South End/Bay Village Fall Clean Up
The Annual South End and Bay Village Love Your Block Fall Clean Up is scheduled for Saturday, Nov. 16. All groups who would like to participate must register by sending an email to [email protected]. Please include the group name, the area to clean up and how many volunteers are part of the group.
The East Berkeley Neighborhood Association will be cleaning up Peters Park, the Worcester Square Area Neighborhood Association will focus on Worcester Square, Blackstone/Franklin will have a crew in Franklin Square, Bay Village will meet on Church Street and the Ellis South End will meet at the Boston Center for the Arts Plaza.
Tatte Bakery South End to Open Friday
The Tatte Bakery group will open their 13th store at 345 Harrison Ave. on the corner of Traveler Street this Friday, Nov. 15. There is a great deal of excitement for the opening already in the neighborhood, and the space looks inviting.
Owner Tzurit Or said they had been looking in the South End for some time, but without any luck until recently.
“We were looking to join the beautiful South End neighborhood for many years and could never find a space,” she said. “When the opportunity arose to join the Harrison Avenue and Ink Block neighborhood in creating a neighborhood on that side of the South End, we said yes. We really wanted to bring our food and pastries, and above all, the great gathering place to the South End.”
The space includes new seating options, a large new coffee bar to gather around and plenty of seats and space for strollers or large groups to gather.
Or said they have never opened on a Friday before, but she wanted their South End journey to begin with a day that they serve all day brunch.
Back Bay Happenings
•The Back Bay/South End Gateway project Citizens Advisory Committee (CAC) will hold an update meeting on Nov. 19 at 8 a.m. in 10 Park Plaza, fifth floor Suite 5170, Boston. The meeting will be held to discuss project updates and construction timelines and information with the Boston Properties team, the Boston Planning and Development Agency (BPDA), and MassDOT. the Back Bay/South End Gateway Project was approved by the BPDA Board in November 2017, and the development team has spent the last two years working through additional permitting approvals and design review/refinements.
•Copley Tree Lighting Dec. 2
The Boston Parks and Recreation Department and The Friends of Copley Square welcome the holidays with the annual Copley Square Tree Lighting on Monday, Dec. 2, starting at 5 p.m. This free event will feature appearances by NECN’s Jenny Johnson, Santa Claus, and Rudolph along with musical performances by vocalist Alexus Lee, the Voices Boston Children’s Chorus, the Boston Pops Brass Quintet, a duet featuring Boston Police Officers Kim Tavares and Stephen McNulty, and Berklee College of Music’s own Sam Robbins. Light refreshments will be provided by Drake’s Cakes, HP Hood LLC, and attendees are invited to stop by the Fios Treat Truck to enjoy baked goods compliments of Verizon Fios. The Fairmont Copley Plaza will host a family reception immediately following for all in attendance. The reception will include cookie decorating, photos with Santa and treats from the Fairmont Copley Plaza. For more information, call (617) 635-4505 or go to www.boston.gov/parks.
• Robert Burns Statue Returned to the Back Bay Fens
On Oct. 30, a coalition of seven Boston organizations joined together to celebrate the re-installation of the statue with recitations, songs, and bagpipes in the spirit of the statue’s original dedication ceremony held on Jan. 1, 1920. The event was sponsored by the Boston Parks and Recreation Department, City of Boston Office of Arts and Culture, Millennium Partners, Fenway Civic Association, Fenway Alliance, The National Trust for Scotland Foundation USA, Emerald Necklace Conservancy, and Samuels & Associates. Speakers included Harriet Cross (UK Consul General to New England), Karin Goodfellow (City of Boston Arts Commissioner), and Boston Parks Commissioner Ryan Woods. Scottish singer Maureen McMullan performed two Burns poems accompanied by roots music students from Berklee College of Music. Robert Creighton and Scottish author Jeremy W. Bell recited Burns’s poetry.
South End Dates
•The first meeting of the Boston Medical Center Task Force will take place on Monday, Nov. 18, at 6 p.m. in anticipation of the development team’s notification filing for a proposed new Institutional Master Plan. The meeting will. Take place at BMC, 830 Harrison Ave., in the Menino Building A & B Conference Rooms.
•There will be a development review meeting conducted by the Boston Planning and Development Agency (BPDA) about the changes proposed for 771 Harrison Ave., the former IC Church project. The developer wishes to change the unit mix and create extra living space on the upper floors. The meeting will take place on Nov. 20, 6:30 p.m., in the D-4 Police Station Community Room, 650 Harrison Ave.
•There will be an abutter’s meeting for 22 Braddock Park on Nov. 21, 5:45 p.m. on the premises. The new owners propose to confirm occupancy as a single-family and construct a new rear addition, rear deck, and roof deck. The proposal also includes extending living space into the basement, a rear patio and two off-street parking spaces. The proposal requires Zoning Board approval.
•Forum Double Header: The Opiate Working Group and the South End Forum will hold their meetings on the same day back-to-back this month. The Forum usually meets quarterly on the first Tuesday of the month, but Election Day blew that out of the water this time around. So, the Forum will meet at 6 p.m. on Nov. 19. The location will be announced later. Meanwhile, the Forum’s Opiate Working Group has its regularly scheduled meeting on Nov. 19 at 4 p.m., location to be announced.
•Chester Square Neighbors monthly meeting will be on Weds., Dec. 4.
•The Blackstone/Franklin Squares Neighborhood Association will hold its monthly meeting on Nov. 19, 7 p.m., in the D-4 Police Station Community room.
•The Eight Streets Neighborhood Association will hold its annual Holiday Party at the Eagle on Tremont Street, Dec. 10. Save the date.
•The Blackstone/Franklin Neighborhood Association tree and wreath sale will take place on Saturday, Dec. 7, starting at 9 a.m.
•The next East Berkeley Neighborhood Association meeting will be on Tuesday, Dec. 3, at AC Hotel.
•The Zoning Board hearing for Ming’s Market to expand a warehouse use to a vacant building at 148 East Berkeley St. will be held on Tuesday, Dec. 17, at 10:30 a.m. in City Hall, Room 801.
•State Rep. Aaron Michlewitz will be hosting his annual Holiday Fundraiser and Toy Drive at Wink & Nod on Appleton Street in the South End on Dec. 5, 5:30 p.m. He will also host his final coffee hour at Caffe Nero in Downtown Crossing on Dec. 7, 10 a.m. to noon.