BRA receives six proposals for the redevelopment of Winthrop Square Garage

BRA receives six proposals for the redevelopment of Winthrop Square Garage

Inter-agency committee will review submissions with the goal of designating a developer this summer

BOSTON – The Boston Redevelopment Authority (BRA) today received six proposals to redevelop a prime parcel in Winthrop Square, which is currently home to a city-owned parking garage that has been closed for nearly three years. Several developers that responded to a preliminary Request for Interest issued by the BRA in February 2015 submitted more detailed plans for their proposed projects based on the goals outlined in the BRA’s recent Request for Proposals (RFP).

Working with officials from other city agencies and departments, including the Mayor’s Office of Economic Development, the Department of Neighborhood Development, the Boston Transportation Department, and the Environment Department, the BRA will now turn its attention to reviewing submissions, with the goal of designating a developer this summer. The selected firm would then go through the BRA’s standard development review process, known as Article 80, which involves public vetting and community meetings.

“We are pleased that so many respected and qualified development teams responded to the RFP, and we’re eager to learn more about their ideas for the future of the property,” said BRA Director Brian Golden. “It’s hard to imagine a better real estate climate in which to attract ambitious proposals for a location with as much potential as this one. Now is the time to capitalize on this opportunity.”

The BRA received a range of proposals that contemplate towers anchored by new residences, offices, hotel rooms, retail shops, or a mix of uses. HYM Investment Group, Millennium Partners, Trans National Group, Accordia Partners, Trinity Financial, and a joint venture of Lendlease Development, Hudson Group North America, and Eagle Development Partners submitted proposals. All of the submissions are available on the BRA’s website, and visitors are able to submit comments about the proposals online.

The inter-agency review committee plans to meet with prospective developers to discuss the proposals in May. The BRA will organize a public open house where developers will be allowed to present their concepts.

Located within walking distance of the Greenway, Post Office Square, and Downtown Crossing, the Winthrop Square parcel is just over an acre in size. The types of projects being proposed, which would benefit from convenient access to major public transit hubs at South Station, Downtown Crossing, and Park Street, would add to a city skyline that is already being reshaped by several new towers under construction. Based on guidance from the Federal Aviation Administration, Winthrop Square could accommodate a building as tall as 725 feet, potentially making a project there among the tallest in the city.

Mayor Martin J. Walsh and the BRA have called for an iconic building to replace the dilapidated two-story concrete garage that currently occupies the site. The RFP asked developers to envision a project that will serve as a catalyst for new commercial activity, improved public open space, and better connectivity to this area of Boston’s downtown. City officials are seeking a project that embraces bold design and innovative architecture, as well as green building principles that reduce environmental impacts.

The BRA’s urban design staff will carefully consider the extent to which proposals would activate the surrounding streets with new shops, cafes, restaurants, and green space. Prospective developers were also encouraged to offer designs that provide public spaces throughout the upper floors of the building.

Governor Baker Nominates Hélène Kazanjian to Massachusetts Superior Court

Governor Baker Nominates Hélène Kazanjian to Massachusetts Superior Court

BOSTON – Governor Charlie Baker has nominated Hélène Kazanjian, Chief of the Trial Division in the Attorney General’s Office, to the position of Associate Justice for the Massachusetts Superior Court.

“If confirmed, Attorney Kazanjian will bring to the bench nearly 30 years’ experience in public service and private practice handling the types of criminal and civil cases heard by the Superior Court,” said Governor Baker. “Attorney Kazanjian has a long record of accomplishment and public service and I am pleased that she is willing to continue to serve the citizens of the Commonwealth .”

“It is important that all Superior Court justices have the temperament to run effective, efficient and impartial courtrooms, and I am confident Attorney Kazanjian will demonstrate theses skills and sound legal judgment if she is confirmed as a judge,” said Lt. Governor Karyn Polito. 

If confirmed by the Governor’s Council, Kazanjian will fill the seat vacated by the Honorable Patrick F. Brady.

