Joe Mason sent me a copy of a public notice regarding development at 248 Meridian Street by Global Property Developers Corporation. The notice, published in yesterday's Boston Herald, says that "a Project Notification Form for Large Project Review" has been filed with the Boston Redevelopment Authority for a project that would include 65 residential units, 15,000 square feet of commercial/retail space and 45 parking spots.
The property, according to the City of Boston web site, is owned by Lombardo Companies, LP. A quick search on that site shows that various incarnations of the Lombardo name own big chunks of land in and around Central Square, including parcels adjacent to the development proposal. Joe Mason points out that this project would involve tearing down the Seville, the historic 1,500-seat atmospheric-style theater built in 1929. Mason also adds that Vincent Lombardo has refused to take down the ugly rusted metal frame next to the entrance to the Sumner Tunnel because of a zoning dispute with the city.
It appears that a public meeting on the proposed development of 248 Meridian Street was held in the neighborhood back in November. Comments to the BRA are due by March 17. Is East Boston being overdeveloped? What do you think?
38 comments:
Hello Jimbo
First How are you?
That Legal notice was in Fridays February 15th,2008 Boston Herald.
Instead of helping to hold on to our heritage ,Mr. Lombardo want's to erase it.
Its not just the Sevuille ,its about 1/2 of the block of Meridian Street.
I am very worried because EVERYONE knows hes a connected inside player.
The very fact that this is on an unbelievable FAST TRACT should have people up in arms.
The only meeting wasn't even advertised ,and was attended by more people from the developer,and the BRA than citizens.
THE COMMENT PERIOD MUST BE EXTENDED ,TO ALLOW PROPPER PUBLIC MEETINGS.
The Seville is concretly attached to the building next door that houses A-1 Printing (AN OWNER OCCUPIEDBUILDING),and could cause tremendouse damage to it during demo.A point even his contractor agreed.
This will be a real litmus test for our CITY politicians ,on protecting this abutter,as well as the Community Process.
NOW TO THAT EYESORE AT THE TUNNEL.
YOU KNOW THAT UGLY UNSAFE STEEL FRAME AT THE ENTRANCE TO THE TUNNEL.HES OWNED IT FOR ABOUT 10 YEARS,ANDWON'T SELL IT TO ANYONE. HE WANTS HIS STUPID BILLBOARD.
Mr. Lombardo has now,and has had permits to Legally build 6 condo / rental units ,and office,and a 2400 square foot store on that site for over 3 years.
He has stated to me ,and I quote as fact on two occasions,Because I can't get my BILLBOARD aproved for the top of the building,its going to sit ,and rot as is""
You see folks he applied to the City of Bostons Board of appeals for what he has permits for ,and the BILLBOARD twice.
Both times the City APPROVED the units,office,and store ,and DENIED the BILLBOARD.
Once approved you have 2 years to build. So he let the first one default.
Then he re-applied for the whole thing,and again was DENIED. So now he has about 16 months left before the second aproval defaults,and he will lose all of the Zoning permits again.
Mr.Lombardo owns the Liberty Plazza Mall,the Walgreens property ,most of the block "Including that problem Dunkin Donuts in Central Square",and so much more.
Yet on recorded tape fo both City hearings he had the gaul to say ,and I quote "I need the revenue from the BILLBOARD to make the project work".
What a crock hes estimated to be worth 200 million.
But the most shameful thing is how he has tried to intimidate the owner of the next door abutter to sell.I have never witnessed such disgusting behavior from any developer ever.
So yes I say we are already over developed.Just look around.
The Seville is a great venue he should sell ,and let say an artist group run it. Just think we could go see a play,or a show,or an art exhibit. It would add /bring the culture back to a once awesome piece of Estie.
This is an outrage,lets see if he would like this kind of development next to his h=Mansion.
Don't think so.
Speak up,and call your Mayor, City Councilor,Stae Rep,and State Senator.
Thank Yo Jimbo
J.M.
Thanks to Joe for providing all of that background info.
This is a tough one. One of the great things about Eastie, from an urban development perspective, is the creative re-use of existing structures. The re-use of the firehouse at Sumner and Orleans for Zumix's future home and 80 Border Street are, to me, almost perfect examples of good urban redevelopment. This kind of redevelopment is also more environmentally sustainable.
