Callahan Tunnel to Close for Three Months in 2014
A major connector between Boston’s North End and East Boston will be shut down for three months at the beginning of 2014. The Callahan Tunnel will close beginning in January 2014 and ending three months later with intermittent overnight closures four four to five months thereafter for a “complete rehabilitation,” according to a Massachusetts Department of Transportation statement Thursday. “The Callahan has served motorists well since the day it opened in 1961 and was paired with the Sumner tunnel,” MassDOT Highway Administrator Frank DePaola said in the statement. “However, every aspect of the tunnel is in fair to poor condition, and the time has come to put the Callahan in shape to last another 50 years.” There will be “extensive public outreach” to determine the best available detours and alternate routes during the closure, according to the statement. The $ 34.9 million tunnel overhaul will include rehabilitation of the 52-year old tunnel’s deck, curb line, gutters and replacement of the tunnel’s wall panels. MassDOT has scheduled a public information session regarding the closure: Wednesday, June 26 – 6:30pm, East Boston High School, 86 White Street According to the statement: In December 2012, a single wall panel fell during evening rush hour. There were no injuries to motorists, damage to vehicles or structural concerns; however, three additional panels are removed as a precaution that evening. MassDOT immediately in December conducted an overnight pull-test of all 2800 panels inside the Callahan Tunnel, removing approximately 120 panels due to either advanced corrosion or as a precaution. In January 2013, plans were carried out to remove all the panels from the Callahan to ensure safety, resulting in dim conditions but no structural issues. SOUTH END PATCH: Facebook | Twitter | E-mail Updates South End Patch
South End Crime Down Over First 4 Months in 2013
Major crimes were down in the South End during the first four months of 2013 as compared to 2012, according to recently released Boston Police figures. In the D-4 Police district, which covers the South End, Fenway/Kenmore, the Back Bay and Lower Roxbury, overall Part One crime – which includes incidents of homicide, rape (including attempted rape), robbery (including attempted robbery), aggravated assault, burglary (including attempted burglary), larceny (including attempted larceny) and motor vehicle theft (including attempted motor vehicle theft) – was down 12 percent during the period beginning Jan. 1, 2013 and ending April 22, 2013 compared to the same period in 2012. There were 1,078 incidences of Part One crime in D-4 over that span in 2013, compared to 1,222 in 2012. The highest number of incidents in both years related to larceny and attempted larceny. In 2013, police reported 811 incidents of larceny compared to 920 in 2013. Burglaries went up in 2013, with police reporting 91 incidents in 2013 compared to 85 in 2012. Incidents of crime were down in all other categories in D-4 except for rape or attempted rape (4 in 2013, 3 in 2012). Crime was down 14 percent in all of Boston during this time period. South End Patch
Months After Heart Transplant, Woman Seeks To Give Back
Jane Tecce has the unique perspective of having experienced both sides of being an organ donor. Years ago after her son’s death at the age of 24, his organs were donated so that others could have a new chance at life. Now, Tecce herself is still recovering from a heart transplant that she received some 16 months ago. She also received a kidney transplant at that time. “My kids are starting to have kids now. I’m being a grammy. I can’t imagine not being here,” she said in a recent conversation with Patch.com. Tecce said that she was first diagnosed with heart disease about 12 years ago. Tecce moved to Lynnfield two years ago and grew up in Wakefield, graduating from Wakefield Memorial High School. Her family owns Santoro’s in Peabody, she reported. Her motivation to help spread the word about becoming an organ donor is not limited to just her own experiences. Tecce lost one brother, David, to heart disease when he was 51 and waiting for a heart transplant. A younger brother Jimmy, reportedly had a heart transplant in 2000 at Tufts and lived for eight years after that. “I’ve been on both ends of it. That’s what I feel is important,” she said. According to Tecce, organ donors and recipients actually interact somewhat routinely through email and letters if they wish to do so – although this typically won’t happen until a year or so after a transplant. In her own case, she met her donor’s family, who were from Rhode Island, on the one-year anniversary of the transplant, something she described as “very emotional.” Those who receive an organ transplant will face an elevated risk of infection in the months after the procedure, and Tecce recalled having some setbacks in the early going. “In the last six months, I’ve done really, really well,” she said, adding that she also hopes to return to work while also potentially doing some speaking and information tables for the New England Organ Bank. “I want to remember the people that gave me this chance,” said Tecce. To learn more about becoming an organ donor, visit the New England Organ Bank’s DonateLifeNewEngland.org website here. South End Patch