Sam Mintz

A historic mainstay of the Brookline dining scene is closing its doors–but there might be hope for its resurrection. The Busy Bee Restaurant and Diner, on Beacon Street near St. Mary’s, closed this week, 56 years after it was first purchased by Peter and Frances Christakis. Their son, Chris Christakis, who has run the restaurant… Read More »The Busy Bee closes after 56 years. Will it buzz again under new management? …

The town’s Preservation Commission is standing firm in its ruling that the Chabad Center at Chestnut Hill must wait a year before demolishing two houses it owns in South Brookline, where it plans to build a new synagogue. The decision came on Tuesday despite a warning from a town attorney that the delay could violate… Read More »Preservation Commission stands by its decision to stall South Brookline synagogue project, as legal battle looms …

Brookline Police are investigating after a Brookline High School student reported that she was sexually assaulted Monday by a man she did not know while walking between classes. The 14-year-old female student reported that she was walking on Tappan Street when the man, who appeared to be in his 20s, grabbed her and “forced his… Read More »Brookline High School student assaulted while walking between classes, police say …

Brookline Housing Authority executive director Michael Alperin is departing from his position after a tenure which saw major growth for the town’s public housing agency. Alperin, who has led BHA since 2020, is moving on to what he called a “new, socially driven affordable housing venture focused on New England.” Leading BHA, he said, was… Read More »BHA director Michael Alperin stepping down after four years …

Every Monday evening, dozens of people gather in a room at the United Parish church in Brookline to partake in Democratic political activism, mailing letters and postcards to voters in key states. Activist Evenings, modeled after a similar effort in Cambridge, started in 2019 and went online in 2020, according to one of the group’s… Read More »‘Activist Evenings’ in Brookline aim to mobilize Democratic voters in swing states …

Parks and Open Space director out after a month The town’s new director of parks and open spaces has left the position after just over a month on the job. Alexander Mezzatesta, who started the position on Aug. 5, left on Sept. 13, just 40 days later. In an email to Brookline.News, Town Administrator Charles… Read More »News in brief: Parks director out after one month, town ditches pool study, and DPW asks for help watering trees …

Brookline High School administrators and police say that they believe a student was the alleged perpetrator of a reported sexual assault outside the school last week. Police originally said that a 14-year-old female student was indecently assaulted by a man in his 20s while walking between classes on Sept. 16, but shared new information on… Read More »Student now suspected in alleged sexual assault outside BHS, police say …

One of Brookline’s four marijuana dispensaries has closed, just three years after it opened. Mission Brookline Cannabis Dispensary, which opened in 2021 at 1024 Commonwealth Avenue, shut its doors in August. “They have ceased sales activity, and complied with the requirements of the state Cannabis Control Commission to transfer their supply and close the business,”… Read More »Mission dispensary shuts down Brookline location …

Plans for a key piece of land on Route 9 in Chestnut Hill, the town's last hope for a major commercial development that could ease the strain on residents' tax bills, are coming into focus.

Brookline police arrested a 27-year-old Boston man on Wednesday and charged him with possession of images depicting child sex abuse. The man, Firoze Kohli, was also charged with the dissemination of obscene matter. Brookline police received information in June about Kohli, a former Brookline resident who now lives in Boston, from the National Center for… Read More »Brookline police arrest man for alleged possession of child sex abuse materials …