Slated for completion next year, a $32 million renovation of the Arlington and Copley MBTA stations is helping to bring the country’s oldest subway line into the 21st century.
Rehabilitation of Arlington station on the Green Line began three years ago and comes at a cost of $22 million, according to MBTA spokesperson Lydia Rivera. Its Arlington Street entrance will be made fully accessible on May 14, at which time the Berkeley Street station will close. Construction of the egress at the Arlington Street Church is now complete. Escalators and three new elevators located on the north side of Boylston Street will provide accessibility to the mezzanine and are expected to be operational by October.
Other station maintenance includes installing new head houses for outbound service and rebuilding the inbound and outbound platforms to meet “Breda” cars, and major electrical work. Once the weather allows, surface restoration, including landscaping, brickwork and the installation of new sidewalks and ADA-compliant curbs will begin.
As for Copley station, the $16 million renovation is scheduled for completion in 2010. The historic, wrought iron head house in front of the Boston Public Library and two elevator structures located on either side of Boylston Street, will be outfitted with glass. Work on the emergency egress next to CVS at 587 Boylston St. continues.
Additional improvements include upgrading the public address system, installing new LED signage and raising both the inbound and outbound platforms to accommodate Green Line vehicles. Weather permitting, surface restoration, including the installation of ADA-compliant curbs, will begin.

Dale Holman of Newton had been using department stores’ line of skin products for years, and she was so unhappy with most of them, she’d return them to the store. About eight years ago, she discovered the Skin Health line of eye creams, moisturizers, and sunblock, and said her face of a certain age has no lines, no wrinkles, no signs of sun damage.
“I think it’s the best line I’ve ever used, for quality and for results,” said Holman, a woman in her late 50s who appreciates the hypoallergenic aspect of the products, too. “The cosmetics from retail stores are hyped with advertisements. Ingredients are seriously diluted. Skin Health’s sunblock is absolutely outstanding - you never tan. I have absolutely no marks on my skin. My face has such a glow to the skin. That’s pretty unusual for someone my age.”
At the SkinHealth Centers, a team of physicians, facial cosmetic surgeons and medical aestheticians develop and provide cosmetic dermatology, laser and skin rejuvenation treatments. At the store, clients get an assessment of their skin’s needs. As part of the no-pressure sales team approach, customers can take home samples of skincare products to try before buying.
“It’s not a hard sell,” said Holman. “The department stores push products on you. People turn their judgment over to a saleslady who is on a serious commission. It’s not like that at SkinHealth.”
Apparently SkinHealth doesn’t have to push their products too hard, because of word of mouth that has been ongoing since the company was founded 10 years ago. SkinHealth clients include actors, television anchors and politicians and others in the public eye whose faces are a business asset.
Cheryl L. Clarkson, president and CEO of SkinHealth Inc., runs three stores, including one at 73 Newbury Street, and said business is so good despite the economy that she’s hired two more Harvard-trained doctors for plastic surgery and filler treatments, Drs. David Kieff and Dan Driscoll, to join Dr. Dan Townsend.
In this economy, she can keep hiring because business is steady, Clarkson said. “We have seen an increased number of people who feel they are trying to maintain their appearance because it’s a tough job market. Some of our clients have lost their jobs, while most are still working but are a little worried.”
Clarkson reports interest in eyelid surgery, which she says is safe, relatively inexpensive, and quick. “It’s something that doesn’t really leave any scars,” she said. “They can go back to work a week later and look refreshed, and no one is going to say, ‘Oh my God, you had eye surgery. It takes 10 years off, but people can’t put their finger on what’s different.”
They also do face-lifts, liposuction, tummy tucks and breast enhancement, performed in a hospital, with pre- and post-operative care provided at SkinHealth.
For her skin care products, Clarkson notes an increase in eyelash extensions, and a steady commitment to skincare maintenance. She’s especially excited about a few new products with enzymes, such as Vital Repair Enzyme Serum that helps repair damaged DNA.
“My products are just for those who want to look healthy and vibrant,” she said. “It’s not for glamour-pusses.
But what SkinHealth is best known for is its sunscreens, she said. “We have a robust mail-order business, to every state in the country. “My products are results-oriented. There’s no fluff and they really work.”
Clarkson at one time was a Fortune 500 CEO of three medical device companies. However, her world turned upside down when her only sibling, a 39-year-old Los Angeles journalist who wasn’t even a tanner, was diagnosed with melanoma.
To cope, she buried herself in research about her sister’s cancer.
“I quit my job to manage her care. We sought help from the best medical experts and the country’s best hospitals. We tried experimental protocols, but the reality was that her diagnosis had been a death sentence,” she said.
Melanoma is one of the few cancers on the increase, annually claiming more than 7,000 lives and ranks as the second leading cause of cancer death in women under 40. According to a recent report published by the Journal of Investigative Dermatology, melanoma diagnoses increased by 3.1 percent a year between 1992 and 2004.
Leveraging her MIT MBA and her manufacturing experience, Clarkson collaborated with physicians and dermatologists to launch a sunscreen product line with a higher percentage of active ingredients than those found on the typical store shelf.
“I’m very committed to finding a cure for melanoma,” said Clarkson, who is on the Children’s Hospital stem cell research committee, and is one of the founding members of the Cancer Leadership Council at Mass. General Hospital.
And for every store gift certificate sold, SkinHealth donates 5 percent to Massachusetts General Hospital Cancer Center for Melanoma Research.
“I believe one of the reasons we’ve become so successful is that I have such a passion for it,” she said.
She also uses her CEO background to build a business that’s anything but skin-deep. Clarkson launched SkinHealth in 1999, and in 2005, Clarkson bought out her investor to expand SkinHealth’s national presence on her own. Her initial business model evolved into retail stores with skin care products, advanced skin care and laser services, and cosmetic medical procedures performed by physicians.
Today, SkinHealth products range from cleansers to moisturizers to advanced therapies to seven kinds of sunscreens – including one that was voted Health Magazine’s best sunscreen.
In the end, however, it’s all about the client.
Dale Holnan has been a customer for years, having laser skin treatments to remove acne scars without surgery, and wearing her sunscreen every day, year round. Her face is smooth, and others compliment her on her glow. In turn, she’s turned others onto the products.
And the best testament to any business is hearing a customer like Holman say, “My friends thank me.”

