from BU Beach to the Charles River Path includes stairs; accessible access to the path is at the Mass Ave Bridge (about 3/4 mile away). The #1 Bus has the closest transit stop to this entrance (~1 block away, Mass Ave @ Beacon stop).

More details to be added: RSVP below on Eventbrite or on Facebook

Allston/Brighton Mobility Study Open House later that evening!

After the walk, make sure to attend the BPDA’s Allston Brighton Mobility Study Kick-off Open House (6-8PM, Jackson Mann Gymnasium, 40 Armington St, Allston, MA 02134). The purpose of the study is to identify measures to improve mobility for all modes – transit, bikes, pedestrians, and cars. MBTA and MassDOT staff will also be on hand to explain the Better Bus Study and the Allston Transit Improvement Study for Allston/Brighton and discuss other ongoing initiatives.

For more background on the “Unchoke The Throat” campaign and the Allston I-90 effort at large, see our project page!

Thank you to everyone who came on the Cambridge to Allston Walk

Thank you to everyone who came on the Cambridge to Allston Walk

By |

On July 25th WalkBoston staff, board, and community members braved a stormy forecast for a Harvard construction walk that started in Cambridge and ended in Allston at a local eatery. During that time, everyone managed to stay dry while learning more about Harvard’s construction endeavors, and a little history along the way—Lowell House Bells, the origins of Weeks Bridge, tunnels under Harvard, and so much more! Thank you to Joe Beggan, Linda Kuczynski, and Ed Leflore for sharing your knowledge along the way with the group.

Make sure to join our mailing list to stay in the loop about future walks, or let us know where we should plan to lead a walk next (especially if you want to speak along the way)!

Event: Cambridge to Allston Walk

Event: Cambridge to Allston Walk

By |

We will meet on the Malkin Athletic Center (MAC) steps that face the Lowell House construction site. To reach the MAC steps from Harvard Square, walk down Dunster Street, cross Mt. Auburn Street to Winthrop Street (one block south of Mt Auburn Street). Take a left onto Winthrop Street at a right onto Holyoke Street.

Joe Beggan, WalkBoston board member and Senior Manager for Transportation Planning at Harvard’s Allston Initiatives program will lead the tour from Cambridge to Allston.

In Cambridge Linda Kuczynski, Project Manager for Harvard’s House Renewal Program, will discuss the construction activities at Lowell House and the larger program that is transforming the University’s Neo-Georgian River Houses.

Once we leave the MAC, we will walk to the Weeks Bridge to take a moment to discuss the bridge and enjoy the river views. We will then cross the river and pass through the Business School Campus to the i-lab on Western Avenue. We will be joined in Allston by Ed Leflore, Principal and Founder of CSL Consultants, to talk about Harvard’s consultation projects in Allston including the new Science and Engineering Complex on Western Avenue.

Our next to last stop is the “Grove” at Barry’s Corner. We will finish the walk at Zone 3 Allston’s “Aeronaut Allston” summertime musical beer garden series for food, drink and conversation. EDIT: the beer garden closed for the chance of rain, so we’re ending at Our Fathers, the restaurant across from the Grove.

Letter Thanking MassDOT Secretary Pollack

Letter Thanking MassDOT Secretary Pollack

By |

Re: Thank You for MassDOT’s thoughtful I-90 process and presentation

June 29, 2018

To: Stephanie Pollack
Cc: Rep. Kevin Honan, Rep. Michael Moran, Senator Sal DiDomenico, Senator William Brownsberger, Councilor Mark Ciommo, Councilor Michelle Wu, Katherine Fichter, Jonathan Gulliver, James Gillooly, Tad Read

Secretary Pollack,

Thank you very much for presenting and responding to questions at Wednesday night’s I-90 Allston Task Force meeting, and your follow up in the Boston Globe Opinion piece. We appreciate all the thoughtful planning by you and your team that is evident in your presentation.

We’re very excited! Your announcement of the Independent Review Team to analyze the throat options is a great way to proceed. We look forward to working with Jack Wright, Ilyas Bhatti, and the rest of the team to find how the at-grade design can be best accomplished. Your help to implement near-term improvements for transit, biking, and walking in Allston is also much appreciated.

And we certainly agree how West Station and the Malvern Street busway do need rail and bus service plans to accomplish the mission of serving the needs of regional commuters and local businesses & residents, and we will work with the Focus40 and Commuter Rail Vision as the process to discuss that service. However without their physical construction there can be no service. So because of the urgent need for better transit through Allston, we hope MassDOT will work with the Task Force on the design and implementation of an ADA-compliant, two-track, interim West Station and the Malvern Street busway for inclusion in the first phase of the project.

We also hope that the review of permitting issues will look at how MassDOT can permit a project that yields improvements for all modes and all parts of the project area – and not take the perspective that the simplest permitting path is the best.

Lastly, we look forward to working with Mike O’Dowd and his team on improving the Phase One design by designing and evaluating:

  • Rail yard flip
  • Cambridge St. Bypass Road
  • Lane reduction on Cambridge St. and its intersecting streets
  • “Unchoke the Throat” improvements to Charles River paths and parkland
  • Two-track Grand Junction Bridge over Soldiers Field Road
  • Ecological restoration of the Charles River edge

Again, thank you for your thoughtful and sincere approach to finding the best way forward for this impressive project, which truly is a generational opportunity for the Commonwealth.

Sincerely,

Galen Mook, MassBike
Harry Mattison, Charles River Conservancy
Wendy Landman, WalkBoston
Tony Lechuga, LivableStreets Alliance
Jessica Robertson, Allston Resident
Hazel Ryerson, Allston Resident
Anthony D’Isidoro, Allston Civic Association
Jason Desrosier, Allston Brighton CDC
Emma Walters, Allston Village Main Streets
Frederick Salvucci