But the current structure of the building that housed the old Seville Theatre is not exactly a beauty to behold. You wouldn't even know a theater was there unless you go around to Border Street AND know that the backside of a theater looks like. If you do a quick Google search you'll find at least one picture that implies serious internal deterioration. I have no doubt that the deterioration is due to lack of maintenance and overall neglect. But, that being the case, I can imagine that bringing that space up to modern safety codes for use as public space, like a theater, would be very expensive and possible not feasible.
The project as described seems a little large and the number of parking spaces seems entirely unnecessary. It would be great for a public use space, like a theater, be built there. But I would not be surprised if the economics of that just don't add up. It would be great if it did, but there's a reason why the Seville closed in the first place.
For me the question would be is what we have now better than what is being proposed. Central Square doesn't need any more traffic. Just because you build retail space doesn't mean that businesses will come and the same goes for housing. Given that it will be a new build, the rents for both will be much higher, making it likely that only chain retail establishments could afford to be there - and then there's the question about what kinds of chains or franchises would be attracted to this location. I highly doubt we'll see a Border's leasing space in this location, as much as I'd love to see one. I'd prefer a locally owned bookstore, but generally, those kinds of establishments can't afford to lease space in new builds.
This is a textbook urban development dilemma.
A Seville follow up.
I have spoken to numerous people who have been inside as recently as 6 months ago,and it is not in severe disrepair. Its simply dirty,and neglected.
The pundits tried to tell us that about the Auditoriun at the Barnes school as it was being made into a seniors place.
NOW THAT PLACE WAS DESTROYED,BUT TODAY IT HAS BEEN 100% RESTORED TO ITS ORIGINAL STYLE.
It will now be used to have entertainment for the seniors. So YES it can be done.
The only reason why its not being used,or was sold in the past ,is simple greed by an owner who
A-Does not live here
B-Does not care about our quality of life
C-Is motivated by vengance over the BillBoard(an issue the last commentator refused to say a word about),and Greed)
The Zumix building that the Land Use Council,along with many others helped get ,is a perfect example of a re-use of the Seville.
There is money out there for this,but first you need the owner to either sell,or work with the community.
A thing he refuses to do.
He is also refusing waterfront access behind the Liberty Mall. A right to all of us under Federal Chapter 91.
If Mr. Lombardo cared about Esatie,he would develop that UGLY STEEL FRAMED EYSORE,sell it ,or at the very least make it safe by taking it down.
To everyone who responds to this blog article PLEASE do not be fooled by anyone who thinks this development project has any benefits for actual Eastie Residents.
Help preserve Easties Quality of Life.
STOP THE OUTSIDERS FROM KILLING US!
J.M.
I think that East Boston is becoming hugely overdeveloped in some areas and grossly neglected in others - on so many levels.
How about requiring the Lombardo companies to properly maintain any properties they have before profiting from or becoming involved in any further development or construction? I am referring to the state of squalor that Liberty Plaza and Central Square are in as well as the monstrosity that stands at the entrance to the tunnel. Every time I contemplate walking into CVS, I feel like I need a vaccination just to traverse that filth that exists outside the doorway.
Those that are in support of the continued development seem to think that it is the answer to all of our problems. The hope is that the money, "new blood" and businesses will clean up the area. The problem is that it is only half true and possible. While development can be the answer to our problems, we should be looking inward to our local entrepreneurs. Organic growth, given the sufficient support and guidance, can have a much larger and lasting impact than one massive influx of cash from some "coglom-o-max" corporation that ultimately, despite what they say, just wants to suck as much revenue out of their venture as possible. Once the return on investment is diminished, they inevitably begin to illustrate the same lackluster - absentee landlord traits that the Lombardo companies have exhibited. East Boston had a much different feel when Lombardo's and Liberty market were the anchors of Central Square. However, once the Lombardo's decided that it was much more lucrative to be landlords than business owners, that's when things started to take a bad turn.
As with the residential neighborhoods, owner occupation is the key to Central Square's and East Boston's revitalization.
Note the definition:
re·vi·tal·ize /–verb (used with object), -ized, -iz·ing.
1. to give new life to.
2. to give new vitality or vigor to.
I think there are all too many folks around here that think it means to tear down and build something else where it stands.
This block(s) of property is one of the many armpits in East Boston that should be bulldozed (to be nice) and yes completely renovated. Perhaps at one time a theatre was there, but the historical value is gone and will not be repaired.
