CONDITIONS
CONTEXT
HISTORY
DESIGN ISSUES
SOCIAL ISSUES
PLANNING PROCESSES
TESTIMONIES

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CONDITIONS:
Boundaries:
The boundaries of Jamaica Plain have never been clearly defined. Over the course of its history, Jamaica Plain has been part of Roxbury, then of West Roxbury, and it began a part of Boston in 1874. In 1976, Jamaica Plain was generally thought of as consisting of six sections: White City area, Moss Hill, Jamaica Pond, Central Jamaica Plain, Bromley-Heath, and Hyde Square, also known as the "Model Cities area." In 2002, the neighborhood is thought of in terms of The Heart of the City area does not include the sections of Jamaica Plain that are farthest from Franklin Park, including Bromley-Health and Hyde Square.

Geology:
The land was formed by glacial movement during the last Ice Age. It is defined by the Stony Brook Valley, which drew the first settlers and in later years attracted industry -- and particularly breweries -- to the area. The Stony Brook is now culverted through Jamaica Plain. The land is also marked by outcroppings of Roxbury Puddingstone.

Architecture:
Jamaica Plain has a mix of Victorian, Colonial Revival, Second Empire, wooden three-deckers, and brick apartment buildings.

Current housing trends:
In 2001, condominiums were by far the most popular type of housing to buy in Jamaica Plain. While 75 single family homes, 35 two family homes, and 49 three familiy homes were sold in 2001, 279 condominiums were sold. The average cost of a condominium in 2001 was $227,000.

Between 2000 and 2001, despite the fact that the volume of sales of one, two, and three family homes, as well as condos decreased between 3% and 40% in Jamaica Plain, the median sales price of all types of homes rose as it has consistently in recent years. Single family homes were 23% more expensive and two family homes were 36% more expensive in 2001 than they were in 2000. Condominiums were 20% more expensive (Commercail TRENDS annual report 2001, Department of Neighborhood Development).

According to the City of Boston, almost 70% of housing units are renter-occupied in the neighborhood as a whole (City Open Space Plan, 2003).

Environment:
In 1997, Jamaica Plain had the third highest percentage of tree cover of all Boston neighborhoods and the highest percentage in the Heart of the City (more than 35%) ("Boston Indicators of Progress and Sustainability," The Boston Foundation, 2000). Trees reduce energy consumption in both the summer and winter, reduce noise levels, and reduce windspeed. They contribute to the overall health and stability of the neighborhood and the local ecology.

Jamaica Plain is nestled between tremendous open space resources, including Franklin Park, the Arnold Arboretum, the Forest Hills Cemetery, Jamaica Pond, the Allandale Woods Urban Wild, and the Southwest Corridor Park, as well as numerous other smaller parks, tot-lots, and playgrounds. Jamaica Plain contains or is adjacent to more than 1,250 acres of open space.

Transportation:
Jamaica Plain is served by a rapid transit line that runs through the center of the neighborhood along the Southwest Corridor. The Orange Line that originates at the Forest Hills MBTA Station in southern Jamaica Plain includes three more stops in the neighborhood, and extends to downtown Boston and beyond. A total of 19,300 people board the Orange Line each day from one of the three southern stations in Jamaica Plain (Access Boston, 2000, Boston Transportation Department). The Forest Hills Station is also a regional transportation hub for the bus system in the Heart of the City and for a commuter rail that also runs through Roslindale Village.

Centre Street and South Street still have the train tracks for the Arborway Green Line Trolley, which ran from Park Street in downtown Boston to Forest Hills Station. According to the MBTA, Green Line service will return to Jamaica Plain. In 2002, a planning process for this development is well underway. Currently, this corridor is served by the Route 39 bus, which leaves as frequently as once every four minutes from Copley Square and runs 20 hours a day. This is the most heavily used bus route in the system, accounting for almost 5% of all MBTA bus riders, with a total of 17,400 boardings each day. More than two-thirds of trips made by Jamaica Plain residents within the neighborhood are walking or bicycling trips (Access Boston, 2000).

The following buses run through part of Jamaica Plain:

16 Forest Hills Station - Andrew Station or UMASS Via Columbia Road
21 Ashmont Sta. - Forest Hills Sta. Via Morton St.
31 Mattapan Sta. - Forest Hills Sta. Via Morton St.
32 Wolcott Sq. - Forest Hills Sta. Via Cleary Sq. & Hyde Park Av.
34 Walpole Center or Dedham Line - Forest Hills Sta. Via Washington St.
35 Dedham Mall/Stimson St. - Forest Hills Station Via Belgrade Ave. & Centre St.
36 Charles River Loop or V.A. Hospital - Forest Hills Sta. Via Belgrade Ave. & Centre St.
37 Baker & Vermont Sts. - Forest Hills Sta. Via Belgrade Ave. & Centre St.
38 Wren St. - Forest Hills Sta. Via Centre & South Streets
39 Forest Hills Sta. - Back Bay Sta. Via Huntington Ave.
40 Georgetowne - Forest Hills Sta. Via Washington St. & West Boundary Rd.
41 Centre & Eliot Sts. - Dudley Sta. via Centre St. & Jackson Sq. Sta.
42 Forest Hills Sta. - Ruggles Sta. Via Washington St. & Dudley Sta.
46 Heath St. & South Huntington Ave. - Dudley Station Via Jackson Square Station
48 Jamaica Plain Loop Monument - Jackson Square Station Via Green Street & Stony Brook Stations
50 Cleary Square - Forest Hills Station Via Roslindale Square

