OCTOber 2011 Free

WWW.FeNWAYNeWS.Org

serving the Fenway, Kenmore square, upper BacK Bay, prudential, longwood area & mission hill since 1974 volume 37, numBer 11 octoBer 28-decemBer 1, 2011

Agassiz Road Plan Looks Back to the Future

On Tuesday, November 8, Boston voters will elect a new City Council. All voters can vote for up to four at-large candidates and one district candidate. Of particular interest to Fenway residents is the District 7 race, which pits long-time neighborhood activist Sheneal Parker against Tito Jackson, winner of a special election held last year to fill the seat vacated by Councilor Chuck Turner. Voters in two Fenway precincts, who used to cast ballots at Matthews Arena, will report to new polling stations. Ward 4, Precinct 5 residents (Church Park) now head to the community room at Symphony Plaza East at 334 Mass Ave. Ward 4, Precinct 8 voters (parts of Hemenway, Symphony, Gainsboro, and St. Stephen streets) vote at Symphony Plaza West, 333 Mass Ave. The rest of the Fenway, Mission Hill, and the Back Bay fall into District 8, where incumbent Mike Ross faces no opposition. If youre not sure where you go to vote, visit www. cityofboston.gov/myneighborhood to look up your polling place.

Vote! on noVember 8

The Massachusetts Department of Conservation & Recreation has begun working with consultants on a plan to restore Agassiz Road, with an emphasis on returning it to its original character. Story on page 2.

Fenway Students, Residents Add Their Voices to The 99% at Dewey Square
We the people who have occupied Dewey Square, under the name Occupy Boston, have done so in order to maintain a place where all voices are welcome for the open discussion of ideas, grievances, and potential solutions to the problems apparent in our society. We are and will be holding general assemblies where proposals may be brought to the group as a whole, to be consented to. We have and will continue to occupy this space for the purpose of DEMOCRACY.

arly in the evening on Friday September 30, a small group began to set up tents in Dewey Square, located across the street from Bostons Federal Reserve Bank, in solidarity with a nationwide movement protesting Wall Street greed. By nightfall, the crowd, calling itself Occupy Boston had swarmed to nearly 2,000 people. At press time, the number of protestors who now call Dewey Square home continues to grow into a viable tent community complete with a library, a kitchen, a legal fund, a veritable cornucopia of meetings, and lectures by renowned activistssuch as Noam Chomsky and Cornel Westwho stop by the site on their rounds of the ever-growing protest circuit. Occupy Boston, like other Occupy movements (approximately 951 cities in 82 countries) has rallied under the slogan We are the 99%. The slogan is a reference to the disparity in wealth they perceive between the top 1% of people and the remaining world citizens. While all of the Occupy movements demand the removal of special interests from government and a critical overhaul of Wall Street, the We are the 99% slogan has allowed the platform to become multifaceted for discontented Bostonians angry with what they see as economic and political problems: student-loan debt, unemployment, corporate greed, health care costs, bank bailouts, and housing foreclosures. General Assemblies are held nightly to discuss solutions. There is an increasing number of Fenway residents involved in the Occupy

oCCupy Bostons General assemBly livinG doCument, oCt 23, 2011

By letta neely

n September 30, about 20 members of the Burbank Apartments Tenant Association (BATA) staged a picket at the downtown office of First Realty Management (FRM). These tenants and their supportersincluding representatives Boston movement. Most notable and of the Fenway Community Development audible are students from area colleges. Corporation, Massachusetts Alliance of HUD Northeastern students walked out of classes Tenants, High Point Families United, and the on October 5 and rallied on their campus to Boston Tenant Coalitioncontinue to protest support the movement. [Editors note: See FRM President Bill Kargmans decision to opt Neighborhood Newslines on page 3.] They out of the project-based Section 8 and other held signs saying Students are the 99% subsidies at Fenways Burbank Apartments and spoke of high unemployment, student and Roslindales Stony Brook Commons debt, and their uncertain economic futures. (formerly High Point Village). Simmons students are creating Facebook Participants held signs and chanted pages and other websites dedicated to Occupy shame on you, Bill Kargman! Picketers Boston and the Occupy Colleges movement. also distributed flyers titled Kargman Cash In addition, Simmons students have hosted to condo owners and staff at 151 Tremont, teach-ins and Q&A sessions on their campus. tourists, and other passersby. The protesters Berklee College of Music students have been received support from drivers on Tremont heard sharing their music, while MASSArt Street honking their horns and from passersby students have lent their artistic abilities to the who stopped to hear about the impact of the protest. On October 10, students from nearly loss of affordable housing. every college in the Fenway gathered at the The protest at First Realty was held Parkman Bandstand on Boston Common to in solidarity with a national campaign march in solidarity with Occupy Boston and by the Right to the City coalition (www. Occupy Wall Street. righttothecity.org) to decry the corporate Two upcoming events are in the works greed of big banks and big business. The for the protestors. On October 31, Occupy Boston chapter of Right to the City (www. Boston students have called for a citywide righttothecity.org/boston) includes housing walk-out and rally. They plan to convene at rights group City Life/Vida Urbana, the Parkman Bandstand and then march to environmental justice group Alternatives for Dewey Square to increase awareness about Community and Environment, the Chinese affordable education and the corporatization Progressive Association, and the Boston of their universities. Scheduled for Workers Alliance. Halloween, student organizers have asked The coalition asserts that big banks and their contigent to dress as zombie bankers. big business are responsible for the destruction Occupy Boston protestors, in solidarity of communities through mass foreclosures, with Occupy Wall Street, have declared ending affordable housing, and job cuts. In November 5 Bank Transfer Day. On this addition, taxpayer-funded bailouts and tax day, they are encouraging everyone to take loopholes given to big business have severely their money out of banks and to put it into damaged state budgets, and governments are credit unions and community banks. threatening cuts in important programs that After numerous visits to OccupyBoston, one Fenways resident offered an assessment. I was a student, says Rubanny Martinez. I spent five years in school and recently graduated. I have nothing to account for it except for a piece of paper. I am now in debt and cant find a job that pays off my loans, and many of the people who are there, thats what they are fighting for. There are people who spend days there because they are jobless and have nothing else to do but fight for what we all need. I dont have the willpower to sleep outside in the public but I help how I can by donating coffee. I plan to drop off coats as well. Right now, I am trying to help how I can without risking my minimum-wage job. Letta Neely lives in the East Fens.

Burbank tenants Join 2,000 protesters to take Back our city

could further devastate our communities. City Life in particular joins BATA and its supporters in regarding Kargman as one of those responsible for the destruction to our communities along with other corporate titans such as Bank of America. To express our solidarity, BATA and its supporters went directly from the picket of Kargman to the Right to the City march. We joined a diverse group of more than 2,000 protesters who marched from Boston Common to Bank of America headquarters on Federal and Franklin streets. The four Right to the CityBoston groups were also joined by UNITE HERE, SEIU and other unions, and GreenRainbow Party gubernatorial candidate Grace Ross. (Ms. Ross had earlier shown her support for BATA by attending the June 6 protest of the BNai Brith Housing New England ceremony presenting an award to Bill Kargman.) Marchers stopped along the route to voice displeasure with the union-busting actions of Hyatt Hotel and Verizon Communications. Once they arrived at Bank of America, protesters surrounded the building, chanting slogans such as, Bank of Americabad for America! and What do you do when the banks attack? Stand up, fight back! More than 20 people participated in civil disobedience by blocking the entrances to the bank, and were later arrested by Boston Police without incident. Bank of America staff and other tenants of the Federal Street building looked on from inside the building. Some protesters then went to join the first night of OccupyBoston in itsTent City at Dewey Square across from South Station. OccupyBoston (www.occupyboston.com) is part of the national Occupy Wall Street movement, which opposes the greed and political lobbying of the financial sector and corporations in general. Conrad Ciszek is a long-time East Fens resident and member of the Burbank Apartments Tenant Association.
Photo: Conrad Ciszek

By Conrad Ciszek

Demonstration in front of the Bank of America headquarters.

