In the Back Bay, the neighborhood’s prettiest gardens are just as likely to be high above passersby’s heads as below their feet, and this Tuesday’s Garden Club of the Back Bay fundraiser, the Twilight Garden Party, promises amazing views of all the Back Bay’s gardens from atop the TAJ Hotel. The event, a first for the Garden Club, will raise money so that the Garden Club can continue supporting its mission of promoting civic beauty, planting and cultivating trees and educating others about gardening.
For many years, one of the Garden Club of the Back Bay’s main fundraisers has been a garden tour, which was always quite popular. But Co-president Jackie Blomback says the members decided to try something new this year.
“Guests will enjoy spectacular views of the Back Bay surrounded by beautiful floral decorations designed and executed by club members. It's going to be an elegant event with music, a full open bar with our own ‘signature’ martini, passed hors d'oeuvres and a Tuscan food table,” Blomback says. “We are very excited about this new fundraiser.”
The Garden Club’s history goes back more than 40 years, and its membership has always had a real impact on the beautification of the Back Bay.
“The magnolias you see each spring are the fruits of a project organized by some of our founding members, a tradition that continues today,” says Blomback.
Each year, the club’s 150 members focus on numerous gardening and beautification projects, starting with the planting and care of the street trees in the Back Bay (10 new trees are planted each summer.) The club has a program through which a licensed arborist prunes street trees and offers services to abutting homeowners at a reasonable rate. The club also maintains street and alley tree inventories that have been used by the Back Bay Architectural Commission and the City Parks Department.
This year, the Garden Club of the Back Bay is implementing two new street tree projects designed to protect and enhance existing trees -- a tree mulching program and a tree pit fence installation program.
“We feel that the mulch and fences will not only beautify the streetscape, but also protect the trees and tree roots from damage and compaction,” Blomback says.
The club also assists the Neighborhood Association of the Back Bay and the Boston Parks and Recreation Department in caring for the Clarendon Street Playground. Members plant window boxes at the Women’s Lunch Place, work with Hale House to further beautify their property and maintain the Snowden School garden. In December, the club hosts its much-anticipated annual Wreath Making sale.
In addition, the Garden Club of the Back Bay grants awards to other non-profit organizations who work as advocates for Boston’s green spaces. In the past three years, the club has donated more than $60,000 to area organizations. This year, the recipients include a few organizations with reach beyond the Back Bay.
“We feel a real responsibility toward the city at large – more than just the Back Bay,” says Katherine Dietz. “For one of the first times, we are sending money outside to an organization called City Roots, which recognizes the need for trees in certain urban locations.”
The Twilight Garden Party is a chance for the club to raise much of the funds it will distribute to other organizations, and Dietz says their goal is to raise at least $20,000. She thanks the TAJ Hotel, Winston Flowers and the other event sponsors for their support.

CAPTION: Emily Shannon of Wheeler's Frozen Desert Co. lines up some of the store's many vegan ice cream treats.

Is Boston ready for a decadent line of vegan ice cream in flavors like Mojito that is already embraced by celebrities in New York and Los Angeles (try the Kanye West Platinum)? Wheeler del Torro, founder of Wheeler’s Black Label Ice Cream thinks so -- and if the response to the opening of his first physical shop at 334B Massachusetts Ave. means anything, Boston thinks so too.
Del Torro, who was born in Jamaica and has lived in New York, Europe, and many places in between, took a circuitous route to launching his own line of high-end vegan ice cream. He says he knew early on that he wasn’t quite the same as most of the other kids his age.
“I was always a little different. One day I came home with a purple Mohawk,” del Torro says. “My parents are West Indian and very conservative, so that didn’t go over very well.”
But he continued marching to the beat of his own drummer, and after moving to the states as a teen and graduating high school early at the age of 16, del Torro set out on his own to New York City. There, he met a model, followed her to France, and began working on a passion of his – cooking.
“I always had an interest in cooking and backing,” he says. “Eventually, I was literally walking around the city of Paris selling baked goods.”
Because he was dating someone whose profession dictated that she watch her figure, del Torro began dabbling with making a dessert that was low in calories and saturated fat. He came up with vegan ice cream – which technically isn’t ice cream since it is produced using no animal products or bi-products, just soy, coconut, rice or almond milk.
Not that the average person notices.
“You can’t really tell the difference,” he says. “We’ve had events where we’ve had thousands of people tasting our ice cream and they couldn’t tell.”
What they do notice, he says, is the decadent taste.
“A lot of the difference is in the quality of ingredients,” he says. “Our Mojito flavor, for example, is made with Patron Gran Platinum tequila. It puts us on a different level, because most people aren’t willing to spend $200 - $300 on a gallon of ice cream.”
It’s this philosophy that has set Wheeler’s apart and gained del Torro a devoted following. His romance with the French model didn’t last, but the business whose idea was germinated during that relationship has grown exponentially. After his time in Paris, del Torro returned to the states, enrolling in college in Philadelphia and then coming to Boston about six years ago for grad school. At the same time, his business was booming due to word-of-mouth endorsements from big names in movies, music and entertainment. A big part of the business is custom flavor creation, since del Torro has virtually no limit for his creations.
“We’ve made almost every single type of ice cream – even ones like cigarette-flavored ice cream,” he says. “And we get a lot of attention for alcohol-based ice cream.”
The creation process and location is top secret – and del Torro himself makes every batch. He usually works during the wee hours of the night under a cloak of secrecy when he has no interruptions. Del Torro makes about five new flavors a week, mostly culled from ideas sent in from his devoted taste-tasting group. Members of this focus group email in flavor suggestions and rate new creations that are mailed to them.
He is currently offering about 35 flavors in the store, but this will vary week-to-week. So will, del Torro says, the store’s hours of operation. He says the business is very laid-back, and that’s the way it will stay. Which is not to say that del Torro doesn’t have a serious mission, which may involve opening new stores in New York and Los Angeles.
“Our focus is that we want to make sure that a lot of people who aren’t allowed to eat ice cream can enjoy desserts again,” he says.
Del Torro regularly receives letters and emails from diabetics, people who are lactose intolerant and others with dietary restrictions thanking him for making it possible for them to enjoy ice cream again.
Oh, and for those who may not want to sample, say, champagne ice cream -- Wheeler’s does serve strawberry and cookie dough too.

