Mayor Menino Celebrates Revitalization of Formerly-Blighted Dorchester Neighborhood
WASHINGTON, D.C. – July 31, 2013 – (RealEstateRama) — Mayor Thomas M. Menino announced today that 37 Hendry Street, a property key to the revitalization of Dorchester’s formerly-blighted Hendry Street, has been sold to Urban Neighborhood Homes, LLC, a local community developer with a long history of working in the neighborhood. The sale, which went to record last week, marks the return of the last of the street’s “Problem Properties” to local ownership.
“The sale of this property to a local developer is much more than just a real estate transaction,” Mayor Menino said. “This community has worked tirelessly to rebuild itself, creating neighborhood watches and reclaiming homes on the street one by one. Hendry Street is almost unrecognizable from 2008, when we hung signs on abandoned houses that said, ‘This is not an empty house. It is our neighbor’s future home.’ Very soon, new neighbors will call 37 Hendry Street home.”
The City had condemned 37 Hendry Street, the site of significant police activity, in 2012 because the property was unfit for habitation. As a result, Ocwen Financial had begun foreclosure proceedings, but, working with the City, agreed to halt those proceedings and facilitate a sale to Urban Neighborhood Homes. After significant renovations, Doug George, owner of Urban Neighborhood Homes, will sell the property to a homeowner, who will be required by the terms of the sale to live on the property.
In 2008, standing with representatives from a wide array of City departments, Mayor Menino announced the City’s plans to acquire several properties on Hendry Street, citing the unusual amount of blighted properties in one area. In partnership with local community development corporations, these homes were rehabilitated into home-ownership and rental opportunities to benefit the Dorchester community.
During the revitalization of the neighborhood, the City of Boston funded the purchase and renovation of 20 properties – a total of 52 units – in the Hendry Street area. These projects resulted in $7.8 million in new investments in public and private funding.
At the time, Mayor Menino also vowed that value would be restored to the neighborhood. Today, through the City’s efforts and efforts of local non-profits such as Dorchester Bay Economic Development Corporation, homes in the Hendry Street neighborhood have, on average, increased in value by nearly $100,000, while prices through the entire neighborhood have stabilized. In addition, foreclosures city-wide have plummeted by 75 percent, from 1,215 in 2008 to 308 in 2012.
Contact:
Mayor’s Press Office
Press.Office (at) cityofboston (dot) gov
