City Hall Plaza

Mother Nature has some unfinished business in Boston

adamg — Sat, 21 Jan 2012 03:48:28 +0000

John Michael Garcia's photo of City Hall Plaza after last night's snow shows Mother Nature missed a few spots - which she'll probably get to tomorrow.

Wall to wall bicycles

adamg — Mon, 26 Sep 2011 02:11:04 +0000

Maria Varmazis videoed the start of the annual Hub on Wheels race at City Hall Plaza today. Mystery Pill photographed the race underway:

Photo copyright Mystery Pill. Posted in the Universal Hub pool on Flickr.

Haverhill punks to blame for concert violence?

adamg — Tue, 09 Aug 2011 04:34:19 +0000

The Herald was slow to rev up to the Mac Miller affair, but now it's in full-court mode: Dave Wedge has the mayor blaming burb thugs and citing Haverhill specifically as a possible hogmosh of teen violence. Because we know kids from Westie and Southie would never cause problems.

Hizzona in the hizzle: Wants review of concert chaos

adamg — Mon, 08 Aug 2011 17:14:02 +0000

Miller raps about sexin' up bitches and hoes under a Menino banner. Video | Lyrics

The Herald reports Mayor Menino is meeting with advisors today to discuss "unrest" at Saturday's Mac Miller show, which featured a rapper making more explicit references to the druggy lifestyle than the T-shirts the mayor blasted Niketown for displaying in its storefront on Newbury Street - plus bonus random mayhem as some fans took the opportunity to pummel each other and throw water bottles into the air.

Concert outside City Hall ends in roving melee across downtown

adamg — Sun, 07 Aug 2011 02:06:06 +0000

UPDATE: I originally posted a video showing a group of knuckleheads on City Hall Plaza punching each other out. YouTube took it down, claiming it violates its terms of service - but not before Barstool Sports saved a copy:

A concert by Pittsburgh rapper Mac Miller at City Hall Plaza tonight featured fights and ended in more fights and disturbances that brought police units from across the city.

Fights broke out from City Hall Plaza to Winter and Tremont streets - where dozens of panicked people who thought they heard gunshots suddenly started running down Winter toward Washington Street. Detectives looked for bullets or other evidence of gunfire but found none.

Tremont Street was briefly closed to traffic as police tried to clear the crowds.

Account of what it was like on the Red Line, both before and after the concert.

Water bottles flying before Miller took the stage (they continued through his set):

That's a lot of bicycles

adamg — Thu, 28 Jul 2011 14:46:24 +0000

Dan K photographed City Hall Plaza full of new bikes awaiting the formal launch of the Hubway bike-rental network today.

Boston to continue tradition of putting Celtics statues in random locations

adamg — Mon, 11 Jul 2011 12:01:13 +0000

WBZ reports the Bill Russell statue will be built in City Hall Plaza, just up the steps from the Red Auerbach statue in Faneuil Hall Marketplace.

Who climbs on a pineapple over the sea?

adamg — Sun, 03 Jul 2011 22:59:41 +0000

Chowdafest wasn't the only thing going on on City Hall Plaza today. Kids got the chance to climb up a "wall" in the shape of a giant pineapple.

City Hall Plaza begins to fulfill ultimate destiny as a parking lot

adamg — Tue, 14 Jun 2011 20:40:33 +0000

Privileged City Hall workers and contractors have, of course, been parking on City Hall Plaza for years, but the city's finally made the practice official by installing a guard booth and a permanent, if somewhat flimsy, gate by the T stop (Ed. note: See comments, which note the booth and gate have been there longer than an apparently unobservant reporter had thought).

This morning, the guard seemed to be spending most of his time rushing out of the booth to shoo away people trying to park in front of the three electric-car recharging stations on Cambridge Street to keep them clear for all those electric vehicles in Boston that need recharging. Even a Prius did not escape his glare and request to move.

Electrical fire across from City Hall

adamg — Tue, 31 May 2011 14:50:57 +0000

Boston firefighters responded to 100 City Hall Plaza around 10:30 for an electrical fire in the basement. The fire was reported out about 20 minutes later.

John Michael Garcia took the photo from Centre Plaza. Chenze Cao took a street-level photo.

5/31/11 - 10:30 am

Boloco: City inspectors threatened to shut restaurant over burrito donations to event organized by the mayor

adamg — Fri, 22 Apr 2011 03:32:46 +0000

John Pepper, founder of the Boloco chain, is ripping into the city on Twitter tonight for what happened with the burritos the mayor's office promised bicyclists who showed up at the Hubway bike-rental announcement in front of City Hall today:

City of Boston threatened 2 shut down fed st Boloco b/c City of Boston didn't pull food permit for their own event. We donated 200 burritos.

How a city can thank businesses for supporting its civic efforts with rudeness, threats, and disrespect has us reeling today.

Not staying quiet any longer. Between the union rackets, bureaucracy, red tape, and lack of graciousness it's a wonder anything gets done.

The mayor recently proposed a one-stop Business Resource Center aimed at making it easier for small businesses to get things done in Boston. However, it's part of his budget for the fiscal year that starts July 1.

Another day, another proposal to spruce up City Hall Plaza

adamg — Thu, 10 Feb 2011 12:34:48 +0000

John Carroll yawns, turns to the comics.

Finally, a city program we can really sink our teeth into

adamg — Fri, 13 Aug 2010 18:07:51 +0000

The city wants to turn City Hall Plaza into a mobile food court - it's requesting formal proposals from owners of food trucks who want to set up shop on the brick expanse:

The City of Boston seeks creative mobile food vending proposals for a multi-round selection process. Selected winners will receive technical assistance, permitting guidance, and assistance applying for low-interest loans from the City of Boston, in order to begin mobile food vending operations on City Hall Plaza by Spring 2011. The focus for selection will be to promote health, community, and sustainability.

If you want to keep on truckin', applications are due by Sept. 13.

Via Lindsay Crudele.

An alternative to risking your life on the Red Line

adamg — Sun, 08 Nov 2009 19:39:10 +0000

BostonTweet took some video of a new breed of commuters on City Hall Plaza today:

If you fall on crumbling stairs at City Hall Plaza and break your arm, tough

adamg — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 14:51:28 +0000

The Massachusetts Appeals Court today rejected a lawsuit against the city by a woman who fell on crumbling stairs on City Hall Plaza and suffered "a complex fracture of her wrist" in 2001.

The court held the city was protected from liability by a clause in a state law designed to encourage property owners to open their land - in this case, the plaza - to recreational use. The court ruled the clause applied even though the city admitted the stairs "were crumbling and in need of repair."