City Close to Purchasing Egleston Square Peace Garden Property from Clear Channel

Egleston Square Main Street shared some good news recently -- it sounds like the city is going to purchase the property of the Egleston Square Peace Garden from Clear Channel and make it into a permanent community park. In a post on the Egleston Square Main Street website, Mayor Michelle Wu’s State of the City address in February, in which Wu said, “We worked alongside residents in Egleston Square and business partners to secure a Community Peace Garden on Washington Street.” 

"What this means is both the City of Boston and Clear Channel are now working collaboratively toward the outcome we’ve all been advocating for. A final purchase and transfer of property for open park space takes a long time, but our partners at the City feel positive and excited and are working hard to move the process forward," said Main Streets' page. The property has a long history within the community and Clear Channel. In December 2021, Clear Channel listed the property for sale for $1.1 million.

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Clear Channel Selling Egleston Square Peace Garden Property for $1.1M

Community members are not going to like this, but Clear Channel has put the property that has been home to the Egleston Square Peace Garden up for sale. The property at 3127-3131 Washington St. (corner of Washington and School streets) has been listed by Colliers for $1.1 million as of Dec. 6. The real estate listing states the 5,497 sq.

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Help Improve Safety, Traffic in Egleston Square (Atherton, Beethoven, Copley and Arcardia Streets)

The Boston Transportation Department is hosting three upcoming meetings to examine how to make safety and traffic improvements in the Egleston Square area, with a focus on several specific streets. BTD is looking for feedback on changes to particularly affect Atherton, Beethoven, Copley, and Arcadia streets. There will be several public sessions to provide feedback. There will be a popup meeting at Lawson Park (corner of Atherton and Washington streets) on Dec. 9 from 2-4 pm.

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Letter: Community Seeks Transfer of Ownership of Egleston Square Peace Garden from Clear Channel

The following is an open letter to our communities in Jamaica Plain, Roxbury and our elected officials about the Egleston Square Peace Garden:

We have all been concerned about the condition of 3127 Washington Street, also known as the Egleston Square Peace Garden at Washington and School Streets. 

Clear Channel Outdoor, an outdoor advertising company, owns this parcel and operates a billboard there permitted in 1980. Clear Channel is legally responsible for the condition of their property. They installed a fence around it beginning around Nov. 11 after receiving pressure to do so from the city of Boston Inspectional Services Department because of multiple code violations recently found there. Seeing this fence stirs up many emotions, including anxiety for people who have been receiving outreach and services there.

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One Shot Dead in Egleston Square Daylight Shooting

Boston Police are searching for a suspect who ran up to a vehicle during the middle of the day, and brazenly opened fire on the car, killing one person. Police were called to the area of 3108 Washington St. around 2:22 pm, and found one adult male suffering from gunshot wounds, who was pronounced deceased at a local hospital, according to BPDnews.com. The Boston Police Department are investigating the shooting and asking anyone with information relative to the investigation to contact Boston Police Homicide Detectives at 617-343-4470. Shocking video footage of the shooter was recorded by at least two cameras, one by a driver's dash camera, that shows the suspect running down the street and up to a parked vehicle, and then opening fire at that vehicle's driver's side, reported WCVB.

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Urban Edge Analyzes Opportunities, Concerns, and Identifies Recommendations for Youth Services

Nonprofit Urban Edge recently released a report highlighting the priorities and the vision for the future that youth living in Roxbury and Jamaica Plain have for their community. The “Community Assessment of Youth Programs, Services, and Opportunities,” which was conducted by Health Resources in Action, provides a snapshot of these neighborhoods’ demographics and highlights both concerns and opportunities for youth in the Jackson and Egleston Square communities. More than 300 young residents of Roxbury and Jamaica Plain were engaged in the assessment process, through a variety of methods that included phone interviews, virtual focus groups, and an online community survey. “This assessment has reinforced how culturally vibrant and diverse Roxbury and Jamaica Plain are, and the young people who live here are rightly proud of that fact,” said Emilio Dorcely, Urban Edge’s Chief Executive Officer. “But we also see the disparities within the community and the barriers that many of our young people face when it comes to economic opportunity.”

The assessment found that major areas of concern of residents were focused on financial security and economic opportunity – 63% of participants were looking for a new job and almost half (44%) were looking for higher pay while more than a quarter were looking for greater economic advancement.

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My Ten Favorite Streets to Walk in Jamaica Plain

Alex Cox recently accomplished an amazing feat -- he walked every single street in Boston.  

Cox is currently a Master in Urban Planning candidate at the Harvard Graduate School of Design. He recently achieved his long-term goal to visit every street in Boston by foot or by bike, and holds the Guinness World Record for fastest time to travel to every MBTA station. A long-time resident of the Fenway-Kenmore area, he now lives in Somerville. Here are his 10 favorite streets to walk in Jamaica Plain:

Jamaica Plain has always held a special place in my heart, because it was the first neighborhood of Boston that I ever lived in.

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New Organization Producing 7th Annual Jamaica Plain Porchfest

Jamaica Plain Porchfest's co-founders Mindy Fried and Marie Ghitman, are thrilled that one of JP's favorite annual event is being handed over, with love and gratitude, to the artists and art-managers from Dunamis, a Boston-based nonprofit organization. JP Porchfest is a vibrant music and arts festival that takes place on porches, patios, stoops, driveways, church and community center yards, and all over the neighborhood. The mission of the daylong event is to bridge the divides of race, class, culture and immigrant status through the power of the arts. There are performers of all kinds: music, dance, theater, spoken word, storytelling, circus arts, and comedy. JP Porchfest has had a long-standing collaboration with Dunamis, originating with the organization’s Executive Director, J. Cottle, serving as Porchfest’s Volunteer Coordinator for two years before curating a Dunamis Porch for an additional two years.

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Public Virtual Meeting to Discuss Renovating Egleston Square Branch Library on Oct. 29

Everyone is welcome to attend a virtual community meeting to discuss how to improve the Egleston Square Branch Library. The discussion will focus on existing library conditions and opportunities of improvement. The meeting will be on Oct. 29 at 6:30 pm on Zoom (please see image for meeting info). Previously, there was study in the FY19 budget for a programming study of the Egleston Square Branch to assess the interior and exterior physical conditions of the building and to identify the library needs of the community.

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Reading Frederick Douglass Together Event on July 11 Kicks Off Anti-Racism Summer Programming

A bilingual community reading and discussion of Frederick Douglass' 1852 speech "What to the Slave is the Fourth of July?" on July 11 will kick off a series of anti-racist summer programming in Egleston Square. This will be the fifth annual reading of Douglass' speech in Egleston Square. This year's event is at the Egleston Square Peace Garden at 3129 Washington St. The event is being co-moderated by Anne Hernández, a social worker for Boston Public Schools, and Adjunct Professor at Boston College School of Social Work, and Josué Sakata, Assistant Director of History and Social Studies for Boston Public Schools.

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