Re: [DSNC] Digest for davissquarenc@googlegroups.com - 4 updates in 3 topics

13 views
Skip to first unread message

Sara Oaklander

unread,
May 30, 2026, 2:17:03 PM (3 days ago) May 30
to Davis Square Neighborhood Council
Update: ticket mentioned earlier has been claimed.

On Sat, May 30, 2026 at 1:40 PM <daviss...@googlegroups.com> wrote:
Sara Oaklander <saraoa...@gmail.com>: May 30 01:16PM -0400

Hello Friends,

I have a ticket to see Heather Cox Richardson interview Senator Chris Murphy this eve at the UU church in Harvard Square and am now not able to go.
https://www.harvard.com/event/chris-murphy

It's not quite sold out yet (the website says "few tickets left"). If anyone is interested, I'd love to give you my ticket...which I've confirmed is transferable. No $$ expected.
 
If you want it, please text me.
 
 
Sent from my iPhone
617.504.3369
Jeff Byrnes <je...@somervilleyimby.org>: May 29 03:59PM -0400

Thanks David. Some food for though on this:
 
“current zoning is now causing a major shift in Somerville's population, as artists, activists, musicians and other lower-income people are forced out by rising housing costs.”
 
This is true, since our current zoning doesn’t allow enough homes to be built to satisfy demand, so homes that have been affordable to lower-income folks continually become homes for upper-income folks, either through rent increases or renovations for sale as condos.
 
This means that your #1 & #2 points may be in contention, b/c in order to reduce that displacement pressure, we need a lot more homes, and those homes can only emulate 100+ year old architecture to a point, since modern building codes & materials, as well as some of zoning’s regulations, dictate how new buildings look.
 
One thing I think would help though, is adjusting zoning such that builders are incentivized to build ornamented boxes, instead of the current style of articulated buildings (i.e., the outer walls of a building pop in & out, with alternating materials & finishes). Might be worthwhile to ask local architects what would need to change to shift away from the articulated design back to the more prevalent & historically-consistent ornamented style.
 
Basically: I think they’re in contention if you wish to preserve existing architecture. But if we can be welcoming of new buildings that “rhyme” with older architecture, then we can make these preferences act in harmony.
 
--
Jeff Byrnes
he/him
 
🌐 somervilleyimby.org
🟦 bsky.app/profile/somervilleyimby.org
📖 facebook.com/SomervilleYIMBY
🐘 better.boston/@SomervilleYIMBY
📷 instagram.com/SomervilleYIMBY
📱 704.516.4628
Carol <crego...@aol.com>: May 29 09:04PM

Ornamental box style is very boring.
 
 
Sent from the all new AOL app for iOS
 
 
On Friday, May 29, 2026, 4:00 PM, Jeff Byrnes <je...@somervilleyimby.org> wrote:
 
 
Thanks David. Some food for though on this: “current zoning is now causing a major shift in Somerville's population, as artists, activists, musicians and other lower-income people are forced out by rising housing costs.” This is true, since our current zoning doesn’t allow enough homes to be built to satisfy demand, so homes that have been affordable to lower-income folks continually become homes for upper-income folks, either through rent increases or renovations for sale as condos. This means that your #1 & #2 points may be in contention, b/c in order to reduce that displacement pressure, we need a lot more homes, and those homes can only emulate 100+ year old architecture to a point, since modern building codes & materials, as well as some of zoning’s regulations, dictate how new buildings look. One thing I think would help though, is adjusting zoning such that builders are incentivized to build ornamented boxes, instead of the current style of articulated buildings (i.e., the outer walls of a building pop in & out, with alternating materials & finishes). Might be worthwhile to ask local architects what would need to change to shift away from the articulated design back to the more prevalent & historically-consistent ornamented style. Basically: I think they’re in contention if you wish to preserve existing architecture. But if we can be welcoming of new buildings that “rhyme” with older architecture, then we can make these preferences act in harmony.
-- 
Jeff Byrnes
he/him
 🌐 somervilleyimby.org🟦 bsky.app/profile/somervilleyimby.org
📖 facebook.com/SomervilleYIMBY🐘 better.boston/@SomervilleYIMBY
📷 instagram.com/SomervilleYIMBY📱 704.516.4628On May 26, 2026 at 5:04 PM -0400, David Booth <da...@dbooth.org>, wrote:
 
On 5/24/26 19:03, Zev Pogrebin wrote:
 
Question for everyone: what does neighborhood character mean to you?
 
 
My answer:
 
1. Interesting people. That is what attracted me to Somerville. But
current zoning is now causing a major shift in Somerville's population,
as artists, activists, musicians and other lower-income people are
forced out by rising housing costs.
 
2. The architecture. I love the old New England architecture here.
Steel and glass high rises do *not* fit in, but 6 story buildings -- or
even 10 story in some locations -- could fit in just fine if they were
designed to match the existing historical architecture.
 
3. Trees and green space -- super important.
 
4. Emphasis on walkability.
 
Thanks,
David Booth
 
 
--
Davis Square Neighborhood Council · https://DavisSquareNC.org · https://linktr.ee/DavisSquareNC
---
You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Davis Square Neighborhood Council" group.
To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to davissquaren...@googlegroups.com.
To view this discussion visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/davissquarenc/f8a67d60-84d3-453b-ae6b-1f4584b16779%40dbooth.org.
 
 
 
--
Davis Square Neighborhood Council · https://DavisSquareNC.org · https://linktr.ee/DavisSquareNC
---
You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Davis Square Neighborhood Council" group.
To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to davissquaren...@googlegroups.com.
To view this discussion visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/davissquarenc/3ec7c3b6-5e98-47e5-b677-d1c952d02b08%40Spark.
Kendra Fox <kendr...@gmail.com>: May 29 03:28PM -0400

Hi Reebee,
 
Thanks for pointing this out- You're right, this is a typo. The link will
take you to the correct place, but* the correct name of the group is
dsnc-di...@googlegroups.com <dsnc-di...@googlegroups.com>*.
 
Thanks again,
 
Kendra
 
You received this digest because you're subscribed to updates for this group. You can change your settings on the group membership page.
To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it send an email to davissquaren...@googlegroups.com.


--
Sara Oaklander
Reply all
Reply to author
Forward
0 new messages