2 | FENWAY NEWS | NOVEMbEr 2011

more room for Bikes, less for cars: dcr Floats initial plans for agassiz road
n October 3, the Department of Recreation and Conservation (DCR), in partnership with the Fenway Civic Association, held the first of two public meetings to solicit input on pedestrian and bike improvements on Agassiz Road in the Back Bay Fens. This project seeks not only to improve access and safety for all users of the road and parkland, but also to integrate the parkway into the parkland, improve neighborhood connections, and build on the path and crosswalk Treatment Guidelines the DCR is developing in partnership with the Emerald Necklace Conservancy. At the meeting, held in the main Berklee academic building, the consultantsPressley Associates and VHBdescribed existing conditions and solicited input on three conceptual designs. Pressley Associates began with a review of the history of this piece of parkland. The Back Bay Fens portion of the Emerald Necklace was designed by Frederick Law Olmsted Sr., often referred to as the father of American landscape architecture, in the late 1800s as a tidal, saltwater ecosystem. Construction of the Charles River dam, completed in 1910, turned the area into a freshwater marsh, and the original plantings failed. Soon after, Arthur Shurcliff was brought in to draw up a master plan for the

By Catherine pedemonti

Back Bay Fens, including the original design design would be the least expensive to of Agassiz Road. The photo on page 1 shows implement. how the road originally looked; notice the wide sidewalk. 2 reduce roadway width, add bike lane, VHB then presented data collected on auwith shared-use path abutting road: This tomobile and bicycle use of Agassiz Road, ildesign is the most similar to the historic lustrating that the vehicular traffic on the road design of the road. It maximizes parkland is fairly minimal, while cyclist and pedestrian and communicates that this stretch of road counts are quite high. On a typical Friday, for differs from a parkway. The bike lane on example, about 1,100 cars use the road durMuddy river ing the day compared to nearly 3,000 cyclists and pedestrians. In addition, pedestrian and bicycle traffic tends to move with the traffic on Park Drive, traverse Agassiz Road, and then exit with traffic along The Fenway. Seeking to reconcile historic intent with modern use, Pressley Associates presented three conceptual designs. 1 Maintain existing roadway width, with shared-use path abutting road: This
Muddy river

Muddy river

the left side of the road could connect a future bike lane along Park Drive to a bike lane along The Fenway. This configuration would minimize the number of crossings cyclists would have to make. 3 reduce roadway width, add bike lane, maintain median strips separating the road from the shared-use path: This design is fairly similar to the existing

conditions but would be expensive to implement due to the change in road width. The current median is compacted soil and no longer can support trees or turf. The audience asked questions and gave feedback following the presentation. In addition, attendees were asked to place a dot next to their preferred conceptual design as they left. The audience tended to favor Design 2, which would reduce the road width, add a bike lane, and remove the existing median. Catherine Pedemonti is a project manager for the Emerald Necklace Conservancy. DCR plans to hold another meeting this month; check www.fenwaynews. org for the date. To view the presentation made at the October meeting, visit www. mass.gov/dcr/news/publicmeetings/ parkwaysmaterials.htm.

and community ties for residents and students

oxbury Community Colleges Garden Service Learning Project celebrates another successful year of grassroots gardening that aims to educate the college community, as well the Greater Roxbury area, about locally produced fresh fruits and vegetables. Professor Nasreen Latif, founder of the RCC Garden and a faculty member of the Social Sciences department, has encouraged all students to be part of this collaborate exchange of learning on the benefits of local healthy food options, using community dialogue, community forums, and volunteer opportunities. One of Professor Latifs students, ShareLeigh Arneaud-Bernard, has always had a love for planting and joined the RCC Garden in spring 2011. This project has given me so much insight and knowledge of the world of gardening and agriculture, she says. Due to the project, I am now able to conserve and preserve seeds so that we can use them to plant in the spring. I learned how to make my own little garden at home, which will be my own personal project for the spring of 2012. I also realized that with a little patience and time the rewards are endless. We can already see the fruits of our labor, and I hope that we continue to. Professor Latif has made it her mission to teach about the importance of locally produced food for local consumption. This year 70% of all of the produce that is harvested will be shared with all of those who volunteer to maintain the garden, while 30% is reserved for the college to sell to the community at affordable prices. The RCC Garden welcomes students

RCC Garden Project cultivates healthy eating

tolMan resigns, triggering sPeCial eleCtion

by steve wolf

By daniel alfaro

from the college and members of the community to participate on the project. For more information about the RCC Garden Project, please contact Professor Nasreen Latif at NLatif@rcc.mass.edu Daniel Alfaro is a student at RCC.

he next few months promise big changes in the neighborhoods political landscape, as boundaries of legislative districts shift and voters head to the polls for a special election to fill the seat of Steve Tolman, who resigned his state senate seat last month to head the state Afl-CIo. sPeCial senate eleCtion tolmans october 14 resignation triggers a special election for the second suffolk & Middlesex District, which begins in the west fens and extends through Brighton and Watertown to Belmont. At least five people pulled filing papers for the seat, but we wont know wholl appear on the ballot until voter signatures are certified in mid-November. The Fenway News will publish a complete list in our December issue and post it on www.fenwaynews.org shortly after its release. A primary election will take place on Tuesday, December 13, for any party with two or more candidates competing for the nomination. Almost inevitably this means the Democrats; given the districts electorate, the winner of that primary would become the odds-on favorite in the general election, scheduled for Tuesday, January 10. new legislative distriCts Meanwhile, the state House of Representatives was scheduled to vote on a redrawn district map as The Fenway News went to press. Even though the proposed map, released on october 18, needs the approval of the legislature and the governor, it looks likely to shake up Fenway districts when it goes into effect in 2012 (after the special election to fill Tolmans seat). SENATE: Currently, two districts contain parts of the Fenway. The Second Suffolk District, represented by Sonia Chang-Daz, includes portions of the East fens. the rest of the neighborhood falls into the second suffolk & Middlesex District, represented until his resignation by Tolman. Under the proposed realignment, Chang-Dazs precincts will move to what was Tolmans district, meaning that for the first time in at least two decades, the neighborhood will be represented by a single state senator. HoUSE oF REpRESENTATivES: Although the neighborhood loses an advocate in the Senate, it gains one in the HouseState Rep. Marty Walz, who represents the Back Bay, Beacon Hill, West End and parts of Cambridge. Walz, familiar to many residents from her involvement in the Berklee Task Force and the battle over the Millennium Tower plan in the late 1990s, will pick up the Fenways Ward 4, precinct 6, currently represented by Byron Rushing. That area includes st. Germaine and belvidere streets on the east side of Mass Ave, and the blocks bounded by Boylston, Hemenway, and Burbank streets, Edgerly Road, Haviland street, and Mass Ave. Rushing will continue to represent most of the neighborhood, with Rep. Gloria fox retaining some precincts on the longwood edge of the west fens and along Huntington Ave in the east fens. Steve Wolf lives in the West Fens.

Fraudulent cigarette purchase

On Oct. 16, a middle-aged woman tried to buy a pack of cigarettes from the College Convenience Store on Huntington Ave, offering a MasterCard for payment. When asked for ID, she stated that she didnt have any, grabbed the cigarettes and walked out the door. The counterman said hed call the police and she responded Go aheadits my card. The suspect left the store with another woman in an unknown direction. The incident was captured on the stores video surveillance system, and the videotape was turned over to the police.

same day, same street, different store, different crime

On Oct.16, in front of Symphony Market on Gainsborough St., a Northeastern student was accosted by a young man who wordlessly snatched his iPhone from his front pants pocket and took off toward St. Botolph Street. The victim and two friends chased the suspect up Gainsborough toward the Camden St. Bridge, at which point the suspect turned right and ran toward the NU campus. The victim and his friends lost sight of the suspect and called campus police.

As the new academic year begins, we remind our students:

Smart Students Make Great Neighbors

Meet your neighbors Keep it clean, keep it quiet Get involved in your community!
For information or to report concerns, email NUPLEDGE@neu.edu or call 617-373-8265

FENWAY NEWS |NOVEMbEr 2011 | 3

Switcheroo : BPS LetS ArtS AcAdemy StAy, moveS FenwAy high

Bowing to angry students and parents from Boston Latin Academy, the marginally lessprestigious cousin of Boston Latin School, Boston School Superintendant Carol R. Johnson dropped her plan to move the Latin Academy into shuttered Hyde Park High School. That move would have set off a chain reaction of other school moves, beginning with the Boston Arts Academy, now on Ipswich Street in the West Fens, which would have headed to the old Latin Academy campus in Roxbury. Instead, Boston Public Schools plans to move Fenway High School, which shares the Ipswich Street building with the Arts Academy, to the New Mission High School facility on Allegheny Street in Mission Hill, while New Mission moves into the Hyde Park Building, which it would share with another school. The Edward M. Kennedy Health Careers Academy, housed on the Northeastern campus, would gain a second building on Fenwood Road in the LMA. The Academy would then split its program, with students spending grades 9 and 10 at the LMA facility and then moving to the Northeastern site for grades 11 and 12.

neighborhoodshopes its Thanksgiving pie sale will break last years record. Haley House trainees make from-scratch apple crumb, blueberry crumb, pecan, pumpkin, and sweet potato pies, with sales of the pies supporting the transitional employment program. Volunteer pie captains proselytize among their friends and coworkers, singing the praises of the pies deliciousness and the projects worthiness. If youd like to be a pie captain (alas, theres no uniform to go with the title), visit www.haleyhouse.org/promo.htm to sign up and download posters, order forms, and order sheets. You can also skip the proselytizing and just order pies, which will be available for pick up Monday through Wednesday (Novermber 21-23) of Thanksgiving week. Or place your order by calling 617 939 6837.

mit ShiPS ALUmni Achievement AwArd A miLe down mASS Ave

Northeastern University President Joseph Aoun has received the 2011 Robert A. Muh Alumni Award from MITs School of Humanities, Arts, and Social Sciences. Deborah Fitzgerald, dean of the school, told the MIT News Office that award offers a singular opportunity for us to recognize MIT graduates who have made extraordinary contributions, and whose life work calls on deep knowledge in the disciplines of our School. We are delighted to present Dr. Aoun with this years award. Aoun earned a Ph.D. in linguistics from MIT in 1982.

