New Balance to spend $500m to build HQ, sports complex, hotel in Brighton
(Boston Redevelopment Authority)
A rendering of the Boston-based athletic apparel company's proposed development.
New Balance expects to spend half of a billion dollars to build its proposed development next to its current home in Brighton.
The company said Thursday that it hopes to complete construction within the next five years of 1.45 million square feet of space across a new headquarters, sports complex, hotel and up to three office buildings.
Company officials also said that if the state's transportation department allows it to do so, New Balance "will design, permit and construct a commuter rail station in Allston-Brighton" near to its project's site, but a separate endeavor from the $500 million development proposal.
The development, planned to be built on a 14-acre site along Guest Street, would include retail, restaurant, parking and green space, according to the company's latest and most-detailed filing released by the city Thursday.
The proposed site runs adjacent to the Massachusetts Turnpike and the Framingham / Worcester Line commuter rail tracks.
New Balance officials said previously that the company is “committed to looking at all options” to add a commuter rail station near the proposed development -- likely near Everett Street -- including that the company is willing to "assist in funding the station design, permitting and construction."
On Thursday, company spokeswoman Amy Dow said that New Balance is willing to fully take charge of the process of building a commuter rail station if the state transportation department were to give permission to the shoe company.
"If designated by MassDOT, New Brighton Landing will design, permit and construct a commuter rail station in Allston-Brighton," she said in an e-mail.
The company also hopes to extend Guest Street to connect to Everett Street among other roadway improvements.
The project -- among the top 10 largest proposed or ongoing development sites in Boston -- would be built in six phases starting with a three-month demolition and site preparation phase scheduled to begin this coming fall and new construction slated to start in 2013.
The headquarters, sports complex and the hotel are expected to be completed by 2015, the company spokeswoman Dow said Thursday. As many as three additional office buildings are expected to be built by 2017 "subject to market conditions."
Mayor Thomas M. Menino applauded plans and said the development will be a "tremendous community asset."
"This $500 million development will be a wonderful addition to the Brighton neighborhood and will add brand new recreation space for public use," he said in a statement Thursday. "I salute New Balance as a major local employer and I applaud its efforts to include the public in the new complex."
The Boston Redevelopment Authority, which oversees city approval of such proposals, has scheduled a public meeting for June 6 from 7 to 9 p.m. at the WGBH Auditorium on One Guest St. in Brighton.
The meeting will focus on the latest project filing, which was formally submitted to the city last Friday.
The public comment period on the filing will end at 5 p.m. on Aug. 8. Written comments can be submitted to: Mr. Erico Lopez, Senior Project Manager, BRA, Boston City Hall, One City Hall Plaza, Boston,MA 02201 or by email at erico.lopez.bra@cityofboston.gov.
To see more project details and read past coverage of the proposed project, click here and here.
E-mail Matt Rocheleau at mjrochele@gmail.com.
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15th annual Taste of Allston set for June 9 at Harvard Athletic Complex
The 15th annual Taste of Allston is set to be held on Saturday, June 9 at the Harvard Athletic Complex, organizers said.
Featuring food samples from an array of neighborhood eateries, the event is scheduled to run from noon to 3 p.m. at the Murr Center at the sports complex at 65 North Harvard St. in Allston, according to an announcement.
Participating restaurants include: @Union Cafe, A @ Time, Allston Diner, Bon Chon, Boston Kabob, Buk Kyung, Camino Real, Color, Deep Ellum, Garlic N' Lemons, Joshua Tree, Korean Garden, Lone Star, FoMu, Patron's, Peace O' Pie, Regina Pizzeria, Refuge Cafe, Roast Beast, Sam Adams, Sunset Grill & Tap, Tavern in the Square, Teriyaki Joe's, The Avenue Bar & Grill, and White Horse Tavern.
The event will also include a special performance by the band The Allstonians, raffles and other family activities, officials said.
Proceeds benefit the tasting’s organizer, Allston Village Main Streets, a public-private nonprofit that aids local businesses.
Tickets -- which include entry, all food and free drink tickets -- cost $15 in advance and $20 at the door. Children 10 and under will be admitted for free, the announcement said. Free parking, bike racks and a free bike valet will be available and the site is near bus stops.
To buy tickets and for more information, visit www.allstonvillage.com, call 617-254-7564 and check out the event’s Facebook page.
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Victoria Kennedy tells BC law grads to unite others; steers clear of Anna Maria controversy
(Suzanne Kreiter/Globe Staff)
Victoria Kennedy with BC President William P. Leahy at the college's Law School commencement in Conte Forum on Friday.
Victoria Reggie Kennedy called on Boston College law graduates Friday to seek change and justice by uniting people, invoking a practice she said her late husband Edward M. Kennedy embraced as a senator for 46 years.