One police department, two different districts, one shared problem.
Boston Common, situated within the jurisdiction of Boston’s District 1-A police, has always been something of a haven for the homeless, particularly at night. The situation got to the point that something had to be done, so the district police began vigorously enforcing the Common’s legal curfews. Particularly effective was the district’s Safe Street team, a group of officers that targeted hot spots to ensure safety quality of life in the area.
The efforts have been effective, as the visible homeless presence on the common has been dramatically reduced. However, some in the Back Bay, the purview of the district 4 police, are wondering if the methods have been too effective. The contention among some members of the community, expressed at recent police advisory meetings, is that the enforcement policies in district 1 are leading to a spike in homelessness in district 4, as the homeless moved off the common migrate over to public spaces in the Back Bay, such as the Commonwealth Avenue Mall and Copley Square.
At a recent meeting with the public, District 4 commander Captain William Evans said that the problem is “complex,” and difficult to deal with from a law enforcement perspective. Evans pointed out that homeless facilities, such as the Pine Street Inn, are closed during the day, and only take in homeless during the evenings.
“What we need is something to keep them busy during the day,” Evans told the meeting attendants.
For his part, Captain Bernard O’Rourke of the District 1 police acknowledged that the problem was a real one.
“It is true,” said O’Rourke at a District 1 advisory meeting. “I hear from [District 4 commander] Captain Evans about it all the time.”
O’Rourke said that District 1’s evening safe street teams have been very effective, and that District 4’s safe street teams are mostly out during the day. In addition, he said, District 4 police have more violent crimes to deal with, including shootings and murders, in gang hot spots in South End and other areas, pushing homeless concerns lower down on the priority list.
For now, said O’Rourke, the District 1 police are merely enforcing laws on the books, but he said that the addition of night time safe street teams in District 4 could help with the problem.

This week at the Copley Square Farmer's Market more tents went up and, more products were for sale. Eggs were available from both Silverbrook Farm and Siena Farms. There was meat from Stillman's at the Turkey Farm and Fiore Di Nonno Hand-Crafted Mozzarella went on sale at the Siena Farms stand.
Farmer Chris Kurth offered tips on what to do with his beautiful chive blossoms. He suggested breaking them apart to use in salads or as a garnish. He also said they are wonderful battered and fried like an onion ring!
Stillman's Farm has moved from its traditional space along St. James to a new location on the Dartmouth side. Aidan Davin of Stillman's explained that this year they will expand to three spaces – one for plants and produce, one for meat and a third for a new bakery. That bakery will sell a full line of baked goods as well as sandwiches made from Stillman's meat.

On May 15, more than 100 residential brokers turned out on May 15th at Grill 23 & Bar to hear from developers Related Companies and The Beal Companies, world-renown architect Robert A.M. Stern, and Ken Himmel from American Food Management talk about their vision and collaboration on The Clarendon, which is now under construction. Stern designed the residential tower for Related and The Beal Companies. American Food Management, owners of Grill 23 & Bar as well as Boston’s Excelsior and Harvest in Cambridge, will be opening an on-site signature restaurant in the building.
Pictured from left are Chris Himmel, vice president of business development for American Food Management, Ken Himmel, president and chief executive officer of Related Urban and president of American Food Management, Bruce Beal, Sr., chairman of The Beal Companies, Robert A.M. Stern, architect and founder of Robert A.M. Stern Architects, Bruce Beal, Jr., executive vice president of Related Companies, and Robert Beal, president of The Beal Companies.

Not just another Garden Club

Among the many reasons Back Bay tends to look as good as it does during the spring is the result of a closely knit, ongoing community effort commencing about 40 years ago.
For instance, while Washington, D.C. has its Cherry Blossoms, the Back Bay has its Magnolia trees.
Those brilliant Magnolia trees, which explode with new life and great beauty every spring, didn’t simply spontaneously generate.
The mark and the imprimatur of the Back Bay Garden Club are what many of us see when the Magnolia trees blossom and cause this stately neighborhood to come alive and in a big way.
Forty years ago, with the funds, the foresight and the interest of the original members of the Back Bay Garden Club, the magnolia trees were planted.
During the ensuing four decades, the club’s influence and membership has expanded. Its ability to spread its positive energy elsewhere in the city has also grown.
The club’s 150 members focus mainly on numerous gardening and beautification projects.
Ten new trees will be planted in Back Bay by the club during the summer.
And there is the upcoming soiree at the Taj – a Twilight Garden Party - to raise funds for its good work.
The Back Bay is tending look better and better as time goes by.
We thank he Back Bay Garden Club for doing so much to improve the quality of life in the neighborhood with brilliant effort and gorgeous plantings.
Thank you very much.

The Apple store

The new Apple store on Boylston Street is the example by which other new businesses seeking to locate in the Back Bay should measure their sense of esthetics.
The façade of the new Apple store is absolutely outstanding architecture – and the lighting of the store compliments the architecture as it is supposed to.
Although we are not architects or taste savants, we can assure our readers that this new Apple store on Boylston Street will win its share of architectural awards for excellence.
Doe Apple know what its doing?
Take a long, lingering look at their new business place and answer that question for yourself.