Applicants for judicial openings are reviewed by the statewide Judicial Nominating Commission and recommended to the Governor. All judicial nominations are subject to the advice and consent of the Governor’s Council.

The Superior Court is comprised of 82 justices in 20 courthouses across all 14 counties and is a statewide court of general jurisdictions that handles a broad variety of civil litigation in matters of contract, injury, civil rights, and others with amounts in controversy exceeding $25,000. In addition, the Court oversees criminal matters including homicide, sex offenses, robbery, and financial fraud. Approximately 65% of the cases are civil lawsuits and the remaining 35% are criminal proceedings.

For more information about the Massachusetts Superior Court, visithttp://www.mass.gov/courts/court-info/trial-court/sc/.

About Hélène Kazanjian:

Hélène Kazanjian of Wellesley was born in Boston and graduated from Stanford University with a B.A. in Political Science in 1982, and from Boston University School of Law in 1986, where she won the National Association of Women Lawyers’ award for the Outstanding Woman Law Graduate.  Attorney Kazanjian clerked for U.S. District Court Judge William G. Young, and practiced from 1987 to 1991 as a civil Litigation Associate at the Boston law firm of Goodwin, Proctor & Hoar.  In 1991 she moved to Washington, DC for three years and worked as an Assistant U.S. Attorney, with a focus on crimes committed against the citizens of the District of Columbia, comparable to those handled by the Superior Court. In 1994, she became an Assistant U.S. Attorney in Portland, Maine, assigned, at different times, to the Civil and Criminal Divisions, and for a portion of her tenure was the Lead Task Force Attorney of the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force.  In 2010, she returned to Massachusetts and became the Chief of the Trial Division in the Massachusetts Attorney General’s Office with responsibility for oversight of the cases handled by 30 Assistants Attorney Generals, as well as managing her own matters. 

金僑獎“世界華影” 4/29 起收件

中華民國僑務委員會為促進全球華人互動與交流，自2009年起舉辦「金僑獎」徵選活動，今年以「世界華影」為主題，廣邀海內外華人透過照片及短片呈現最感人的故事，架起世界華人溝通橋梁。

2016年活動徵件：2016年4月29日中午12時至2016年7月29日中午12時（臺灣時間為準）。分照片組和短片組。詳細情形請上「金僑獎」網站 http://video.ocacmactv.net/ 或「宏觀數位媒體粉絲團」查詢。

僑營臺灣美食餐廳評選活動起跑

僑務委員會長久致力於規劃辦理國內外各類型美食相關課程或巡迴講座，提供海外僑營業者之餐飲培訓、經營管理、諮商輔導，以扶植僑營餐飲事業持續升級發展，同時藉由海外行銷活動及亮點地區活動，增加僑營臺灣美食餐廳的曝光度及臺美餐飲業者的交流，對於臺灣美食國際化之推動不遺餘力，期使臺灣美食之海內外網絡連結更加緊密。

海外僑民努力經營的餐飲服務業發展歷史悠久、成果豐碩，係僑社聯誼、交流活動的重要平臺，以及推廣臺灣美食的重要據點與資產。為持續提升僑營美食業者海外經營水平與能量，並輔導海外僑營美食業者提供水準以上的臺灣優質美食，僑務委員會自2013年開始推動「僑營臺灣美食餐廳評選」，輔以僑營臺灣美食標章的授予，至今已有95家僑營臺灣美食餐廳獲得標章授予，讓國際友人及僑民更容易識別具優質臺灣風味美食的店家。

今年度「僑營臺灣美食餐廳評選」正式開跑，將於美國紐約、芝加哥、洛杉磯、舊金山、休士頓、華府、西雅圖、亞特蘭大、波士頓、邁阿密、加拿大多倫多及溫哥華等12地區推動辦理。國內外評審團隊將針對：餐廳之菜餚、環境、服務等指標，透過實地評選的方式評選出僑營臺灣美食餐廳。通過評選的僑營臺灣美食餐廳，除將獲頒僑營臺灣美食標章外，亦能獲得相關後續行銷及經營輔導資源之輔助。