Kennedy did not touch upon how another Catholic school, Anna Maria College, had rescinded an invitation for her to speak at its spring commencement amid pressure from a bishop, who said some of Kennedy’s personal views do not align with church teachings.
But she spoke of her Catholic faith as her guiding force.
“My husband described it well. ‘This faith,’ he wrote in his autobiography, ‘has been as meaningful to me as breathing.’ And I would add: as essential,” she said. “For me, it would be impossible to unravel my faith from the other aspects of my life, personal or professional. It’s all woven together.
Outside the campus gates, several anti-abortion protestors held signs saying ‘‘BC Honors Abortion Defender.’’ But at the ceremony inside Conte Forum, there were no visible signs of opposition to her appearance or speech.
The 300 degree recipients and their loved ones applauded warmly as she approached the podium, then gave her a standing ovation after she spoke.
FULL ENTRYA hot week on the MBTA
(Jeremy C. Fox for Boston.com)
Will these unsuspecting passengers be greeted by waves of heat once they board their bus? Many commuters were this week.
Email Jeremy C. Fox at jeremycfox@gmail.com.
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Gourmet food, liquor shop plans to replace Diskovery used music, book store in Oak Square
A retail store that plans to sell gourmet food and fine wine, spirits and craft beer expects to open in Oak Square by early September, according to the business owner.
The shop will take over a 1,500 square-foot space at 569 Washington St. Used music, movie and book store Diskovery expects to soon shutter after a 32-year run in Allston-Brighton.
Victor Barakat, 32, said he and his younger sister, Rita Barakat, plan to co-manage their new venture.
The property’s landlord is Barakat’s uncle, David C. Khoury, who along with other relatives has owned and run Foley’s Liquors in Brookline since he opened it in 1986.
That family business is where Barakat said he and his sister learned about retailing.
David Khoury and his brother Nadim C. Khoury co-founded and run the Taybeh Brewing Company located in the West Bank village of Taybeh, Palestine, where the Khoury family hails from. The brewery, founded in the mid-1990s, was the first microbrewery in Palestine, the Globe reported shortly after its opening.
“We know a lot about the relationship between drinks and food,” Victor Barakat said in a phone interview this week. “We’re trying to sell a lot of the items that you have to leave Brighton in order to get. Why not have it locally for the community here to go to.”
The Oak Square store will feature gourmet specialty foods and beverages. Many of the items will be local, from Massachusetts or New England, said Barakat, who moved to the US 22 years ago. Food items will include spreads, jams, butters, cheeses, pastas, cooking oils, sauces, marinades and salad dressings.
He said the business’ request for a liquor license to sell all alcohol beverage types – beer, wine and liquor – received approval from the Boston Licensing Board recently, and the license’s final thumbs up came from the state’s Alcohol Beverage Control Commission this week.
The store’s staff will help customers choose which foods and drinks go well together, including wine and cheese pairings, he said.
Eventually, the shop expects to also host guided tastings of the food and drink items it sells. The store may also add teach cooking lessons at some point. And, Barakat said that if his family's brewery in Palestine gets the approval it plans to seek to sell its brews in the US, his store could stock products from the Taybeh Brewing Company.
Barakat said he hopes the store will be open shortly before Labor Day.
He said the store went before neighborhood groups and residents before applying for city permits and licenses. Some expressed concern over the shop’s plan to sell alcohol.
“Our response was: No, we don’t need more liquor stores. There’s one on every corner in Boston,” Barakat said. “But, we do need more refined package stores that help blend the process of buying food and beverages. People have a lot of different tastes.”
He said his family also owns an adjacent property behind his store. Barakat said if his planned venture does well, he may consider expanding into the extra 2,000- to 3,000-square-foot space. He said he would approach neighbors and local groups about such an idea before acting on it.
E-mail Matt Rocheleau at mjrochele@gmail.com.
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Repaving of slice of Western Ave. in Allston to limit parking for 3 weeks
A three-week repaving project will temporarily ban parking on one side of a stretch of Western Avenue in Allston.
Staring Tues. June 5, parking will not be allowed along the northern side of Western Ave. between the approximately Travis and Hague streets, an announcement from the city said.
Paving work along the one-third mile stretch of road will be done between 7 a.m. and 5 p.m. on weekdays and between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. on Saturdays, the notice said. Once the paving is finished, striping work will be done at nighttime.
Access to properties in the construction area will remain open throughout the project, officials said. Barriers, signage and police details will be arranged when necessary to direct traffic.
The project’s start and end dates may be delayed if there is inclement weather during the period, according to the notice.
Questions, comments and concerns about the project can be directed to Harvard Construction Mitigation at 617-496-0857 or adubanowitz@csl-consulting.com.
