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Archive for the 'Living Here' Category
Trees and Real Estate Values
New Leaves on Trees in the City
This is one of my favorite times of year – the time of new leaves, as green comes back to the city. But after last year’s drought I’ve been watching the new leaves especially carefully. 2010 was a tough, tough year for city trees – in fact for all trees. A number of trees around the city appear to be dying. On a drive through Lexington yesterday we spotted many, many trees that were close to leafless - we speculated that, if not the drought, it might be the effects of gypsy moths. It’s so bad out there that watching for dead and dying trees is our new driving game – the 2011 equivalent of auto bingo.
City trees are particularly vulnerable and we should all be concerned. We don’t have enough trees in the city and the loss of any tree can leave a huge hole in the landscape. Urban trees have a tough time of it in any year - winter salt, encroaching asphalt, utility company limb cutting, too much dog urine and too little rain – it’s amazing that city trees flourish. Add tree-begrudging homeowners who don’t want to be bothered with tree limbs and droppings and it becomes all too easy to lose the leafy backdrop that enhances your house and street.
City trees add enormously to quality of life and to the beauty of city streets and yards. A city street devoid of trees is usually a stark and dreary sight. A tree-less street is also an uninviting prospect for potential home buyers. My own Cambridge street, described in the Historical Commission’s 1977 architectural survey as a “warm and inviting secluded core with bowered trees,” is now almost devoid of trees. A buyer, looking at a condo on my street recently, sniffed “but this street has no trees”. I don’t know of any study that shows that properties sell for higher prices on tree-lined streets, but experiences like this and its counterpart – buyers delighted by leafy streets – convince me that real estate values are boosted by nearby trees.
We all need to pay attention to the trees that line our streets and sidewalks. We have too little say over the trees that shade our houses but sit on our neighbors’ properties (I’m in favor of giving trees protection via a permitting process prior to removal -why should I have input as an abutter concerned over my neighbor’s renovation or building plans but no say over the tree that’s a vital part of the neighborhood landscape? Topic for another day!) but we can work to ensure that the city trees on our streets continue to flourish despite the odds.
What can you do to help? Cambridge has a new booklet “Working Together: A Healthy Urban Forest Needs Help From All of Us” that can be picked up at City Hall. The Urban Foresty page on the city’s website has lots of info about city initiatives and how you can get involved. Cambridge and Somerville have installed Treegator bags on newly planted street trees. Info on watering the Treegator bag near you and other volunteer efforts is also on the Cambridge website.
City trees enhance real estate values and make the city a much more pleasant and attractive place to live. So grab a bucket and water the trees near you. And if you’re walking your dog – please – curb the dog elsewhere.
Wild Turkey in Inman Square
Wild Turkey in Inman Square
A week or so ago I was driving through Littleton and was startled by a huge wild turkey that flew right in front of me – inches from my windshield. He was gorgeous – like the Bell’s Seasoning turkey come to life.
In retrospect it’s not that astonishing to see a wild turkey in the outer ‘burbs. But I’m always delighted at another wildlife sighting – I’ve seen a deer in Cambridge, a stuck ‘possum in Somerville and another wild turkey in Belmont, just to name a few of my encounters.
I was taken aback this evening though to discover a wild turkey right in the middle of Inman Square. As I drove down Hampshire Street I saw something large (and by large I mean humongous!) and brown land on the sidewalk and pulled over.
The big bird at right sauntered off the sidewalk into this yard tucked behind some buildings. He was searching for dinner on the lawn.
I gotta say – seeing these beautiful birds up close makes me rethink the Thanksgiving menu.
Jumbo Cash
Jumbo Cash In Medford
I was surprised to see this Jumbo Cash Accepted banner on the Tasty Gourmet on Boston Ave. I was psyched – I thought Medford had gotten its own alternative currency.
The alternative currency I had heard a lot about was Berkshares. Berkshares is a local currency for the Berkshire region in Western Massachusetts. It’s intended to encourage people to shop locally and works just like cash in over 400 establishments in the Berkshires. It’s a very interesting way to actually see how shopping locally keeps money in the community.
Turns out, however, that Jumbo Cash is simply the Tufts debit card. It’s sort of an expanded meal card. The Jumbo Cash card is now accepted at more than 20 local off-campus stores and restaurants.
Jumbo Cash – convenient but not world changing.
No Saving Spaces In Cambridge
Reserved Parking Space In Cambridge
No saving spaces in Cambridge – parking spaces that is.
With the repeated snow storms this winter, many Cambridge residents who’ve shoveled out spaces on the city streets have taken to saving their parking spaces by putting out barrels, cones, chairs, even appliances.
