Algorithm behind new guide to Boston neighborhoods could use some work
By adamg - 8/13/10 - 3:17 pm
Because, as a longish-time resident of the area between West Roxbury and Jamaica Plain, I can assure you it is not called Metropolitan Hill or Centre-South. And I'm pretty sure we don't border Upper Washington.
Ed. note: Yes, there is a Metropolitan Hill. It's one single hill in Roslindale, right next to Grew Hill. But unless you're talking to somebody who lives on Poplar Street, you'd never say that to somebody who asks where you live. Centre-South? Try "Roslindale Village" or "the Arboretum," if you must. Upper Washington? OK, sounds classier than boring old "Washington Street."
Comments
There is no "Allston-Brighton"
We might argue endlessly about where the border is exactly, but having lived in both Allston and Brighton I can avow that they are two different neighborhoods!
Bah.
To the rest of the city, we're just "that piece out past BU that Brookline gets in the way of".
That's ok. Half of Brighton
That's ok. Half of Brighton isn't even IN Allston-Brighton, apparently. It's in Newtonville.
No confusion on border between Allston and Brighton
There really is no confusion on the border between Allston and Brighton. Zip code 02134 vs. 02135. Even the Google can tell you where one begins and the other ends...
oh sure,
so now you can explain how at the corner of comm. and warren everyplace on both streets has a zip of 02135, except for the shop right on the corner which has 02134?
ZIP Codes do not have
ZIP Codes do not have borders. They are not polygons. Any map that claims to show them as such is likely showing you ZCTAs.
"Centre-South" could be a
"Centre-South" could be a reference to Centre and South streets in JP. A non-profit business promotion organization for that business district is called JP Centre/South Main Streets.
That would, of course, still be wildly wrong.
Centre-South == The Monument in JP
If I heard that someone lived or had a business in 'Centre-South', I'd also assume they were referring to the Monument where these two streets merge in Jamaica Plain.
West End?
There are also two places called "Downtown": one small section sandwiched between "Downtown Crossing" and "Chinatown" that oddly includes the Chinatown T stop and another section that is basically the West End. Even if they couldn't be bothered to go back that far in the history books (renaming the Science Park T stop notwithstanding), one would think they could at least get to "Charles River Park" since that is definitely not "downtown".
It's interesting to see that
It's interesting to see that I apparently still live in Metropolitan Hill, even though I thought that ended when I moved down to the square. Of the three, I don't particularly object to any as names for a particular section of Rozzie, but I do think the boundaries could use some tweaking. I most definitely do not live on Metropolitan Hill, and I know this because I don't have to go sliding down the ice on Augustus as I make my way to Romano's.
We are listening and thank you for the feedback:
Hi all,
NabeWise improves based on the feedback of the locals who use our site. When a city is first seeding we spend a lot of time talking with people about how the neighborhoods should be tweaked. If you look at New York and San Francisco, those cities are in a much more final state.
We are actually building a tool that will let people tell us through our website if they disagree with the neighborhoods as we have represented them. This should be coming out soon! In the meantime we would love it if you would email us your thoughts to: Alex at NabeWise.com.
Thank you so much,
Ann
Ann at NabeWise.com
Roslindale Village? NO ONE
Roslindale Village? NO ONE from the Roslindale area has ever called Rossie Square Roslindale Village.
I hear ya, but ...
The sad reality is there are people who live here now who call it Roslindale Village.
The commuter rail station is called Roslindale Village
and has been ever since the railroad line reopened in 1987. That's 23 years ago, folks.
Um ...
Didn't we just have this discussion about 128/95?
Just because some government agency arbitrarily decides to rename X as Y doesn't mean the people who live there have to like it - or follow it.
That having been said, as a Squayuh partisan, I admit that "Village" is slowly gaining acceptance.
True, but ...
I don't hear a lot of folks still using the names 'Essex' or 'Columbia' for those MBTA stations.
Auditorium!
So there! :)
auditorium?
WIN! :)
A thousand noes to the villages
Name the T station anything you want.
Renaming squares and corners as villages?
Sorry, that's Soviet-stlye remaking of history.
Adams Corner and Rossie Square til the day I die.
And can someone please tell all the newscasters that the "h" is silent on all the towns ending in "-ham?"
How do you pronounce Stoneham?
I hear STONE'em and Stone-Ham about equally often. Even the town hall wasn't able to supply me with an official pronunciation when i called to ask.
Exception proves the rule?
Never thought about it, but I guess I say Stone-em, probably for consistency's sake..
The first syllable ending in an "e" makes it a little different than the Dedhams and Easthams.
As for how it "should" be pronounced, I'd look to how its namesake in England is pronounced as a starting point.
Not so quick with Eastham
Eastham is pronounced "east-HAM."
Ok, the HAM thing isn't so clear-cut
I was thinking Chatham not Eastham but obviously it's not cut and dried.
But can we all agree it's not TREE-mont Street?
Tree-mont?
Can you take that to Cope-ly Square?
I've heard people born and
I've heard people born and raised in Stoneham who have refered to it both as Stonum and Stone-Ham. The people with heavier Greater Woburn accents seem to lean towards Ham not Num.
Framing-am?
Sorry, had to bring the Big F up.
Good reason for the T name changes
They built the JFK museum and the Chinatown name helps the out-of towners.
No good reason for renaming the squares and corners villages.
Yes, more Rozzie-ites are
calling it "roslindale village" instead of "Rozzie Square". I think Village sounds a bit gentrified but whatever works.
.
I thought it was just called Roslindale. Hmmph.
there's no "Z" in Roslindale
And it's been "ROSI square" not "Rozzie Square" since the late 60s.
Truth is, there is room for
Truth is, there is room for both terms. I consider the square to be the area bounded by Washington, South St., Belgrade, and Corinth. Poplar St. is the only one that passes through the square rather than defines the edge. That are should never be referred to as the Village. But what of the immediately surrounding area? Why not say Roslindale Village for that?
Met Hill
Well, as an old time Roslindalian, we did refer to the neighborhood around there as "Met Hill", but not as large an area as they have on the map. Same with Centre & South - we would refer to the immediate area as "near Centre & South". And my grandparents did call it Roslindale Village, although since the 60s or so everyone around there just referred to it as "The Square" or "Rossie Square."
Roslindale Village vs Square
So, calling it Roslindale Village is a re-evocation of its original glory days? Glad to hear this -- as the shopping and municipal complex there is clearly more than a mere "square". ;~}
The 'Village' name came when
The 'Village' name came when they got some money from the Feds to spruce up neighborhood centers. It was a top-down public relations thing - which is why it bothers many long-time residents. It came across like developers naming a new subdivision 'Whistling Cedars' when there are no trees yet - phoney.
Village
The T Station is named Roslindale Village and the local Main Streets program (the 1st in the City) is Roslindale Village Main Streets (RVMS). Considering that RVMS is a grass roots organization organized by locals to help revitalize the Village/Square, I think its wierd that people think its something that "new" people made up. Anyway, most people I know use "The Sqare" and "The Village" interchangeably.
I lived in Roslindale in 1985
I lived in Roslindale in 1985 when the Main Streets program was introduced, and I remember it very well. How about you?
I'm not sure it really
I'm not sure it really bothers too many long time residents. Anyway, most of them moved out, which is why the square spent the 70s and 80s in the dumps. It's been mostly new residents since then. But as I said in another comment, both terms can work so long as they aren't applied to identical geographic designations.