Please support CPCAY in its efforts to secure funding for the Arborway Yard transit facility.

The deadline for comment is January 10, 2011. Please comment today!

Send your comments to:

Richard Davey

General Manager, MBTA

One Park Plaza, Suite 3910

Boston, MA 02116

CPCAY would like to get the ArborwayYard facility into the five-year Capital Improvement Plan (CIP). Currently it is not listed. Listing it is the first step in getting funding.

You can read the history here in the recent JP Gazette article.

http://jamaicaplaingazette.com/node/4445

An excerpt of the letter CPCAY sent to MBTA General Manager Richard Davey is quoted.

Over the past twelve years, under theleadership of the Community Planning Committee

for the Arborway Yard, and with thesupport of Mayor Thomas Menino and our local and

elected state officials, this transitfacility and its related community benefits has been a

high priority for our community and thecity of Boston.

 

 

...we believe any further delays in theconstruction of this project

beyond 2011 would undermine andthreaten to undo the work and commitment made by

hundreds of community residents overthe past twelve years. We stand with the CPCAY,

the Mayor and our elected officials ininsisting that you do the right thing for the MBTA,

the state, the City of Boston and ourcommunity: Include the approximately $220

million in the CIP that is needed toconstruct the facility!

 

For the full letter, jump to the end of the post.

Please comment today. Send your comments to:

Richard Davey

General Manager, MBTA

One Park Plaza, Suite 3910

Boston, MA 02116

Full Letter

Community Planning Committee for the Arborway Yard
C/o Henry Allen, Chairperson
72 Orchard Hill Road
Jamaica Plain, MA 02130
617-522-3639

December 16th, 2010

Richard Davey
General Manager, MBTA
One Park Plaza, Suite 3910
Boston, MA 02116

Dear Mr. Davey:

The undersigned community, neighborhood, business and non-profit organizations are
writing to express our strongest possible support for the Arborway Yard Transit Facility.
Over the past twelve years, under the leadership of the Community Planning Committee
for the Arborway Yard, and with the support of Mayor Thomas Menino and our local and
elected state officials, this transit facility and its related community benefits has been a
high priority for our community and the city of Boston.

We believe it is imperative that the MBTA renew now its commitment to the completion
of this transit facility by including funding for it in the 2011 Capital Investment Program.
Indeed, we are sorely disappointed that it is not in the current draft CIP. Our reasons for
this request are as follows:

1. The design of the facility is expected to be completed in the spring of 2011. It
therefore will be “shovel ready” by the next iteration of the CIP in April of 2011
when the MBTA board will meet to approve the 2011-2016 CIP. The timing
could therefore not be better to reinsert the Arborway Yard Transit Facility into
the CIP.

2. The MBTA already has invested approximately $30 million into the Arborway
Yard site, including costs for planning and design of the new permanent facility
and the design and construction of a temporary maintenance facility. Further, this
temporary facility was designed to serve the MBTA’s needs for approximately 5
years. We are past that time already!

3. The new facility, as designed, is exemplary in terms of environmental and safety
features and will serve the long-terms needs of the MBTA, its ridership and the

adjacent community. As you are very much aware, this design is the result of
literally thousands of hours of volunteer time on the part of community residents
working with MBTA staff, architects, City of Boston experts and others.

4. The community benefits agreement between the MBTA and the City of Boston is
the result of years of difficult and challenging work over many years that engaged
neighborhood residents, businesses, non-profits, elected officials and others.
When the facility is completed, 8 acres of land will be turned over to the City of
Boston to accommodate affordable housing, new small businesses, and new open
and green space. The Boston Redevelopment Authority conducted an extensive
community planning process for the use of this land and the possibilities are
exciting and necessary for the community, city and the Commonwealth. Indeed,
this is an exciting example of transit oriented development, which is a high
priority for the city and the State.

We very much appreciate the difficult choices you must make in a period of limited
resources. However, we believe any further delays in the construction of this project
beyond 2011 would undermine and threaten to undo the work and commitment made by
hundreds of community residents over the past twelve years. We stand with the CPCAY,
the Mayor and our elected officials in insisting that you do the right thing for the MBTA,
the state, the City of Boston and our community: Include the approximately $220
million in the CIP that is needed to construct the facility!

Sincerely,

(Jamaica Plain Neighborhood Council (Pam Bender)

Jamaica Plain Neighborhood Development Corporation (Pam Bender)

Urban Edge Development Corporation (Pam Bender)

Sumner Hill Association (Michael Frank)

Franklin Park Coalition (Merlin Southwick)

City Life/Vida Urbana (Pam Bender)

Astricou/Martinwood/South Street Neighborhood Association (Karen Kaplan Doherty)

West Roxbury Courthouse Neighborhood Association (Henry Allen)

Stony Brook Neighborhood Association (Allan Ihrer)

Washington Street Business Association (Allan Ihrer)

Jamaica Hills Neighborhood Association (Michael Frank)

Jamaica Pond Association (Michael Frank)

Emerald Necklace Conservancy (Michael Frank)

Center Street Business Association (Michael Reiskind)

Main Streets organizations in JP (Michael Reiskind)

Hyde Square Task Force (Pam Bender)

Arborway Coalition (Sarah Freeman)

Neighbor to Neighbor (Tobias)

Forest Hills Cemetery (Merlin Southwick)

The letter will be copied to:

Governor Deval Patrick
Secretary Jeffrey Mullan
Members of the MBTA/DOT Board of Directors
Congressman Michael Capuano
Mayor Thomas Menino
Senator Sonia Chang Diaz
Representative Liz Malia
City Councilor Matt O’Malley