Dear Friends,
As we enter 2015, we are excited to have much good news to share with you. At the end of 2014, we finalized purchase of our office at 69 Beacon Street from Santander Bank. Thanks to Santander, we have enjoyed three rent-free years at a perfect location for the Friends, directly across the street from the Common and Garden and easily accessible to the public. The bank worked out a very favorable purchase price for us that was significantly below market. Thanks to Santander's generosity, we now begin 2015 from a much firmer foundation in our permanent home. We are also grateful to First Republic Bank for a very favorable mortgage rate.
Thanks to many generous supporters and the leadership of neighbors who started us down this road, we are $18,000 short of reaching our $700,000 fundraising goal needed to restore and establish a maintenance fund for the fountain at the George Robert White Memorial - known as the "Angel" - in the Garden. Plans are being developed, approvals will be sought, and our goal is to break ground in mid-July for completion early in the fall. After many decades as a dry basin, water will flow there once again!
We are working with the Parks Department to launch the Year of the Common. Together with the City we must enhance safety on the Common, improve the park's condition and maintenance, and ensure that use is managed to allow all to enjoy this popular greenspace while safeguarding its long-term health. A Cultural Landscape Report is being prepared that chronicles the 380-year history and evolution of the park from pasture to family-friendly 21st century park.
Anne Brooke, Chair
Elizabeth Vizza, Executive Director
