Centre Street Redesign
37hastings
West Roxbury Main Streets Newsletter
dire...@wrms.org
June 28, 2019 Newsletter
Boston Transportation Department Proposes Centre Street Redesign
(Photo: A large turnout at the June 20th public meeting hosted by the Boston Transportation Department.)
At a public meeting last Thursday, the Boston Transportation Department (BTD) presented design concepts that are intended to calm traffic and make it safer for people to walk, bike, and drive on the stretch of Centre Street between the Holy Name Rotary and St Theresa Avenue.
Primary components of the redesign plan, pursuant to the City's Vision Zero and Complete Streets initiatives, include:
• Crosswalk improvements
• A "Road Diet" - Re-striping the road from Four to three lanes (one travel lane in each direction, plus middle turn lanes)
• Adding striping for protected bike lanes
To view BTD's presentation, learn more about BTD's conceptual plan and offer input, go to www.boston.gov/transportation/centrestreet.
To help people learn more about complete streets concepts, the WRMS Design Committee created a repository of frameworks, research and case studies, which can be found at wrms.org/complete-streets.
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7/10/19 Meeting Follow-Up
West Rox Walks <westro...@gmail.com>
Sat, Jul 13, 2019 at 7:54 AM
Thank you for making our first open meeting a great success!
We had 35 attendees including Matt and Al Wentworth, Councilor Michelle Wu, Shannon Murphy from Councilor Matt O'Malley's Office, Paul Sullivan from Councilor Ed Flaherty's Office, and two candidates for At-Large City Councilor, Julia Mejia and Martin Keogh. Everyone proved themselves to be #walkstars by showing up to support a #SaferCentreSt for West Roxbury.
Our goal was to continue the conversation that began in February after the tragic death of Marilyn Wentworth.
The Boston Transportation Department and Councilor O'Malley engaged the community at a public hearing and heard that many residents have been involved in crashes when walking in town. Professor Peter Furth also talked about his prior analysis of Centre Street including recommendations for a road diet. We all demanded a #SaferCentreSt!
In April, Walk Boston and West Roxbury Main Streets gave a presentation about how we can work together to make a #SaferCentreSt.
They inspired us to create West Rox Walks by teaching us about #VisionZero and low cost, simple street solutions like road diets and daylighting.
With appreciated encouragement from Walk UP Roslindale, we led our first walk audit of Centre Street between West Roxbury Parkway and Weld Street.
Families in our neighborhood just want a #SaferCentreSt so they can safely walk to Fallon Field, check out the Farmer's Market in Roslindale Square, or walk over to Porter Cafe or West on Centre for dinner. We're not asking for much!
In our report of the walk audit, we recommended 1) a road diet, 2) improved crosswalks, and 3) parking-protected bike lanes in our meeting with Councilor O'Malley, Charlotte Fleetwood from the Boston Transportation Department, and Jack Duggan from Mayor Walsh's Neighborhood Services. In the short term, we don't expect significant changes to the road design but we are optimistic about adding a buffer to protect cyclists (probably just paint) and narrowing the width of traffic lanes. BTD expressed interest in restriping this section ASAP so we'll keep our fingers crossed!
In June, we shifted our focus to the Centre Street & Spring Street business district.
Analysis of the Boston's Vision Zero crash database found that one pedestrian or cyclist has been involved in a car crash every six weeks since 2015! We learned that multiple threats in crosswalks had to be addressed and that as a result, major improvements are needed.
Our joint letter with Walk UP Roslindale, Walk Boston, Livable Streets Alliance, West Roxbury Main STreets, West Rox Bikes, Boston Cyclists Union, Rozzie Bikes and West Roxbury/Roslindale to Chris Osgood, Chief of Streets, at the Boston Transportation Department, helped build an appetite for making a #SaferCentreSt via the classic all American road diet!
Jeff Speck's Classic All-American Road Diet
Boston Transportation Department recommended the changes needed for a #SaferCentreSt.
