July 2015 - Neighborhood View

Hope for drug-riddled Miller Park is realized in renovation

July 31, 2015 escorsello 0

On Monday, June 22, 2015, a dedication ceremony was held for the reopening of Miller Park following its renovation that began in June 2014. Among the attendees, along with the Mayor’s Office, the Malden Redevelopment Authority and the Malden Housing Authority was the Miller family, wife, Patricia, and son, Bob, of Robert D. Miller, the man named in the bronze plaque situated in the center of the park, for his “…unselfish service and personal dedication to the youth of Suffolk Square.” Neglected for 20 years, Miller Park, also known as Harvard Street Park, located in Malden’s poorest neighborhood, slowly became a haven for drug dealers and was surrounded by a community too fearful to enter its gate. The Robins family, 30-year residents, have had sticks thrown through their window and on one occasion a brick came crashing through the glass and landed on the couch. “That was terrifying.” Helen Robins said. “One night,” Robins, whose house abuts Miller Park, recalled, “My niece was sitting on the back porch, on the stairs, having a cigarette and […]

Filming ‘Ted 2’ at Malden Public Library: An Inside Look

July 13, 2015 annedr 0

Perhaps unbefitting to the historical significance and elegant grandeur of the Converse Memorial Library in Malden, the interior of the library’s historic wing provides the setting for a scene in the recently released Ted 2 comedy starring Mark Wahlberg and Amanda Seyfried. The scene was created and filmed over a two-week period in July last summer. Full disclosure: I’m on the Board of Trustees for the library and have an inside view for this story. The Trustees voted on the approval for the filming after the library was approached by the film company, Raging Bear, last June. There was some, but not much hesitation, on approving the deal. According to John Tramondozzi, President of the Library Trustees, “Our main concern was the safety of the building.” The library was offered considerable compensation for the filming, though the project would require a great deal of time and extra work on the part of the library staff. “Sure, we would have loved for the film to be a period drama,” says Dora St. Martin, the library’s executive […]

Ashanti Munir kicks off ‘Live on the Lawn’ music series

July 10, 2015 neighbormedia 0

On July 8, Ashanti Munir took the stage in front of the Malden Public Library, ushering in the Live on the Lawn concert series that will take place on every other Wednesday evening for the rest of the summer. The crowd, which included such pillars of the Malden community as Mayor Gary Christenson, danced along enthusiastically to Munir and her band’s soulful songs, filling the whole block with music and merriment. Sponsored by Eastern bank, the concert series will continue with Four Guys in Tuxes on July 22 at 7 p.m., followed by an outdoor movie on August 5 at 8 p.m. and will wrap up with Hungrytown on August 19 at 7 p.m. –Len Tetta

Historic reading of Revolution War-era document from Malden

July 7, 2015 neighbormedia 0

Was Malden a major player leading up to the American Revolution? A historic document, dated May 27, 1776, contains the “Instructions of the Inhabitants of Malden, Massachusetts to their Representatives in Congress” was read on the lawn of the Malden Public Library on Friday, July 3. Local historian and period actor Tom Coots, the captain from the Gardner’s Regiment group of the Charlestown Militia, performed the reenactment. The document was recently rediscovered when Mayor Gary Christenson was searching for a historic Malden relic to display at the State House. “This document that was read tonight is probably the first recorded acknowledgement of an entire community voting for independence from Great Britain,” explains Coots. “The first time I read it, I actually cried. The more I read it, the more I realized what the words meant.” This document is credited as a precursor to the Declaration of Independence written in July of 1776 when the Continental Congress formally declared their independence from England. Click here for the complete presentation by the City of Malden. –Sam Baltrusis […]