Looking back on ’25 in Boston

By Dan Murphy

2025 was yet another noteworthy year in Boston, marked by a number of milestones and memorable events throughout the city. The organization formerly known as Fenway CDC (Community Development Corporation) officially became Fenway Forward in September, marking the beginning of a new chapter for the longstanding nonprofit, which offers affordable housing, resident services, and workforce development programs throughout the immediate area. In our parks, the Esplanade continued to transform, with the Esplanade Association  breaking ground in May on the new Charles River Esplanade campus, which will reimagine the 2-acre site of the former Lee Pool complex as a year-round, universally accessible facility. The fully ADA-accessible Gronk Playground was then unveiled on the Esplanade on Aug. 19, made possible via a partnership involving former New England Patriots star Rob Gronkowski and his Gronk Nation Youth Foundation, together with the Esplanade Association and the state’s Department of Conservation and Recreation. The Friends of the Public Garden, which works in partnership with the Boston Parks Department to care for and enhance the Public Garden, the Commonwealth Avenue Mall, and the Boston Common, also embarked on a new chapter in May, when Liza Meyer, who previously served as Interim Parks Commissioner and Chief Landscape Architect for the City of Boston, officially started in her new role as the Friends group’s third leader and new president. And in city politics, Mayor Michelle Wu clinched a second term after securing an easy victory over political newcomer Josh Craft in the Sept. 9 primary election. So with ’25 now on the books, we invite readers to look back on some of the noteworthy events of this past year.

• On Jan. 1, Rep. Jay Livingstone was sworn in for another term at the State House. ​Rep. Livingstone has represented the Suffolk 8th District since 2013, when he won in a Special Election to succeed Marty Walz.  He has been reelected six times since then, in 2014, 2016, 2018, 2020, 2022, and 2024, respectively.

• On Jan. 6, the Neighborhood Association of the Back Bay Licensing and Building Use Committee virtually held its first monthly meeting of the year. At this time, Rooted In, the adult-use cannabis dispensary located at 331 Newbury St., proposed adding single pre-rolls to its menu.

• On Feb. 10, the public got a look at floor plans and the building program for the proposed renovation of the South End Branch Library at the fifth city-sponsored community meeting on the project, which was held virtually.

• On Feb. 12, Mayor Michelle Wu notified Back Bay leaders in a letter of the city’s intention to remove a  dedicated bus lane on Boylston Street only months after its installation while also pledging to undertake a study to evaluate existing bike lanes. The Boylston Street Better Bus and Bike Lane  project, which got underway the previous June, created a new bus lane from Ring Road to Arlington Street, along with a one-way, separated bike lane on Boylston Street between Arlington Street and Massachusetts Avenue.

• On March 5, Mayor Michelle Wu defended Boston’s sanctuary city policies during her testimony before Congress in Washington, D.C.

• On March 24, representatives from the City unveiled a web-based, interactive StoryMap for the Fenway Transportation Action Plan during a public meeting at the Fenway Community Center. The Fenway TAP – a joint effort of the City of Boston’s Planning and Transportation departments – will help determine changes to three Design Areas, including Kenmore Square, Brookline Avenue, and Van Ness Street/Ipswich Street, as well as introduce a westward extension of the Roxbury-Fenway Connector Green Links project.

• On March 27, Fenway Civic Association held its 63rd annual meeting at The 521 Overlook at Fenway Park.

• On April 2, the City Council voted 11-2  to pass an ordinance that beginning in January 2026, will require third-party food delivery drivers to obtain permits to work in Boston.

• On April 8, the Animal Rescue League of Boston (ARL) broke ground on its new, three-story, state-of-the-art Animal Care & Adoption Center at 10 Chandler St. in the South End.

• On April 19, Mayor Michelle Wu joined the Boston Parks and Recreation Department and the Paget family to host the first ride of the 48th season on the Swan Boats at the Boston Public Garden Lagoon.

• On Easter Sunday, April 20 – one day ahead of the 129th Boston Marathon – Old South Church in Boston in Copley Square continued its Marathon Sunday tradition, with worship services, featuring the Blessing of the Athletes.

• On April 29, the organization formerly known as Fenway CDC (Community Development Corporation) and now known as Fenway Forward held its 52nd annual meeting at Simmons University. At that time, the group presented three Community Service Awards to Sen. Lydia Edwards, touted as a tireless champion of affordable housing; Boston Badminton and Tennis Club, a neighborhood organization that dates back to 1891 and has over the years, generously supported Fenway CDC and the neighborhood; and Tenant Organizers of Our Lady’s Guild House, historically a “home to women looking for reasonable priced housing and a sense of community.” The meeting also included the second of three Town Hall Community Vision Conversations to help guide the organization’s Strategic Plan for the next four years.

• On May 1, Liza Meyer, who previously served as Interim Parks Commissioner and Chief Landscape Architect for the City of Boston, officially started in her role as  the third leader and new president of the Friends of the Public Garden.

