The following message was sent out by Louis D’Arienzo, one of the founders of the Garden City Preservation Society, an all-volunteer effort to beautify the area around the Newton Centre T Station.

Over the past year, with the help of local donors and Ward 6 Alderman-at-large Vicki Danberg, the group’s volunteers have added plantings and street furnishings to the area. [Read more →]

Newton resident and architect John Pears, who has served on our board of directors since the inception of Newton Villages, spoke last night at the community meeting about the proposed development at the Riverside MBTA property.

In today’s Boston Globe article by Stewart Bishop, Pears was quoted saying:

I think the way is sits now there’s a good mix of office, residential and retail.  I think its good they reduced the office and increased the residential  They’ve got the right mix, but it needs some tweaking on the site,” Pears said.

Although he said he still had concerns about the design of the project, Pears said he was not too concerned about the increased traffic the growth would bring.

They’ve put, in my opinion, a huge amount of time into the traffic thing.  I’m a big fan of, not rotaries, but roundabouts, they work very well.  I’ve watched them in London and in Holland and they just work fabulously, and pedestrians can use them very effectively as well,” Pears said.  “I think the volume of traffic will increase but the new design will even it all out.  It might not be better than it is now, but I don’t believe it will be worse.

The article did not mention the Riverside Station Neighborhood Coalition, which has done an excellent job getting the word out, organizing residents, and defining potential neighborhood impacts. In fact, the group has brought concerns to the developer and to city officials that may have otherwise been overlooked.

But this is an important conversation for all Newton residents and businesses — and even for our neighbors, near and far, who are also stakeholders in what happens at Riverside. It is commendable that the public conversation over the past year has not solely focused on the negative impacts of change. Instead, the community is weighing both the costs and the benefits in its decision-making process. We look forward to this conversation continuing.

The Newton Highlands Beautification Committee seeks volunteers to help plant flowers in pots and planters that line the village center’s sidewalks.

If you can make it, join the group on Tuesday, May 31, from 9-11:30am for their annual planting day. Volunteers are asked to meet in front of Bread and Chocolate at 4 Hartford Street and to bring gardening gloves, trowels, neighbors, and friends. Children are welcome. No experience necessary.

Rain Date: Wednesday, June 1.  Questions and to RSVP: Janet Zerlin Fagan, 617-965-9617, jzfagan@aol.com.

While Newton Villages was created primarily for the benefit of our village centers, we certainly appreciate Newton’s parks and natural areas. Today, our hats are off to Newton Conservators, which will celebrate its 50th anniversary this month.

To celebrate the occasion, the group will host its 50th Anniversary Annual meeting and Silent Auction on May 25. Newton Conservators is asking local businesses to support their conservation efforts by sponsoring the dinner or by donating an item or gift certificate to the silent auction.

The non-profit land trust has protected more than 350 acres of land in Newton since its founding in 1961. According to its website, the group is “raising funds to support our land acquisition program–our work to save appropriate Newton parcels, like those abutting conservation land or along the Charles River-from future development.”

The roof and south side of the historic Newton Centre T Station will get a facelift next month, thanks in part to a $25,000 contribution from Boston Development, which holds the long-term lease on the MBTA-owned property.

Boston Development’s contribution was part of the special permit the company, along with the Deluxe Station Diner, obtained from the city last year.

The diner owners also contributed money to the volunteer landscaping efforts being done by the Garden City Preservation Society., which is spearheading a landscaping and spring cleaning project for the station grounds as part of the community service day NewtonSERVES on May 15.

As Alderman Vicki Danberg reports, “It took several years of meetings with the T, and City cooperation, to achieve the restoration of the exterior of the front three sides, completed a year ago or so.” New benches and street furniture will be installed in the coming months, she said.

The citizen members of Newton’s Planning and Development Board will host a public meeting to review a proposed “mixed-use” amendment to the city’s Comprehensive Plan. An earlier post explains both mixed use and the comprehensive plan.

These discussions are vital to defining how citizens can be involved in planning how our city will shape growth in coming decades. Please mark your calendars for 7:30pm on Thursday, March 17, in City Hall, Room 209.

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