THE CHELSEA REVOLUTION IS TELEVISED, AND HAS SOME COOL SHIRTS
Damali Vidot, who is leading the campaign to look at getting a ballot question put to the voters this November concerning bringing back a mayoral form of government, appeared at the Chelsea City Council on Monday night to speak about the City Manager.
Vidot has gathered a following of Chelsea residents who want to get people more active in City government and want to bring back the humanity to City government – perhaps by changing back to having an elected mayor. She said her campaign, dubbed the ‘Chelsea Revolution’ has recently gotten some new T-Shirts to help the effort.
A CHEER FOR CHEL-YEA
The June meeting of the ever-popular – but agenda-less – group dubbed Chel-Yea will take place next Thursday, June 18, at the Mystic Brewery on Williams Street at 5:30 p.m.
Come catch up with folks or meet folks in this relaxed, but social, atmosphere.
SILVER LINE AND GENTRIFICATION
The Metropolitan Area Planning Council (MAPC) will be conducting a public forum on behalf of the City about the impacts, positive and negative, of the new Silver Line Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) system. In short, tell us “How can Chelsea accentuate the positives of the Silver Line?” The meeting will take place from 6-8:30 p.m. on Thursday, June 24, at the Senior Center at 10 Riley Way (across from the City Hall parking lot).
CLARK AVE SCHOOL MEETING JUNE 16
The Chelsea Public Schools and the City will hold a community meeting on June 16 to discuss construction effort this summer regarding the new Clark Avenue School.
The meeting will take place at 6 p.m. in the Clark Avenue School cafeteria and it’s open to abutters, residents and any interested parties.
Major demolition for the project will begin this summer once school is out of session.
SCHOOL COMMITTEE APPLICATIONS DUE FRIDAY
Anyone interested in serving as the District 3 School Committee member must submit their applications to the City Council by Friday, June 12.
The District 3 area encompasses the parts of the city near Mill Hill and upper Broadway, among others.
City Councillor Matt Frank represents the area and said he is willing to help anyone interested in completing the application and in determining whether or not they are in the district.
A meeting has been called for June 12 between the City Council and the School Committee for the purpose of choosing a new candidate. Anyone chose will have to run for the seat in this November’s City Election.
The seat became vacant earlier this year when Carlos Rodriguez, a long-time member, suddenly disappeared. An effort went out to contact him, but to no avail. He finally sent in a letter of resignation, indicating it had been a very tough year for him and he had relocated.
HUGE DEVELOPMENT WITHDRAWS, SUBMITS EVEN BIGGER PLAN
The large, 455-unit development on Everett Avenue in and behind the old Chelsea Clock building withdrew its application and plan from the Zoning Board of Appeals (ZBA) on Tuesday night, and will submit a brand new plan to the ZBA at the July 14 meeting.
The new plan now contains 692 units of rental housing – substantially more than the original plan – and 8,500 sq. ft. of retail space.
Thibeault Development had planned to build 455 units of rental housing and a small amount of retail space on Everett Avenue and Vale Street – across from the high school in what is now the old Chelsea Clock building and a scrap yard. The plan did call for the Chelsea Clock building to be demolished.
The new plan will be submitted and reviewed initially at the ZBA’s July 14 meeting.
The withdrawn plan had been before the ZBA since March and had gone through a series of meetings and reviews, making the sudden withdrawal quite a surprise.
- A major upheaval from residents came in regards to The Neighborhood Developers (TND) plan to build 60 units of affordable housing in a new building on the site of the old French Club and its parking lot on Spencer Avenue.
Numerous residents turned out to oppose the plan, which hasn’t yet met any opposition despite the City Council discontinuing part of Spencer Street in May to accommodate the plan.
Residents are calling for a community meeting and believe the plan is too dense and that traffic will be made worse.
The plan will go to the Planning Board on June 23 for review and will return to the ZBA on July 14.
- A beer and wine license for a convenience store in Park Square was denied. The convenience store is in the former site of Park Square Cleaners.
- A plan to convert a church on the corner of Webster and Spencer Avenues (49 Webster) into 12 units of market-rate housing was approved with conditions.
- A plan to locate Erik Rueda Design Lab, which makes and builds custom furniture, in half of the New England Statuary foundry at 214 Arlington St. was approved.
