--Bye-bye, Filene. The legendary store saw some "major destruction" today. [More photos at On Common Ground] --The Department of Social Services (DSS) is on the hot seat because they removed Acia Johnson and Sophia Johnson, the children who died in a fire in their South Boston home, from the home and their mother--Anna Reisopoulos, who had a record with DSS--a while ago. Yet the children still lived with their mother when the deadly fire......

Even though the day was so soggy that Wollaston Station flooded for a brief time, a fire broke out in the old Filene's Basement that is above the Downtown Crossing T stop. The fire broke out at 7:00 pm, 50 people were evacuated, and the Downtown Crossing T stop was shut down for 2 hours, between about 7:00 and 9:00. A spokesman for the fire department told the Globe: "Pipe insulation and other materials caught......

--After such nice weather, a Nor'easter? You're kidding, right? Oh, no. You're not. At least it's scheduled to arrive Sunday, which will make the Pantsless T Ride much more pleasant. [WBZ] --A report indicates that a terrorist attack on Everett LNG would be a bad thing. Gee, ya think so? [Boston Globe] --Alex Jimenez, the soldier from Lawrence who went missing in Iraq last May and who still has not been found, has been......

Bus schedule improvements? Mattapan high-speed? New Blue Line trains? Oooh, Santa Charlie isn't finished with us yet! The MBTA just announced that T riders are now able to use their cell phones and other wireless gadgets at Park Street, Downtown Crossing, Government Center, and State Street. They can also use wireless in the tunnels connecting the stations. Where to start? The news has its positives and negatives. The positives are obvious--less boredom while waiting......

Update: WBZ has pictures of an SUV crashing into the bus. Another car plowed into the back of the car that hit the bus. The people involved were lucky--only three people on the bus and four in the SUV were hit. --A car hit an MBTA bus this afternoon while the bus was on American Legion Highway and Mount Hope Road. Three people on the bus went to the hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. [Boston......

For the past few months, Bostonist has engaged in a scientific experiment. We've been sniffing around T stops to find out which ones are the most pleasant and which ones are an offense to the olfactory nerves. Each day this week, we'll evaluate the odors you will find at various T stops. And here it is--the complete list of T stops with the most distinct odors: Aquarium: High tide, dolphin pee Airport: Pleather luggage,......

For the past few months, Bostonist has engaged in a scientific experiment. We've been sniffing around T stops to find out which ones are the most pleasant and which ones are an offense to the olfactory nerves. Each day this week, we'll evaluate the odors you will find at various T stops. The Red Line offers so much variety that you just might get dizzy--or drunk: Central Square: 40s, vodka, burnt rubber, more 40s,......

For the past few months, Bostonist has engaged in a scientific experiment. We've been sniffing around T stops to find out which ones are the most pleasant and which ones are an offense to the olfactory nerves. Each day this week, we'll evaluate the odors you will find at various T stops. Today marks a trip down the Orange Line. You might get the munchies on this one: Downtown Crossing: Fried food, mouse poop,......

--When word got out that Mayor Menino wanted to bring in a petting zoo to revitalize Downtown Crossing, we thought it was a joke. But it turns out that the barnyard animals are at the crossing on weekends outside Filene's Basement. Animal activists are underwhelmed, and how can looking at sad, cold animals inspire people to shop? [Boston Herald] --Wondering what all the screaming was about early yesterday evening at Downtown Crossing? It didn't......

Big Brother Casting Call Saturday, December 8, 12:00pm - 3:00pm Felt, 3rd and 4th floors, 533 Washington St., Boston (T: Downtown Crossing) Big Brother casting site The only people happy with the Writers' Strike right now is reality television fans and those who want to be on reality television. The latter will rejoice because CBS is launching another cycle of Big Brother, and auditions will be held at Felt. The release states that casting directors......

Okay, okay, the photo you see here is blurry, but Bostonist had to pay tribute to the Best T Outfit Ever, and you can't even see half of it. We marveled at this rider while riding the Red Line from Downtown Crossing yesterday. Her red-and-black ensemble was spectacular: black high-heel boots, very low-riding leather black pants, a studded black belt, a bright red shirt with a sequined red band, a studded leather vest, and a......

-- MBTA and MBCR in a war of the quips over why the commuter rail sucks. Massachussetts Liberal says "Grabauskas must go!" (via Universal Hub) -- Senator Steve Baddour wants to milk some sacred cows. It sounds dirty, but he just wants to get rid of the police details. -- ACLU reminds Boston residents targeted by the BPD Safe Homes project about a crazy little thing called rights. -- Get ready to learn about Downtown......

--Don't mess with the elderly in this city. They are not easy targets. A guy found that out when he tried to steal an old woman's purse at the Downtown Crossing T stop. On Wednesday night, Christopher Linehan, 29, of Dorchester, tried to snatch the purse of the unidentified 79-year-old woman. Neither party would let go of the purse, so Linehan tried dragging the woman to one of the black turnstiles. Good Samaritans started blocking......

Ann Patchett, Wednesday, September 26, 6:00 pm, Coolidge Corner (via Brookline Booksmith) The author of Bel Canto situates her latest book in Boston, and the plot should seem awfully familiar - the head of a political family tries to perpetuate a political dynasty. A Boston mayor steps down and tries to drive two of his adopted sons into politics. In the span of one day, events unfold that might change those plans. Vincent Lam, Wednesday,......

The Joiner is a newcomer to Boston and a compulsive joiner of clubs and organizations. He shares his experience joining Boston area groups weekly at Bostonist. The scene at Downtown Crossing's Alley Bar the afternoon of Saturday, September 1, should have been more somber, considering New England's only gay rugby squad had lost its first match of the season by a score too embarrassing to relate. But that's not how rugby works. After the match......

