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Municipal
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Fields Corner
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City of Boston
Kevin H. White, Mayor
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-^<^ton Neighborhood DevelopmentAgency
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John E Weis, Director
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Municipal Building
The 1970s saw a new awareness of the district in Dorchester. The Municipal
value of the nation's neighborhoods, Building is an excellent example of the
especially those in older urban areas. Victorian Gothic style of architecture
Neighborhoods and their revitalization popular at the end of the nineteenth
increasingly became the center of fed- century. The structure was built in 1874
eral, state and local government activ- probably by City Architect George A.
ity. Boston, with a long-standing pride Clough. It is a three-story building and
in the cultural diversity of its neigh- consists in plan of a central, three-bay
borhoods, was in the forefront of this pavillion, flanked by two gable ends.
renaissance. Its neighborhoods have It is constructed of brick with limestone
since been strengthened by an infusion trim.
of public and private investment in
housing rehabilitation, commercial re- In addition to its architectural impor-
vitalization and public improvements. tance, the Fields Corner Municipal Build-
ing has civic and cultural significance.
To assure that Boston would add to its The structure has.been the home of
record of accomplishment in the decade a police station. District Court and
to come, in August 1980, Mayor Kevin H. the Dorchester branch of the Boston
White established the Boston Neighbor- Public Library. Presently, the building
hood Development Agency. One of the is being considered for nomination to
first mandates of this new agency was the National Register which would make
to undertake major revitalization it eligible for certain tax advantages.
efforts in nine designated commercial
districts. In launching the program The Municipal Building is located at One
during 1980-1981, over $5 million was Arcadia Street, near the intersection
committed from the city's Community of Adams Street and Dorchester Avenue.
Development Block Grant to provide low The building is currently vacant and
interest loans, build capital improve- owned by the City of Boston.
ments and develop key under-utilized
properties in these areas.
One such property is the Municipal
Building in the Fields Corner business
. .
Corner
Fields
Asa retail center, Fields Corner has competition for downtown and urban
seen many changes since its birth over stores.
a century ago. First the streetcar,
and then the automobile made it a key Although this highly competitive era is
link in a growing urban network of still here, emerging energy and popula-
business and transportation centers, tion trends are shifting the advantage
allowing the district to clearly dom- again towards Fields Corner and have
inate its market. Later, however, out- increased its attraction as a shopping
ward expansion of the city's highways district
- and massive suburban housing develop-
ment - ushered in an era of stiff
Transportation
Younger families who might have settled services 9200 passengers daily. Five bus
in the suburbs are instead beginning to lines operate daily along Fields Corner's
buy homes in the neighborhoods around main streets. Traffic patterns are
Fields Corner where housing and trans- currently being studied and new parking
portation costs are more reasonable plans developed in order to more
than they are outside the city. The MBTA easily accomodate exhisting vehicular
Red Line stops at Fields Comer and traffic
Consumer
Local Population
Besides the flow of thousands of poten- In addition. Fields Comer is in the
tial shoppers by various forms of unique position of having an urban
transit, an impressive consumer popula- shopping center with a Bradlees and
tion lives within the immediate Fields Purity Supreme as anchor tenants and
Comer area. There are 63,000 people five major banks have offices here.
living within one mile and 186,000 These are assets of which few neighbor-
within two miles of the business dis- hood business districts can boast.
trict itself.
s
Public Investment
in the SurroundingArea
Eighty-eight percent of the surround- two of which will be ready for occupancy
ing housing stock is in good to excel- in the summer of 1981.
lent condition due in part to home
improvement incentives offered to local In addition, over $600,000 has been
residents through the City's Housing spent for capital improvements in the
Improvement Program. In the last six Fields Corner residential district
years, $1,672,639 has been spent in with another $970,000 earmarked for
Dorchester to rehabilitate over 2285 further improvements.
residential properties. Other recent
housing development in Fields Comer
inlcudes three elderly housing projects.
Boston Neighborhood
Development Agency
The Neighborhood Development Agency' District designation will make funds
Commercial Development Division has available at reduced interest rates
assigned a project manager to Fields to merchants and investors.
Comer, as it has in each of the nine
commercial revitalization districts. Marketing Assistance - NDA has com-
The project manager oversees development piled extensive marketing data which
in the project area and coordinates the is available to potential investors.
services offered by other staff members. The goal of city-sponsoredmarketing
Some of the services offered are: efforts is to improve the mix of
Design Assistance - Architects and stores in a neighborhood by careful
Landscape architects are available selection and upgrading of businesses,
from NDA's Urban Design Division rather than merely lowering the
to furnish design support, especially vacancy rate.
to merchants who wish to upgrade
and renovate their storefronts. Security Programs - Police foot
pa.rols are scheduled to begin in
Financing Assistance - Loan packagers April 1981 with a budget of $100,000
can assist investors in indentifying for the year.
the best combination of private
financing and public investment.NDA's Field Services -Extensive information
new Neighborhood Commercial Develop- on available development sites, local
ment Bank and bonds obtained from labor supply and other demographic
the CommercialAreaRevitalization and statistical information can be