nU StUdentS wALk oUt oF cLASSeS to SUPPort occUPy BoSton

In an October 6 posting on the WBUR website, reporter Bianca Vsquez Toness reported that students at Northeastern University walked out of class and demonstrated on their campus common Wednesday in support of the Occupy Boston and Occupy Wall Street movements. They complained about student debt, high unemployment and corporate greed. Toness reported that about 100 students met on the lawn at Northeastern to voice their grievances. How do you fix the deficit? chanting students asked, rhetorically. End the war, tax the rich. To read her complete story, go to http://www.wbur.org/2011/10/06/ northeastern-occupy-colleges Haley House Bakery Cafthe worthy Dudley Square eatery that trains ex-convicts for restaurant jobs and teaches healthy eating to kids in some of the citys poorest

eLder groUPS hit mASS. hoSPitAL ASSn. StAnd on medicAre

On October 18 representatives of the Mass. Nurses Association, Mass. Senior Action, and the Mass. Association of Older Americans demonstrated against the Mass. Hospital Associations support for raising the Medicare eligibility age to 67. The groups had negotiated with the MHA, but Ann Stewart, president of Mass Senior Action (and a Medicare recipient) said that effort bore no fruit, with MHA doing nothing to change their stance on raising the Medicare eligibility age. She called on Senators Kerry and Brown to stand with us against these attacks and protect future Medicare beneficiaries. Members of MassUniting, Mass Home Care, Latinos for a Secure Retirement, and the National Committee to Preserve Social Security & Medicare also participated in the protest.
tue, nov 15: East Fens Community/Police

theSe PieS SPeLL BLUe SkieS

tue, nov 1: Board of Appeal Hearing on

Election Dept. at: 617-635-3767.

wed, nov 9: Fenway CDC Inclusionary

Restaurant Row (84-100 Peterborough St)9:30am, City Hall, Room 801. For info, call 617-635-4775.

tue, nov 1, nov 8, nov 15 & nov 22: FREE City

of Boston Homebuyer 101 classes. 6-8pm, Mission Main Community Room. Free handout materials and dinner. For more info or to confirm your attendance, email Gloria at gloriaamadin31@hotmail.com

wed, nov 2: Liaison for Mayors Office of

Neighborhood Services, William Onuoha, holds office hours 3:30-5:30pm YMCA, 316 Huntington Ave. Bring concerns about city services. No appointment needed.

Housing Workshop: Concerned about getting priced out of the Fenway? The City requires developers to provide affordable housing with each development, but its up to us to make sure they follow through. After losing almost 10% of the Fenways affordable units this spring, its time to speak up! 6-8pm Fenway Health, 9th fl, 1340 Boylston St. For info & to RSVP, email Lilly Jacobson at ljacobson@fenwaycdc.org or call her at 617-267-4637x16.

Meeting., 6pm Morville House, 100 Norway St. Assoc. Board meeting., 6:30-8:30pm Harvard Vanguard, 131 Brookline Ave., Annex Bldg., Room 3D. For more info, call 617-262-0657. Meeting; 7pm, First Church, 66 Marlboro St., corner of Berkeley.

For questions call Amanda Escamilla at 617-927-6273 or email her at aescamilla@ fenwayhealth.org.
sat., nov 19: Boston Prime Timers, a support network of gay and bisexual men. 2:305:30pm USES Harriet Tubman House, 566 Columbus Ave at Mass Ave. Refreshments at 2:30, program at 3:30, $2 donation at door. Visit www.bostonprimetimers.org or email bostonprimetimers@uses.org or call: 617447-2344. tue, nov 29: Symphony Neighborhood Task Force meeting., 6pm For location, email Johanna at johanna.sena@cityofboston.gov or call her at: 617-635-4225. Neighborhood invited. tue, nov 29: Fenway CDC Urban Village Committee. Get involved in monitoring development advocating for the kind of neighborhood you want. 6pm, NOTE DIFFERENT LOCATION: Fensgate Community Room, 73 Hemenway St., side entrance (ring bell #2). For more info, email Lilly Jacobson at ljacobson@fenwaycdc.org or call her at 617-267-4637x16. tue, nov 29: Fenway Family Coalition meeting, 6:30pm. Join other families in advocating for family needs and advancing family projects. Please bring a dish to share. Call one week ahead to request child care for children under age 13. 70 Burbank St., lower level. For info or to request child care, email Kris Anderson at kanderson@fenwaycdc.org or call her at 617-267-4637x29.

tue, nov 15: Audubon Circle Neighborhood

tue, nov 15: Ward 5 Democratic Committee

wed, nov 16: Liaison for Mayors Office of

thu, nov 10: Holiday Crafts & Vendors

wed, nov 2: Emerald Necklace Conservancy annual meeting with speaker Steve Curwood, host of NPRs Living on Earth. Reception. 5:30pm, program 6:30. Light fare. For info or to RSVP, call 617-522-2700. wed, nov 2: Fenway CDC Civic Engagement Committee. Get engaged in your community by mobilizing to preserve affordable housing and finding other ways to make your voice heard! 6:30pm. 70 Burbank St., lower level. For more info, email Sarah at shorsley@fenwaycdc.org or call her at 617-267-4637x19. thu, nov 3: Muddy River Flood Risk

Fair, 5-8pm, Mission Main Community Center, 43 Smith St. If you knit, sew, crochet or make one-of-a-kind items, this is an opportunity to sell them. Tables are free and you keep all profits. Free dinner. For info or to reserve a table, call Gloria at 617283-5180 or email her at gloriaamadin31@ hotmail.com. meeting, 6:30pm, Boston Room, Boston Public Library, Copley Square.

Neighborhood Services, William Onuoha, holds office hours 3:30-5:30pm YMCA, 316 Huntington Ave. Bring concerns about city services. No appointment needed. Meeting., 5pm Landmark Center, 401 Park Drive, 2nd fl, District 4 Police substation (next to security desk).

wed, nov 16: West Fens Community/Police

thu, nov 10: Air Rights Parcels 12-15 CAC

Mon, nov 14: Longwood Medical Area

Forum. 6:30-8pm For location or to verify that meeting will be held, email Laura at lfogerty@masco.harvard.edu .

wed, nov 16: Act Early to Beat Cancer. Stories of strength and self-advocacy from young adult cancer survivors. 7-8:30pm, Fenway Health, 1340 Boylston St. For info or questions, email Kendra at kmoore@ fenwayhealth.org. thu, nov 17: Congressman Michael Capuanos liaison holds office hours, 1-2pm. Fenway Health, 1340 Boylston St. Questions and concerns about national issues or legislation are welcome. thu, nov 17: Transgender Awareness Week,

Management & Restoration Phase 1 Project Overview repeat presentations at 3:30-5pm and 6-7:30pm Alumni Room, Wheelock College, 180 The Riverway. large City Councilors. For info, call City

tue, nov 15: Fenway CDC Tribute to Barbara

tue, nov 8: ELECTIONS for district & at-

Burnham. An evening of fun and food to support the Fenway CDC. 6-8:30pm Susan Bailis Cemter, 352 Mass Ave, at St.Botolph St. RSVP required by 11/8. Email events@ fenwaycdc.org or call Margarita at 617-2674637x10.

screening of the powerful documentary shown recenntly on PBS, Two Spirits, 4-7pm Fenway Health, 10th fl Auditorium, 1340 Boylston St. Food & discussion. Feel free to bring resource materials to share.

BOSTON RESIDENTS
Boston Public Works will collect and compost residents yard waste

For future BRA meetings and hearings, check www.bostonredevelopmentauthority. org/calendar/calendar.asp)

WEST FENWAY ELDERLY HOUSING

West Fenway Elderly Housing, located at 110 Peterborough Street, is accepting applications for those who are elderly or disabled. Studio apartments through 3-bedroom apartments and handicap-accessible apartments are available to apply for. Rent is based upon income.
Income GuIdelInes Apply As Follows 1 PERSON $44,950 4 PERSON $64,200 2 PERSON $51,400 5 PERSON $69,350 3 PERSON $57,800 6 PERSON $74,500

BOSTON RESIDENTS Boston Residents Leaf & Yard Waste Leaf and Yard Waste 7-Week Collection 7-Week Collection
Seven weeks: October 17 - December 2 ON YOUR RECYCLING DAY. barrels marked yard waste. For free yard waste stickers, call 617-635-4500 Seven weeks: October 17 (up to 2 stickers available per household). - December 2 ON YOUR RECYCLING DAY. Cut branches to 3 maximum length and 1 maximum diameter. Place leaves in large paper leaf bags or open Tie barrels marked yard waste.branches with string. For free yard waste stickers, call 617-635-4500 (up to 2 stickers availablePlace leaves and yard waste per household). at the curb by 7am ON YOUR RECYCLING DAY. Cut branches to 3 maximum length NO PLASTIC BAGS and 1 maximum diameter. waste will not be collected Yard Tie branches with string. during the two weeks before Place leaves in large paper leaf bags or open Boston Public Works will collect and compost residents yard waste

Leaf & Yard Waste 7-Week Collection

To obtain an application please contact HallKeen Management at:

110 Peterborough Street Boston, MA 02215 (617) 262-6757

Place leaves and yard waste yard waste your from Oct. 3 to at the curb by 7am Oct. 17, when ON YOUR RECYCLING DAY. collection begins.
Yard waste will not be collected during the two weeks before the Oct. 17 start date. Please hold onto your yard waste from Oct. 3 to Oct. 17, when collection begins.

