Brookline News

Brookline News Independent, nonprofit local news in Brookline, MA

The proportion of vacant storefronts in Brookline is up slightly from last year but remains well below pandemic vacancy ...
12/18/2025

The proportion of vacant storefronts in Brookline is up slightly from last year but remains well below pandemic vacancy rates, according to an annual report from Town Hall.

The proportion of vacant storefronts in Brookline is up slightly from last year but remains well below pandemic vacancy rates, according to an annual report from Town Hall. In 2025, about 9.4% of storefronts in Brookline were vacant, up from 9.06% last year but down from 9.7% in 2023, according to t...

The Recreation Department is planning to increase the prices for some its lessons, sports and camps. Read about why:
12/17/2025

The Recreation Department is planning to increase the prices for some its lessons, sports and camps.

Read about why:

After an annual review of pricing, the Brookline Recreation Department will increase rates for some popular flagship programs and update its financial aid policy to ensure sustainability. Brookline’s self-run programs, such as swimming lessons, recreational sports and summer camps, are funded thro...

Nuno Loureiro, the Brookline resident and father of three who was killed in a shooting at his Gibbs Street home on Monda...
12/17/2025

Nuno Loureiro, the Brookline resident and father of three who was killed in a shooting at his Gibbs Street home on Monday, was funny, smart, personable and an "extraordinary" scientist, according to colleagues and others who knew him.

Neighbors gathered at a vigil last night holding candles.

Nuno Loureiro was shot and killed at his Gibbs Street home on Monday night.

Nuno Loureiro, a 47-year-old MIT professor, was shot and killed at his home on Gibbs Street Monday night. Police are inv...
12/16/2025

Nuno Loureiro, a 47-year-old MIT professor, was shot and killed at his home on Gibbs Street Monday night.

Police are investigating and have not yet named any suspects.

Police initially responded to shots fired on Gibbs Street between 8 and 9 p.m. A man later identified as Nuno Loureiro was taken to the hospital with multiple gunshot wounds and died overnight.

Jon Chen accidentally left auto-pay on for his property taxes for several months after he sold his Brookline condo.After...
12/15/2025

Jon Chen accidentally left auto-pay on for his property taxes for several months after he sold his Brookline condo.

After a year of wrangling, discovering a frustrating Catch-22 and facing off against the town's top lawyer in small claims court, he's still out $1,200.

“I think anyone can understand this was a clerical error, and it’s ridiculous that this has been so impossible to resolve," said Jon Chen.

Jacob Walters started the most gratifying work of his life after he retired. At 76, the former zoning attorney and longt...
12/15/2025

Jacob Walters started the most gratifying work of his life after he retired.

At 76, the former zoning attorney and longtime Brookline resident now spends his hours volunteering in local probate courts representing immigrant children who have been abused, abandoned or neglected by a parent.

“It brings me to my knees sometimes, what some of these kids go through,” Walters said. “It makes me want to do whatever I can to help.”

Jacob Walters started the most gratifying work of his life after he retired. At 76, the former zoning attorney and longtime Brookline resident now spends his hours volunteering in local probate courts representing immigrant children as he seeks to secure them a legal protection called Special Immigr...

Did know that Gary K. Wolf, the creator of Roger Rabbit, lived in Brookline for many years?He was back in town recently ...
12/14/2025

Did know that Gary K. Wolf, the creator of Roger Rabbit, lived in Brookline for many years?

He was back in town recently for an appearance at the new children's bookstore Turtle Books, where he told a number of stories about his life and surprising career.

It all began with coloring a cow blue.  As longtime Brookline resident Gary K. Wolf told attendees last week at a First Light appearance at Turtle Books in Brookline Village, he came from the rural Illinois town of Earlville (population: 1,598), where his dad ran a pool hall.  In Earlville, such d...

Brookline’s board of library trustees voted Thursday night to enter contract negotiations with Jill Mercurio, currently ...
12/14/2025

Brookline’s board of library trustees voted Thursday night to enter contract negotiations with Jill Mercurio, currently the director of the Newton Free Library, for the role of library director in Brookline.

Brookline’s board of library trustees voted Thursday night to enter contract negotiations with Jill Mercurio, currently the director of the Newton Free Library, for the role of library director in Brookline. Mercurio has worked at the Newton Free Library, Newton’s public library system, for almo...

Brookline.News podcast: the scoop on the city charter campaign, a local family sues the State Police and why 53 Brooklin...
12/13/2025

Brookline.News podcast: the scoop on the city charter campaign, a local family sues the State Police and why 53 Brookline residents are now getting $750 a month.

On Episode 11 of the Brookline.News Podcast, editor Sam Mintz and Brookline Interactive Group executive director Jessica Smyser talk about the latest news in Brookline, including a blow to the city charter campaign, a lawsuit over a pedestrian’s death and why 53 Brookline residents are getting $75...

Monday is the last day to donate to a toy drive organized by the Brookline Housing Authority and the Brookline Community...
12/13/2025

Monday is the last day to donate to a toy drive organized by the Brookline Housing Authority and the Brookline Community Development Corporation.

Read all about how it came together:

Two Brookline housing organizations are banding together for the third time to bring holiday cheer to children of families in need. The Brookline Housing Authority and the Brookline Community Development Corporation organized their annual Brookline Holiday Toy Drive to provide toys to low-income fam...

An early election update: Town Meeting member Amanda Zimmerman will run for Select Board in May, and board member John V...
12/12/2025

An early election update: Town Meeting member Amanda Zimmerman will run for Select Board in May, and board member John VanScoyoc is planning to run for reelection.

Amanda Zimmerman, a Town Meeting member and co-founder of the housing advocacy group Brookline for Everyone, is running for Select Board, she said this week. “I am thankful for our welcoming and diverse community, our walkable and transit-accessible neighborhoods, our strong schools, and our amazi...

A divided Select Board voted last week not to reappoint a member to the town's diversity commission because of posts she...
12/11/2025

A divided Select Board voted last week not to reappoint a member to the town's diversity commission because of posts she made about Israel.

The member, Chi Chi Wu, is currently the only person of color on the Commission for Diversity, Equity, Inclusion & Community Relations.

The Select Board voted 2-2 on Chi Chi Wu's reappointment to the town's Commission for Diversity, Equity, Inclusion & Community Relations.

Address

Brookline, MA
02135

Website

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when Brookline News posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Contact The Business

Send a message to Brookline News:

Shortcuts

Share

Category