St. Mark's Area Main Street

Join your neighbors for the annual Boston Shines neighborhood cleanup Saturday, April 26 - rain or shine! Meet at 9:00 AM, at either St. Mark's Rectory (20 Roseland St.) or the Peabody Square Clock park, and we'll be finished by noon. Cleaning equipment is supplied, but if you have your own rakes, brooms, etc., you can bring those as well.

We're hoping for at least 50 cleaners this year. We have been asking the City to assign a permanent sweeper to the neighborhood, but we need to show that we practice what we preach! A big turnout for this cleanup will help to make our case.

For more information, please call the SMAMS office at 617-825-3846. Thank you!

With 12 beauty establishments for humans in the SMAMS district, it's about time that our fellow creatures had a salon of their own! Doggie Styles grooms both dogs and cats, and they have all the accessories needed for the well-equipped pet. They're located at 571 Talbot Ave., next to the Ashmont Grill, and they're open 8:00 AM - 4:00 PM Tuesday through Saturday. For more information, call 617-265-1033.

In January 2008, The Dorchester Community Center for the Visual Arts (Dot Art) opened a new studio space on Dorchester Avenue. The Clay Station is a ceramics studio providing classes for people of all ages, as well as space for aspiring and professional artists to work. The Clay Station is the only studio of its kind in Dorchester, housing pottery wheels, classroom space and a glazing station, as well as exhibition space for original work made in the studio.

Dot Art plans to make The Clay Station, named for its location mid-way between Shawmut and Ashmont Stations on the MBTA Red Line, an easily recognizable fixture on the Avenue, and a welcoming home to artists of all ages and skill levels.

For more information, please call Dot Art at 617-265-3503.

The Ashmont Grill has been chosen as one of five winners of the State's Smart Growth/Smart Energy Award this year. Lieutenant Governor Tim Murray will present the award at the Massachusetts Smart Growth Conference on Friday, Dec. 7.

Owner Chris Douglass richly deserves the award. Here are just a few of the Grill's accomplishments:

* Bringing new life to the Ashmont Station area, drawing patrons on foot and by MBTA as well as by car
* Creating 45 new jobs in the neighborhood
* Using recycled materials in construction, and recycling all possible restaurant waste, including cooking oil for biodiesel fuel
* Serving locally grown/caught fish, meat and vegetables, including herbs from the Grill's own on-site herb garden
* Training local high school students in the restaurant business

SMAMS and the Neponset Health Center have secured funding to hire a youth outreach worker in the St. Mark's Area business district. The grant was awarded by Tufts-New England Medical Center's Dorchester Health Initiative.

The outreach worker will spend 20 hours each week establishing relationships with local teens and creating leadership, vocational and educational opportunities. The proposed plan ties directly with SMAMS' mission to revitalize the local economy through activities that will channel local teens' energy towards positive outlets. SMAMS is committed to becoming a resource for the youth and getting them involved in the community. NHC will lend its expertise in the area of health disparities and access to care, health education and community networks as it pertains to violence and youth.

Please join Mayor Menino, SMAMS, local civic associations, your neighbors - and Mr. & Mrs. Claus! - for the annual holiday tree lighting celebration in Peabody Square. Sing-along begins at 3:30, and Mr. & Mrs. C will arrive to light the tree at 4:00. Then our renowned party in the Peabody Square Firehouse! Goody bags will be handed out to all children.

SMAMS is in the middle of a once-in-a-lifetime physical transformation. Please join us on Wednesday, Oct. 17, 6:30 PM at All Saints Church Hall (209 Ashmont Street) and hear the developers give an update on these projects:

* Ashmont Station renovations
* The Carruth Building
* Peabody Square street re-routing project
* "Green Street" pollution control initiative
* Public Art installation

There will also be time for your questions, and refreshments will be served. If you're interested in what's going on in the district, be sure to join us!

The Codman Square Branch of SMAMS sponsor Mt. Washington Bank is now open for business at 305 Talbot Ave. The branch, one of the most beautiful you will find anywhere, features a two-lane drive-through, off-street parking, and the friendly service Mt. Washington prides itself on. The bank is a member of the Allpoint ATM Network, offering customers access to more than 32,000 surcharge free ATMs - more than any other bank in Boston.

Branch manager Oscar Moreno is planning a grand opening celebration for Saturday, Sept. 15, 11:00 AM - 2:00 PM. There will be food & drinks, a DJ, prizes & giveaways, and a "cash cube" for those who open new accounts. (A cash cube is a large inflated cube filled with cash being blown around by a fan, which one steps into and grabs all the cash they can in 15 seconds or so.)

SMAMS and Fields Corner Main Street present the third annual "Martinis on the Avenue" fundraiser - Dotini '007 - on Tuesday, Sept. 18, 7:00 - 10:30 PM at The Blarney Stone, 1505 Dorchester Ave. We hope you'll join us for the Blarney's famous hors d'oeuvres, great music, a live auction and a cash bar featuring The Dotini, Dorchester's unofficial drink of choice!

Admission is $30 in advance, $35 at the door. Advance tickets are available online or by mail at www.fieldscorner.org For mail orders, please send checks, payable to FCMS, to: FCMS, 1452 Dorchester Ave., Dorchester, MA 02122. For further information, please call SMAMS at 617-825-3846 or Fields Corner Main Street at 617-474-1406.

Many thanks to our generous sponsors:
The Blarney Stone; H. Levenbaum Insurance; The Dorchester Reporter; Lee Adelson/Prudential Financial;
Neighborhood Health Plan; Countrywide Home Loans;

Please join us on Saturday, April 28th, as we give the SMAMS district a spring cleaning. This is the perfect way to say good-bye to winter and welcome in the spring. Boston Shines is an opportunity to work side by side with neighbors, corporate volunteers, universities, neighborhood businesses, public organizations and private agencies. We will have two groups, meeting at St. Mark's Rectory and Peabody Square at 8:30 AM, and we'll finish by noon. For more information, please call the SMAMS office at 617-825-3846