the Oct. 17 start date. Please hold onto

NO PLASTIC BAGS

equAl HousInG opportunIty

Thomas M. Menino, Mayor

4 | FENWAY NEWS | NOVEMbEr 2011

Serving the Fenway, Kenmore Square, Audubon Circle, upper Back Bay, lower Roxbury, Prudential, Mission Hill, and Longwood since 1974

While DCR Plans an Upgrade, Other Agencies Vandalize the Park

nyone who loves the Back Bay Fens cheered when they heard the news that the Department of Conservation & Recreation (DCR) has begun work on a rehabilitation plan for Agassiz Road. As Catherine Pedemonti writes on page 2, the state agency held a lightly-attended meeting at Berklee last month to gather reaction to its plans for the road, which carries more than 1,000 cars, cyclists, and pedestrians every day between the West and East Fens. People Who Know About These Things consider the Back Bay Fens, including Agassiz Road, one of the crowning achievements of American landscape design. Think about that: A Frederick Law Olmsted masterpiece sits in our figurative back yard. Seeing the park every day makes it easy to forget its masterpiece status. But that indifference surely beats active destructionand the employees of almost every public agency that comes in contact with the Fens have a long record of trashing the park: The citys Department of Parks & Recreation habitually tears up turf as its trucks drive over the curb from Park Drive to collect trash or do minor maintenance in the Victory Gardens. The trash-collecting crews use a small garbage truck, but its not small enough to fit on the sidewalk or the parks interior paths, so its wheels grind and chew up turf every time it moves around the park. Contractors for various departments routinely park on the strip of lawn (or whats left of it) between the sidewalk and the roadway on Agassiz Road. This includes tow trucks working on contract for the Massachusetts State Police and a sewer contractors big rig (above, photographed on October 18). Hey, morons! Its a park, not a parking lot! During playoff games at Fenway Park, Boston Police, State Police, and Boston EMT vehicles routinely park on the large and poorly maintained parcel in front of 11 and 15 Park Drive, land owned by the DCR and technically part of the park. During some 2007 World Series games, as many as 25 first-responder vehicles parked on this land. On the night of the 2009 Superbowl, a state police cruiser crossed the entire parcel from Peterborough to Boylston streets on the grassafter a three-day thaw had left the ground soft and wet rather than hard and frozen. You could still see the gouges it left more than a year later. eaders have likely witnessed other examples of this malign neglect; theres certainly no shortage of them. The problem lies in the way this careless destruction undercuts efforts to do right by the parkthe Agassiz Road plan, the new trees planted at Park Drive and Boylston earlier this year, or the sidewalk repaving that took place in 2010. And at a time when both the city and the state have slashed spending on open space maintenance and repair, allowing employees or contractors to hammer away at the park out of ignorance or lack of oversight ought to drive every Fenway residentand every

By steve Wolf

guest opinion

R
W

Boston taxpayer, for that matterto howls of outrage. A few common-sense steps would go a long way toward fixing this problem. Get the DCR and the Boston Department of Parks & Recreation to sign a Do No Harm pledge. Draw up guidelines governing how employees of any agency, state or city, should work in the park so as not to destroy turf and rip up soil. Require Parks & Recreation employees and DCR summer work crews to undergo training in the Do No Harm approach. Convene a Do No Harm summitmaybe the Emerald Necklace Conservancy or City Councilor Mike Ross could host itto explain the Do No Harm policy to every other agency that works in the park. DCR and Parks & Rec need to attend, as do the Boston Police and EMTs, the State Police, and the Army Corps of Engineers (who have begun preparing to dredge the Muddy River in the Fens). The list of invitees should also include some influential private neighbors, starting with the Red Sox, whose fans regularly trample turf and injure plantings on their way home from games. Berklee should come with a plan for reducing the damage it inflicts on Mothers Rest when it sets up tents there at the beginning and end of each academic year. Northeastern should come with ideas for teaching its students to have more respect for this amazing open space. And Fenway residentsGarden Society members, dog walkers, joggers, bikersneed to be represented; as regular park users, they know where the worst abuses take place. Put one agency in charge of enforcing the Do No Harm policy, most logically the DCR, but have every agency sign the Do No Harm pledge and agree to a uniform process for enforcing it. Give neighbors and advocates the tools to monitor the situation through social media and the Web. Just as anyone can use their smart phone to snap a photo of a pothole and send it to the citys Department of Public Works, anyone should be able to send photos of park mistreatment by contractors and employees to a single address for prompt follow-up and, when needed, punishment. Public agencies need to stop vandalizing the Back Bay Fens. Neither the Commonwealth nor the City of Boston has the money to maintain the park properly, never mind repair damage cause by its own operations. The DCRs effort to revive Agassiz Road (and the effort to find a use for the Duck House) comes as welcome news. But without a plan to improve employee/contractor treatment of the road and the parklands around it, well find it back on the critical list in a matter of years. To prevent that, we need a written and enforceable Do No Harm agreement, signed by every state and city agency that sets foot in the Back Bay Fens. Steve Wolf lives in the West Fens.

Steve Chase Helen Cox Tracey Cusick Joyce Foster, president Steven Harnish Barbara Brooks Simons Steve Wolf, treasurer eDitor: Stephen Brophy weB teaM: Nicole Aubourg, stephen

FeNway News associatioN BoarD oF Directors

Barnet, Liz Burg, Bob Case, Conrad Ciszek, Helen Cox, Tracey Cusick, Rachel DiBella, Dharmena Downey, Margo Edwards, Lisa Fay, Lori A. Frankian, Joyce Foster, Marie Fukuda, Galen Gilbert, Elizabeth Gillis, Katherine Greenough, Sam Harnish, Sarah Horsley, Monica Lisa Johnson, Rosie Kamal, Steven Kapica, Mandy Kapica, Ruth Khowais, Shirley Kressel, Mike Mennonno, Letta Neely, Catherine Pedemonti, Richard Pendleton, Camille Platt, Karla Rideout, Mike Ross, Barbara Brooks Simons, Matti Kniva Spencer, Anne M. Tobin, Fredericka Veikley, Chris Viveiros, Margaret Witham PhotograPhers: Steve Chase, Lois Johnston, Mike Mennonno, Patrick OConnor, Valarie Seabrook, Matti Kniva Spencer, Ginny Such, Steve Wolf caLeNDar: Penina Adelman, Helen Cox, Ruth Khowais, Steve Wolf, ProoFreaDer: Tracey Cusick Cathy Jacobowitz BooKKeePer: Cathy Jacobowitz DistriButioN: Della Gelzer, Aqilla Manna, Lauren Dewey Platt, Reggie Wynn
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Comforting the afflicted and afflicting the comfortable.

The founders of The Fenway News adopted this motto to express their mission of exposing and opposing the dangers the neighborhood faced in the early 1970sincluding rampant arson, unscrupulous landlords, and a destructive urban renewal plan. If the original motto no longer fits todays Fenway, we continue to honor its spirit of identifying problems and making our neighborhood a better and safer place to live.
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Fighting to Reform Citys Affordable Housing PolicyWill You Help?

ho cares about affordable housing in the Fenway? The market will bear what the market can bear, right? So what if we lose a few affordable units? We want to encourage development because it helps the economy and brings more services to our community. This used to be the way I felt about development in our neighborhood. Being a professional single woman, I had more on my mind then keeping up with who my neighbors were and how my neighborhood was changing. It wasnt my business who wanted to build what, right? Wrong! It is my business because I live here! After living in the same apartment in the East Fens for 15 years, I began to realize that faces that I used to pass on the street or in CVS werent there anymore. I started asking neighbors, what happened to so-andso who lived in our building? The response was always that they moved out because they couldnt afford the rent increase. Rents have been going up and peoples incomes are either not keeping pace, or the familys breadwinner has been laid off. I know, because it happened to me. Thats one of the reasons I got involved with the Fenway CDC, which has a mission to promote affordable housing. You probably already know that without subsidized housing, low- and moderate-income people like me would have little or no access to the Fenway, a neighborhood rich in employment, transit and other resources. But did you know that affordable housing also benefits the whole community? Institutions such as Northeastern and the Longwood hospitals benefit because their employees can live closer to work. Shorter commutes increase health outcomes and reduce lateness and absenteeism. Affordable housing also keeps the Fenway diverse. Because of continuing income and wealth
By moniCa lisa Johnson

guest opinion

gaps by race and ethnicity, gender, and other differences, any loss of affordable housing disproportionately affects residents of color, seniors, families, and people with disabilities. So how can you help me keep Fenway from becoming a neighborhood only for those with means? You can take part in the CDCs Inclusionary Housing Workshop on Wednesday, November 9, from 6:00 to 8:00pm. This workshop will inform us about the City of Bostons Inclusionary Development Policy, which requires all developers of new housing to include 13% affordable units. In theory, this policy enables people from various backgrounds to live in high opportunity neighborhoods like the Fenway. However, in practice, the Fenway sees few of these affordable housing resources. Right now, a developer can meet affordable housing requirements by: 1. developing affordable units onsite, 2. developing the same number of affordable units offsite, or 3. paying into an Inclusionary Development Fund run by the Boston Redevelopment Authority (BRA). Despite more than a million square feet of new development in the neighborhood, most private developers have chosen to pay cashout fees to the BRA. Even more troubling, the BRA often invests monies generated by Fenway developments into affordable housing projects that are shovel-ready in other neighborhoods. In contrast, it has been difficult to attain shovel-ready projects in the Fenway because of escalating land values and lack of developable land. In other words, it has been cost-prohibitive to buy property to redevelop as affordable housing. The Fenway CDCs position on inclusionary housing is clear, concise and strong: the policy must be improved in order to be truly inclusionary and equitable. So at the November 9 workshop, the