E-mail Matt Rocheleau at mjrochele@gmail.com.
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Photo: New schoolyard unveiled at Thomas Edison K-8 School in Brighton
(Isabel Leon / City of Boston)
Third grade student Shomaury Joseph of the South End helps principal Mary Driscoll, Mayor Thomas M. Menino and Myrna Johnson of the Schoolyard Initiative cut the ribbon to open up a new outdoor classroom at the Thomas Edison K-8 School. For more on the project, click here.
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BU, Emerson students among those chosen to 1st US national Quidditch team
A student from Boston University and another from Emerson College are among 21 first-string players named to the United States’ first national team in the Harry Potter-derived sport of Quidditch.
The squad will compete at an international tournament planned to be held near London shortly before this summer’s Olympic Games, though the Quidditch sport is not part of the actual Olympic Games, according to the International Quidditch Association, which is organizing the games.
Kedzie Chase Teller from Boston University and Allison Gillette from Emerson were selected for the first string group from more than 150 nominations “based on their skills on the pitch and ability to be a good ambassador for the sport and the United States,” the association’s website says.
Brendan Stack, from BU, and Rebecca Der, from Emerson, were also chosen as reserves for the US national team, according to the site.
If a first string player cannot make the trip to the “Olympic Expo Games” in Oxford, England, a reserve player of the same gender and position will be offered the spot, organizers said.
At least two other teams are expected, from the United Kingdom and Australia, according to the site. A French team and others may also compete.
Modified from the game played in the renowned Harry Potter novels and seen in the movies, the real-life version involves no flying or magic. Instead, competitors run with brooms between their legs.
Adapted seven years ago by students at Middlebury College in Vermont, the sport is played at more than 300 universities and high schools in the country and in a dozen other countries, according to the IQA, which was founded at Middlebury.
The sport has held World Cup matches in recent years.
Many universities participate in intramural or intercollegiate Quidditch. Local schools including: the University of Massachusetts Amherst, Boston University, Emerson, Smith and Eastern Nazarene colleges, Harvard, Suffolk, Tufts, Brandeis and Amherst universities have formed teams, according to the International Quidditch Association.
Read more about the four local college students selected to the team below. The following is text and photos are from the IQA website:
First-string Players:Name: Kedzie Chase Teller
(Yes, his middle name is actually Chase. Coincidence? We think not)
Team: Boston University
Position: Chaser
Teller was recruited to BU for sprints on the BU D1 track team his freshman year. Eventually, he found a spot on the BU quidditch team. He has competed with the team since Fall 2009 (still the era of the capes) and has been a starting chaser since his first competition. He is a 3-year World Cup squad starter and a 2-year World Cup squad captain who, as a chaser, is 100% first-to-quaffle record in all inter-BU competitions. He helped lead the team to 3rd place finish at World Cup III, racking up the highest total number of goals for the team in 2009. He has also led his team toward victories at the First Annual BU Winterfest, Northeast Regionals, and UMass Lily & James Potter Memorial tournament, as well to a sweet 16 finish at World Cup V, losing to Middlebury by a snitch-grab. Teller has worked alongside his sister, founder of BEACON Collaborations (formerly Teller Marketing Solutions), for three years, learning the ins and outs of proper event planning and marketing strategy. For World Cup III, he sat outside the university dining hall to fundraise money to put towards his team’s journey to Middlebury, Vermont. In the end, he earned enough money to help with transportation and to purchase the team’s dinner that night. Teller was also one of the key organizers that ran planning and marketing for the Championship series tournament for the Boston Cannons lacrosse opener.