Emily Spinazola admits that taking on the role of executive chef of The Palm Restaurant at The Westin Copley less than a year ago was truly daunting, especially after making the move from working in small establishments in Providence, RI.
“It was a huge challenge when I started, I’m not going to lie,” said Spinazola, who is now 27. “I went from [serving as executive chef] at two 60-seat restaurants in Federal Hill to a 350-seat restaurant right in Copley Square.”
A native of Holliston, Spinazola graduated from Holliston High School in 2000 and enrolled in the prestigious culinary program at Johnson & Wales University in Providence that fall. She began working at the Providence Prime steakhouse as a college student and quickly worked her way up from salad chef to sous chef before eventually being named the restaurant’s executive. Soon after she graduated in 2004, Spinazola was also named executive chef of Providence Prime’s sister restaurant, the Providence Oyster Bar.
By early 2008, Spinazola was ready for a change and decided to find work in Boston. “I didn’t want to work in Providence because it’s so small. I wanted to be in a bigger city,” said Spinazola, who still lives in Providence and now makes the approximately 50-mile commute every workday.
Spinazola launched her career in Boston, studying for a month under James Bear Award-winning chef Barbra Lynch, whom Spinazola describes as her inspiration. Raised in a South Boston housing project, Lynch is the chef and owner of Barbra Lynch Gruppo, a collection of nine high-end local establishments including No. 9 Park and B&G Oysters.
“Everything she does is close to perfect,” Spinazola said of Lynch, adding that the culinary giant still cooks on the line at B&G Oysters once a week.
On May 1 of last year, Spinazola started working at the Palm, but during her brief time there, she has already left her mark on the New York-based chain of steakhouses. Two months ago, she introduced a bar menu, including such dishes as kobe beef and veal parmigiana sliders and calamari fritti.
“We have a great bar and great bartenders,” Spinazola said. “I’m trying to go after a younger demographic.”
Spinazola said the bar menu is especially popular with restaurant industry workers and professionals who want good food without paying high prices. The concept has proven so popular that it will be introduced at the Palm’s restaurants nationwide beginning next month.
In her role as executive chef, Spinazola also has complete freedom when creating the restaurant’s special menu items. One of her most popular creations is a 12-ounce prime sirloin topped with seared scallops and morel mushrooms, finished with an 8-year-old balsamic dressing and served over garlic risotto and goat cheese.
“Even if I open my own restaurant some day, everything I learn here will carry over,” Spinazola said.