Employment and commercial areas:
The two designated Main Street districts in Jamaica Plain are Centre Street/ South Street and Egleston Square on Washington Street and Columbus Avenue at the edge of the Roxbury border. Other smaller commercial areas include a section of Hyde Park Avenue adjacent to the Forest Hills Station and the Washington Street corridor south of Egleston Square. The total number of people employed in Jamaica Plain's Centre Street commercial district is 2,000, while the total number of people employed in Lower Washington Street in Jamaica Plain is 1,550 (Access Boston, 2000).

Neighborhood areas:
Perhaps more than any other Heart of the City neighborhood, Jamaica Plain is broken down into smaller localities with active neighborhood organizations and a clear sense of identity. These smaller localities sometimes have distinct boundaries, such as the Arnold Arboretum or the Southwest Corridor, or they may be only roughly agreed upon. The following localities appear to be generally agreed upon by local residents: 

-- Jamaica Hills: 
This area lies to the west and northwest of the Arnold Arboretum and is defined by traditional high-end housing, including Moss Hill, which has the highest reputation, and Green Hill, which is behind Faulkner Hospital. This area is zoned for single family homes and this status has been aggressively maintained by the neighborhood association. There are virtually no units for rent, except for a few gransfathered two-families. This was known as the "executive area" of Jamaica Plain. 

-- Pondside:
Single-family area with homes that are almost equal in price to Jamaica Hills. This is because, according to real estate agents, the Pond is the single biggest draw and central focus of the area. 

-- Sumner Hill: 
This historical neighborhood lies behind the fire station between Centre Street and the Southwest Corridor Park. The area was settled with large country estates beginning in the mid 1700s with the Loring-Greenough house. After the Civil War the estates were sub-divided.

-- Central JP:
This area stretches from Centre St. to the Southwest Corridor and has an increasingly strong value. 

-- Parkside:
This area was once seen as the whole neighborhood east of the Stony Brook valley, but now refers to the area east of Washington or the Southwest Corridor Park. 

-- Forest Hills:
This is the area east of Hyde Park Avevue. It is dominated by triple deckers although there are some old Victorian houses that are more expensive. 

-- Woodbourne:
This area is southwest of the Forest Hills Cemetery. There are three streets named Bourne here. There are a couple of housing experiments in this area such as housing clustered around a common open area. This is the blue collar equivalent of Moss Hill. It is smaller and less expensive than Moss Hill but still has World War II-era housing.

-- South Street:
This is the neighborhood south of the Soldiers' Monument. This area varies from street to street or even house to house. Next to the Arboretum is higher end and there are smaller houses closer to South Street. There are mostly triple-deckers from South Street to the Southwest Corridor Park. This area is equivalent to the Forest Hills area. 

-- Stony Brook:
This is the community northeast of the Forest Hills MBTA Station and it is dominated by triple-deckers. It is mixed in with industrial uses to the west, and south at the Arborway Yard. 

-- Brookside:
This area stretches from Boylston Street to Green Street and from Washington Street to the Southwest Corridor Park. This area was once dominated by breweries.

-- Egleston Square:
The Egleston Square area revolves around the intersection of Columbus Avenue and Washington Street and is the boundary between Roxbury and Jamaica Plain. There are some Victorian houses here on Atherton, School, and Copley. This was where the brewery managers lived. Round Hill and Edge Hill were developments for brewery workers. This area was once a dividing line between the two communities. Increasingly, it is becoming a meeting place instead.

Hyde Square, Jackson Square, and Bromley-Heath lie outside of the Heart of the City area.

Parks and recreation:
Jamaica Plain is well known for its access to greenspace. With the immediate proximity of Franklin Park, the Arnold Arboretum, the Forest Hills Cemetery, the Southwest Corridor Park, and Jamaica Pond, Jamaica Plain has enviable proximity to the city's largest open spaces. According to a three year study by Northeastern and Harvard Universities called "Play Across Boston," in 2001 and 2002 Jamaica Plain had 88 youth per recreational facility -- the fourth lowest number of all Boston neighborhoods. In North Dorchester, by contrast, 347 youth shared each recreational facility.

The neighborhood's average playground quality score, however, was relatively low. According to the same study, only about 55% of playground indices met the standard set for playground quality by the "Play Across Boston" study. In this area, Jamaica Plain ranked the fifth lowest out of the thirteen neighborhood areas.

