CAPTION: Living (left) and dining (right) areas of the units inside the condos at 136 Arlington St.

A local designer and her husband has rehabbed an abandoned blight on Arlington Street into a hip urban 5-unit condo building. Featuring some of the latest in eco-friendly as well as luxury features, 136 Arlington St. will host an open house to show three of the units.
The units feature lots of natural light, oversized insulated windows, exposed brick walls, radiant heating throughout, and wide pine floors from reclaimed lumber.
The building was a former Swedish church in Bay Village, and later a recording studio, whose façade had been lopped off during the widening of Arlington Street years ago. It sat empty for more than 20 years, with a hole in the roof and no floors inside, when three years ago, This Old House designer Lisey Good and her real estate developer husband, Lenny Snyderman, bought it.
“This is the largest project we’ve ever done,” said Lisey, who has also been a designer on high-profile projects such This Old House. “It’s been easier than I would have thought.”
Often with extensive rehabs, developers go through an extensive trial of permit applications and neighborhood concerns. “We were so nervous when we posed this project to them,” she recalled. “Boston can be difficult when you make changes to a building.”
But in this case, Bay Village and the city were thrilled with the project. Good received the ok to change the zoning to residential, to paint the doors red and add copper sconces around the entrances, and went to work.
“The neighborhood was incredibly welcoming to us,” she said. “Bay Village was really helpful. This was a blight here.”
Good did some research, and found an old photo of the church to pick up some elements for the building redesign, which now includes a pediment and oculous window added to the second floor arch.
Inside, she and her husband followed followed strict LEEDS guidelines to make this an environmentally friendly project.
“My husband and I are into the environment” she said. “It’s not like we’re big real estate developers. We feel it’s not worth doing if you’re not proud of it.“ Going green was pricy, she says, but “It’s the right thing to do, in this day and age, and I think (interested buyers) will agree.”
They used reclaimed materials wherever possible, including interior walls featuring noise-deadening recycled denim insulation, reusing the wood taken from the house itself, using Silestone kitchen counters made of recycled glass and quartz. Otherwise, they recycled the leftover drywall and other construction materials, even donating the leftover materials to a nonprofit dedicated to building low-income housing.
They tried to shop locally to cut down on gas costs, buying slate floors from Vermont, reclaimed wood from Maine, and reclaimed architectural details from local shops like Old Bostonian. )
It’s eco-friendly from top to bottom, from the roof seeded with wildflowers to attract honeybees, birds and butterflies, down to the rainwater tanks that capture and filter rainwater for re-use in the washers and the low-flow/dual-flush toilets. ““I believe it is one of the first buildings in the area to actually re-charge the groundwater,” said Good. “There are enormous tanks in the basement that sense when the groundwater gets low and then inject water.”
To reduce energy costs, units have ceiling fans to redistribute heat and cut down on air conditioning, Energy Star appliances, light dimmers, and efficient radiant heating in every floor throughout the building. It’s so efficient, that the whole building – five units – will heat for the same price as her former 1,600 square foot Beacon Hill unit, she says. “It has good insulation.”
Other details include low/No VOC paints and solvents throughout.
Each unit has high ceilings, new sound-dampening argon filled windows, stainless steel kitchen appliances, stainless shelving and storage, Halogen track lights, laundry and storage.
Units one and two feature a slate-floored common area featuring one wall of floor-to-ceiling exposed bricks.
In Unit 1, a 1,081 square foot loft-style duplex, offered at $599,000, is a large two floor unit. “It’s a true loft that’s totally open, with no divider walls,” she says, describing the design as “a little funky.”
The entranceway faces enormous windows with deep window-seat sills that will feature an exterior bamboo curtain to block the alleyway. A catwalk with wrought-iron railings peeks into the lower level of the unit, an oversized space with spot-lit custom bookshelves, stained and scored polished concrete floors, 20-foot ceilings and a European style galley kitchen with large pantry closet, and oversized commercial faucet and deep stainless sink. The spacious bath features slate tile and a deep soaking bathtub.
The bedroom area features tall curtains for privacy, can accommodate a king size bed and is lit by recessed lighting and wall sconces.
Unit 2 is a sunny 465 sq ft studio offered at $399,000. The unit features large windows with deep window-seat sills and custom wood Venetian blinds. A dividing wall separates the eat-in kitchen and living room from a bedroom that accommodates a queen size bed and features a roomy closet.