- Greg Antonelli got approval to build a single family home at 70 Addison St. on an existing 3,000 sq. ft. open lot which did not meet zoning or parking requirements.
- A parking lot proposed for Bellingham Street to house trucks was continued until July 14. Councillor Paula Barton has expressed concerns about the project due to the kinds of trucks proposed to be stored there.
- A proposal by Mass General to locate a mobile dental clinic in its parking lot is headed to the Planning Board on June 23 and will return to the ZBA on July 14.
CARY SQUARE MEETING ON CRIME
Residents in the Cary Square area are invited to attend a forum on issues affecting the community locally and voice their concerns to other neighbors about crime in the area. The meeting will be at 7 p.m. at St. Luke’s Church, 201 Washington Ave. with concerned citizens and police. Contact Joshua Cook at 617-461-5207 for more information or travel assistance.
There has been a surge in OD’s on the street here, and with the recent shooting on Tudor Street, people are wondering what can be done, and what is being done.
KIWANIS TRACK AND FIELD JUNE 13
Chelsea Kiwanis Club will be hosting its 16th Annual Track & Field Day on Saturday, June 13, at the Chelsea High School field. The races start at 10 a.m. with other games and activities taking place following the races. Everything wraps up at about 12:30 p.m.
The purpose of the event is to raise scholarships funds and to provide a fun day for the community. Including the 2015 graduation this Sunday, this event will have raised and distributed $113,700 in scholarships funds for Chelsea High School students. Typically, four $2,000 scholarships are made available each school year.
Registration starts at 9 a.m. and all Chelsea students in grades K-12 are invited to participate.
There will be food and a bicycle raffle as well.
ROCA RECEIVES $100K GRANT
Roca received a $100,000 grant from the Cummings Foundation in Woburn. The Cummings Foundation grant was awarded through their 100k for 100 campaign. The $10 million initiative has provided program support for 100 nonprofits serving 41 communities in Massachusetts. This award will be directed towards two of Roca’s programs, the Young Mothers Program and Healthy Families, which serves a combined 200 young mothers annually in programs designed to set them on the pathway to economic self-sufficiency and improve outcomes for their children.
“The Foundation is incredibly grateful to nonprofits like Roca that are working diligently for the benefit of the communities where the staff and clients of the Cummings organization live and work,” said Joel Swets, Cummings Foundation’s executive director.
Founded in 1988, Roca is an outcomes-driven nonprofit agency headquartered in Chelsea. With a mission to disrupt the cycle of incarceration and poverty by helping young people transform their lives. Through relentless outreach on the streets, and stage-based programming in education, employment, and life skills, Roca’s four-year Intervention Model has been nationally recognized for its success helping young people turn their lives around, get jobs, and stay out of jail.
“We are enormously thankful to the Cummings Foundation for their generosity. Their award reaffirms and revitalizes us in our endeavors and will go to the assistance and improvement of the lives of hundreds of mothers and their children,” said John Ward, Director of External Affairs.
CAPIC MONTHLY BOARD MEETING
The Community Action Programs Inter-City, Inc. (CAPIC) Board of Directors will conduct a regular monthly meeting on Thursday, June 18 at 12:00 pm. The meeting will be held at CAPIC’s After School Program located at 9 Arlington Street, Chelsea. The public is invited to attend.
Los miembros de la Junta Directiva de CAPIC llevará a cabo su reunión mensual el Jueves 18 de Junio del 2015 a las 12:00 del mediodía en nuestra oficina del Programa Después de Escuela (After School Program). La dirección es 9 Arlington Street en Chelsea. El público está invitado.
CHILDREN’S FUND ESTABLISHED FOR TREE VICTIMS
Washington Park Children’s Fund has been established to extend a helping hand and support to the two youngsters, David, age 2, and Diego, age 8, and their respective families, during the period of their recovery from injuries caused by the fallen tree at Washington Park.
Donations to the Washington Park Children’s Fund are now being accepted in-person or by mail at:
Chelsea Bank
c/o Washington Park Children’s Fund
360 Broadway
Chelsea, MA 02150
Your kind contribution will let these small folks know that they are watched over by their park friends and neighbors.