活動報名受理時間自即日起至2016年5月15日止，邀請經營滿1年備有固定店面或座位，且店中有提供臺灣美食之僑營餐館參加，請把握機會，一起加入推廣僑營臺灣美食品牌的行列！詳細活動內容及申請須知下載請見：僑務委員會全球資訊網 http://www.ocac.gov.tw/、全球僑商服務網http://www.ocbn.org.tw/或僑營臺灣美食餐廳網http://www.gourmettw-oqr.com/。

僑務委員會內定委員長吳新興談未來僑務工作

僑務委員會內定委員長吳新興談未來僑務工作

準行政院長林全20日宣布，將由曾任僑委會副委員長的吳新興博士接任委員長。吳博士在22日赴僑委會與現任委員長陳士魁會面，副委員長呂元榮、主任秘書張良民在座陪同。

陳委員長表示，吳博士曾在僑委會擔任副委員長，非常瞭解僑務工作，由他接任可省去很多的摸索時間以及不必要的困難。僑務工作有80多年歷史，政府的施政有一貫性，僑務工作也有延續性。僑社不分藍綠，以團結和諧為主，是他與吳博士的共識，相信在吳博士帶領下，僑務工作可以繼續平穩前進。

吳博士表示，非常高興及榮幸受到任命回僑委會服務。他知道全球僑胞對新政府的僑務政策走向非常關心，藉此機會有以下幾點要向大家說明：

第一、僑胞是中華民國台灣在海外最寶貴的資產，僑務工作就是為全球僑胞服務。新政府將繼續在中華民國的憲法及架構下推動僑務政策。僑務政策不分藍綠，要有一貫性、持續性。新政府對於全球僑胞的服務，只會增加，不會減少。在既有基礎上，將把僑務工作做得更好。

第二、        新政府的僑務政策沒有老僑新僑之分，手心手背都是肉，不會有任何差別待遇，只要是支持中華民國政府、自由民主台灣的僑胞，都是僑委會服務的對象，也都是國家寶貴的資產。

第三、            感謝長久以來支持中華民國台灣的傳統僑社。多年來，很多傳統僑社忠貞不二堅定支持中華民國政府，見證了國家民主發展的歷程，並給予支持。特別要向他們致上謝意，新政府上任後，也期許傳統僑社能繼續支持中華民國政府及自由民主的台灣，讓國家發展往前邁進。

第四、            也要感謝散居世界各地的台僑以及在全球打拚奮鬥的台商。再次強調，僑胞是國力的延伸，是寶貴的資產，我們呼籲台僑台商朋友能夠體察新政府將面臨的殊多挑戰，繼續支持政府，一同推動僑務工作，再創新局。

第五、            近年來，中國大陸的海外新移民愈來愈多。只要認同、支持中華民國政府及自由民主核心理念的中國大陸新移民，僑委會都很樂意與他們做朋友，也歡迎他們來台灣走走看看，給予寶貴建言。

第六、        全球華僑有4000多萬，散居全球，呼籲中國大陸政府不要將僑胞僑團捲入兩岸政治分歧，期許兩岸政府共同關心全球華人福址，讓海外僑胞都可以安居樂業、幸福美滿。

