As students head back to school today in Boston Public Schools, Charlestown’s Traci Walker Griffith – the principal of the Eliot School in the North End – reflected on how far the school has come in her tenure. “I’m a proud principal; I say that all the time,” she said on Tuesday while preparing...
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BHA Announces Leggat McCall as New Partner for Bunker Hill Development
The Boston Housing Authority (BHA) and Charlestown Resident Alliance (CRA) announced this week the addition of Leggat McCall Properties to the redevelopment team for its Bunker Hill public housing development. The unveiled development plan with Leggat McCall and Corcoran now calls for new mid-rise buildings with 2,700 mixed-income apartments – which includes the replacement...
Local Students Achieve Academic Honors
WILLIAMSON ON DEAN’S LIST Mark Williamson, of Charlestown, was named to the 2018 Dean’s List at Union College. Williamson is a member of the Class of 2021, majoring in economics. Comprised annually, the Union College Dean’s List honors students who have a grade point average of 3.5 for the entire academic year and meet...
Hood Park to Begin Meetings Again on Its Development Plans
Shortly after being called to submit further, detailed steps in the state environmental regulation process, the Hood Park developers will begin a new round of community planning meetings for its campus on Wednesday, Sept. 12. Last month, Executive Office of Environmental Affairs Secretary Matthew Beaton issued a letter calling for a mandatory filing of...
Charlestown Sees 22-Percent Drop in Part One Crime from Last Year
As the summer of 2018 was drawing to a close, Charlestown was experiencing a 22-precent drop in violent and property crime from last year. According to Boston Police, 208 incidents of Part One crime were reported between Jan. 1 and Aug. 19 in Area A-15, compared with 267 during the same timeframe the previous...
Walsh Says He Would Help Locked Out National Grid Workers If Asked
State legislators and Mayor Martin Walsh said this week they would help National Grid gas workers in their 11-week lockout battle if asked by the workers to assist in any way. The lockout of two United Steelworkers unions in the gas line division of National Grid has gone on for 11 weeks, and all...
St John’s Sidewalk Sale to Be Held on September 15
St. John’s Episcopal Church at 27 Devens St. in Charlestown will conduct their sidewalk sale on Saturday, Sept. 15, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. The sale will be on the sidewalks in the church yard and in case of inclement weather, the sale will be moved inside the parish house, which is attached...
Police Briefs 09-06-2018
Charlestown Beat Drugs 08/29/18 – As a result of a drug investigation in the area of Old Ironsides Way, an individual was placed under arrest for possession of a Class B substance with intent to distribute. Unlawful Carrying of a Dangerous Weapon 08/30/18 – Officers responded to Bunker Hill Street for a report...
Townie Tidbits
CHARLESTOWN IS HARVESTING BACKPACKS TOO Recently was talking with Tommy MacDonald down at the Harvest on Vine food pantry and noticed a table full of student backparks loaded with school supplies for returning students beinning a new school year. He told me the backpacks came from Jenny’s Pizza and last week, I caught up...
Back to School
September is one of my favorite months. The weather is getting cooler, football is back in season, and students like yourselves are heading back to school. You might not know it, but it takes a village to prepare for the first day of school. Your teachers, principals, and custodians have spent the summer getting...
Hot, Hot, Hot
News reports about the hot weather and all of the records for high and highest-low temperatures that have been set this month in our region have become so commonplace that it is all-too-easy to read the headlines and move on to other news. But the reality is this: Global warming and the attendant climate...
Townie Sports
CAN U BELIEVE IT !!!? It’s that time of year for the fall sports season and I’m guessing quite a few names are missing from this list. Please let us know if you know of someone we should be adding…e-mail at bkerhillbillie@aol.com. 2018 COLLEGE FALL SPORTS TOWNIES Christian Labeck, UMASS (soccer – JR midfielder)...
Obituaries 09-06-2018
Mary Louise Doenges Of Florida, formerly of Charlestown Mary Louise Doenges, born to the late Gerhard Doenges and Elli (Poth) Doenges on July 24, 1941 passed away on July 23, surrounded by family. She lived in Charlestown before moving to Port Orange, Fla. She is survived by her children: Ronnie Hamilton, Jr., Shirley M....