The Fenway News reaches the stands every 4-5 weeks, usually on the first or last Friday of the month. Our next issue will be appear on Friday, December 2. The deadline for letters, news items, and ads is Friday, November 25. Contact our business manager at ads@fenwaynews.org
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FENWAY NEWS |NOVEMbEr 2011 | 5

a surprising approach to life in the 1%

Fenway cultural district tag gains momentum

By STEpHEN BRopHy

By marGaret Witham

ccupy Boston has captured the imagination of many, including John Rosenthal, president of Meredith Management and developer of the soon-tobe built Fenway Center/One Kenmore, on Beacon Street just west of Kenmore Square. I frequent Occupy Boston and sometimes purchase offices supplies or personal care items as the need is published at the logistics tent. I have noticed more than a few folks in business attire walking through the camp, most of them marvelling at the high degree of organization. Recently I noticed a few men in business blue chatting with some casually dressed folks, all of that certain age, 60ish, and I joined in. They soon began reminiscing about the Clamshell Alliance days. They fondly recalled a woman named Fran whom I quickly guessed was that communitys glue, much like Helen Cox is here in the Fenway. Two of the denim-clad asked the suited where they lived and what they did. One was from western Mass and other said he was local. When asked what he did, he replied I am a developer. When I found at that he was John Rosenthal. I could not mask my surprise and perhaps my glee. Eureka! I nearly exclaimed and walked away Moments later I had the chance to speak to Rosenthal at the pedestrian crossing. I reminded him that the Clamshell Alliance was 40 years ago and that people take different paths. Yes he said, But it is important to maintain a balance. I agreed and said that the challenge is to maintain whatever ethical standards you ascribe to. He asked me if I had heard of The Friends of the Homeless. I said that I had. He founded the group in 1987; he also started another group, Stop Handgun Violence in 1994. I also said that we need more than 10% affordable set-asides in housing developments I read later that his Parcel 7 development promises 20%. [See Fighting to Reform Citys Affordable Housing Policy by Monica Lisa Johnson on page 4.Ed.] This past May, Rosenthal received the Bob Ray Partnership Award (Ray was a VP for Gillette) from The Mass. Housing and Shelter Alliance. In an interview with Banker and Tradesman shortly before the event Rosenthal said, Thirty to 50 percent of my work is spent on non-profit work. I benefit from a fairly large organization of great people who allow me to pursue those passions. It is important not to take a free ride on our luck. It is important to give back. Margaret Witham lives in the West Fens.

heres a movement afoot to turn the Fenway into a state-recognized cultural district after the state legislature voted in 2010 to allow designation of such entities in Boston. Last May the Boston City Council held a hearing on the benefits of establishing these districts. The Massachusetts Cultural Council supports the idea. Northeastern student Anna Westendorf outlined the designation process in a May 4 article in The Boston Globe. First, residents of a neighborhood must work together to identify it as an appropriate area for a cultural district: authentic, dense, and walkable. Then, community members must submit a proposal to local elected officials. After holding a public hearing to get a neighborhood consensus, the neighborhood may then submit an application to become a state-recognized cultural district. Kelly Brilliant, director of the Fenway Alliance, is excited by the idea, and City Councilor Mike Ross has begun talking it up. in some ways its obvious: a neighborhood that contains Symphony Hall, Jordan Hall, the Berklee performance Center, the Museum of Fine Arts, the Gardner Museum, three music schools and two art schools (and much else besides) should be first in line for such a designation. Fenwickians East and West have much to gain from such a project, but we must be sure that we have significant participation in the process, or more benefits will flow to the institutions than the residents. look for more discussion of this in the next Fenway News. > affordaBle housing frOm page 4

Photo: wikiMedia CoMMons

FCDC will launch its Equitable Inclusionary Housing Campaign, empowering grassroots leaders to take action on both neighborhood and citywide levels. On the neighborhood level, we want to work with Fenway developers and institutions to pool the funds that they would contribute to the Citys IDP Fund. Instead of the monies going to the first shovelready project outside of the neighborhood, this Fenway pool would enable the funds to be invested in affordable housing inside the Fenway. On a citywide level, we will work with groups like the Boston Tenant Coalition to press for additional changes in the IDP such as deeper affordability and passage of the policy as an ordinance, giving it more permanence than its current status as an executive order, which can be changed at some future mayors whim.

Join me in this grassroots campaign to keep the Fenway affordable. After losing almost 10% of our affordable housing this year (with the conversion of the Burbank Apartments to market rate), its time to speak up! Dont let another day go by without getting involved in saving our community. I look forward to meeting you at the November 9 workshop. To RSVP, contact Lilly Jacobson at ljacobson@fenwaycdc.org or 617-267-4637 x16. Monica Lisa Johnston lives in the East Fens.

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the city cleans Fenway residential streets between 12 and 4 p.m. on the first and third Wednesdays of the month (odd-numbered side) and the second and fourth wednesdays (evennumbered sides). get more info at 617-635-4900 or www.cityofboston. gov/publicworks/sweeping. the state cleans streets that border the Fens on this schedule: seCond thursday the riverway, 8:00 a.m.12:00 p.m.
Second Friday

the Fenway (includes inside lane), charlesgate extension, and Forsyth way, 8:00 a.m.12:00 p.m.
Second Friday

8 to 54 the Fenway (includes inside lane), charlesgate extension, 12:00 3:00 p.m. >park drive (includes inside lane), upper Boylston street, 8:00 a.m. 12:00 p.m. >park drive, from holy trinity orthodox cathedral to Kilmarnock street and from the riverside line overpass to Beacon street, 12:003:00 p.m. www.mass.gov/dcr/sweep.htm has a complete schedule and maps.
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6 | FENWAY NEWS | NOVEMbEr 2011

New MFA Exhibit Surveys Degas Exploration of the Naked Human Form

By steven kapiCa

third gallery, The Body Exploited: Degass Brothel Monotypes, is where the exhibit takes aking my way through the a fascinating turn. The small monotypes on show Degas and the Nude, display are varied and provocative. As the on display in the MFAs Gund exhibit notes point out, many of these antiGallery through February 5, classical works, depicting prostitutes in a I couldnt help but think of Robert Gravess decidedly naturalistic and sexual way, were poem, The Naked and the Nude. It is a not meant to be displayed publicly. This fact wry commentary on the synonyms naked makes the exhibition of them all the more and nude; it contends with the complex intriguing, highlighting the voyeuristic and connotations of nakedness and nudity, exhibitionist undertones of Degass work. exploring the gulf between innocence and cunning, between the sacred and the profane. Degas and the Nude operates in a very similar fashion. According to the exhibitions curators, the MFAs George Shackelford and the Muse dOrsays Xavier Rey, Degass art is, like his habits of mind, complex and contradictory, resisting easy Degass the tub, 1886. (Muse dOrsay, bequest of comte Issac de interpretation Camondo, 1911; photo muse dOrsay.) or precise definition. And The sexual hum of Degass brothel nudes while Shackelford suggests that Degass echoes into the fourth gallery, The Body representation of others bodies reveals the Observed, where Degass experimentation artists wonder at the world outside his own with monotype resulted in hauntingly body, the exhibit primarily serves as an beautiful and sensual prints. These prints extended rumination on the naked human form and all its attendant cultural and personal are likely the most affecting in the exhibit, baggage. This is a rather large exhibit, with 140 of Degass works, in a wide range of media, spanning nine thematic and chronologically organized galleries. The first two galleries By raChel diBella represent Degass early years, collecting figure everal years ago my partner introstudies he produced as a student and his early duced me to the culinary worlds historical paintings. On display with Degass of Ethiopian and Eritrean culture. Scene of War in the Middle Ages (1863-65) Taveling on a budget and with a vegare preliminary figure sketches that show the etarian companion meant conversations about painters dedication to form. While these first eatingwhether in New York, Washington or galleries serve as interesting background, the Bostonusually began and ended with Oh,

and Degass manipulation of ink produced wonderful, almost photographic effects. These exquisite, back-lit figures are matched only by the Bodies in Motion in gallery six. In fact, the shapes that emerge from the shadows of Degass monotypes are fully revealed in Degass dancers and women bathing. Galleries five through eight operate as a progressive exploration of the female form. And while more time might reveal more subtlety and nuance, one thing becomes clear from gallery to gallery: Degas was clearly infatuated by all aspects of the human figure, especially the female form in motion. It is in this motionfrom dancer to batherthat Degass mastery and appreciation is most noticeable. It is also in these pieces, especially those which feature the contorted backs of bathers toweling off, where Degass work reveals borderline voyeuristic tendencies: The works vacillate between unguarded, naked moments and bold, sly peeping. An additional 20 works by forebears, contemporaries, and followers, are mixed in with Degass works. Some of these pieces offer unique perspective, like the pairing of Gustave Caillebottes Man at His Bath (1884) and Henri Gervexs Rolla (1878) with Degass Nude Woman Drying Herself (1884-1892). Like Gravess poem, this grouping prompts meditation on solitary, innocent nakedness (Degas and Caillebotte), and the dishabille in rhetoric of post-coital exposure (Gervex). These large pieces, which stretch across an entire wall of gallery fours New Ambitions for the Nude, together present a tableau of gender difference and performance. The accompanying text to Gervexs piece notes, Degas told Gervex how he could improve

