BrooklineCAN Blog

These links to websites may help you keep informed and get through the  “stay at home” time.

Brookline Covid-19 Website gives updates on the situation in Brookline. It indicates the time and date of the update. You can subscribe for email notification any new information etc.   https://brooklinecovid19.com/

15 Minute pickup and delivery parking.  The town has created these parking spaces in various shopping areas around town.  See the link  (http://www.tinyurl.com/brooklinecovid19pickup) developed by Hugh Mattison listing the places and a map to show the locations.

Mutual Aid Brookline is a community group to help people affected by the Covid-19 virus. There is a Hotline: 617-651-1468,   Email: MutualAidBrookline@gmail.com  and for the website click here.

This is a list of local restaurants that offer take out, delivery or curbside pickup. It comes from the Brookline PATCH.  It is a good idea to call to make sure they are still offering the service. Click here for list

The Brookline Library list of electronic resources includes ebooks you can download to your computer, audiobooks, movies, magazines and more. https://www.brooklinelibrary.org/elibrary/online-resources/

I am reaching out with a very important update from the Town of Brookline regarding Senior Center programming.

In order to proactively slow and reduce the spread of COVID-19 in our community, the Town of Brookline has prohibited all non-essential public meetings and events in town or school facilities effective Wednesday, March 11 at 8 pm through April 30, 2020. This means that the Senior Center is CLOSED TO THE PUBLIC during this time.

Recently the Brookline Council on Aging received a grant from the National Council on Aging to pilot a rideshare subsidy program through Lyft.  There is currently funding for more users.  Participants receive four subsidized rides of up to $10 per month with Lyft.  The rider pays the first $2 and the coupon pays the next $10.  Anything above $12 is paid by the rider.  Training is available for those who may need support with the Lyft app.  The program is currently limited to income eligible seniors 60 and over (individual $62,450 maximum, couple $71,400).  Contact Maria Foster at 617-730-2644 for more information.

The mission of the non-profit Brookline Chamber of Commerce is to promote and advance the continued success of Brookline as a thriving community in which to live, work, and do business. The Chamber, which represents the diverse interests of Brookline businesses, professions, and organizations, encourages the economic success of Brookline businesses. The Chamber, which advocates with local and state governments, offers a wide range of quality programs, educational lectures, events, and correspondence that offer information to and about member businesses. Membership is open to any individual, firm, association, corporation, or other business or professional organization interested in the promotion of the Chamber and/or the well-being of Brookline. The Board of Directors meets with staff every month. These meetings are open to the public. For additional information visit https://www.brooklinechamber.com/

Unique among stores and businesses, Eureka! Puzzles, a BrooklineCAN Age Friendly Business, has entertained and educated Brookline visitors for more than 15-years. Located at 1349 Beacon Street in the heart of Coolidge Corner, Eureka’s owner, David Leschinsky, notes Eureka is for all ages, “It’s “Age Agnostic — no particular age, no labels, no limit.”

If you’re fighting boredom from “sheltering” at home, consider a jigsaw puzzle. Eureka has 206 in all sizes and shapes. Eureka also sells playing cards in 3-sizes: regular print, bigger, and gigantic; large format crossword puzzles; more than 200 board games; Braille dice; and four versions of Rummikub.

Visit Eureka! online at https://www.eurekapuzzles.com/, telephone 617-738-7352, email info@eurekapuzzles.com. Eureka now is offering delivery to local addresses.

The fascinating 25^th Age Friendly Cities TV show features Roger Blood, Chair of Brookline’s Housing Advisory Board (HAB), who discusses affordable housing in Brookline.

Roger reviews Brookline’s recent affordable housing projects and the local entities that work to advance affordable housing in Brookline.  He describes how, beyond its advisory role, the HAB promotes affordable housing using both Inclusionary Zoning and the Town’s Affordable Housing Trust.

Stay tuned for future affordable housing activities, including senior and affordable housing from the Newbury-Welltower project.

Programs are aired on Channel 3 on Comcast and RCN immediately following The Grandstanders live sports analysis show and are available on DVDs at the Senior Center, the library in Brookline Village, the BrooklineCAN web site and the BrooklineCAN Twitter and Facebook accounts.

The Brookline Senior Center will be hosting a Senior CharlieCard event on March 18 from 1-3:00 pm. To apply at the Senior Center, you must bring a picture ID with your date of birth indicated. You must be 65 or older to qualify for a Senior CharlieCard. During the event you will fill out the application and have your photo taken. The MBTA will mail your CharlieCard to your home in 6-8 weeks. No registration required.

If your Senior Transportation Access Pass CharlieCard has expired, you can renew it by calling 617-222-3200 Monday through Friday, 6:30 am to 8:00 pm. The new card will be mailed to you within 15 business days and any funds on the expired card will loaded on the new card.

A lively, illustrated presentation retracing the 1915 cross-country road trip of four women gathering support for women’s right to vote will be presented in Hunneman Hall at the Brookline Public Library, 361 Washington Street, March 5th at 7:00 pm.

Historian Anne Gass retraces the route of four women, who in September 1915, embarked in an open car from San Francisco’s Panama Pacific International Exposition to Washington DC. They were carrying a petition to President Woodrow Wilson and Congress demanding an amendment to the US Constitution enfranchising women. They battled their way across the country, driving over primitive roads and through blazing heat, rain, snow, and mud, stopping in towns to collect signatures and to raise awareness that most women in the country were denied the vote. The 19th Amendment to the Constitution, granting women the right to vote, was passed by Congress in 1919, and ratified in August 1920.This free program is co-sponsored by the Brookline League of Women Voters and the Friends of the Brookline Public Library.

Brookline Adult & Community Education is offering a two-session course, Online Auctions:  Successful Selling on eBay, Monday March 2 and Monday, March 9, 11:45 am – 1:45 pm, at the Brookline Senior Center.  The cost is $40.  This class will introduce you to the ins and outs of eBay, including how auctions work and how to make smart and safe transactions. You will learn how to establish yourself as a seller and create listings.  Full details are on page 24 of the BA&CE Winter Catalog.  To register, see call 617-730-2700.

Todd Kirrane, Brookline’s Transportation Administrator, will be speaking at the BrooklineCAN Livable Community Advocacy Committee meeting on Monday, March 2 at 3 pm at the Senior Center. The topic will be Mr. Kirrane’s proposal to replace some current parking spaces with drop-off spaces. One of the aims is to reduce double parking. The topic will be of special interest to those who want vehicle access close to their homes in neighborhoods were demand for parking is great.