Does new construction within a landmark district need to imitate the architecture of the district? The answer to this may surprise you.

A long-time Boston Landmark Commissioner and the South End Landmark District Commission staff preservationist will take you on a walking tour of the South End Landmark District. This tour is updated with new buildings for 2017. We'll be using the South End as a case study for new construction in a historic district, explaining what makes a building “a South End building.”

Boston's historic South End, the country's largest Victorian Rowhouse District, was made a Landmark District in 1983. This event is sponsored by Boston Landmarks Commission.

Tours will be offered of one of Boston’s only remaining intact summer kitchen. The summer kitchen and laundry room were added to the main house as part of the construction of the 1811 ell and remains remarkably preserved from the 19th century.

New this year: we will be featuring fun kids activities related to the 19th-century kitchen — ice cream making (old-time crank machine!), rug beating, apple peeling, laundry wringing, and more!

Join us for a reception at our 19th-century farm table where we’ll have free, delicious refreshments!

Of the thousands of flowering plants in the Arboretum, only one, the lilac, is singled out each year for a daylong celebration. Mainly located on the edge of Bussey Hill Road in the heart of the landscape, the lilac collection at the Arnold Arboretum of Harvard University is among the premier collections of these plants in North America. Lilac Sunday has been celebrated at the Arnold Arboretum since 1908.

Tours of the lilacs and family activities are available from 10 a.m. - 3 p.m., but the Arboretum is open as usual from dawn to dusk.  Learn more about picnicking rules, tours, parking options, and accessibility on the Arboretum's event website.

This year, the celebration revolves around the infrastructure in the Fort Point Channel of the Seaport District. You can learn more about the event on the Celebrate Infrastructure website.

In 1903, Frederick Ayer and his wife Ellen Banning Ayer led a comfortable life at their Tiffany-designed mansion on Commonwealth Avenue. Preservation Advisor Jeanne Pelletier lifts the curtain on the unseen portions of the Ayer Mansion, giving a glimpse into servants’ lives using:

• an extraordinary 400-page inventory
• surviving architectural clues, and
• the annual census.

The reception starts at 6:30 p.m., and the presentation begins at 7 p.m. Tickets are $10, but space is limited. RSVP is required.

This event is sponsored by the Ayer Mansion.

The Wake Up the Earth Festival began in 1979 when a group of local neighbors and activists banded together to stop the Interstate 95 expansion into Jamaica Plain. The festival began as, and still is, a celebration of what can be accomplished when people of all traditions, cultures, ages, and beliefs come together.
The annual Wake Up the Earth Festival (WUTE) takes place each year on the first Saturday in May and is currently attended by well over 10,000 individuals of all ages. The event features four stages that include:

• music and dance performances
• popular theater
• the Youth Stage, and
• story telling for all ages.

In addition to performances, WUTE features over more than 50 craft, non-profit, and food vendors. The festival is anchored by a massive parade (with branches that start in JP Center and Roxbury) with several thousand people marching. A great many individuals, local artists, community groups, and schools join forces every year to create this unique community collaboration.

Hear from executive director Madeleine Steczynski about this transformation. This event is part of the Livable Streets Alliance Series, "Churches, Cafes & Community Centers: Historic Preservation for Boston's Neighborhoods." 

The talk is free for Old South members, otherwise there is a $6 fee.

The Neighborhood Coffee Hours give residents a unique opportunity to speak directly with Mayor Walsh about open space and other needs in their neighborhoods.

For more information and updates on possible weather cancelations, please contact the Parks and Recreation Department at 617-635-4505. There's also a full schedule of Mayor Walsh's 2017 Neighborhood Coffee Hours.