the painting, urging him to activate the lower right of the canvas by including a still life of womens finery. This added detail intensifies the objectification that permeates Gervexs painting. And while Rolla is, as were told, contemplating suicide as the result of his love for the prostitute sleeping nude before him, its hard not to wonder at repercussions of patriarchal gender oppression. Some of the other accompanying pieces are a bit distracting, like Paul Gauguins The Moon and Earth (1893), located in the final gallery, aptly titled The Last Bodies. This gallery is an eclectic mix of Degass final worksand the inclusion of pieces by Gauguin, Bonnard, Picasso, and Matisse, meant to reflect Degass at-times shocking experimentation, ends the exhibit on a strange and disjointed note. Of course, one of the treasures in this final collection is a photograph composed by Degas (and snapped by an assistant). This early photographic print, dark and silvery, depicts a semi-reclining Degas contemplating a sculpture by friend and artist Albert Bartholom. Bartholoms piece by itself echoes the fascination with form represented in much of Degass work here; however, when backgrounded by Degas himself, the sculpture takes on a darker, sadder toneone complicated further by the mixture of fatherly concern and voyeurism in Degass gaze. Looking at Degas looking at a female figure with her back to him, curled in a fetal position, is arresting and slightly disturbing. This self-portrait casts a reflexive shadow over the entire exhibit, maybe even suggesting we all go back and take another look. Steven S. Kapica lives near Kenmore Square.

elevating habesha cuisine without decimating your Budget

BCa deBut for a 17-year-old Playwright

am Harnish started writing plays at ten. They were pretty awful, he says, but looking back on them i realized they showed some of the things i like to write about, making fun of subjects usually treated seriously, and they had a bit of irreverence to them. Now 17, Sams short play The Spider and The Fly, a meditation on innocence and guilt with a few Kafkaesque twists, is being produced by the Thomas-Clark Theatre Company Nov. 14 at the Boston Center for the Arts. (See Calendar on page 8 for details.) An East Fens resident and senior theater major at Boston Arts Academy, Sam has studied theater and acting but has become increasingly interested in filmmaking. A fan of Quentin Tarantino, he credits his heightened interest in film to the directors Inglourious Basterds. i felt like i was on a crazy drug like cocaine or something after i left the theater. i was amazed at his ability to write exciting and intriguing and incredibly funny dialogue. Inglourious Basterds and The Pillowman by playwright Martin McDonagh (the irish Tarantino) served as the main inspirations for The Spider and the Fly, with a dash of Ingmar bergman, circa The Seventh Seal, thrown in for good measure. The Pillowman, Sam says, because it is about a man wrongly accused by a government agency for murder and the concept and characters are similar to the opening scene of Inglourious Basterds. The short play touches on themes of God and death gleaned from Bergman. Filmmaking is what i want to focus on, Sam says. in fact, The Spider and the Fly is really only the opening scene of a much bigger piece that i want to do in the future, maybe as a movie. Tarantino: watch your back! Mike Mennonno lives in the West Fens.

By MiKE MENNoNNo

look! An Ethiopian caf! So, while admiton the menu, Ethiopian imported coffee, tedly no connoisseur of Habesha cuisine, I and the house speciality: Cheche bsa. To have certainly eaten a lot of it. Some of it begin, I ordered the Attkilt Combo, which has hearkened to the days of middle school includes a platter apportioned with miser wot lunches with overwrought, under-flavored and (delicious and firm red lentils simmered in a unidentifiable roughage. Much of it has been flavorful, spicy sauce), gomen (fresh, cooked delicious. But no establishment, thus far, has collard green simmered in mild sauce, lightly surpassed the qualities of the food, jazz, and seasoned with salt and herbs to compliment its visual art like Lucy firm, earthy Ethiopian Caf. texture), and This brightly-lit tikile gomen neighborhood delight (cabbage and located at the corner potatoessoft of Mass Ave. and and flavorful Huntington will boost enough to any mood. Local become a fast artwork meets a basic comfort-food lesson in Ethiopian favorite). With greetings among each dish, the tangerine walls and injera that whiteboards, which Ziegaye and Injera and several kinds of Wat (stew), typical of surround diners. his staff make Ethiopian and Eritrean cuisine. The sounds of jazz themselves composers like Mulatu Atatq flow through was spongy and tangy without leaving sticky the caf and add to the silent invitation to flour behind on the hands of diners. sit, eat, and enjoy. A first glance at the menu Next, my companion and I shared the proves that we poor students in the city no Addis combo: similiar to its counterpart, the longer have any excuse to choose typical chain Attkilt, but offering kik aletcha, or chickpeas haunts in the area for daily doses of quick, in an extremely mild garlic and ginger diet-friendly and cheap eats. saucesomething that likely could have Lucys provides options that go beyond been more robust. Finally, we shared spinach obligatory lentils and endless plates of injera, simmered with potatoes, spice and herbs and the spongy bread that supports Ethiopian food. the Ethiopian-style potato salad. I wished I Owner, chef, server and conversationalist had tried the potato salad somewhere in the Girmay Cirsto Ziegaye happily offers middle of the meal; its combination of carrot suggestions appropriate for a late lunch, which and parsley made for a dry end to the meal. Of included, for us, every vegetarian combination course, that was soon remedied by the cheche bsa, our final shared dish. This specialty was moist, crumbly and seasoned with enough cardamom and red pepper that it gave a spicy kick to the meal. The expert combination of sweet honey, savory butter and heat of the cheche bsa proved the perfect end to a first try at this inconspicuous Habesha paradise. And for under $9.00 a dish, one cant help but be drawn in. When you go, ask about the 6:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday evening Ethiopian coffee service ($6.00 per person). Rachel DiBella lives in Jamaica Plain, but her favorite place to eat is the Fenway.
Photo: wikiMedia CoMMons

FENWAY NEWS |NOVEMbEr 2011 | 7

A circUitoUS PAth From hArvArd SqUAre to hemenwAy Street

ARTSLINES
The Michael J. Epstein Memorial Library, Ghost Box Orchestra and Tumbleweed Company. Their partnership forms the basis for Banded, a documentary that examines how the academics of music theory connect to the creative spark behind writing a song. To capture the process, cameras followed the musicians as they wrote, rehearsed, revised, recorded, and even completed music-theory assignments. The concert offered a chance to capture the finished songs as they were performed live. Well keep readers posted on the Berklee-produced film and its eventual screenings.

oN the First aNNiversary of its new 350-seat theater on Hemenway Street, the Boston Conservatory announced the appointment of a new director of the Dance Division. Cathy Young, the new director, has taught at more than 30 colleges across the US and is known as a teacher, performer, and choreographer of jazz dance. The recipient of awards and grants from various arts foundations, she was previously a department chair and associate professor of dance at Ursinus College in Pennsylvania.

For the past 20 years Young has focused on creating her own work, a dynamic mix of styles that includes jazz, modern, improvisation, social dance and gymnastics. As an undergrad at Harvard, Young was majoring in sociology and womens studies when she saw a performance of the Danny Sloan Dance Company. It was a life-changing experience, said Young. I was moved so deeply that I knew this is the life I have to have. I felt alive. At Boston Conservatory, Young promises to honor past dance traditions while embracing the future. The first performance under her direction is Fast Forward, running from ruth khoWais November 3-6 (see Calendar on page 8).

new LectUre SerieS wiLL SUPPort reStorAtion At FenwAy StUdioS

theoDore steBBiNs, a curator oF aMericaN art first at the MFA and then at

Harvards Fogg Museum, will lead off a roster of art experts in the forthcoming Studio Series Talks, to be held at the Lenox Hotel outside Copley Square. Stebbinss talk, The MFA, the Boston School, and Me will highlight the Boston School of Painting, an important movement in American art in the early 1900s and one closely tied to the Fenway Studios on Ipswich Street.

FenwAy StUdioS oPenS itS medievAL doorS nov. 56

FeNway stuDiosoNe oF the NeighBorhooDs treasures will hold its annual

Open Studios weekend on November 5 and 6. The building, at 30 Ipswich Street, will be open from 11am to 5pm both days. Visitors can tour the studios of some 30 artists, who work in a variety of styles and media, including oils, watercolor, and printmaking. Along with the open house, Fenway Studios holds a food drive (non-perishables) for the Greater Boston Food Bank.

The new lecture series, organized by the Friends of Fenway Studios, helps support preservation of the Fenway Studios buidling. Each of the 201112 Studio Series Talks will be followed by a private reception at the Vose Galleries on Newbury Street. Subsequent speakers will include Katherine French, director of the Danforth Museum in Framingham; Erica Hirshler, Croll senior curator of American paintings at the MFA; and Lindsay Leard-Coolidge, author and lecturer, Northeastern University. The program will conclude next June with a private exhibit preview and gallery talk at the Vose Galleries. Stebbinss talk takes place Tuesday, November 1, at 6 pm. Tickets are $50, or $200 for the full series of five lectures. Reservations are required. For further information, visit www. virGinia GarBers friendsoffenwaystudios.org or call 617-695-9720.

