Senator Brownsberger submitted this letter of comment to MassDOT regarding Air Rights Parcel 13, which he recognizes as a project of enormous potential value to the City of Boston and the Back Bay and Fenway neighborhoods–but he lists three significant considerations that Mass DOT should bear in mind in awarding the development rights.
Cambridge Street Safety Audit
Senator Brownsberger, Senator DiDomenico, Representative Honan, Representative Moran, and Councillor Ciommo sent this letter to MassDOT Secretary DePaola and BTD Commissioner Gillooly regarding the recently completed Cambridge Street Safety Audit, and stress the need for safety improvements in the near term even as the proposed I-90 development project offers enormous long-term opportunities.
Parcel 13
Parcel 13 is one of a series of parcels in Boston above and along the Massachusetts Turnpike that have been targeted for air-rights development. This post offers some background and offers a draft statement that I will, after receiving comments, revise and submit to MassDOT.
Watertown – Arsenal Street Corridor Study
Representative Jonathan Hecht has organized a series of meetings focusing on transportation challenges facing the Arsenal Street Corridor in light of pending development. The conversation around the Arsenal Corridor has been encouraging and progress is being made thanks to the efforts of all involved.
MBTA posts 2013 annual report nearly year late
The Boston Globe reports, “The MBTA Retirement Fund posted its 2013 annual report on its website late Wednesday, nearly 12 months after the close of the year’s finances.” Senator Brownsberger has worked for greater transparency of the fund. Here is a link to the full Globe story.
The Economic/Financial Outlook
Incoming Senate President Stan Rosenberg recently organized a briefing for Senators on the state’s economic and fiscal outlook. The presentations (which are attached below with permission of the authors and Senator Rosenberg) were sobering.