Tuesday, January 29, 2013

No Eastie Casino Protest at Faneuil Hall Cancelled

The No Eastie Casino pickets scheduled for tonight's State of the City address has been canceled. Organizers are focusing their efforts on tomorrow's Eagle Hill Civic Association Meeting.

Monday, January 28, 2013

Latest from Friends of Meridian Street: Waiting for a response

The latest from Friends of Meridian Street:
It's time for our elected officials of East Boston, ( U.S. Congressman Michael E. Capuano, Senator Anthony Petruccelli, Councilor Sal LaMattina, Representative Carlo Basile ), officials of Massport and the Massachusetts Dept. of Trasportation (Massachusetts Department of Transportation (MassDOT) Secretary and CEO Richard A. Davey, Massport CEO Thomas Glynn)  to respond publicly about what is being done about the Logan Airport taxis continuing to use the public streets of East Boston.

 The The Martin A. Coughlin Bypass Road at a cost of $23.5 million and the Chelsea Street Bridge at a cost of $125.3 million project of taxpayers money should have solved this. The spending of $148.8 million dollars of the taxpayers money for the Martin Coughlin Bypass Road (Massport CEO Thomas Glynn "The road will provide limited commercial access between Logan Airport and Chelsea Street, near the Chelsea Street Bridge. The new road is expected to improve traffic on residential streets significantly by removing commercial airport traffic from Eastie streets, and improve air quality by reducing vehicle emissions such as volatile organic compounds and oxides of nitrogen.") and the Chelsea Street Bridge,

(“I am very pleased that the Chelsea Street Bridge is now open,” said Representative Carlo Basile. “This new, state-of-the-art bridge serves as a vital connection for the people of East Boston to the surrounding communities and its opening will significantly help ease the traffic burdens for our neighborhood.")

 Let's have a response publicly what you are doing about this ongoing problem!
Source: Paul Howes 1/28

Friday, January 25, 2013

No Eastie Casino wants answers at next week's Eagle Hill Mtg from Host Committee


The following is a letter from Giordana Mecagni

Dear No Eastie Casino Supporters:
There will be Eagle Hill Civic Association meeting next Wednesday, Jan. 30, at 7:00 at East Boston High School.  The Mayor's Host Community Advisory Committee executive director Elizabeth Dello Russo will make a presentation on the proposal to put a casino at Suffolk Downs.
In the last HCAC meeting (October 19, 2012, recapped in this Globe article), Dello Russo and other committee members "told the crowd that the city and the Mayor’s Host Community Advisory Committee are still collecting questions from residents and working to get answers that would be provided at a later meeting yet to be scheduled."
The Mayor's Host Community Advisory Committee, a group designed to welcome a casino into our community, has been holding these meetings for nearly a year — with no community questions answered. Will they ever be answered?  And how will we trust the answers of a group whose main task is to make the casino happen in our community?
No Eastie Casino believes that these questions won't be answered to anyone's satisfaction without an independent community impact analysis.  Even if you are not a resident of Eagle Hill, I encourage you to attend this meeting and re-ask Ms. Dello Russo when the city plans to commission such a study.
Thank you! 
Giordana Mecagni
Trenton Street
Member, No Eastie Casino

Thursday, January 24, 2013

PRNewswire: Roseland moves ahead at Pier 1

Headline Story: Mack-Cali Commences Significant Mixed-Use Development Project In East Boston

EDISON, N.J., Jan. 24, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Mack-Cali Realty Corporation (NYSE: CLI) today announced its Roseland subsidiary recently commenced construction on Portside at Pier One, part of the planned mixed-use community on the East Boston waterfront. This 176-unit luxury apartment project is in joint venture with The Prudential Insurance Company and is supported by a construction loan commitment led by Citizens Bank with participation by Salem Five. Portside will include 150 market-rate apartments and a 26-apartment affordable component in a five-story building adjacent to the pier. The Company anticipates project costs of approximately $67 million, with a projected initial stabilized unleveraged return on a pro forma basis of approximately 7.11 percent.  Read more at equities.com.

Tuesday, January 15, 2013

Time to ticket taxis say Friends of Meridian Street

Here's the latest from Friend of Meridian Street.
It's time for the Logan Airport unoccupied taxis to get cited for using the public streets of East Boston. The Logan taxi drivers that have been told to use the Coughlin Bypass Road or use the Logan Service Road to the new Chelsea Bridge and not use the public roads of East Boston must be cited now. They have had four decades of warning and it is time to take serious action. These Logan taxi drivers that have zero respect for the health of our children/residents ( improve air quality by reducing vehicle emissions such as volatile organic compounds and oxides of nitrogen) and the quality of life issues (traffic safety, horn honking, increased traffic on East Boston Streets) must be sent a serious message. After the work of our East Boston elected officials and Hackney Division of Boston have fallen on deaf ears from the many Logan taxi drivers and owners let's start giving out fines with citations. Maybe then the Logan taxi drivers and companies will get the message.
 
STILL 95% OF MORNING TRAFFIC USING MERIDIAN STREET TO THE BRIDGE ARE UNOCCUPIRD LOGAN TAXIS!!
 
After warnings from Massport officials: “The opening of the Martin A. Coughlin Bypass Road marks a significant milestone in Massport’s commitment to minimize Logan Airport’s impact on our East Boston neighbors,” said Massport CEO Thomas Glynn. “Thousands of airport-related commercial vehicles will no longer use East Boston’s streets. Massport is proud to make Mr. Coughlin’s vision a reality for East Boston.”
    
“The Martin A. Coughlin Bypass Road is a great example of the quality of life improvements that can be made by thinking creatively and collaboratively about abandoned infrastructure,” said Massport Board Chairman and MassDOT Secretary & CEO Richard A. Davey. “The new roadway also complements the new Chelsea Street Bridge by allowing traffic in the area to flow more efficiently.”
 

Thursday, January 10, 2013

R.I.P. Rex Trailer, a Great American and TV Pioneer in Boston

Back in the day when Bostonians had less of a hang-up about Texans making it in Massachusetts.  Rex Trailer set the stage for Saturday morning TV.

Rex Trailer mounted and trotting in the 2006 Columbus Day Parade in East Boston (file photo:eastboston.com)

Tuesday, January 1, 2013

Photo credit: Frank Conte

New Year's Fireworks: The view from East Boston