The Hyde Park Neighborhood Association (HPNA) met on Thursday, Oct. 1 for its regular monthly meeting, drawing about 50 people for what turned out to be a busy evening.

It began with HPNA President Mimi Turchinetz leading an appreciation of Ralph Cotellesso, who had been the longtime HPNA Treasurer when he died on Sept. 6 at 82 years old.

As Turchinetz described him, Cotellesso had been a steadfast HPNA presence over the last 50 years or so while serving on it in different capacities – becoming, along the way, “this unbelievably talented, quiet, really remarkable community leader.”

For those in the room who only knew him as treasurer, Cotellesso was recognizable by his rich voice – which he did not have to raise in order for it to carry – and by the savvy, well-placed questions that he would often drop on presenters in his gruffly polite, no-nonsense fashion.

The appreciation – during which several friends stepped up to speak – revealed a little more about the man, a lifelong Hyde Park resident who left a positive and lasting impression on it.

State Representative Rob Consalvo (14th Suffolk) said he had known Cotellesso for 35 years and got at his civic-minded doggedness. “I would get texts, phone calls on my cellphone, stopping me in Stop & Shop, grabbing me in the street, always wanting to fix things and help people,” he said, adding that Ralph “wasn’t afraid to call me out when something that I was supposed to do didn’t get delivered on, and would hold us accountable: all because he loved this neighborhood.”

As a testament to that, Eddie Conley, Constituent Services & Policy Coordinator for District 5 City Councilor Enrique Pepén, presented Elaine Laridis – Ralph’s partner of 51 years – with an official resolution, on behalf of Pepén, commemorating the adjournment of the Sept. 16 City Council meeting, at which time its members stood “in tribute and reverence” to Cotellesso.

Further testament was the roomful of people, all of whom – whether or not they had gone to that HPNA meeting to pay their respects – walked out having done so, simply by showing up.

The business portion of the meeting featured three appointments, starting off with a crime update from a larger-than-normal contingent of District E-18 police officers, including Captain Joseph Boyle and two detectives, in addition to the community service officers.

Topping the list of talking points was the shooting homicide that had occurred the prior Saturday, Sept. 26 inside an auto body shop located at 54 Walter St. Boyle stated that it was targeted, and that it is currently under investigation by the homicide unit and the District Attorney’s office. Unable to provide further details, he emphasized that there is no threat to the community.

Another update focused on McDonald’s (1312 Hyde Park Ave.). According to Boyle, despite officers being regularly assigned to that location, there have been ongoing disturbances caused by students from the Academy of the Pacific Rim, including one on Sept. 23 involving approximately 30 youths. This has resulted in the shop temporarily closing from 3:30 p.m.-5 p.m. and the Police Department has been working with school staff to address the situation.

On Sept. 15, there was also an armed robbery in its bathroom for which an arrest was made and a firearm was recovered. Lt. Detective Daniel Pusey stated that it was connected to gang activity based in the Garfield Avenue area of Fairmount Hill, and that three of its leaders had recently been arrested for a homicide that took place in Cambridge. “We’re hoping, with the leadership [arrested] and our work, that that group will kind of slow down,” he put forward.

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“The good news for us is, overall, crime in Hyde Park has gone down,” Pusey added.

The next appointment concerned a residential condominium development proposed for 64 Poydras St. in Belnel Village. The project application had not yet been filed with the Planning Department, but the proponent – Dalfior Development, based in Burlington – is proposing a five-story building with 36 residential units, a 1900 square foot commercial space, and 15 off-street parking spots. The 13,400 square foot site – on which there is now a vacant house – is at a dead end and is next to the Match Community Day Charter Public School.

Project attorney Ryan Spitz fielded a number of questions from the group – predictably regarding the lack of parking, but also regarding the feasibility of a diner (which Spitz had initially slated for the commercial space) or any other retail business at such an out of the way location.

He anticipated that the application would likely be filed within the week.

The third and final appointment brought Jane Marsching before the Association to talk about her Tree Care Hyde Park public art project, which has been going on since Sept. 10 and continues through Nov. 5. Its goal is to draw attention to Hyde Park’s tree canopy, which she said is receding faster than any other neighborhood’s due to development and residential tree cutting.

The project’s major component entails printing artistically messaged tree tags and hanging them in wooded areas such as Dell Rock, Sherrin Woods, and Mother Brook, and multiple workshops are scheduled to help participants to do that. Beyond that, free events are scheduled, including a tree walk with the City’s director of urban forestry on Oct. 21 from 5 p.m.-6 p.m. at Ross Field.

As the meeting wound down, Marsching got at an underlying component of Tree Care Hyde Park. “Part of what I do in the events is try to share about how trees take care of us. Trees are our neighbors. They take care of us. They provide health, beauty, friendship, all kinds of things.”

For more information, visit treecarehydepark.com or www.janemarsching.com.

The HPNA meets on the first Thursday of the month at 6:30 p.m. at the Municipal Building/BCYF (1179 River St.). For information, email hydeparkneighbors@gmail.com.