On Tuesday, the Massachusetts Cultural Council will convene a meeting to vote on the proposed Literary Cultural District for Boston. Most recently, the Boston City Council voted unanimously in favor of the district and the MCC has since been summarizing the findings of the application for it.
The vote will take place at the Boston Conservatory in the Fenway area at 2:30 p.m. Tuesday afternoon. According to Greg Liakos, the MCC’s communication director, MCC staff not only reviewed the application but also performed a site-visit of the specified area and has made a recommendation to the Board, which they will consider when voting.
The site visit took place about a month ago, July 16, and GrubStreet, the non-profit creative writing center helping to spearhead this literary movement, met with the applicable personnel to make sure all of their paperwork and site logistics are in order.
The District’s coordinator, Larry Lindner, told BostInno in a prior email that his staff met with City Hall officials, as well as about about 30 interested parties, “everyone from PEN New England to Old South Meeting House to Friends of public Garden to area hotels and restaurants.”
It’s important to note that Tuesday’s vote is not a hard ruling in favor or against the Literary Cultural District. The MCC Board, should they find any warranted issues with the application, site visit or concerns voiced by local business and community leaders, will make further recommendations to Linder and his constituents depending on the problem at hand.
Once a final vote in favor is achieved, they’ll confer again with City Hall before outlining attractions and programming.
Lindner also told BostInno that the Literary Cultural District, while boasting a similar branding to the Seaport’s Innovation District, is not a centralized area for development. Rather, it’ll be marketed as an area of historical literary significance while lending a hand in throwing events, teaching classes and helping to guide Bostonians and tourists alike through Boston’s prominent, bookish history.
“Once it’s up and running, it’ll host events and programs – readings, signings, poetry slams, writing classes and symposia,” Lindner said to BostInno. “I went to a poetry reading put on by MassPoetry that had people of note like Deval Patrick come and read their favorite poems.” Events like this is what the District will allow for, only with increased publicity and public engagement.
The vote will take place at 2:30 p.m. on Tuesday. Stay tuned to BostInno for the latest information on the vote and what’s next for the Literary Cultural District.