A spacious bath features a slate floor, oversized shower and custom storage shelves.
Unit 3 is a 1,224 sq. ft. 2 bedroom/2 bath floor-through offered at $799,000. It features a slate-floored common area reserved for the exclusive use of Unit 3 and the Penthouse unit only.
The loft room features 9-foot ceilings, wide pine floors and exposed brick walls drenched in sun from two tall windows with city views, and two floor-to-ceiling French doors opening onto a wrought iron Juliet balcony.
A reading nook/small dining or office area features built-in bookshelves and a hidden storage area. The floors are reclaimed barn wood. “It’s hard to get these wide floors,” said Good.
The open gourmet kitchen also has an oversized bar.
The unit also features a large hall closet, compact home office unit with desk and storage.
Lisey, her husband and their dog, Cooper, will live on the top 3 floors, reachable by an elevator.
They are former BeaconHill residents who loved the historic neighborhood. “I was really sad to leave Beacon Hill,” she said. But then she opened two huge sliding windows in her new home, to a roof terrace that will be landscaped. “This is why I wanted to move here. You don’t get this much sunlight on Beacon Hill unless you live on Beacon Street. The dog would lie in the one small sunny patch we had.” Now Cooper has its own dog-height arched alcoves to lay in the sun.
The area is undergoing several other rehabs, including the building next door, which will be the future Boston Center for Adult Education, which Good says she’s thrilled about.
But if she does say so herself, the building’s extreme makeover is even more thrilling. “The transformation is really amazing—inside and out,” she says.

A recount held Saturday at city hall reaffirmed that Sonia Chang-Diaz had defeated incumbent Diane Wilkerson in the 2nd Suffolk state senate Democratic primary, paving the way for what should be an easy general election victory for Chang-Diaz.
The recount reduced Chang-Diaz’s margin slightly, as Wilkerson tallied higher totals in some of her strongholds. But, in the end, there was not enough movement in the totals to change the outcome.
The Chang-Diaz camp moved quickly to declare victory, reminding voters that only one candidate would appear alongside the party heavyweights in November.
"I'm honored to have won the support of the voters of the Second Suffolk in this election, and I'm looking forward to joining Barack Obama, John Kerry and the rest of our Democratic ticket on the ballot this November," said Chang-Diaz.
The sentiment was echoed by members of her staff.
“The winner who is certified after the recount will be the endorsed candidate of the Democratic Party. That nominee – and that nominee alone – will have earned and will receive the full benefit that comes with that nomination,” said Chang-Diaz campaign chair Alex Goldstein in the lead-up to the count. “There is only ONE candidate who has earned and will share the Democratic ticket with Barack Obama, Joe Biden, and John Kerry.”
The recount centered on about 8,000 votes from the respective candidates’ strongholds. After the count, Chang-Diaz’s margin had been reduced by 15 votes, thanks to a net gain of 10 for Wilkerson and a net loss of 5 for the challenger, according to numbers released by the Boston Globe.
Wilkerson, however, has vowed to fight on, already planning to wage a write-in campaign to challenge Chang-Diaz in the general election. It will be a so-called “sticker” campaign, in which stickers with the candidate’s name are distributed to voters to be affixed to ballots. It is not a position unfamiliar to the Wilkerson team; in 2006, Wilkerson was forced to defend her seat via sticker campaign in the Democratic primary after failing to secure the requisite number of signatures to appear on the ballot. Wilkerson prevailed in that race, and her team is confident that, with a high enough turnout in an exciting presidential election year, they can prevail again.
And while Wilkerson received a number of key endorsements from Democratic politicians, including John Kerry and Deval Patrick, it is doubtful whether she will be able to count on their support in the general election.
One thing she will certainly not have, however, is any support from her former party. The Massachusetts Democratic Party intends to fully support the nominee Chang-Diaz.
"[Chang-Diaz] will now receive all the benefits from the party that every primary winner is entitled to," said party chair John Walsh. “I expect that in the days ahead we will hold an endorsement event to help Sonia make the final push to victory in November.”
Wilkerson and Chang-Diaz will be joined on the ballot by Socialist Workers Party candidate William Theodore Leonard.

