Charles St Clean-Up Set for Wednesday

By Dan Murphy

The Joint Charles Street Committee is spearheading a fall clean up on Wednesday, Oct. 19, to not only beautify the street, but also to raise awareness of its tree-pits.

“We want residents to get involved and adopt a tree-pit, and for businesses to become stewards of the tree-pits in front of their storefronts,” said John Corey, co-chair of the committee, a collaboration between the Beacon Hill Civic Association and the Beacon Hill Business Association.

From 2 to 5 p.m., volunteers, who are invited to pitch in for any amount of time along the way, will begin cleaning sidewalks, street gutters and tree pits at Beacon and Charles streets, eventually making their way to Charles Circle adjacent to the CVS Pharmacy. They will be provided with some cleaning supplies, including brooms, dustpans and trash bags, but are asked to bring their own.

Corey said the clean up would allow the Business Association to fulfill its long-standing desire to participate in the Civic Association’s program to install guards in tree-pits along Charles Street.

Ali Ringenburg, the Business Association’s vice president and owner and director of the Sloane Merrill Gallery on Charles Street, describes the effort, which is also supported by the Civic Association’s Streets and Sidewalks Committee and the Beacon Hill Garden Club, as a “very positive collaboration.”

“We really see the cleanliness and beauty of Charles Street as being the responsibility of businesses, residents and the city, and we’re trying to come together on this day to focus on what is one of the most beautiful streets in the city,” she said.

Ringenburg also expressed her gratitude to Jacob Wessel, Mayor Martin J. Walsh’s liaison to Beacon Hill, for helping to facilitate the clean up.

            “Jacob has given us incredible support and a voice,” she said. “He’s right there in the thick of it with us.”

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