最後，吳博士特別表示，520即將到來，誠摯邀請全球僑胞回國參加520總統、副總統就職大典，共同見證中華民國民主政府盛事。(僑委會）

MAYOR WALSH REAFFIRMS COMMITMENT TO DELIVERING EXCEPTIONAL BASIC CITY SERVICES

MAYOR WALSH REAFFIRMS COMMITMENT TO DELIVERING EXCEPTIONAL BASIC CITY SERVICES

Responds to Resident's Needs Identified Through Boston 311 and Go Boston 2030

BOSTON - Friday, April 22, 2016 - Through his Fiscal Year 2017 (FY17) budget and capital plan proposal, Mayor Martin J. Walsh is continuing his commitment to delivering exceptional basic services to all of Boston's residents. The Mayor's Building a Better Boston capital plan increases Boston's street resurfacing and sidewalk repair program by nearly $4 million and bridge repair by over $6 million. "Through engaging with our residents, we know the importance of providing dependable basic services," said Mayor Walsh. "This additional funding will allow us to build on our success over the past two years of providing the highest quality of basic services and create cleaner, safer streets for our neighborhoods." Last year, the Boston Public Works Department (PWD) paved 42 miles of roads, and the increased funding will increase the paving budget by a third. Building on the nearly 100 miles of road work performed in the last two years, this funding will create more accessible sidewalks for pedestrians and smoother roads for drivers and cyclists along Boston's major arteries. Increased bridge funding will help prepare spans, such as the North Washington Street Bridge, for more comprehensive capital improvements. This capital plan also invests $66.7 million in the comprehensive redesign of squares, corridors and public spaces across the city. Examples of these planning, design and construction projects include East Boston's Central Square, the Commonwealth Avenue corridor in Brighton and Allston, Dudley Street in Roxbury, North Square in the North End, Quincy Street in Dorchester and Audubon Circle in the Fenway.  Each project will help transform these areas reflecting the vision of the local community. Go Boston 2030, Boston's comprehensive transportation planning effort, has revealed that one of the top priorities among residents is the delivery of basic services. The launch of Boston 311 last year has also allowed the City of Boston to better understand what Boston residents want. The new modernized and efficient system has allowed City of Boston employees to quickly respond to resident's requests and resolve issues Boston 311 can be accessed anywhere within the City limits from both landlines and cell  phones, and should only be used for non-emergencies. 311 will be available through several different platforms, including: Mobile: download the free BOS:311 app on iOS or Android (previously known as Citizens Connect) Online: Boston.gov/311 Social media: tweet @BOS311 Phone: dial 3-1-1 (previously the Mayor's 24-hour hotline 617-635-4500. For those with VoIP and for calls from outside Boston, callers should continue to dial 617-635-4500.) As part of his budget proposal, the Mayor has also announced that starting in FY17, Boston 311 will reach even more residents by adding translators for six different languages.

BOSTON PUBLIC LIBRARY TO COMMEMORATE 400TH ANNIVERSARY OF SHAKESPEARE’S DEATH

BOSTON PUBLIC LIBRARY TO COMMEMORATE 400^TH ANNIVERSARY OF SHAKESPEARE’S DEATH WITH TWO EXHIBITIONS IN FALL 2016

Free and open to the public; presented by Iron Mountain

                                                                                   

BOSTON – April 22, 2016 – 2016 marks the 400^th anniversary of William Shakespeare’s death, and Boston Public Library and the Norman B. Leventhal Map Center will honor the Bard’s lasting legacy with two exhibitions at the Central Library this fall, as well as programming at library locations citywide. Boston Public Library holds one of the largest and most comprehensive collections of Shakespeare in a public institution, including the first four folios of his collected works, 45 early quarto editions of individual plays, and thousands of volumes of early source material, commentaries, translations, manuscripts, and more.

“At some point in life, everyone has experienced the work of Shakespeare," said Mayor Martin J. Walsh. "These opportunities at the Boston Public Library give all the chance to learn more about the creative genius of Shakespeare and how his legacy lives on today."

Shakespeare Unauthorized: Experience the original works of “The Bard”

Shakespeare Unauthorized, a major gallery exhibition on view from October 13, 2016 through March 31, 2017, will include extraordinarily rare first and early editions of familiar and beloved plays like A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Hamlet, and The Merchant of Venice, as well as all four Shakespearean folios, most notably the BPL’s own copy of the world-famous First Folio. Through the pages of these precious books, visitors can experience Shakespeare in his original language and spelling, just as he would have been read by book lovers and theater-goers hundreds of years ago.  Shakespeare Unauthorized will take place in the McKim Exhibition Hall on the first floor of the McKim building at the Central Library in Copley Square.

