Community Economic Power

DUDLEY STREET BUILD OUT

Dudley Street at East Cottage Street

This site has been the most advanced of the 4 nodes in the City's RFP process. Based on input from community residents through the DSNI process, a set of RFPs was issued early in 2004. This made it possible for a variety of uses to be proposed for different parts of the site. Subsequently, proposals were received, and the final candidates were brought before the community on May 20 to make presentations. On one of the sites, Project Hope's proposed to build a four-story building that would bring it's programs that serve poor/homeless families and women to scale. For the other site there was a proposal by Dorchester Bay EDC, for 50 units of affordable rental housing, 3 commercial retail spaces and a community meeting space. Based on a positive community response to the proposals, the DSNI Board and the City's Department of Neighborhood Development (DND) approved these developers. The developers are now working with the DND/BRA and DSNI to refine their designs for final approval. The programs that Project Hope is proposing for their new building would include homelessness prevention; adult learning; training to operate a home-based child care business; transition to work; and a 1-family scholars project that helps women go to college. DNI will be a minor partner in the development.

Aerial Of Dudley Street

Rendering of Project Hope's New Building

Rendering of DBEDC's proposed Dudley Village

Adjacent Parcels at the Dudley Community Greenhouse Site

With the designation at Dudley and E. Cottage Streets established, the next highest priority for DSNI is to assemble the vacant parcels at the Greenhouse Site, adjacent to our completed greenhouse building. In 2004 DSNI began conversations with the City and other property owners about the future of this land. This site includes a one-story, 3,400 sq.ft. commercial building that has been vacant since well before the founding of DSNI. The building was owned by an investor, who never put the building to use and whose sole interest was the resale of the property when the real estate market improved. That sale took place a year ago to a second investor who appears to have unclear intentions for the building. And in the meantime, the building has lost its structural integrity and would probably have to be torn down. Put together with seven vacant lots that are under private and public ownership there is nearly 20,000 sq.ft. with major frontage on Dudley Street. We envision a newly constructed "green" building that houses a combination of commercial uses, both retail and office, that are complementary to our greenhouse development, and we have been holding conversations with potential partners on our ideas.