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Hotel Indigo to house homeless

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Hotel Indigo to house homeless

A plan to temporarily reopen Hotel Indigo at Riverside Station to provide emergency housing for local families is moving forward, Newton Mayor Ruthanne Fuller announced last night.
 
Massachusetts Department of Housing and Community Development is negotiating a contract with Catholic Charities of Boston and Mark Development, owner of the currently closed Indigo, for families experiencing homelessness with children (under 21) and pregnant women.
 
Under the two-year contract, Mark Development would renovate portions of the hotel between now and August to accommodate 59 families and support services, Fuller added.
 
“While this is a state initiative, our teams at City Hall and Newton Public Schools are looking forward to and getting prepared to help these families while they are here in Newton,” Fuller wrote.
 
"I feel this is not just an important responsibility but also a privilege to help these families at such a difficult time in their lives and I am confident that we will work together as a community to welcome and support them,” she added.
 
We're right there with you mayor.
 
 
Vote today in Needham
 
Polls are open until 8 p.m. tonight (April 11) for Needham’s Town Election.
 
The ballot includes three candidates vying for two seats on the Select Board and two candidates competing for one seat on the Planning Board that could very well determine which commercial developments are approved in future years.
 
There’s also a ballot question asking if the civil service requirement for police and fire chief should be revoked and a question that would authorize the town of Needham to grant additional retail liquor. Explainers here.
 
Linkage? We support it, but urge some revisions
 
Two years ago last month, Watertown adopted a housing plan that, among other ideas, recommended consideration of a linkage fee on new non-residential development to fund affordable housing.
 
It was a good idea in 2021. It’s still a good idea today. One of the reasons so many employers struggle to hire is directly connected to the housing crisis. Addressing our housing crisis is an economic and moral imperative.
 
But economic conditions have changed dramatically in commercial real estate (including in the life science sector, Watertown's golden goose) between then and now. And some of the recommendations outlined in a ‘nexus” study should be reconsidered in light of record inflation, soaring interest rates, weakening demand for lab and office space, a looming recession and, now, instability in banking.
 
On top of that: Other communities that don't have linkage fees all want what Watertown has, writes Charlie Breitrose at Watertown News.
 
That’s why the chamber will be appearing before the Watertown City Council tonight to request three revisions to the proposed linkage zoning amendment:
 
  • A delay in program implementation to July 1, 2024
  • A one-year 50% phase-in.
  • Collect linkage payout over five years.
 
That last point is especially important: The proposed amendment seeks 50% payment upon receipt of an occupancy permit, with the balance due 12 months later. We’re suggesting a five year payout, similar to the current City of Boston practice where payments are made over seven years.
 
Spreading the payments over time lessens the upfront pressure on property owners who, in the current environment, may struggle to secure tenants upon occupancy, but still allows the city to budget its housing investments.
 
Learn more about the health of life science sector
 
  • We have a top-notch panel lined up for our virtual program exploring what's happening inside Greater Boston's life science ecosystem this Thursday at 11 a.m. RSVP.
 
  • And the Watertown Business Coalition hosts an in-person event April 25 at 5:30 p.m Mosesian Center for the Arts featuring four companies from different stages in the biotech lifecycle. Register. 
 
250 condos/apartments approved in Wellesley
 
Last week Wellesley Town Meeting authorized building upwards of 250 condo or apartment units to Wellesley Office Park, now being marketed by property owner John Hancock/Manulife as Wellesley Park.
 
The 40R district, adjacent to the Charles River, is now home to the 350-unit Nines apartment complex. Hancock is already is allowed to build another 250 apartments beyond what’s in The Nines, according to the Swellesley Report.
 
These added 250 units would be in lieu of a previously authorized hotel at the site. 
 
More need to knows
 
  • Hundreds of biotech executives, investors and scientists have signed a letter condemning a rogue Texas judge's decision to overturn the FDA approval of mifepristone warning that it could have broad implications for other drugs and pharmaceutical innovation. The BBJ lists the locals signers.
 