Peter G. Christie is the undisputed voice and leader of Massachusetts restaurant owners and operators.
Christie is the president and chief executive officer (CEO) of the Massachusetts Restaurant Association (MRA,) a position he has held for the past 20 years. The MRA has 1,900 dues-paying members who own and operate 5,000 individual restaurants and restaurant chains.
“The chain restaurants join primarily for government affairs, but the independent operator – the entrepreneur – that’s my market,” said Christie. “The chains have legal advisers, human resource experts, law departments, wage and hour departments – independents don’t have that. What we do is provide information, cost-savings programs for our members, advocacy with both the Legislature and the regulatory agencies, and we have an education component and an educational foundation.”
Christie, who has a staff of 11 employees based in Southborough, said part of the association’s effort involves keeping state legislators informed and up to date on the nuances of the restaurant business.
“Restaurants are a special interest, and if you’re not up there at the State House looking out for yourself, there’s someone else up there on the other side looking out for themselves,” said Christie, a former owner of restaurants. “And it takes a great deal of energy and effort to educate legislators who don’t know about your business.”
Christie said he’s currently monitoring a proposal to institute a meals tax, which the MRA strong opposes.
“Right now, there is no meals tax. Meals are subject to the state sales tax of 5 percent,” he said. “They want to single us [restaurants] out from all the things that you pay a sales tax on and impose an increase of a 1 percent tax for the state and a 1 percent tax for the local community, which is a 40 percent hike.”
Christie said it’s not a good time to be adding 2 percent to the bill of restaurant diners.
“It’s a very difficult time for restaurants – it’s as bad a time as I’ve seen in my 20 years,” said Christie. “This is no time to be creating a disincentive. What we need right now is more people working – we need stimulation.”
Christie said the MRA has some excellent cost-saving measures to help restaurant owners. The association has monthly newsletters and hold informational seminars on a regular basis.
“We have a natural gas program that can save restaurants a lot of money. An owner of three restaurants on the North Shore saved $30,000 this winter,” said Christie. “Right now, we’re taking bids on a property casualty program for insurance. Anything we can use our expertise and our aggregated buying power to save our restaurants money, we will do.”
Another area of savings for MRA members is credit card processing.
“I can save almost any restaurant their [MRA] dues by having them take a look at our credit card processing program – it’s that good,” said Christie.
Christie takes great pride in the success and goodwill generated by the MRA’s educational foundation that is under the leadership of President Bobby Wong, an owner of the Kowloon Restaurant.
“I’m very proud of our educational foundation,” said Christie. “Its mission is twofold: to help educate the industry and to implement our school-to-career program. We’re in 25 high schools with a curriculum that introduces juniors and seniors to the food service industry. If they go on to restaurant/hotel management, we will provide them with a scholarship. In the last six years, we’ve given out over $500,000 in scholarships to students who are continuing their education in our field.”
Christie credited Bobby Wong for his outstanding leadership of the foundation and the Wong family for its generous contributions to the community.
“It’s families like the Wong family that are not only in the top of their game in the restaurant industry, but they’re upstanding members of the community. You talk about restaurants being the cornerstone of the community – the Wong family is so involved in so many philanthropic activities. They really know about giving back. It’s people like the Wong family that make me personally so grateful that I have the job that I have. They’re civic minded, philanthropic and they run fantastic restaurants. They’re always willing to share their expertise and knowledge and willing to help others.”
Christie is optimistically looking ahead in the restaurant industry in 2009.
“It [2008] was a tough year, but things are looking up a little bit right now,” said Christie. “We are in prolonged recession; however, operating costs and energy costs and wholesale food costs are starting to come down. Plus, let’s face it – we had a brutal winter. Spring is here. The weather is warming up. There hasn’t been a time in my life where I’ve seen more value in restaurants than right now. I think the restaurants have responded well to the very difficult market. People have cut back on spending, so restaurant owners are trying to create as much value in order to attract customers.”
Christie said initiatives such as Restaurant Week Boston, a twice-a-year program in which participating restaurant offers meals at discount prices, have helped stimulate business in the city. “Restaurant Week has been very successful,” he said.

Who will guard the guards?

The news in recent weeks concerning the use of taxpayer dollars to pay bonuses at American Investment Group or the cry from the governor for raising the cigarette or alcohol or gas tax while appointing a state senator to a plum $150,000 job that has been vacant for more than a decade has raised the ire of taxpayers and voters.
Who can we trust in deciding how to spend our dollars?
Everyone who still has a job knows the many faces of friends who have lost their jobs in the last nine months. We look to our elected leaders to lead us, but we have our skepticism on their doing what is best for us instead of the favored few.
Members of the Massachusetts House of Representatives have taken a step in the right direction with the passage of the Ethics Law last Thursday.
This bill goes beyond the governor’s bill and calls for stricter enforcement in the areas of campaign finances, ethics laws and laws on lobbyists.
The bill will cover the actions of not only the lobbyists and elected officials, but also municipal employees.
If we are going to come out of this economic malaise that we are in, then we will have to do it together. This bill is a start in the right direction to give the regular people who have to pay the dollars, some assurance that the general good will be the dictate rather than interests of the special few.
We know all too well the mistrust for public officials. Senator Diane Wilkerson is probably a poster person for the lax ethics the state has been operating under for the last few years.
We urge the Senate to take up this bill quickly. We urge Governor Patrick to sign the bill quickly. If there is no attempt to change the way that we regulate our public employees, then our recovery will be all the harder and longer.
In ancient Greece, where democracy had its birth, there was the expression, “Who will guard the guards?” This Ethics bill starts the path of restoring faith in our leaders to do the right actions for taxpayers.


This is no April Fool’s day joke …


Street cleaning will start this Wednesday, April 1. The winter grime and dirt just litter our streets. Rubbish that was frozen in the snow is blowing around.
We need to get the streets cleaned.
In the past, the City of Boston has given some leeway to people, to remember the start of street cleaning that ended last November 30.
Given the budget, we don’t know if the city will again give people a warning rather that a $25 ticket and towing on Wednesday.
We hope they do.
But if they don’t, read the signs and move your cars, if to not only save the aggravation of a ticket and a tow, but to get the streets clean.