What needs to be repaired is the eye sore that stands there now. This project is a wonderful addition to central square and will bring new residents and businesses that will continue to help "spruce" up the neighborhood.
I do agree that he should have to remove that steel structure, but to my knowledge that was part of the agreement to build the condos.
I also think he should have to redo the ugly ass strip mall that he has created. That is another eye sore in East Boston that needs a rehab.
There should be more people like him out there that should take a bulldozer and level blocks of East Boston at a time. There is so much trash in East Boston that others should step up to the plate and do the same. I would chip in and buy a few gallons of gas to help, even at $3.00 plus a gallon I wouldn't hesitate to throw a few bucks in.
Let Lombardo start with this project, but keep the demo guys on site and keep going until you hit the bridge then turn right and go until you hit the other bridge...keep going.
Who cares if he has millions, I know I wish I did. The inside players whoever you are implying they are...I thank you for this project and the next one he wants too.
While he is at it, hopefully he can bulldoze all the drunks and trash out of the square, the inside players refuse to do that or better yet they can't. What does that say about the inside players??? They can't even keep the drunks and trash out of our street...Joe...here's a project for you...clean up the trash in East Boston, the drunks and all the ugly storefronts that still exist.
Thank the people who are helping the neighborhood, even if there are big wigs like the Lombardo's or little people who are just doing there part to help make a difference.
Joe, stay true to your cause, but I am sure if you ask the Lombaro's for a bulldozer they will let you knock down and level a block or two of the trashy blocks/miles that already exist. While your at it, take the trash with you.
Hey Sal, where are those trash bins you have been promising?
Anonymous @ 8:23 you must be living on much higher ground than a lot of us to have no problem letting a bulldozer run wild in East Boston, suggesting it run up Meridian st. until it hits the bridge and continue on until it hits the other bridge?
You sound like another person who has no real love for the city at all.
Though I am not familiar with the condition of the Seville theater,I realize that there are some instances where a building can't be rehabbed for public use in a cost effective manner. That being said, I can't believe that our only other option should be to turn it over to a huge developer at a huge profit to them and the absentee landlords that sat on and neglected the property for years and at the expense of the folks who can already barely afford to live here.
The false sense of gentrification that this overdevelopment brings does nothing more than raise the rents of the barely inhabitable apartments that exist and make the new basic housing appear luxuriant enabling that pricing to grow well beyond the reach of the average working families that are the lifeblood of this community.
Massive bulldozing is not the answer. Trash bins are a start, holding the city and the absentee landlords responsible for cleaing up the squalor are a start. Stiffer zoning requirements are a start.
See my definition from my earlier post.
To the Anon post of 2-17-08 8:23 p.m.!
You can't possibly be from East Boston.
Because your plan to not stop till you hit the bridge would mean tearing down the East Boston Public library.
To Eastie Girl ;Your post was dead on.
Back to Anon;
As far as cleaning up the Drunks in Central Square goes,to me its very simple.
1-Arrest every person who publicly drinks.
But for that ,you need the Police to get out of the cars ,and arrest them.THATS NEVER GOING TO HAPPEN!
2-The park needs to be redesigned to become more family friendly by building a Childrens jungle jim,some picnic benchs.
3-To build a nice ornamental fence around it ,and LOCK IT UP BY 8 P.M..
But you see Mr. Anon that takes people with the power to do it,and those who have the power REFUSE to do it.Esp. The Police.
Public drinking is an arrestable offense,as well as being so drunk in public you can't stand up.
Case in point ,and a 100% fact ,and public record:
The East Boston Land Use Council secured 125,000.00 dollars from A.K.Media to be put in a 501 cs Non Profit account for the "Sole Reason being to improve our Parks in October 2005".
I have the contract,and cancelled checks to prove it.
Well guess what ? The Mayor,and the B.R.A. took control ,and bought those ugly planters along Bennington Street.At a cost of 4500.00 dollars EACH ,and thats without the ugly weeds they call flowers.
So our Park money is now gone.
Jimbo;It seems everytime I blog here ,I feel like the public has been screwed so much behind thier backs.
I would like Mr. / Mrs. Anon to PLEASE comment on that fact of the hijacking of our Park money.
We did all the work on the negotiations,and they robbed this community.
SAVE THE SEVILLE,AND STOP THE LOMBARDOS FROM DESTROYING US.
J.M.
