Charles Street

An incensed Beacon Hill resident or visitor complains:

Huge sandwich board sign on Charles Street. There are almost 2 dozen from Charles Circle to Beacon Street. I believe they are against Boston Sign Code. Now as one store owner sets one up, they are proliferating down the street. Please warn owners. Thank you.

Both the Boston Globe and Boston Herald are reporting that an electrical short circuit spark was the cause of the July 8th basement fire at DeLuca's Market on Beacon Hill.

“It is known that there was an electrical problem earlier that morning that resulted in an electrician being called and then doing work in the basement,” Boston Fire Department spokesman Steve MacDonald said.

Boston Fire Department reports the cause of the carbon monoxide was "a small hole" in a boiler that let the gas escape into the hotel ventilation system. No injuries.

Local 718 tweeted around 10:15 a.m.

Fire crews still on scene at the former Charles Street jail an hour later, when Local 716 tweeted CO meters on multiple floors were showing levels of 20 parts per million (ppm), with peaks as high as 53 ppm. The lower levels are considered a potential problem for young children and people with serious breathing issues; the higher levels are considered "excessive" and anybody exposed to them should be checked by a doctor.

Among the evacuated guests, spotted by Phillip McCarthy:

[A] guy standing at the corner of Pinckney and Charles streets with two diaper-clad monkeys on his shoulders.

Channel 5 reports the monkeys are staying at the hotel while they film "The Zookeeper." No word if they're distraught over the death of their co-star, Tweet the giraffe.

That recent Globe piece on unruly bike riders featured a photo of a bicyclist going the wrong way on Charles Street. Sean Roche explains why the bicyclists had no choice: There is no legal way for a bicyclist to head north from Beacon between the Storrow entrance and Bowdoin Street, because all the roads are one way towards Beacon.

... The picture of supposed biker carelessness is more damning of a city that doesn't provide any accommodation on a stretch that really needs it. But, it's not just bikers who are shortchanged by the configuration of Charles St.

Quite obviously, allocating all the space between the curbs to either parking or auto travel doesn't serve the needs of those on two wheels. Less obviously, the three lanes of one-way travel ill-serve the neighborhood. Three lanes of one-way traffic serve one principal purpose: moving traffic. Local merchants don't benefit from through traffic. Nor do the folks who live in the area. ...

Ed. oldtimer note/question: I seem to recall Charles used to go the other way, but one night, DPW crews reversed the direction on orders of Kevin White, who wanted to limit the flow of hoi polloi on the street. Do I remember correctly?