As part of its focus on facilitating discussions on important public policy topics in the City of Boston, the Boston Ward 5 Democratic Committee held a "Fall Public Policy Forum" last evening on September 22, 2008, in Suffolk University Law School’s Main Function Room, at 6:30 pm. The forum was entitled “Ending Homelessness in Massachusetts: New Thinking on an Age-Old Problem,” and focused on the new initiatives to end homelessness in our Commonwealth. Suffolk University Law School’s Rappaport Center for Law and Public Service co-sponsored the event. This was the first public policy forum to focus on the state’s new initiatives to combat chronic homelessness.
Lt. Governor Timothy Murray delivered the opening remarks. The panelists were: Tina Brooks, Undersecretary, Department of Housing and Community Development; Dianne Wilkerson, Massachusetts State Senator; James Greene, Acting Director, City of Boston Emergency Shelter Commission; Stephanie Brown, Director of Housing, Department of Transitional Assistance; Duamarius Stukes, Director, Housing and Assisted Living, Executive Office of Elder Affairs; and Tom Lorello, Executive Director, Shelter, Inc. Robert Pulster, Executive Director, Interagency Council on Housing and Homelessness, moderated the panel discussion.
At the forum, we heard from the state agencies charged with the implementation of the new state policy to end homelessness in Massachusetts. We learned about the implementation strategies for the program, the policy and program design, similar initiatives in other states, and how revenues will be re-allocated from shelter services to permanent housing for this new initiative. We also heard the City of Boston's perspective on this new initiative and its impact on the City's homeless population going forward.
Over 70 members of the public attended the forum, including several homeless persons. State Representative Marty Walz and Boston City Councillor Mike Ross also attended the event.

If last week’s public meeting is any indication, the Bay State’s police officers are not ready to back down on a proposal that could cost them thousands of dollars in annual income.
In a cost-savings measure, the state is looking to pass legislation that would require all constructions sites below a certain speed to be manned by civilian staffers rather than police details. The flaggers would only work in construction areas on roads with speed limits of under 45 miles per hour, and would come at a much cheaper cost to the public. The state hopes to have the flaggers working this fall.
“We have to be mindful to the needs of the taxpayer,” said Massachusetts Highway Commissioner Luis Paeiwonsky. “Because the proposal meets the needs of efficient government for the public, we strongly support it.”
However, police representatives asserted cost savings would come at the expense of public safety, taking police off the street in favor of less thoroughly trained civilian flaggers. They also disputed how much money would actually be saved, casting the decision as more politically than fiscally motivated.
“This is nothing more than a politically motivated decision,” said state AFL-CIO representative Robert Hanes. Hanes, who has partnered with Governor Patrick in the past to promote casinos, offered a blistering rebuke to the administration’s passage of the flagger legislation.
“They’ve simply dusted off an old plan from a Republican playbook,” said Hanes, who called the proponents “free market zealots” to thunderous applause. He criticized the plan for superseding the right of local police and government to run their towns. “Nowhere is there consideration for chiefs of police or local officials. How can you say you know better [how to man sites] than town mayors and chiefs of police? Show some respect for our municipal leaders,” he said.
Hanes added the fiscal benefit was overstated because estimates failed to take into account the liability and training costs.
Hugh Cameron of the Massachusetts Coalition of Police pointed out the danger to public safety inherent in replacing trained officers with flaggers. “How is this public safety? Details serve an important social function by putting more police on the street,” said Cameron, who pointed out how oftentimes, detail officers are the first to respond to emergencies.
The proposal was defended by David Tuerk of the Beacon Hill Institute, a conservative think tank whose original study for the Romney administration predicted millions of dollars in savings to the state by switching from police details to flaggers.
Tuerk said it was ridiculous for police to be paid tens of thousands of dollars for work that was not part of their normal duties and explained that civilian flaggers would earn far less than the approximately $30 per hour paid on average to police on detail work. If police were unhappy with their salaries, it was incumbent on their union representatives to negotiate better contracts.
Tuerk’s statements were greeted with boos and catcalls from the heavily pro-police audience.
“We should have had this meeting in Fenway Park so we could hear from the millions of Massachusetts taxpayers who will benefit from this law,” Tuerk said in response to the heckling.
State Representative Marty Walz said she supports flaggers, pointing out that Massachusetts is the only state in the nation that requires police details.