The problem here is that nobody cares about East Boston... nothing will ever be done nothing is enforced... The Mayor and his people don't even know how to get to East Boston... Get rid of the Mayor and his people and Just Maybe; Maybe we might get at least one trash can....
To Mr.Mrs bulldozer that wasn't really nice you should have been more considerate about the BPL. Maybe you should have been clear. like bulldoze the liquor store all the way up to the library, and then leave the library alone and then bulldoze the grocery store and the building after that. then cross over the block and continue up until the new noah houses and then skip them over and the nice brownstones after that. then turn around and completly bulldoze the entire other side of the street. leaving the nice looking brownstones of course.
Hey Mr.Mason why didn't you try to save the Seville before lombardos wanted to bulldoze it. Why is it an issue now. No one has mentioned one word about it prior to now.
Hello
To the last Anon post.
We have tried for over 6 years to get the Lombardos to the table about the Seville.
We suggested a Public/ Private Trust.We also asked to buy it by raising funds the way Zumix is doing.
But when you are dealing with people like them "THE OUTSIDERS" ,and GREED its very hard to get positive results. They never seel ,only 99 year leases like Walgreens .
Again I will ask ? How do any of you feel about the Mayor ripping off the 125,000.00 to buy those ugly planters?
Jimbo;
I feel bad for the uninformed,and I donot blame them. The machine is very good at EXCLUDING the public.
Its also to bad that people who post here do not give thier names.Because maybe then if we could be UNITED ,instead of DIVIDED,we just might have a say in what our future will be for Eastie.
I am about to start a blog,and web site to help rally people against the Casino,and will never allow anyone to post who will not say who they are.
If approved this Casino WILL be the final nail in our coffin.
Back to both Anons,if I had it my way I would make the Mayor sweep our streets along with all of his cronies who "Do not care about us".
*****The promise of trash bins will never happen either********
Good Luck everyone ,but if the Casino comes its all over!!!!!!!!
J.M.
Mr.Mason with all do respect; we and six years. there is something wrong when people do not know whats going on in the community. i can honestly say that i have never heard anything about the Seville and i would bet money on it that about 98% of the community knows nothing about your six years with Lombardos. (Just out of curiosity... Jimbo, did you know anything about the seville prior to the post?) Maybe if the East Boston times was a good paper then more than 2% of the community would know whats going on.
as far as people posting as anon; i think its great. what fun would it be to say who you are?
Last but not least. 125,000 the Mayor should be ashamed of himself. i guess that's why he never comes to East Boston because he knows. also, from what i understand the day the planters were installed they were actually suppose to be installed on Newbury street. becauase of some confusion we received the planters and Newbury street received the daily trash truck dump. right smack in the middle.
Mr. Mason, why is it Always you that is complaining about progression? The key word is progression. If it was up to you the Ted Williams tunnel would have never been built and therefore there would be even more congestion.
Hello again
To the last two posts;
A- You are right about our paper.
I have tried for years to get them to allow the L.U.C.to post press releases of all kinds.
However they have refused to publish many ,even when I state that the L.U.C. will pay for them to be published.
Jimbo knows what HELL I have gone through about the Savio situation,and our fight to get those kids money left to them in a trust since 1993.
Not a single penny of 75,000 went to them,that is until they went out of business,and theL.U.C took over the trust this year,and gave 4000.00 in tuition grants to Eastie Kids.
They refused to let me print about the robbery that went on.
You can't have a Community meeting about private property unless the owner is willing to come,and is willing to participate.
If you send Jimbo your email,I will forward you a doc file on the Seville.
Now to the word Progression;
Progress is fine ,as long as it does not have NEGATIVE affects on the community.
Also in order for you to know what we do you would need to be PROACTIVE by comming to our meetings. ITS FREE,and all of the meetings for 6 months are posted on www.eastboston.com ,its the first link on the front page ,and further down you will see the hundreds of thousands of CHARITABLE DONATIONS we have made for the Seniors,Tuition,Eastie Pride Day,Make AWish etc.
But the key words are Public Participation.Those who do not PARTICIPATE will always question ,who ,what ,where,and when.A.K.A. the uninformed
Have a nice day,and God Bless.
J.M.
Jimbo tell them about how good those kids that we helped are when Savio closed,PLEASE !
Jeeeeeeeezuzzzzzz Christmas....I come here to read about what's going in Town and this whole Blog is Joe Mason crying about something or someone else. Enough already!