Fenway Studios is a National Historic Landmark. Spacious studios have 14-foot ceilings and 12-foot-tall windows, which bring in the north light that painters consider ideal. It is the oldest building in the country that has been used continuously for studios. Early in the 20th century, following a disastrous fire that destroyed another studio building, a group of prominent Bostonians organized to raise funds for building the structure in the then modern Arts and Crafts style. The first BarBara Brooks simons artists moved into their studios in 1905.

BSo chAmBer concertS Find A new home At nUS FenwAy center

MeMBers oF the BostoN syMPhoNy orchestra will present five free concerts

novemBer iS (Sigh) cAtherine deneUve month At the mFA

catheriNe DeNeuve wiLL visit the Fenway this monthnot, unfortunately, in the flesh, but in a lot of her cinematic personae. The Museum of Fine Arts will screen not only in her latest film, His Mothers Eyes, but also a selection of her greatest hits of nearly five decades. From Roman Polanskis Repulsion (1965), through Luis Buuels Belle de Jour (1967); from Franois Truffauts The Last Metro (1980) to The Hunger (1983) and Indochine (1992), the worlds most beautiful woman (in many eyes) will grace the screen of Remis Auditorium many times in November. As an added bonus for fans of Jacques Demys The Umbrellas of Cherbourg (1964), the rarely screened Demy/Deneuve collaboration, The Young Girls of Rochefort (1968) is also on the menu. Visit www.mfa.org/programs/series/ films-catherine-deneuve for schedule, tickets and more information.

at Northeasterns Fenway Center on St. Stephen Street as part of the BSOs 201112 Community Chamber Music Series. The series begins November 11 at 1:30 pm; subsequent concerts will take place on January 27, February 24, March 16, and April 13all at 1:30. In its 15th year, the series will move from a Symphony Hall function room to the former St. Anns Church, both to accommodate a growing audience and to take advantage of the buildings outstanding acoustics. Students and faculty in Northeasterns Music Department will play an active role in the series, leading pre-concert talks, creating program notes, and handling behind-the-scenes work such as recording the concerts for digital archives. Tickets are free, and may be reserved at www.tickets.neu. arthur rishi edu. Any remaining tickets will be available at the door.

BerkLee PerFormAnce center oFFerS hALLoween thriLLer

MichaeL JacKsoNs recorD-BustiNg Thriller will come alive on Halloween night

FiLm LiFtS the cUrtAin on Songwriting, creAtive ProceSS

BRA

A concert at the Brighton Music Hall last month offered the first public glimpse at a collaboration between Berklee faculty members and five local bandsZili Misik, Aloud,

at the Berklee Performance Center as Berklee students, faculty, alumni and friends perform the album in its entirety in a special Halloween tribute to the King of Pop. Dancers from Berklees Musical Theater Club will groove to the most popular tracks like P.Y.T. (Pretty Young Thing) and Beat It, and audience members can vie for free concert tickets to the show of their choice during the 201112 concert season at the performance center by wearing the spookiest costume in the concert hall.

The show gets underway at 8:15 p.m. Tickets are $8 in advance, $12 at the door. Go to BerkleeBPC.com to buy tickets or call the box office at 617-747-2261. If youre new to the neigbhorhood, you can find the BPC at 136 Massachusetts Avenue.

At BerkLee, diStAnce LeArning meetS diStAnce comPoSing

BerKLee PuLsea weB-BaseD Music-eDucatioN PrograM of Berklees City Music Network (CMN)has entered a partnership with Kompoz.com, connecting students at 32 CMN sites nationwide. Kompoz allows musicians to collaborate on songwriting from anywhere using home-studio recording software by uploading individual instrument tracks to which other members can contribute. For Berklee PULSE, Kompoz offers an outlet to young musicians who might not have access to other musicians, and gives them an opportunity to work with students across the City Music Network.

Prudential Center PubliC benefits fund

The Boston Redevelopment Authority (BRA) seeks proposals from eligible 501c(3) entities that are represented by the Prudential Project Advisory Committee (PruPAC), including the neighborhoods of Back Bay, Bay Village, Beacon Hill, Claremont, Ellis, Fenway, Kenmore, Prudential, Pilot Block, St. Botolph and Symphony. Public Benefit Funds are being made available for neighborhood-based social programs and support, as well as capital improvement programs or endowment programs supported by PruPAC and its member organizations. Public Benefit Funds may not be used for administrative costs or to resolve existing debt or budget short-falls. The Public Benefit Funds are being made available from two sources, as voluntary contributions in connection with projects recently approved for development within PDA#37 (the Prudential Center). Funds arising from the development of the Exeter Residences Project by AvalonBay Communities, Inc. equal Three Hundred Two Thousand Five Hundred ($302,500) Dollars (the Exeter Funds). Funds arising from the additional development approved for the 888 Boylston Office Building by Boston Properties equal One Hundred Sixty Nine Thousand Four Hundred Forty Four ($169,449) Dollars (the 888 Boylston Funds). These funds become due and payable upon the issuance of a full building permit for each development project. Collectively, Four Hundred Seventy One Nine Hundred Forty Nine ($471,949) is being considered for Community Benefit Award Grants under this RFP. Requests for Proposals (RFP) are available from the BRA for a nominal fee of Five Dollars ($5.00) at the offices of the BRA, Boston City Hall, Room 910, Boston, MA 02201. Checks should be made payable to the Boston Redevelopment Authority. Submit proposals to: Mr. John F. OBrien, Senior Project Manager, Boston Redevelopment Authority, Room 910, Boston City Hall, Boston, MA, by 12:00 Noon on November 30, 2011 at which time proposals will be opened. The BRA and PruPAC reserve the right to reject any or all proposals. Grant awards will be subject to the recommendations of PruPAC and approval by the BRA Board of Directors. Brian Golden Secretary/Executive Director

One project involves students at two CMN sites in California who are working on a hiphop song called Not Who I Am. A Place Called Home in Los Angeles initiated the song with vocals, drums, and scratching. Project RYTMO, in La Mirada, added rock bass and guitar tracks. The result was a great fusion of both genres says Joey Arreguin, Project RYTMO executive director. The students are excited about further collaborations and marGot edWards look forward to experimenting with other genres.

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8 | FENWAY NEWS | NOVEMbEr 2011

This symbol indicates a free event. For even more listings, visit www.fenwaynews.org

Broadway presents a student production of Mel Brookss musical The Producers, one of the biggest hits of the last decade. Tickets $12 general, through nov 6: Tina Packer, founder of Shakespeare & Co. (which years ago planned $10 students. More info at www. BuonBroadway.com. Tickets at the to build a theater in the Fenway before box office or 617-353-8725. decamping to the Berkshires), presents her acclaimed show Women of Will, a sat, nov 12: Into Your Art presents look at Shakespeares heroines. Tickets Listen. Share. Enjoy, a live poetry $15-45 (discounts for seniors, students). event featuring musical performances Performances on November 4-6 include at Remingtons, 124 Boylston St. Poetry the entire five-part Complete Journey, and live music presented by students, earlier shows are billed as The Overview. emerging, and professional artists. In Central Square Theatre, 450 Mass Ave in the Comedy Vault, downstairs; food and Cambridge. www.centralsquareTheator. beverages served upstairs. Tickets $7, org or 866-811-4111. available at intoyourart.eventbrite.com or at the door. through nov 19: Disponible: A Kind of Mexican Show at the School of the sat, nov 12: Federico Cortese leads the BosMuseum of Fine Arts. Eight of Mexicos ton Youth Symphony, comprising some of most innovative contemporary artists the regions top young musicians, in a famcritique and explore the contradictions of ily-oriented favorite, Prokofievs Peter and their native country. Visit www.smfa.edu/ the Wolf. 12 noon at Symphony Hall. Adults disponible for more information and details $20, under 18 free. www.Bso.org or 888on related activities. 230 The Fenway. Hours: 266-1200 or ww.bysoweb.org/index.cfm. MonSat, 10 am5 pm; Thurs 10 am8 pm; closed Sun and holidays. FREE sun, nov 13: Make it an all-Prokofiev
Mon-wed. oCt 31-nov2: The Borromeo Quartet performs a selection of Beethovens quartets in a Fishbowl Series of three concerts in NECs Pierce Hall (241 St. Botolph St.). The Quartet will project the scores they are playing on a large screen, in certain cases, using Beethovens manuscript. Works include Op. 18, No. 3 and 6, Op. 95, Op. 59, No. 1 and Op. 132 and 133. 5pm. FREE tue, nov 3-6. Fast Forward, fall dance concert at Boston Conservatory. Features Trey McIntyres Blue until June suite with the music of Etta James and other contemporary pieces. Boston Conservatory Theater, 31 Hemenway St. 8 pm, TuesSat.; 2 pm Sun. $10-25. For tickets, etc., go to www.bostonconservatory.edu/event/ fri nov 4 & sat nov 5: Canadas Aszure BarCourtesy arts eMerson

