Select Board names 11‑member Center Street Lots study committee, adds senior center representative after amendment

The Select Board approved an 11‑member Center Street Lots Study Committee charged with evaluating short‑ and long‑term options for the Center Street east and west lots in Coolidge Corner, including parking improvements and alternative uses that preserve the corridor’s commercial function.

Planning staff and the Select Board said the committee will review design options, consider parking needs, and recommend improvements that support Coolidge Corner’s business district. The committee nominations were selected from 39 applicants and include neighborhood residents, business owners, people with professional planning or engineering backgrounds, and representatives of disability and senior interests.

Select Board member Paul Warren moved to add Marion Friedman Gerspyn to the slate to strengthen senior‑center representation. After discussion and an amendment motion, the board recorded its votes and appointed the full slate including the added member.

Appointees announced by the Select Board included Julia Albert, Mayim Baron, Moshe Ben‑Akiva, Brooke Duskin, Shanna Giarelli, Jim Lee (chair, Commission on Disability), Anne Myers, Gary Shiffman, Elaine Tsao, Leigh Holley, and Marion Friedman Gerspyn (added by amendment). The committee’s initial charge is to study whether the lots should remain parking‑oriented and to explore other uses consistent with the business district’s viability.

Board members acknowledged the challenge of assembling a broadly representative committee and said staff will support an initial scoping meeting with the new members and produce an outreach plan.