Shakespeare Unauthorized is made possible through the financial support of Iron Mountain Incorporated (NYSE: IRM), a leader in storage and information management services. Based in Boston, Iron Mountain provides charitable grants of funding and in-kind services to cultural and historical preservation projects like Shakespeare Unauthorized all over the world through its Living Legacy Initiative.

”We’re proud to help bring this exhibition to life in our home city of Boston,” said Ty Ondatje, senior vice president, Corporate Responsibility and Chief Diversity Officer at Iron Mountain. “Our philanthropic mission is to preserve and create access to our world’s cultural and historical treasures, those ideas and artifacts that make up the human experience, so that they can be shared and enjoyed by everyone. The works of Shakespeare are the very definition of these shared treasures, informing so much of how we view and talk about today’s world, and Iron Mountain couldn’t be more excited to underwrite the Library’s exhibition so they can make this collection available to all.”

Shakespeare Unauthorized will contain far more than just books of plays: this exhibition will feature surprising rarities and mysterious objects; scandalous forgeries made by con men and accomplished scholars; books from the luxurious private libraries of early English aristocrats; and memorabilia from four centuries of acting and stagecraft.

“We are indebted to Iron Mountain for their leadership grant to the Boston Public Library Foundation, and for partnering with the BPL in displaying its extensive collection of Shakespeare materials,” said Boston Public Library Interim President David Leonard.  “This exhibition of rare and invaluable items promises to provide an inspiring adventure for all who visit. We are also very grateful for the critical funding provided by The Boston Foundation, and the Associates of the Boston Public Library, for curatorial and conservation work that supported this project.

Shakespeare’s World: Charting a course through the settings of Shakespeare’s works

The Norman B. Leventhal Map Center at the Boston Public Library, an independent, non-profit institution, will feature a complementary exhibition Shakespeare’s World opening September 3, 2016 and running through February 2017, with associated programming to be announced. William Shakespeare’s comedies, tragedies, and histories take place in a number of fascinating and often picturesque locations throughout Europe, Asia and Africa, in eras from classical times to the Renaissance.  In this exhibition of forty maps, images and three-dimensional objects, visitors will visit these locales by seeing items from Shakespeare’s lifetime, learning about the world in the time of Shakespeare, and understanding the symbolic role that geography held to the dramas.

Kronborg Castle in Denmark, known as Elsinore in Hamlet, will be highlighted in the exhibition.  A 1629 Dutch map depicting the Danish Kingdom, along with a vignette illustrating “Elsenor,” will be on display.  Complementing this map will be an original print of “Cronenburg” from Samuel von Pufendorf’s 1696 historical atlas.  Geographically-significant quotes from the dramas will set the stage for the visitors, such as Marcellus’ line from Hamlet, “Something is rotten in the state of Denmark” (Act 1, scene 4).  Visitors will also see Heinrich Bünting’s famous “Clover leaf map” from 1581 and Abraham Ortelius’ 1570 edition of Theatrum Orbis Terrarum.

“This is an unusual opportunity for visitors to see rarely displayed treasures from the Boston Public Library’s collection, as well as prized maps from the collection of our founder Norman B. Leventhal, all helping The Bard’s world come alive to visitors,“ said Connie Chin, President of the Norman B. Leventhal Map Center.

Related public programs will take place citywide and a schedule is currently in development.

About BOSTON PUBLIC LIBRARY Boston Public Library has a Central Library, twenty-four branches, map center, business library, and a website filled with digital content and services. Established in 1848, the Boston Public Library has pioneered public library service in America. It was the first large free municipal library in the United States, the first public library to lend books, the first to have a branch library, and the first to have a children’s room. Each year, the Boston Public Library hosts thousands of programs and serves millions of people. All of its programs and exhibitions are free and open to the public. At the Boston Public Library, books are just the beginning. To learn more, visit bpl.org.

About IRON MOUNTAIN

Iron Mountain Incorporated (NYSE: IRM) is a leading provider of storage and information management services. The company’s real estate network of more than 69 million square feet across more than 1,100 facilities in 37 countries allows it to serve customers around the world. And its solutions for records management, data management, document management, and secure shredding help organizations to lower storage costs, comply with regulations, recover from disaster, and better use their information. Founded in 1951, Iron Mountain stores and protects billions of information assets, including business documents, backup tapes, electronic files and medical data. Visit www.ironmountain.com for more information.