Massachusetts in the Civil War, 1861 1862. For history buffs: View documents, photographs, broadsides and maps that detail the Bay States role in the Civil War. At Massachusetts Historical Society, 1154 Boylston Street. Open Mon.-Sat. 10 am-4 pm. FREE.

thu nov 10sat nov 12: BU on

kaCPer PeMPel; Courtesy oPus 3 artists

through Jan. 2012: The Purchase of Blood:

a more satisfying future. The play blurs the boundaries between actor and audience in an unpredictable ride riddled with black humor and vivid storytelling. Visit www.bu.edu/cfa/bcap or call 617-9338600 for tickets and more information. Tickets $15-$20

Gala Brings Previn, Ohlsson to Symphony Hall

pick of the month

to celebrate its 20th anniversary, the terezin Music Foundation commissioned andr Previn to produce a new chamber music piece, and acclaimed pianist garrick ohlsson will join Previn at symphony hall for its world premiere on November 14. Previns clarinet Quintet will form the centerpiece of a musical gala to benefit the Foundation, which commissions new works and promotes young composers as a way of memorializing the musicians who died in the terezin concentration camp during world war ii. This is the best way to honor these lost artists and carry on their message of hope and resistance, says tMF Director Mark Ludwig. tickets to the eventdesigned to raise money for the foundationare $150 and include both a 5:30pm reception and the 7:00pm concert. you can find more information on the foundation website, www. terezinmusic.org series demonstrates. Brian Gratton, on the faculty at Arizona State University, discusses Henry Cabot Lodge and the Rise of the Movement to Restrict Immigration. 5:15pm; FREE (but a charge to receive the seminar papers in advance). www. Masshist.org/events. 1154 Boylston Street.

Mon, nov 14: TC Squared presents an

evening of new works written and performed by Boston Arts Academy students. (including East Fens resident Sam Harnish; see page 6.) At the Boston Center for the Arts, 539 Tremont Street, 7pm. FREE

Mon, nov 14: The Boston Conservatory

Saxophone Ensemble. Kenneth Radnofsky, Conductor. Seully Hall, 8 the Fenway. FREE.

ton brings her dance troupe to Boston under the Celebrity Series banner. The Globe calls Barton, a protg of Mikhail Barishnykov, one of the hottest choreographers in modern dance. At BUs Tsai Performance Center, 655 Comm Ave, 7:30pm. Tickets $45-55. www.celebrityseries.com.

sat, nov 5: Celtic fiddling sensation Natalie Macmaster and her husband Donnell Leahya renowned musician in his own rightperform at the Berklee Performance Center. Tickets $41. 8 pm. More information at www.worldMusic.org.

MIT prof. James Buckley discussing City of Wood: San Francisco and the Redwood Lumber Industry, 1850-1929, part of MHSs Boston Environmental History series. 5:15pm; FREE (but a charge to receive the seminar papers in advance). www. Masshist.org/events. 1154 Boylston Street.

tue, nov 8: Mass Historical Society presents

presents the world premiere of Angel Reapers, a dramatic blend of Shaker songs, modern dance, and theatre about unchanneled lust in New Englands 18th-century Shaker community. Pulitzer-, Tony- and Academy Awardwinning Alfred Uhry (writer) and MacArthur laureate Martha Clarke (director/choreographer) created this work, which combines traditional Shaker music and tales of sexual repression to tell a history-based story. At the Cutler Majestic Angel Reapers at Arts Emerson, November 15-20 Theatre, 219 Tremont Street. Tickets, $25$89, weekend with a trek to Harvard Square for are on sale at www.artsemerson.org or by Boston Conservatorys November concert. phone at 617-824-8400. The program includes Prokofievs Violin tue, nov 15-thu, deC 15: Simmons College Concerto No. 2 in G minor, along with Beethovens Egmont Overture, and Berliozs presents Rumble at the Media Mash-Up, a group show of artists whose risk taking Symphonie Fantastique op 14. 2pm, with a and nontraditional handling of their mepre-concert lecture at 1pm. Tickets $10-15 from the Harvard Box Office, 617-496-2222 dia is akin to the evolutionary imperative of biological systems. Highlights include or www.boxoffice.harvard.edu. sculptural books by Kathleen Hancock; sun, nov 13: NEC throws a cello fragmented textiles by Merill Comeau; and extravaganza to celebrate the 70th human-scaled prints by Debra Olin. Mon birthday of Paul Katz, known to the worlds Fri, 10am4:30pm; closed Nov 23-25. Trustconcertgoers as cellist of the Cleveland man Art Gallery, 4th floor, 300 the Fenway. Quartet. To celebrate this milestone, Reception 5-7pm on Thursday, November guest conductor Josh Weilerstein and cello 17. For information, call 617-521-2268 or ensembles large and small play everything visit www.simmons.edu/trustman FREE from Bachs Brandenburg Concerto No. 6 to tue nov 15: Nasty debates about Villa-Lobos Bachianas Brasileiras No. 1. In immigration restriction have a long Jordan Hall at 8pm. FREE pedigree in the US, as Mass Historicals Boston Immigration and Urban History

tue, nov 15-sun, nov 20: ArtsEmerson

wed, nov 16: Curious about the MFAs exquisite exhibition of representations of Aphrodite, goddess of love? Join a gallery talk on the subject let by Phoebe Segal, assistant curator of Greek and Roman art. Sharf Visitor Center at 6pm for this one-hour hour tour. Free with Museum admission. thu, nov 17: The BU School of Visual Arts presents Mexican artist Enrique Chagoya in the sixth season of the Contemporary Perspectives Lecture Series. Although controversial says SVA Director Lynne Allen, he brings to our attention the problems of man-made pollution, as well as shifts and often opposite viewpoints concerning ethnic stereotypes and ideological propaganda. At 6:30pm in the CFA Concert Hall, 855 Commonwealth Ave. Call 617-353-3371 or visit www.bu.edu/cfa/2011/10/26/chagoya/ for more information. FREE thu, nov 17: Brian Kellow discus es and signs Pauline Kael: A Life in the Dark, a rounded portrait of the remarkable and often relentlessly driven woman who was the New Yorkers influential, powerful, and controversial film critic. At Barnes & Noble BU Bookstore, 660 Beacon St. in Kenmore Square. 7pm, fifth floor. FREE Mon, nov 28: The Borromeo String Quartet, in residence at the New England Conservatory, returns to Jordan Hall for a performance of Arnold Schoenbergs String Quartet No. 1 in D Minor, Op. 7 and Franz Schuberts String Quartet in D Minor, Death and the Maiden. At 8pm. FREE wed, nov 30: The MFAs Korean art

The following events take place at the tue, nov 8: Piano Masters Series by The Peterborough Senior Center, located two Boston Conservatory: Ukranian pianist blocks from Boylston between 100 and 108 Myoka Suk presents a program in homage to Jersey St. (walk down the alley and look left). Franz Liszt. Seully Hall, 8 the Fenway. $10For more information, call 617-536-7154. 15. Call 617-912-9222 for info. For tickets, sPeCial events etc., go to www.bostonconservatory.edu/ event/ oCt 1: 10amPlanning Committee
wed, nov 9-sun, nov 20: BUs Boston Center

reCurring
Mondays

collection is recognized as one of the best in the Western hemisphere. Join a gallery talk led by Suhyung Kim, Korean curatorial research associate, designed to introduce some masterpieces chosen from more than 1,000 Korean artifacts and works of art in the collection. Meet in the Sharf Visitor Center at 6pm for this one-hour tour. Free with museum admission.

11am: FilmsFunny Girl (1968); The Notebook (2004); Annie Get Your Gun! (1950); Adams Rib (1949)
tuesdays

lets do the tiMe warP again!

for American Performance (BCAP) presents House by renowned Canadian playwright Daniel MacIvor. The darkly humorous oneman show pairs veteran BCAP actor Tim Spears with director Tara L. Matkosky. House tells the story of Victor, a man in crisis who is eager to confess tales of his sordid history with the hope of achieving

oCt 2:

9:45amChakra toning 11amShort story discussion: In the Ravine by Anton Chekhov 1pmTaxi coupons oCt 8: 10amTask Force meeting oCt 14: 1pmHalle Zucker film discussion oCt 16: 11amShort story discussion

11 a.m: Exercise with Mahmoud 12 noon: DocumentariesLewis and Clark: The Journey of the Corps of Discovery (1997); The Secrets of Genghis Khan (2003); The Dark Ages (2007); Real Heroes: Inspirations: Stories of Giving (2007); War Dance (2006)
wednesdays

9:45am: Yoga with Carmen 10noon: Blood pressure check with Joyce
thursdays

11am: Berklee Sing-along

this match was made in theatrical heaven: The American Repertory Theater (always striving to position its Club oberon as the edgiest performance space in town) and the Gold Dust orphans (resident troupe at Club Machine with a lets-put-on-anaughty-show-in-the-garage esthetic). Theyve teamed up for a revival of The Rocky Horror picture Show, with, of course, Ryan Landry as the glam-rock Dr. Franknfurterand, really, doesnt that tell you everything you need to know? Fridays at 10:30pm through December 2. tickets $25-55. visit www. cluboberon.com/events/rocky-horrorshow for info or ticket purchases.