Did you ever consider that maybe it is not that people ("outsiders") do not want to work with the community - maybe they just dont want to work with you!
As for private business owners who own private property, who are you to tell them what they must do with it - there is a process that they go through where everyone can give thier input but in the end the owner decides what will happen (or wont happen) with their property.
Lastly - I take exception to the following comments made by Joe in his first post:
"But the most shameful thing is how he [Lombardo] has tried to intimidate the owner of the next door abutter to sell.I have never witnessed such disgusting behavior from any developer ever"
Just another example of more baseless and inflamatory comments that get carelessly thrown around by Mr. Mason without any check or balance. Its the reason why he has lost all credibility and nobody bothers with him anymore.
Its even ironic that in the next sentence, he goes on to say
"The Seville is a great venue he should sell ,and let say an artist group run it."
After reading his many posts on the Lombardos, tell me Jimbo, who is trying to intimidate who here?
It might be easier (and shorter) if Joe just tells us who or what he does not have a problem with in EB -obviously there is not much. Save us the time and agony!
To Eastie Girl: Why can't someone own property outside there home boundaries? Why can't someone develop a property for personal gain? Isn't that what we all go to work everyday for is to make money?
Stop the bull, you too would try to make money if you could!
Jimbo, do these people think your bloggers are dumb?
To Anon on 3/3 @2:13.
Um, at no point did I say that I was against anyone making a profit.
The pieces that seem to be missing from the East Boston development projects are a sense of responsibility and concern for the community. These big developers know how to get all of the breaks and how to suck all of the money out of a project without contributing to - or worse, while adversely impacting the community.
I've seen all too many hardworking families get priced out of the neighborhood due to the overdevelopment of the city. There are all kinds of laws, loopholes and benefits that help the wealthy hold on to their money while the poor working schlubs are lucky that they can afford the ridiculous rents or, if their lucky, mortgages.
(BTW - are you my accountant - or my husband? Those are the only two people who know whether or not I can make a buck.)
To Eastie Girl. Did you ever feed 500 hundred people for Thanksgiving like the Lombardo's? Probably not. This is America and they worked hard and suceeded.
Should they just hand their money out too because they became suceesful? Give me a break. This is capitalism what this country is based on. Don't punish someone because they made it!
Anon @ 10:27 - As a former Lombardo's employee, I was there, VOLUNTEERING my time on Thanksgiving for at least 4 years. I have nothing against them as people nor do I begrudge them their successes. What I do take exception to are irresponsible business practices that have left Central Square in a shambles, allowed a hazardous and unsightly structure to remain standing for decades and threatens the livelihood of existing businesses.
One would think that the Lombardo family would tread a bit more delicately upon the birthplace of their success.
As for the steel frame structure, why cant the Lombardos at least wrap it to hide its unsightliness. If you drive along 93 you will see several buildings (pine street in and the storage building) that a material has been placed around hiding the actual structure. Who knows, maybe they could even get someone to advertise on the material and pay for it or include advertising about Eastie businesses or programs in some urban art form - at least we wont have to look at just steel beams.
To Eastie Girl; Ok again there you go and be a hippocrat. You worked for them, they put food on your table and now that they are gone they are bad people. Sounds to me that you just go along with what everyone else says and you are not thinking clearly.
Lombardo's has served this community well and I think we should all salute them!
It's too bad blogger doesn't provide a spell check. The word is spelled: hypocrite. And it does not apply to Eastie Girl. A hypocrite is someone who expresses an opinion or belief that he or she does not actually hold in order to conceal his or her true feelings. Eastie Girl does not appear to be hiding anything.
I know it may be hard for some people to believe, but you can actually hold different opinions about the same person at the same time. You can appreciate having a job and still dislike the working conditions. You can love your own children and hate the clothing they wear.
The Lombardo's may have earned their success. That does not mean that, as residents, we should not hold them accountable for the businesses they run. I shop at Shaw's and go to Blockbuster but that doesn't mean that I can't demand that they do something about the steel structure near the Sumner Tunnel. It doesn't mean that I shouldn't withhold my support for future projects, especially if creating those projects will be disruptive to the community, until they fix that structure.
This does not mean that I believe that they shouldn't be able to make a profit while they live in Marblehead. It means that, as a resident, I am only concerned about the impact of their developments on our quality of life. I for one, do not believe that the ability to make a profit trumps my ability to live in a good neighborhood. And I'm not sure that a Thanksgiving dinner that I don't go to mitigates against the ugliness of the structure that we live with every single day.
