News

Town Meeting this Week, Chestnut Hill, and More

Greetings, everyone. After all the buildup, Brookline’s Fall Town Meeting begins this week on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday nights at 7:00 each night (and normally ending around 10:00 or 10:30) at the Brookline High School Auditorium. If all the work isn’t completed, it will resume on the Tuesday after Thanksgiving for up to two more nights. All Brookline residents are welcome to attend (or tune in remotely via the Brookline Interactive Group) and watch their Town government in action.

As regular readers know, our priority this Town Meeting is passing Articles 8, 9, and 15 (more details on all our recommendations here) which directly address adding more homes in Brookline. Just this morning, B4E delivered a petition with 300+ signatures from Brookline residents to all Town Meeting Members urging them to support our priorities for more homes in Brookline.

If you missed signing the petition, it’s still not too late to reach out to your Town Meeting Members to ask them to support these pro-housing zoning changes. You can find the full list of Town Meeting Members, by precinct, along with their email addresses at this link. Many Town Meeting Members rarely hear from constituents, and genuinely want to consider their perspectives. Make sure to sign your name and address so they know you live in their precinct — and thank you!

Save The Date! 2024 Holiday Party!

Brookline for Everyone will be celebrating the holiday season with our annual gathering on the evening of Monday, December 16th at United Parish Brookline. Mark your calendars! More details and RSVP coming soon.

This Week’s Brookline Meetings of Note

  • There will be an In-person Neighborhood Meeting of the Chestnut Hill Commercial Area Study (see background here) on Monday, November 18 at 6:00-7:30 pm at the Brookline Municipal Service Center Training Room, 870 Hammond StreetAgenda is here, no registration is required, and the meeting is open to all Brookline residents. We encourage pro-housing advocates from the neighborhood and throughout Brookline who are able to attend to speak up for the urgent need for more mixed-use development, including housing, as part of any redevelopment plan.
  • The Planning Board will be conducting a Public Site Visit for the proposed redevelopment of 40 Kent/40 Webster Place in Brookline Village at 8:30 am on Wednesday, November 20. No registration is required and the visit/tour is open to the public. The proposed redevelopment is for a 6-story residential building with 50 units (of which at least 8 would be affordable under our Inclusionary Zoning requirements), 24 parking spaces, and ground floor commercial. You can find more information about the development on the Town’s Website here.

Not in Brookline, but Still Worthwhile

Newton for Everyone (yes, we love their name, but we are not affiliated) is hosting  “What would it take to build 100% affordable housing in Newton?” featuring Jason Korb, a private developer who has been building 100% affordable developments in Greater Boston for nearly 20 years. The hybrid event will be on Tuesday, Nov. 19, at 7:00 pm, at Congregation Dorshei Tzedek/Second Church, 60 Highland St, in West Newton, and on Zoom; you can find more information and register here.