  • Vinyl lives! Newton is already home to one excellent record store. Now we're getting a second: Good Dog Records is opening in Newton Centre, next to Tango Mango on Centre Street. (All Over Newton) 
 
  • Chamber member nonprofit 501c(3) organizations are invited to apply to be the charitable beneficiary of our 2023 Charles River Chamber’s Annual Golf & Pickelball Tournament on Aug. 7. Details.
 
  • Wellesley’s Select Board is expected to vote on its Parklet/Outdoor Dining Policy at its meeting tonight (April 11) at 6 p.m. Agenda. Download the proposed policy here.
 
  • Watertown’s Planning Board will hear a presentation of a mixed use project (first floor retail /commercial, 143 apartments, & 5 townhomes) proposed at 104-126 Main St. tomorrow (April 12) 7 p.m., City Hall and remote. Details.
 
  • More than 100 golden retrievers and their owners will walk to the finish line of the Boston Marathon on April 16 in honor of Spencer, the marathon’s official dog, who died in February. (Boston Globe)
 
 
Garden City Guggenheimers
 
Eight Massachusetts residents -- including two from Newton -- were just named
Guggenheim fellow recipients, one of the most sought-after honors in academe and culture. (Boston Globe)
 
  • Eun Young Lee, an Auburndale resident, teaches at Boston Conservatory at Berklee, where she’s associate professor of composition.
 
  •  Bonnie Honig, whose most recent book is “A Feminist Theory of Refusal," is a Waban resident. She teaches at Brown University, where she’s Nancy Duke Lewis professor of modern culture and media and political science.
 
Looking to hire a really hard worker?
 
For a growing number of employers the answer may be: Hire older.
 
Older workers are in demand at a growing number of companies, reports Callum Borchers at The Wall Street Journal.
 
“Perceptions of generational differences don’t always match reality, but three-quarters of people 65 and older said in a survey of Americans’ values that hard work is very important to them personally. Among 18-to-29-year-olds, 61% said hard work is very important.”
 
People 55 and older are the fastest-growing segment of the workforce, according to federal data.
 
“The learning curve is a bit longer,” one boss says, “but once they get it, God, it’s refreshing. I say, ‘This is what we’re doing today,’ and it gets done. Their shift starts at 9 and they’re here at 8:50. It’s their work ethic.”
 
New MBTA GM sounds like he watches a certain Apple TV show
Finally this morning, Phillip Eng began his first day as the MBTA’s new GM yesterday, pledging to restore faith in the agency, while also seeming to channel Ted Lasso in the process:
 
"To people who have lost faith in the T, I tell them: stay tuned," Eng said. "If we lose faith, then why are we even trying? The real thing is, you have to believe, you have to have a vision, and we do."
 
And Eng tells Trent Crim from The Independent, I mean, Chris Lisinski of State House News, that he expects to use his Charlie Card a lot:
 
"I'm going to not only use it to get to work, I'm going to use it to get to restaurants, I'm going to use it to get to businesses," he said. "Part of my reason for coming is not just the T, but [because] the city of Boston, the state of Massachusetts, has so much to offer.
 
"And that's what I want people to know: the T does not just have to be for commuting. The T can be for using it to go out and about. It's a fantastic way to travel and see all the different destinations that are here, and I think that's going to be important to restoring ridership as well. It's not just in the morning commute and in the evening commute. It's what you're doing during the days, in the evenings and on weekends, and we're going to promote that and we're going to restore service for people."
 
If the Eng way is wrong, it’s hard to imagine being right.
 
 
That’s your need to knows for today – International Be Kind to Lawyers Day (would I make that up?) – unless you need to know about a new way to stock up beer in advance of the zombie apocalypse.
 
RIP Al Jaffee, who taught me, and millions of other kids, how to be cynical.
 
The forecast looks great. Dine outside this week!
 
 
Greg Reibman (he, him)
President
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