I agree with Eastie Girl on the lack of community concern in many of our current developments. Did you know that the Boston East development on Border Street is supposed to have about 17,000 square feet of facilities of public accommodation but the developer wants to be able to only build 5,000 square feet of real FPA and to count artist live-work spaces as part of the FPA? The claim is that they wouldn't be able to find enough commercial activity to make it work financially. Based on my experience, I'm inclined to believe that perhaps it is that they haven't tried hard enough to make it work. Another example of a developer's profit making getting in the way of community needs and quality of life.
To Eastie Girl....
I just want to start by saying Lombardos is a great neighbor and an excellent part of the East Boston Community. How dare you try to ruin the reputation of such a valuable part of our community. They gave back so much to this community while on the other hand you probably cant name one thing you have done for this community. You knock Massport, Lombardos is there anyone else you want to go after? Stop attacking companies that give this community so much and maybe start trying to give even a LITTLE back to your own community. Lombardos should be praised for all their community work!!
To N. Starluna; doing your teacher mode again? I'd bet my life that you would just want to give it all away(meaning Lombardo's property) even though they worked hard for it. You and eastie Girl have no right to tell Lombardo's what to do with their properties as long as they comply with the law and reg's. Get over it, this is America land of the free and they became sucessful. Lets not be jealous but embrace sucess.
By the way, how much do you give charity and do you do anything for your fellow man?
To N. Starluna. Too bad blogger doesn't require that you have to love America. Stay well
Jack and Anon,
1) I have never attacked Massport. please re-read my posts.
2) I am critical of the Lombardo companies just as I am of any business that does not engage in responsible business practices. I'm sure they wouldn't leave the structure and filth on their front lawns, and I certainly don't want it on mine.
3) If you knew me, you would know what I contribute to my community.
I was born and raised in East Boston and I am now raising my family here. I have been giving to my community my whole life. I am a working stiff who has worked in some form or another since the age of 10. I have been doing community service for almost as long. Even if I signed my real name here, chances are you wouldn't know me because the work I have done is not very glamorous and doesn't make for a very good photo op. I have volunteered on a regular basis at veterans homes and homeless shelters. I have walked hundreds of miles to raise money to fight hunger, heart disease and cancer. I am very active in my daughter's school and have contributed, blood, sweat, tears and financially to endeavors that have made East Boston a better place to live.
I begrudge no-one their successes, but recall the old adage "To whom much is given, much is expected."
I've been given nothing in my lifetime. I've worked for everything I have had. Still, I know what is expected of me: to be a responsible and involved member of my community, to give to those less fortunate than myself and to never compromise my ideals.
So Anon and Jack, if you are indeed two different people, feel free to be ashamed to have me in your community. I know what I stand for and can look myself in the mirror and have no problem sleeping at night.
Eastie Girl I am not the same person I just happen to agree with what Anon has to say. You however are definitely the same person as N starluna because there is NO WAY two people could think such non sense. Jimbo I dont understand how someone could talk bad about Massport but still take money from them she must really be in the tank with them. I am a Massport critic and will always be, but Eastie Girl is just a critic for her own benefit and it just shows how selfish she really is.
Jack - sweets, it doesn't take a genius to see that NStarluna and I are two completely different people. Just look at our writing styles. NStarluna's style is delivered with language of report - you know with numbers and statistics, where mine most strongly illustrates language of affection. I know basic concepts are not your strong suit, so take all of the time you need to try to absorb and process that.
Also can you try to keep your blog topics straight? This is about the Seville, and has pretty much morphed into a discussion about responsible business practices, the lack thereof and a free for all on me and anyone who would hold people who want the privilege of doing business in East Boston accountable.
Jeez, with all this Jack and Eastie Girl back and forth - I almost kind of miss Joe Mason!
Eastie Girl is correct: we are not the same person but she sounds like someone I'd grab a coffee with sometime. A quick search of my postings on this blog will give you a pretty decent summary of who I am. I'm sure when you do you will likely find little, if any, criticism of Massport. In fact, I don't think I've ever made a comment on this blog about Massport at all, unless you count summarizing the meeting about the Pier One delay last summer. I am very sure that every comment I've made on this thread had to do with developments generally in East Boston.