Some people take offense at saved spaces. I tend to sympathize. Nothing’s worse than doing a top notch job of clearing away mountains of snow only to have a less than industrious neighbor grab your space - leaving you to circle the block over and over again when you return.
The City of Cambridge has been removing the items used to reserve parking spaces. They’re not done yet – I snapped the table at right on tour today – but the trucks have been going out and every item on the street gets thrown in the truck and taken away when they get to your street. My brother’s building lost its trash barrel that someone was using to save their spot.
Maybe it’s time to take the T and let your car save its space.
Clean Sidewalk Contest in Cambridge
Do You Live On The Best Shoveled Block In Cambridge?
The mild temps we’ve had the last few days were a perfect opportunity to do some clean up work on the sidewalks outside your house. Just what you need – to ensure nobody slips and falls on your walkway – and to get ready for the Best Shoveled Block in Cambridge contest.
The Cambridge Post Office and the Green Streets Iniative are sponsoring the clean sidewalk contest.
Nominations are due by Feb. 25, 2011.
Local letter carriers will be the judges – since they’ve got to navigate city sidewalks all winter they’re well qualified to select the winner.
It’s a wonderful idea to add some fun to the drudgery of shoveling. Neighbors can get together and make sure everyone on their block has kept their stretch of the sidewalk free and clear of ice and snow. Nothing like some competition to get the neighbors out with shovels and snow blowers at the ready.
Information about the Best Shoveled Block Contest in Cambridge is available on the City website.
Feels Like Summer
Snowbound bike in Harvard Square
It feels like summer … well, maybe spring in Cambridge this weekend. It’s been a welcome reprieve from snow and cold temperatures for a couple of days. Funny how high 30s and low 40s can seem so warm.
Many Cambridge residents took advantage of the milder temperatures and finally started digging out cars encased in several feet of icy snow.
This bicyclist however has yet to get back on the road. Wise move probably – many streets still don’t have full lanes cleared yet making city bike riding even more treacherous than usual.
Farm Share Fair in Cambridge
Sign up for a CSA share at the Farm Share Fair
This Thursday there’s a Farm Share Fair in Cambridge where you’ll be able to sign up for a CSA share from farmers who deliver in the Cambridge area.
CSA stands for community supported agriculture. Farmers sell shares in their season’s produce. Each week you’ll receive a box of seasonal vegetables (and in some cases other farm products such as meat or fish). Shares are delivered to local drop off sites.
It’s sort of a fresh vegetables subscription.
Shareholders purchase their shares in advance of the growing season. Shares typically run from June through October. Prices vary and shares can be bought in different sizes. A typical share might cost on the order of $30 per week for approximately 12 to 15 pounds of fresh produce.
Come by this Thursday to meet the farmers. More than a dozen farms are participating. Be sure to bring your checkbook!
Don’t worry if you haven’t been home for dinner.There’ll be pizza and spring rolls available for purchase as a fundraiser.
The Farm Share Fair is sponsored by theMOVE, NOFA/Mass and Somerville Climate Action.
The Cambridge Farm Share Fair is scheduled for Thursday, Feb. 3, 2011 from 5:30 to 8:00 pm in Harvard Square at the Democracy Center, 45 Mount Auburn Street, Cambridge, MA 02138.
No More Room In Cambridge
No Parking Until Further Notice Signs Posted in Cambridge
No more room in Cambridge… or in Arlington, or Boston, or Medford or any other town or city in the area. No more room for snow that is.
We are buried. The last snow shoveling marathon was prolonged because of the time and energy it took to throw the snow on piles now over our heads.
With piles this high driving is a bear. So is parking. And walking. Forget about biking. Mass Avenue is down to a lane and a half as long as nobody is trying to get in or out of a car along the snowbanks. Two-way streets are one-ways and one-ways – well, you might just be sitting there for a while. We sat on Trowbridge Street during our tour of new listings for over twenty minutes waiting for the recycling truck to finish that one block.
Towns and cities have instituted parking bans to keep the roads clear. Arlington is restricting parking on certain sides of the street. Cambridge has prohibited parking along many well traveled roads like Magazine Street in Cambridgeport or Cedar Street in North Cambridge.
It’s time to take the snow away! Somerville removes snow as a matter or course. On the news tonight they reported that Waltham is removing more than 70,000 tons of snow for the first time since 1995.
If you just moved to Cambridge take heart – this isn’t our typical winter. 1995-1996 in fact was the snowiest winter on record in Boston. We may just beat that this year – it’s still January for cripes sake! but happily we get plenty of winters where the ground is just about bare for many days.
Bare ground. I can’t wait.
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