Dudley office building is first built in 40 years

Yawu Miller

Gilbert Thompson would drive through Dudley Square every day on his way from his Dorchester house to the Shawmut Community Church of God in the 1970s. Back then, the area was in decline, ravaged disinvestment, vacancies and fires.

“I’d see the destruction and I’d think, one of these days, I’m going to help,” he says.

It took a few decades, but Thompson, who is now pastor of the 7,000-member Jubilee Christian Church, has returned to Dudley Square with a three-story, 30,000-square-foot office building — the first new commercial building built in the area in more than 40 years.

Calling the Warren Palmer building a “powerful symbol of the ongoing revitalization of Dudley Square, Mayor Thomas Menino said the building is part of a quarter of a billion dollars in public and private investment that has helped turn the area around.

“Dudley Square is the heart and soul of Roxbury,” Menino told the audience that gathered for a ribbon cutting at the building last week. “My administration is dedicated to committing the resources needed to create new economic activity here.”

The building is not the Thompson’s first foray into the business world. Jubilee Christian Church owns three religious-themed bookstores, including one of the largest in New England. Thompson said the church’s decision to enter into the community development sphere is consistent with Biblical values.

“The Gospel is not just a spiritual message,” he said. “We believe that the message of Jesus is that he wants those at the bottom to move up and those at the top to help those at the bottom.”

Thompson said the building should bring in $700,000 a year in rent once the debt is paid off. The proceeds from the building and other business ventures support the mission of the church, he added. The church recently purchased a six-acre Catholic church complex in Stoughton for $3 million. Thompson says the new church will serve the more than 2,000 members who currently commute into Mattapan from Randolph and other South Shore suburbs.

The Warren/Palmer building, which will house offices and retail space, already has tenants for its second floor — the state Office of Public Counsel Services and the Treehouse Foundation, which provides services for foster children.

It is the latest of several large buildings built or renovated in Dudley Square in the last five years. Central Boston Elder Services last year completed construction on its new Washington Street headquarters, building on the site of a one-story building. The Dartmouth Hotel was renovated last year and a newly-constructed adjoining building was also completed. Other major buildings renovated recently include Hibernia Hall, Paladio Hall and the former Boys Club building.

Menino credits the collaborative efforts of government officials, local businesses and nonprofits and community activists.

“It’s all because of the community standing together, working hard and never giving up,” he said.

The next major project in Dudley Square may likely be the renovation of the Ferdinand’s furniture buildings, which are slated for redevelopment as office buildings.