Homeowner

Could you pls check the new fence installed at 19 Winter St,?
It blocking vehicles view when exiting from Autumn St.

Thanks

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"The tallest fence that can be installed without a Special Permit from the Planning Board is six feet tall. A six foot fence will need a Building Permit and you will want to have the property surveyed by a Licensed Surveyor to be sure you are within your property line. In addition no fence can be higher than three feet, ten feet back from the front property line to protect pedestrians and vehicles from entering or exiting motor vehicles. If you need additional clarification due to lot configuration please come into the office at 110 Pleasant St, Second Floor and meet with a Buildings Inspector. For an appointment call 781-397-7030.

Regards,

Christopher Webb
Dir. Permits, Inspections & Planning Services"

I am concerned that people are camping in the woods at the end of the parking lot of this property, behind the homes at 28, 32, and 36 Autumn St. My wife and I heard voices from that area at dusk last night. I heard them again this morning just after sunrise. I then saw a woman in the area this morning with a bicycle and a backpack. I was not going to post a photo to spare an obviously homeless person unnecessary embarrasment. However, I saw her discard an empty water bottle by tossing it in the lot. I asked her to pick it up and take it with her. She responded with a disgusting slur and a string of profanity. I called the police because of her aggressive and threatening response. MPD responded very quickly and were very helpful and professional. However she had left the area in the few minutes it took them to respond. I have posted her photo so other neighbors can be aware of her, especially given her level of aggression.

Please address the issue with the property owner. The neighborhood has had decades of issues with this property, including illegal dumping, probable drug dealing, noise pollution from people hanging out late at night, and intrusive light pollution from the high intensity lighting they added a few years ago (which now lights up my once peaceful backyard and my son's bedroom like the Vegas strip). That was installed to facilitate their illegal, unpermitted off-site parking operation, which, pre-pandemic at least, has operated consistently since before we moved in more than 20 years ago. The owner even issues parking "permits" to people who don't live there. There is a vehicle with such a "permit" parked there right now, in fact. Pre-pandemic, for as long as we have lived here, we could watch numerous vehicles every morning park there. The owners would exit their vehicles with backpacks, briefcases, and coffee mugs in hand and walk directly to the T station. While less common now, it still happens. No doubt, we're going to see that activity increase in coming weeks.

Even more concerning though, our neighborhood had a rash of burglaries several years ago. This wooded area is open to numerous back yards on Autumn St. In one instance, perpetrators were chased out of a home on Rosemont St. (which intersects Autumn) in the early morning by a resident -- an extremely dangerous and potentially deadly situation. The individuals used this location as a path to flee, and even dumped stolen property there.

The owner of 29 Winter needs to secure his property before we have another potentially more serious incident. He needs to fence this area off so it cannot be accessed or used as an access point for criminals to backyards on Autumn, or as an illegal campsite.

Again, thank you to the officers who responded. They were well aware of the property's history of problems and even told me about an incident involving a person found sleeping in the property's dumpster. So it's only a matter of time before something bad happens there.

I am reporting this here in addition to MPD because over the years the response from other city officials has been less than satisfactory. It has been completely inadequate and dismissive of resident's concerns, actually. It is time that city inspectors and other officials respond to the complaints about this problem property and take action concerning the numerous issues neighbors have raised over the years, rather than doing what they have done in the past, which has been to tell us every single time that what we see with our own eyes isn't happening.

Thank you.