Developer says Dudley Square's first skyscraper would spur additional development

Well aren't you just a ray of sunshine, Mr. Dystopia?

Forget to take your happy pills this morning, Socky? Cripes.

That says 15 with a typo.

Not great, but better. Dudley was a place you avoided at all costs if you didn't have to go through that bus terminal.

Its not racist to point out that gentrification generally benefits mainly white people while not benefiting minorities. Eighty percent of white families in the Boston area own a home while only a third of black families do.

There are lots of poor people in that neighborhood don't kid yourself. Yes there are some doing well for themselves as well, but there will definitely be people priced out of that area.

When was the last time you were in Dudley? When was the last time you had a conversation with people who have lived in Dudley for the past 30 or 40 years? I am there every day, right next to that building, working with people who live in the immediate vicinity. They are being priced out.

Go fuck yourself Mr. Costello.

While I generally agree with you, I think you are missing the point. When an area gentrifies, some can afford the increase rents but many can't. I am sure that there are many African Americans that make a decent salary, as you say, but many (like poor whites) do not. It is not so much as saying 'these" folks need to live in a certain area, since they people of color; more akin to saying that gentrification of an area makes it not affordable for many people to continue to live in the area.

The history of Roxbury is complex: I am not sure if you are new to the area of if you have lived in the area for quite some time. I do not see it as a "dumping ground" per se but it is an area that is currently affordable for a wide and diverse population to live.

These new builds will being some sort of revitalization to the area but only for a small group of people that can afford it. The other side of all this, is that gentrification will most likely push those making the average salary in the area (or less) of 35K to find cheaper housing. (You can see the same patterns throughout the city.) The problems that you cite have been going for many years and are acknowledged by many but solutions are slow in coming. I am not sure building luxury housing is going to improve anything for many of those who currently live in the area.

This development--envisioned by a African-American developer from Roxbury--is kind of an interesting test for a lot of the folks who've been making noise about gentrification, changing neighborhoods, etc. The argument that some make--the 100% for Egleston for example--is that you should ONLY build housing that's affordable for the people who currently live in the neighborhood (though they never seems to take into account the amount of subsidized housing in the area). Here you have a lot of people saying that Dudley NEEDS more upscale housing to retain more prosperous middle- and upper class black residents who are currently leaving the city for Milton or Canton or Randolph, leaving behind a core of urban poor people. It's hard to predict what Dudley will look like in ten years but I have to say that I lean towards favoring development that may encourage an economically diverse neighborhood that provides more of a cultural/social/retail center for a black middle class which we really lack here in Boston.

I'm one of your white neighbors, and you're saying what I'm not allowed to because of the color of my skin. I didn't move here to displace anyone, and I have plenty of black neighbors who are doing just as well financially as I am or better.

Some older black neighbors just down the street just put their gorgeous 1890s home on the market for $900k. The listing pics show a meticulous interior with on trend updates. The house will go fast, and while it might end up being bought by an owner of a different race, these folks are going to make a huge profit on the place. That profit will hopefully give them a comfortable retirement and give their kids and grandkids a leg up in life. Isn't that the American Dream? Why shouldn't they be allowed to cash out and sell to the highest bidder? Why shouldn't they be allowed to move into a neighborhood that's mostly white, even as the people who replace them move into a neighborhood that's mostly black? Aren't we supposed to be done with separate but equal?

The real problem is not "gentrification," whatever that means. The real problem is that we have huge income inequality in America and it's only getting worse. And when we allow our reactions to that income inequality to devolve into middle class vs lower class or black vs white arguments, we just play into the hands of the super rich. They are happy to have us fight each other for scraps while they continue to vacuum up all the money. The more we fight each other, the more we lose and the more they win.

As opposed to the other response to my post thank you for actually responding with valid questions/observations as opposed to ad hominem snark about sociology classes.

I don't think anyone who has a problem with gentrification has a problem with the city or the private sector investing in n'hoods. In fact that's what people are usually advocating for in these areas for years. And once they start getting traction they find the place they have improved to be beyond their reach. No one doubts the existence of middle class and wealthy African-Americans in Boston, however we are hardly Hillcrest or Fort Washington. We certainly can let the market have its way with Roxbury and see what results. Or we could look at any of the other n'hoods that have already undergone this process or are in the midst of it, and see what the demographic trends are -- Chinatown, North End, South Boston, Eastie, Jamaica Plain, South End, East Cambridge, Somerville, Chelsea, etc. But certainly the idea that the descent of realtors and developers on Roxbury will result in our addressing the social problems the city has faced over the years is pretty unlikely. I mean, Boston won't have so much of those problems because Brockton will be receiving them.

As far as this particular project goes, at least it's being proposed by a developer with loooong-time roots in this community. It's kind of the business equivalent of the narrative of the old retirees cashing out their family home in the golden years. Whether the project happens as designed or never occurs the reality is that the wave is washing over Roxbury already. Block by block speculators and developers will get what they want and the n'hood will change (once again). Eventually we won't be having these discussions as there won't be any "poor" n'hoods left in Boston. Maybe not in my lifetime but that housing stock in Grove Hall is just too good for the realtors to pass up....