Filene's Basement has been announcing its closure for ages, but they've finally done it for real. Shoppers have scoured the racks for the last time, and the Downtown Crossing building is now a blank canvas for developers. And it feels like somebody died. Jessica Fargen at the Herald used the phrase "pay their respects" when describing customers on the last day. Andrew Ryan at the Globe called the final day of shopping "grim" and declared......

--The BPD announced that it is increasing foot patrols by adding 54 officers to the street beat. Commish Ed Davis held a conference yesterday at Codman Square. Right now, 18 beat officers total cover downtown, Grove Hall, and Bowdoin-Geneva. Here is a full list of where the new beat officers will patrol: Eagle Hill (A-7/ East Boston), two teams in Codman Square (B-3 Mattapan/Dorchester), Morton Ave and Blue Hill Avenue (B-3 Mattapan/Dorchester), Egleston Square (E-13/......

Starbucks, schmarbucks. Dunkin' Donuts thinks it can rule the world. It's rolled out corny commercials with the likes of Naomi Campbell and Rachael Ray leaving skidmarks on a floor. The next step in world domination starts this month, when our beloved Dunkin' Donuts begins selling packaged Dunkin' coffee across the United States at Wal-Mart, Kroger, and other stores. This is excellent news for anyone who no longer lives in New England yet who still feels......

Democratic candidate for President, and current Delaware Senator Joe Biden will be at the Borders in Downtown Crossing at 11 AM signing copies of his autobiography, Promises to Keep: On Life and Politics. We love Biden for his firey discourse, foreign policy expertise, and pearly white smile. Just don't ask him about Barack Obama please. Picture of Joe Biden flashing his best politico grin from Wikipedia Commons......

Vermont's big buzz band, Grace Potter & the Nocturnals, released Tuesday its second full-length and major label debut, "This Is Somewhere," yesterday - the band kicked off the big day in New York City for an appearance on "Good Morning America" and wrapped it up with an intimate hometown release party in Burlington, Vt. last night. We'd be pretty tired today, were we in the band, but Potter (vocals, organ, guitar), Scott Tournet (guitar), Bryan......

The Boston Public Library is all jazzed because it wants the Copley T station's name changed to "BPL Station" or somesuch. Apparently, Mayor Menino and some local pols are behind the BPL on this, and are sponsoring legislation to have the name changed. Pro-change parties cite Boston's quaint precedent of naming T stations for nearby landmarks, a la "Suffolk Downs," "Aquarium," and "Airport." For the past five years, the T has rolling its eyes......

The Armenian Memorial, a proposed park, would pay homage to the Armenian Genocide that saw the loss of an estimated 1.5 million lives in 1915. The memorial has been on and off in the news mostly for their intention to develop a parcel of the Greenway near Christopher Columbus park as the site of the memorial. Tom Menino has voiced his opinion: no way. He doesn't want the Greenway to become home to a number......

Who knew that Commish Ed Davis' radical new idea of having police officers patrol the streets might actually work? According to the Globe, crime is down in Bowdoin-Geneva, Grove Hall, and Downtown Crossing, where the new beats started. Since the back-to-basics plan is doing so well, Davis wants to add even more regular foot patrols. We agree that the Blotter looks slightly less crazy as of late. But we're curious. What happened to the Guardian......

Cooling fans in T stations! Hooray! Next step: Febreeze. In today's Globe, Mac Daniel reports that the MBTA will start installing "special cooling fans"* in T stations across its service area this month. They're even going to put misting fans at a few of the busier bus hubs. Check out the Globe's map to see if your favorite subterranean stank hole is on the list! Meanwhile, the Herald is totally harshing our T lovin’ buzz......

The Globe's Mac Daniel reports that a man was separated from his briefcase during yesterday's morning rush hour. Orange Line doors suddenly snapped shut on Juan Sierra’s shoulder as he tried make his way out of the car, using his briefcase as a shield. “The closing of the doors also sandwiched my head to the point that my glasses popped off to the outside of the train car onto the platform," Sierra wrote in an......

According to Massachusetts is so blue that you can't tell if it's blue or black. We're not really sure what exactly that means. The Daily Show recapped the Republican debate and provided no fewer than three segments to dig into Mitt Romney. Perhaps it's a sign that the statesman from Massachusetts (and Utah, and Michigan, and…) is a front runner worthy of ridicule. But perhaps it's what we've known for a while: it's the little......

As if we needed another reason to head to Dunkin Donuts, Rachael Ray is selling us on the caffeine that we've come to need as residents of Boston. Yesterday, when we posted a story about two guys who had hit up 40 Dunkies in 17.5 hours over 350 miles, we thought that the record could totally be beaten. Reader Dave Bonner shows us that there are, in fact, more than 50 Dunkies in a......

The Herald is reporting that after the original Filene's Basement location in Downtown Crossing is closed for two years that they will reopen and be better than ever. The store will add a third floor in a redesign to their current location. The additional floor space will include street level entrances to the store that won't require shoppers to head down to the MBTA station area first, or enter through the store that had been......

Howls of despair erupted when Filene's Basement announced it would close for two years for renovations. People would miss the Bridal Dress Catfight Spectacular, and the closing would damage Downtown Crossing's economic prospects. To top it all off, the signs at Filene's Basement said, "Filene's is closing, but the basement stays." So much for that sentiment. The Globe went straight to the mayor. Downtown Crossing has been a pet project for the mayor's office. At......

Today most of the MBTA system will be running on a Saturday schedule anticipating lighter rider-ship on the Martin Luther King holiday. Of course there's to "advisory" posted on the website, it's just a press release. The Saturday Schedule might be better for a T rider looking to get to Jamaica Plain than, say, a Friday Schedule. A tip to the blog Charlie on the MBTA indicates that the T’s Trip Planning website is having......