Regardless, I disagree with any assertion that an individual or organization is above criticism, including myself. I don't know what the Lombardo's do for East Boston and frankly, I would not care if they paid the college tuition of every East Boston high school graduate. The steel structure at Porter and London should be taken down. Although, I do like the idea of wrapping it and putting some artwork on it. Perhaps the Lombardo's could go over to the Atlantic Works and see what kinds of collaboration they could make. It won't make them any money, but it would certainly help with their social image among us new residents who do not believe in blind loyalty.
To N. Starluna; exactly what you said "new resident", thats what you are. Who do you think you are that you can move here and tell us whats good for us?
I have an idea what if you pay for that structure to come down and I will personally call Sal Lombardo to take it down. My point is that you wouldn't, would you? You just like to toss bombs from your computer.
Art, why should it be made an art figure? Because you like art? What if most of us don't?
Starluna, stop trying to tell us lifers what is good for us because we dealt with the likes of Massport and we aren't afraid to take anyone on who wants to harm this community. Thank you, thank you Jimbo for letting me vent
the Sev1lle theatre w1ll turn out to be another fast food franch1se-
the Lombardo fam1ly has every r1ght to place whatever they feel - they d1d prov1de jobs for east boston1ans over the years r1ght- grocery bag handlers at l1berty and Lombardos
East Boston does not need a theatre.
That bu1ld1ng needs to be demol1shed-
A brand new burger franch1se w1th dr1ve thru wll do.
1 L1ved on London St s1nce the 60's
and 1ts been nearly 3 decades s1nce mamma cat1na/top hat lounge blew up-the steele structure belongs
1n a ghetto.what 1s Mumbles Men1no do1ng about th1s 1ssue.
I should have been more clear: I believe that the parcel in which the steel structure is currently on should be developed as the owner has permits to do, or it should be taken down until he intends to do something with it. Otherwise, its an eyesore and it doesn't have to be.
Anonymous may be interested to know that about half of Eastie's residents have been here for only about 5 years. And more of us are coming. One of my husband's colleague is in the process of buying a house in Jeffries Point. Several of my colleagues have been looking to move here as well. And like everyone else, we are certainly more inclined to stay as more of our friends move here and more places like 303 and the Atlantic Works gallery open up (because yes we like art). I hate to break it to you, but there are more and more of us migrants moving here and it isn't just Latinos who are moving in. We are young professionals and old professionals, families, and immigrants from all over the world. You might have figured that out if you paid attention to who rides the train into Maverick at 6 pm on your average work night. And you can expect that new residents will not have the same loyalties that some "lifers" apparently seem to have, although I suspect that this opinion is in the minority. Unfortunately, the Lombardos are going to have to earn their social license just like all other business owners and developers should.
Even if I wanted to engage further in a "been-heres" versus "come-heres" argument with anonymous at 9:45 am I can't take seriously anyone that makes the blanket statement that some/most people don't like art. Theoretically, it's possible, but more likely just laughable. You don't listen to music? You don't watch movies or television? You don't enjoy your kid's elementary school plays? Is your fridge completely bare of any photographs, children's drawings, or cutouts of the comics? Please. Be serious.
As an Eastie resident who was born and raised here -- and whose parents were as well -- I welcome all of you to the neighborhood.
To Jimbo first: you made be a lifer but trust me as a former Salesian Boy's Club goer, you don't speak for us. You don't even think like most of us that you grew up with.
To Starluna; just because more of you are coming into Eastie we should fear that? Let me tell you something there still is a group of us that love where we were brought up and will fight to keep it the way we want. That's all you do is talk alot? Answer the question of what do you give to the residents in charitable donations? What have you done to make this a better place?
I for one would never want to meet you because you think your smarter or better. I pray that people like you move away! Jim, I am no surprised at you because at a young age you were weird. I know this won't be posted because you feel like you have some sort of power and i'm sure you love that.
I thouhgt it was Good article in today's Globe by Elizabeth Gehrman about the Seville. She tells us the real story and gives us the important information about what is going on with the process - not a bunch of overdramatic hysteria and tales of personal vendettas. If we hope to attract real investment in EB, we need more coverage like this - and less rants from people who act like they know everything - but in the end know very little and are opposed only because they dont like the developer.
CinemaTreasures has a page about the Seville Theatre. I added links to this blog and to today's Boston Globe article.
CinemaTour has two photos of the theatre's interior, taken in April 2003: One and Two
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