Ward 2 Democratic Committee
Massachusetts State Rep. Dan Ryan (5th from left) with the Ward 2 Democratic Committee: Alexis Finneran, Rory Cuddyer, Chris Remmes, Kate Kelly, Toby Goldstein, Laura Dziorny, and Missy Sikorski. The Ward 2 Dems gathered on Tuesday night, Aug. 28, in a pre-election information session to meet and greet the candidates for District Attorney. All...
School Backpacks
A little girl receives one of more than 300 free backpacks presented to children by the Charlestown Residents Alliance – courtesy of the CRA and several generous donors – during last Saturday’s (Aug. 25) first-ever Family Day at Barry Field a/k/a/ The Oilies.
Sullivan Sq has a New Neighbor
Sullivan Square has another new neighbor, and developer Gray MacLetchie is proposing to merge old warehouse with modern apartment building to bring together the western corner of the circle. MacLetchie held his first official Boston Planning and Development Agency (BPDA) meeting on Thursday, Aug. 23, at the Schrafft’s Café to discuss the plans and...
After Months of Campaigning, Suffolk DA, Congressional Races Move to the Voters
There have been numerous debates, several rallies, and endless discussions about the upcoming Primary Election – particularly on the Democratic side – but this coming Tuesday, Sept. 4, the talk ends and the voting begins. Perhaps the most prominent and far-reaching race on the Democratic ballot is between the five district attorney candidates. For...
Duffy Building Site Has Plans for Traditional Row Houses, Modern Apartment Building
The soon-to-be new owners of the large Duffy building site on Main Street and Rutherford Avenue hope to have plans in place to knit together the new and old Charlestown within their new development – and will also under any circumstance make room for a new EMS ambulance facility. Ed Champy, principal of Waypoint...
CNC Monthly Meeting is Sept 6
The monthly meeting of the Charlestown Neighborhood Council (CNC) will be held on Thursday Sept 6, at 7 p.m. in the Knights of Columbus Hall, 545 Medford Street. The public is encouraged to attend. We also encourage you to vote in the Massachusetts Primary elections on Tuesday.
BuildBPS Debuts Effort with New Desks, Furniture for School Year
Charlestown students will be greeted with a comfortable seat when they return to school on Thursday, Sept. 6. That’s because both the Warren-Prescott School and the Harvard-Kent School were the benefactors of the first wave of BuildBPS money, funds that went to buying new 21st century furniture for schools all across the district. The...
National Parks Celebrate Shipbuilding Women of the Navy this Weekend
The National Parks of Boston will celebrate the role of women workers at the Charlestown Navy Yard during World War II with a ceremony, walking tour, and special exhibit on Labor Day, Monday, Sept. 3. During World War II over 8,000 women worked in Boston Naval Shipyard. They were welders, clerks, painters, electrician and machinist...
Mass Gaming Still Ironing Out Investigation into Encore
The Massachusetts Gaming Commission (MGC) investigation into the Encore Boston Harbor/Wynn Resorts company is still in the final stages, and a date for a public presentation of the findings has yet to be scheduled. A spokesperson for the MGC told the Independent that the Investigation and Enforcement Bureau (IEB) is now in the final...
Breen Moves on to BPDA Position
Charlestown’s Mayoral Liaison Chris Breen has left his position as the neighborhood coordinator for Mayor Martin Walsh, and will now be working in a position at the Boston Planning and Development Agency (BPDA). Breen has served as the point person in the neighborhood for the past two years and was the first coordinator in...
Neighborhood Round Up
HARVEST ON VINE FOOD PANTRY The Harvest on Vine Food Pantry this week is requesting boxes of cereal and mac and cheese, two items that empty the shelves fast. Any donation of any non-perishable foods that you could make would also be greatly appreciated.Donations can be dropped off at the Food Pantry at 49 Vine St. (Hayes...