ARCHIVES OF LEAD STORIES
April 14, 2005
CDC completes renovation of landmark Dudley Sq. building
Yawu Miller
From the early 1900s to the late 1960s, Hibernian Hall served
as a meeting place for Boston’s Irish American community.
From the late 1960s through the early 1980s the building served
as the local site of the Opportunities Industrial Council, an
inner city job training program.
As was the case with much of Dudley Square, Hibernian Hall suffered
from years of disinvestment, falling into disrepair and eventually
serving as a shooting gallery and crack house with addicts slipping
in through boarded up windows.
After a yearlong renovation, politicians, community activists
and other Dudley area residents filled the building’s ballroom
for a celebration of the building’s completion Monday.
“What’s exciting is that we’re returning this
building back to its original use as an arts and cultural center,”
said Madison Park Executive Director Jeanne Pinado.
In the ballroom were luminaries of Roxbury’s art world including
painter Alan Crite, Art of Black Dance and Music Director DeAma
Battle, National Center for Afro American Artists Executive Director
E. Barry Gaither and Berklee College of Music Assistant Vice President
for Community and Governmental Affairs J. Curtis Warner Jr.
The guests sat in folding chairs in the ballroom, which features
newly laid hardwood floors, 15-foot arched windows and a row of
incandescent globe lights lining the ceiling. On the stage, Mayor
Thomas Menino recalled the building’s heyday as a dance
hall.
“Growing up, I remember people coming down to Hibernian
Hall for dances,” said Menino, a Hyde Park native.
Menino told the Banner that the redevelopment of the building
is part of a larger movement to redevelop Dudley Square.
“I’m just glad that finally one organization stepped
forward and said, ‘we’re going to do the job,’”
he said.
While the city provided funding and other forms of assistance
to the project, Menino said the development of Hibernian Hall
and other buildings in Dudley Square came about as a result of
years of activism in the surrounding community.
“It’s because the people had the vision, not just
the government,” he commented. “The government was
the helping hand, but the people had the vision.”
Tenants in the old Orchard Park pressed HUD for years before receiving
a HOPE VI grant to renovate their development and the surrounding
area. The Dudley Square Main Streets organization made the redevelopment
of Dudley landmark buildings a priority in the late 1990s, bringing
together merchants, government officials and private developers.
The Enhanced Enterprise Community — a HUD urban revitalization
program — channeled more than $10 million into revitalization
projects in the Dudley area.
At the same time, the Madison Park and Nuestra Communidad community
development organizations channeled funds into the redevelopment
of prominent Dudley landmarks including the Woolworth Building,
Palladio Hall and the Dartmouth Hotel.
When Madison Park began efforts to redevelop the building in 2000,
staff members were originally planning residential/studio space
for artists. But community activists were adamant that the ballroom
on the building’s third floor must be preserved as a performance
space.
With the aim of developing an arts center, the CDC received $1.9
million grant from MassHousing and embarked on an ambitious capital
campaign, raising $5 million.
Earlier this year, Menino announced the city’s plans to
redevelop the Ferdinand’s buildings, the two largest buildings
in Dudley Square. The city plans to move offices from several
departments in the new office complex. The new development in
the square is having a positive effect on the surrounding neighborhoods,
Menino told the Banner.
“If you just look at what’s going on in a half-mile
area around Dudley, it’s a catalyst for the redevelopment
of the whole inner city,” he commented.
While Menino credited the local community, U.S. Rep. Michael Capuano
credited Menino for taking an interest in the long-troubled commercial
district, noting that the mayor could have allocated funds to
downtown projects.
“I just want to express my appreciation for doing what is
right before thinking of doing what is political,” he said.
Capuano, who formerly served as mayor of Somerville, also credited
Dudley area residents for their resilience.
“Some neighborhoods give up, some fight back,” he
said. “It’s really a testament to the people who live
and work in this community.”
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