• On May 13, the Esplanade Association  broke ground on the new Charles River Esplanade campus, which will transform the 2-acre site of the former Lee Pool complex into a year-round, universally accessible destination in the park. Made possible via a nearly 25-year public-private partnership between EA and the state’s Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR), the new campus will be highlighted by the year-round Smith Family Pavilion at Charlesbank.

• On May 15, Mayor Michelle Wu brought her annual Neighborhood Coffee Hour for Back Bay and Beacon Hill on Thursday, May 15, to the Copley Branch of the Boston Public Library. (The event was originally scheduled to take place at its typical location on the Commonwealth Avenue Mall.) Each year, the Mayor’s Neighborhood Coffee Hours allows opportunities for residents from across the city to meet and hear from their neighborhood liaisons, as well as to connect with city leadership and staff from the Community Engagement Cabinet.

• On June 3, Mayor Michelle Wu recognized 30 longstanding, independent businesses citywide as this year’s Legacy Business Award winners for contributing to the fabric of their respective neighborhoods. Among the winners were Jacques’ Cabaret of Bay Village and JJ Foley’s Café of the South End.

• On June 10, the staff  of Hampshire House Hospitality Group dedicated a bench in honor of Tom Kershaw, the organization’s chairman, in the Public Garden. The occasion marked the 56th anniversary of Kershaw assuming ownership of Hampshire House.

• July 9 was officially declared ‘Miguel Rosales Day’ in the City of Boston per a resolution sponsored by District 8 City Councilor Sharon Durkan in recognition of the transformative and indelible impact the venerable architect and longtime Beacon Hill resident has made on the city’s infrastructure and skyline.

• On July 22, Inquilinos Boricuas en Acción (IBA), a nationally recognized community development corporation and the largest Latina-led nonprofit organization in New England, broke ground on Casas Borinquen – a transformative redevelopment project that preserved and modernized 36 affordable housing units across nine historic brick townhomes and added five new affordable units within 403 Shawmut Ave., former site of IBA’s administrative offices. 

• On Aug. 19, four-time Super Bowl champion Rob Gronkowski, in partnership with the Gronk Nation Youth Foundation (GNYF), the Esplanade Association (EA), and the Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR), unveiled the fully ADA-accessible Gronk Playground on the Charles River Esplanade.

• On Aug. 26, winners from the Back Bay, South End, and Fenway in the 29th annual Mayor’s Garden Contest were among those  honored in a ceremony in the Public Garden. In the Small Yard Garden category, 133 Commonwealth Garden Committee of the Back Bay took first place, with Beth Kates, Michelle Vanparys, and Debora Hollland accepting the award, while Jill Christians of the South End was awarded second place. In the Porch Balcony or Container Garden category,  Peter Cahn and Donald Hess – of the Back Bay were awarded first place. Also, Jenny Li and Mark Springel of Berkeley Community Gardens were awarded first place in the Community Garden category, followed by Dimple Patel of Berkeley Community Garden and Gerry Izzi and Dan Doherty of the Fenway Victory Gardens in second and third place, respectively.

• On Sept. 11 – two days after coming in a distant second in the preliminary election – Josh Kraft officially ended his campaign for mayor of Boston in a television interview with WCVB-TV. According to the city’s unofficial election results, incumbent Mayor Michelle Wu garnered nearly 72 percent of the ballot (66,398 votes) in the Sept. 9 election, while Kraft, a 58-year-old political newcomer who has worked in the nonprofit sector and is the son of New England Patriots owner, Robert Kraft, trailed her with just over 23 percent of the ballot (21, 324 votes). Domingos Darosa, a community activist, came in third in the four-way race, with under 3 percent of the ballot (2,409 votes), ahead of a perennial candidate for public office, Robert Cappucci, with just over 2 percent of the ballot (2,074votes).

• In late September, the organization formerly known as Fenway CDC (Community Development Corporation) officially changed its name to Fenway Forward, following a year of strategic planning and input from community members. The name change for the 52-year-old nonprofit, which offers affordable housing, resident services, and workforce development programs in the Fenway neighborhood and beyond, coincided with the release of its four-year strategic plan (2026-2029).

• On Nov. 4, all four incumbent City Councilors at-Large up for reelection clinched the four open seats in the general election. According to the city’s unofficial election results, Council President Ruthzee Louijeune topped the bill, garnering 9.23 percent of the ballot (54,503 votes cast). Trailing her were Councilor Julia Mejia, with 16.74 percent of the ballot (47,422 votes cast); Councilor Erin Murphy, with 16.36 percent of the ballot (46,360 votes cast); and Councilor Henry Santana, with 15.49 percent of the ballot (43,904 votes cast), respectively. Meanwhile, Mayor Michelle Wu ran unopposed and easily secured a second term, garnering 93.23 percent of the ballot (78,384 votes cast).

• On Dec. 4, immediately following the annual Holiday Tree Lighting on the Boston Common, Mayor Michelle Wu joined the Friends of the Public Garden and the Committee to Light Commonwealth Avenue Mall to light up Commonwealth Avenue Mall for the holidays.