About the NORMAN B. LEVENTHAL MAP CENTER
The Norman B. Leventhal Map Center is ranked among the top 10 map centers in the United States for the size of its collection, the significance of its historic (pre-1900) material, and its advanced digitization program. It is unique among the major collections because it also combines these features with exceptional educational and teacher training programs to advance geographic literacy among students in grades K-12 and enhance the teaching of subjects from history to mathematics to language arts. The collection is also the second largest in the country located in a public library, ensuring unlimited access to these invaluable resources for scholars, educators, and the general public. The Leventhal Map Center, created in 2004, is a nonprofit organization established as a public-private partnership between the Boston Public Library and philanthropist Norman Leventhal. Its mission is to use the Boston Public Library’s permanent collection of 200,000 maps and 5,000 atlases and a select group of rare maps collected by Mr. Leventhal for the enjoyment and education of all through exhibitions, educational programs, and a website that includes thousands of digitized maps at maps.bpl.org. The map collection is global in scope, dating from the 15th century to the present, with a particular strength in maps and atlases of Boston, Massachusetts, and New England.

Boston Public Library image: William Shakespeare’s First Folio, 1623. Boston Public Library, Rare Books Department.

Map Center image: Heinrich Bünting (1545-1606). Die Gantze Welt in ein Kleberblat. Magdeburg, 1581. Courtesy Mapping Boston Foundation.

賴銘琪讚揚我長跑隊在波士頓馬拉松之優異表現

　　   (Boston Orange)駐波士頓臺北經濟文化辦事處處長賴銘琪表示，由「中華長跑協會」理事長郭宗智領軍之我國長跑隊於4月18日舉行的第120屆波士頓馬拉松賽中，展現堅毅奮發精神，創造佳績，最速跑者鍾孟庭以2小時49分51秒成績完成挑戰，年齡最長（71歲）的胡登村也以3小時48分53秒成績獲分組第6名。此外，我國跑者披戴或揮舞中華民國國旗衝刺終點線，也展現愛國精神，成功推動了國民外交。

　　賴處長指出，今年由我波士頓馬拉松紀錄保持人郭理事長號召成立的長跑隊，陣容堅強，共有我國好手50人參加；他們於去年11月由「飛躍羚羊」紀政女士在臺授旗成軍後，即製作顏色鮮豔的國旗圖案隊服，供團員穿著參賽。18日比賽當天，波士頓臺北經文處也組成啦啦隊助陣，選手們高舉大幅中華民國國旗衝刺終點線，讓全世界都能清楚看見臺灣。

　　賴處長也感謝「波克萊台灣商會」於賽前設宴接待我國長跑隊，並於比賽當天到現場加油打氣。今年是商會連續第三年辦理該餐會，歡迎我國代表團。該會蘇鴻昌會長及劉秀春、郭競儒、羅靜春、林信福、陳玉瑛、游勝雄、楊羅東等理事顧問特別安排在華埠新月宮餐廳款待我國長跑隊龍蝦大餐，經文處賴處長夫婦、僑務委員蔣宗壬、副處長陳銘俊及組長朱永昌也出席致意。

　　波士頓馬拉松是世界六大馬拉松賽之一，也是資格標準極高的馬拉松賽，被選手視為馬拉松的最高殿堂。我國參加波士頓馬拉松的跑者人數自2013年的7人，逐年成長，今年已達50人，顯見波馬愈來愈受臺灣長跑運動者之喜愛。今年我國的長跑隊主要成員尚包括隊長張蔭富、最速女跑者周筱嵐、前宜蘭縣長呂國華、最年輕跑者周青等人。該隊領隊郭理事長於1983年（第87屆）以2小時31分6秒締造臺灣選手參賽最佳紀錄後，該紀錄迄未被打破。 (經文處新聞組供稿）