After a group walk led by Matt & Al Wentworth, the BTD presentation on Centre St safety improvements was great! Over 80% of speakers supported the plan to change from 4 to 3 lanes and add parking-protected bike lanes. The event had over 200 attendees!
West Rox Walkstars showed up to our first meeting to support a #SaferCentreSt.
On Wednesday 7/10, we kept the conversation going with a recap of BTD’s presentation and heard a similar theme of widespread support for making a #SaferCentreSt. Many spoke about previous failed attempts and why this is so important! We spoke about our group and how we came together, our goal of improving safety for people who walk in West Roxbury, and we talked a lot about the types of changes we want to see to achieve this shared goal. Here are our slides from the meeting.
We reiterated that the average daily traffic volume through Centre via three lanes would not change and that increased cut-through traffic on side streets is not expected but we are committed to addressing all ped safety issues in all of West Roxbury!
Attendees asked about how the plan will affect buses and deliveries for businesses, if we can improve signal timing and eliminate beg buttons, prevent double parking, how bike lanes would affect snow removal. Appreciated feedback from the Boston Police community liaisons from E-5 that were present!
Everyone shared great ideas and stories, asked hard questions, and showed their commitment to making a #SaferCentreSt. We look forward to continued conversations with the Boston Transportation Department, Councilor O'Malley, Councilor Michelle Wu and all of our at-large city councilors, Jack Duggan from the West Roxbury Office of Neighborhood Services along with our #streethearts at West Rox Bikes and West Roxbury Main Streets!
Feedback from our attendees about BTD's plan was strong support for the road diet and bike lanes.
Share your own story about the unsafe conditions and express your support for a #SaferCentreSt.
•Attend Mayor Walsh’s coffee hour
•Email and call city officials
◦Chris Osgood (BTD): chris....@boston.gov, (617) 635-2854
◦Councilor O’Malley: matthew...@boston.gov, (617) 635-4220
◦Jack Duggan (Neighborhood Services): jack....@boston.gov, (617) 635-4818
•Post on social media with the hashtag #SaferCentreSt
•Talk to friends and neighbors in town
•Follow us on Facebook (West Rox Walks) and Twitter (@westwalksbury)
•Conduct your own walk audit!
West Rox Walks · 12 Sunset Hill Path # 1 · Boston, MA 02132-7838 · USA
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Outside Seating in West Roxbury
The West Roxbury Main Streets district has a few hidden gems to relax outside and enjoy this lovely summer weather. From dining options to quiet places for grabbing a coffee and reading a book, this edition of the newsletter shows you a few local spots where you can live your best al fresco life.
1) Recreo Coffee & Roasterie (1876 Centre)
Owners of Recreo, Hector and Miriam Morales, created a garden patio paradise behind the coffee shop with colorful furniture, greenery, and flowers. Embrace the sun or stay cool under one of the several umbrellas. The perfect spot to enjoy a coffee from their family-owned farm.
2) Porter Cafe (1723 Centre)
The 2019 Taste of West Roxbury winner, Porter Cafe, has outdoor seating during the warm months on their front and side patios. Space heaters add the perfect amount of warmth during the cooler evenings.
3) West Roxbury Branch of the Boston Public Library (1961 Centre)
The West Roxbury library has a peaceful and quiet space for lounging with a good book from their extensive collection. Wifi accessible and plenty of shade.
4) West on Centre (1732 Centre)
The West on Centre patio extends out from their lower-level function room. Check out the footpath to their herb and vegetable garden beds as well! Call ahead for availability.
5) Bonapita (75 Spring)
Bonapita recently added outdoor seating and colorful planters to their patio. It's a great space for enjoying your lunch or one of their craft iced mint lemonades. Did you know that Bonapita also has a full coffee bar and soft serve ice cream!?
facebook.com/westroxburymainstreets
www.wrms.org
1842 Centre Street, #206, West Roxbury, 02132 | 617.325.6400 | in...@wrms.org | wrms.org
West Roxbury Main Streets