Name: Allison Gillette
Team: Emerson College
Position: Beater
Allison has been playing quidditch since fall 2009. She has played for three World Cup teams and was captain the latter two years. She brought Emerson to many Northeastern tournaments and has played a large part in facilitating intercollegiate games in Boston between teams like Tufts, BU, and Brandeis. During Allison’s leadership at Emerson, she created a stat-keeping position for all of their games. As a beater, the drive and heart with which she plays the game brings energy to the entire team. Her strong, clean play allows her to take on the best beaters of either gender, and she has saved countless goals for keepers by knowing where to be with her bludger. As Emerson’s Commissioner from 2011-2012, Allison has been the commander-in-chief of the fundraising effort, as ECQ gets no funding from the university. Thanks to Allison, the IQA was able to host the IQA Champions Series tournament for the Boston Cannons Lacrosse opener in April.Reserve Players:
Name: Rebecca Der
Team: Emerson College
Position: Beater
‘Becca’ is a fierce competitor on the quidditch pitch. She is always the go-to person for getting and maintaining bludger control, and works with her partner to create a cohesive team of beaters. With two years on the Berserkers (Emerson’s house team), one year on Emerson’s World Cup team (one semester B team, one semester A team), Becca has always stood out on the pitch. Her enthusiasm and commitment to the sport is found in a few players. At Emerson, she left a reputation of being the best defensive beater – her fellow players coined her style the “Becca Der method.” She is supportive of her team, and no matter what, she keeps a positive attitude. She is extremely dedicated to the sport and her teammates and gives it her all when she is on AND off the field. Becca has worked as an intern for the IQA for two years. She helped organize the World Cup in 2010 by calling and e-mailing companies to raise money and ask for donations for the event. She organizes players from local Boston colleges for film shoots. At Emerson, she was on the Quidditch marketing team, which organized events like a dance, a trivia night, a movie night, and the New England Cup. She also fundraised for Emerson Quidditch by running swag sales.Name: Brendan Stack
Team: Boston University
Position: Keeper
Stack is a very capable keeper with experience on varsity volleyball, basketball and crew teams. He has the speed to outrun the opponent’s fastest chasers, as well as the size and the agility to score on the other side of the pitch. His impossibly long arms make him one of the most adept shot-blockers out there. Stack’s understanding of the game has allowed him to push his offense so he can act as a fourth chaser, if needed. Using his position on the pitch as well as his high vantage point, Stack sees the whole pitch, allowing him to direct and assign his defenders when needed. As well as having a presence on the pitch, Stack has proven himself an ambassador of the sport and of BU. He has succeeded in making friends on every team he plays. He also has done fundraising since high school, from annual pancake breakfasts and “Learn-To-Row” days for crew to raising over $1000 for a fun-filled eating competition for his fraternity. Stack has been appointed as his frat’s Athletic Chair to organize and set up the brotherhood’s intramural teams.
E-mail Matt Rocheleau at mjrochele@gmail.com.
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Mass. Convention Center Authority provides financial boost to local nonprofits
(Photo courtesy MCAA)
Community Partnership Grant and Hospitality Scholarship award winners with state Senator Jack Hart, City Councilor Frank Baker, and the MCCA’s James E. Rooney.
Twenty-one Boston nonprofits received a financial boost Tuesday after the Massachusetts Convention Center Authority awarded community grants at the MCCA’s annual awards luncheon.
Themoney, from the authority's community Partnership and Hospitality Scholarship Fund, will be used to benefit East Boston, Dorchester, Roxbury, Jamaica Plain, Roslindale, and Brighton.
“We understand the importance of the extensive number of non-profits who work tirelessly to serve all of Boston’s diverse neighborhoods,” said James Rooney, executive director of the authority in a statement. “Our Community Partnership Grants program is a way for the MCCA to reward these non-profits for the positive contributions they are making to Boston and its collection of neighborhoods. The grants are also a way to ensure that the organizations receive the funding that allows them to continue to make our city’s communities better places to live, work and enjoy.”
FULL ENTRYThird annual Allston DIY Fest set for July 21; music lineup unveiled
The planned music lineup for the third annual Allston DIY Fest at Ringer Park on July 21.
The third annual Allston DIY Fest is scheduled for July 21.
The free, all-ages, day-long festival says on its website it celebrates do-it-yourself culture, along with “freedom of individual expression, community building and alternative education, using a gift economy rather than money and oppressive consumerism.”
Do-it-yourself culture, as the name suggests, promotes self-sufficiency – rejecting the practice of buying goods and services from others, it instead encourages people to try doing and making things on their own. A “gift economy” involves giving away goods and services for free without expecting anything in return – not now, not later.
The festival at Ringer Park in Allston will feature a free market, where people can drop off things that they don’t want and take things they do want without involving any legal tender, organizers say.
There are 13 musical acts scheduled to play on an acoustic “hangout” stage and 14 acts scheduled to play on an electrified stage powered by a bicycle generator, according to a flyer released this week.
Those two stages are booked, the event’s Facebook page says.
But, the rest of the public park space is open to anyone and everyone, including organizations, who feel compelled to share their skills, setup workshops, express themselves through art, including non-powered instruments, publications, records, performances, hoops and other toys, or otherwise participate.
The event is arranged at no cost by organizers, who arrange themselves in a non-hierarchical fashion, the festival website says.
“Please respect the park and respect all the people in it, helping us create a safer space by keeping oppressive language and behavior away,” organizers of the “sober festival” write on the event’s website. “Racism, sexism, agism, classism, sizeism, ableism, transphobia and homophobia are uncool and unwelcome.”
To read more about last year’s event, click here and here.
E-mail Matt Rocheleau at mjrochele@gmail.com.
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(Ethan M. Long)
Spontaneous hooping at the inaugural Allston DIY Fest in 2010.
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