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CONTEXT: 
Population:
The total population of Jamaica Plain was 36,299 in 2000. The neighborhood has a density of 11,343 people per square mile (3.2 square miles total). The per capita income after taxes in Jamaica Plain was $23,992 in 2000 - the highest in the Heart of the City. Jamaica Plain has the largest Hispanic community in Boston, with over 10,000 Hispanics in 1990.

Ethnic breakdown of Jamaica Plain: 
                      2000    1990    1980
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White              50%    49%    59%
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Black              17%    19%    18%
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Hispanic          23%    26%    20%
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Asian / PA       7%      5%      2%
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Multi-racial       3%      --          --
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Between 1990 and 2000, Jamaica Plain experienced a decrease in total population of between 6 and 7% ("Access Boston 2000-2010." Boston Transportation Department). According to the City of Boston, much if not all of the decline in population of Jamaica Plain may be explained by the temporary displacement of the population of the Mission Main public housing development in Mission Hill during the census period (Citywide Open Space Plan, 2003).

The number of African Americans in Jamaica Plain rose between 1980 and 1990 and dropped between 1990 and 2000 to 6,390, but has remained steady at about 18% of the total population through the decades. There is a large population of West Indian residents in Jamaica Plain.The total percentage of minorities in Jamaica Plain rose from 41% to 51% between 1980 and 1990 and stabilized at this level through 2000.

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HISTORY:
No one is sure how Jamaica Plain acquired its unusual name. Some attribute it to the legend that people here had a fondness for Jamaica rum and asked for it "plain."  Others attribute the name to an Indian chief who lived here more than two centuries ago named Kutchamaiken.

Before 1630, the land around Jamaica Pond was a summer home to the Wampanoags, Native Americans who spent their winters nearby in Mattapan. In 1630, Puritan settlers built the first road in the area -- Quinecticut Lane, which today is called Perkins Street (Jamaica Plain, Boston 200 Neighborhood History Series, 1976).

In the late 1630s the settlers constructed a road to Dedham as well as the Dedham Turnpike (now Centre Street and Washington Street). The modern Boston neighborhoods of Jamaica Plain, West Roxbury, and Roslindale were, until 1851, part of the Town of Roxbury. The area that would become Jamaica Plain was settled slowly and was not even mentioned in Roxbury town records until 1683. The rich, fertile land along the Stony Brook Valley was attractive to farmers. The Jamaica Plain area became a wealthy rural village.

One of the next major streets to be laid out was South Street in 1662. In 1689, the local reverend John Eliot donated 75-acres of his land to establish a school for children of all ethnic backgrounds. The school still exists today. The area at the intersection of South Street and Eliot Street was then and continues to be a focus of community life in the Jamaica Plain area.

The first wave of gentrification of Jamaica Plain began in about 1740, when the wealthy elite of Boston built their country summer homes on sprawling rural estates in the Pondside area of Jamaica Plain. One of these was the Loring-Greenough House, which was built in 1740, was later used as a hospital for Washington's men during the Revolution, and still stands today at the corner of Centre and South Streets.

Public transportation dramatically changed the development pattern of Jamaica Plain. In 1826, Omnibuses (known as "The Hourlies") ran to Boston each hour for a fee of 25 cents, opening up access to what had been an exclusive rural area (Sammarco, A. Jamaica Plain, 1997). By 1832, the roads in the area had increased dramatically, and included Centre, South, and Walter Streets, the Dedham Turnpike (now Washington Street), and Perkins, Canterbury, Walk Hill, Seaver, Back, Warren, Bourn, Elliot, and Burrough Streets (Jamaica Plain, Boston 200 Neighborhood History Series).

In 1834 the Boston and Providence Railroad was completed. The railroad brought settlers to the area in even greater numbers and the first suburban homes were built. With the suburbanization of the neighborhood came industrialization of the Stony Brook corridor. Beginning in the 1840s, and continuing for the next several decades, factories such as textile mills, print shops, foundries, lumber and stone yards, and twelve breweries were built along Stony Brook (roughly parallel to what is now the Southwest Corridor). Immigrant workers moved to housing next to the factories and factory managers moved into more lavish homes nearby.

As the area became rapidly industrialized and more densely settled, the agricultural focus of the area waned. While in 1840 66% of adult males were farmers, in 1850 only 10% were farmers. Over the course of the decade, the local population of Jamaica Plain increased by 170% to about 2,730 people. At this time, American born people held 97% of the high-white collar jobs, 91% of low-white-collar jobs and 75% of the skilled positions. Foreign born people -- primarily Irish, English, Scots, and Canadians -- held 25% of skilled jobs and 75% of the low-blue-collar jobs. Irish were by far the most numerous people. Here, on the urban fringe, "The elements that constituted mid-nineteenth century Jamaica Plain appear as a bewildering and contradictory mix of agricultural village, exclusive suburb, artisan community, and urban ghetto." (von Hoffman, A., Local Attachments, 1994, p3).

In 1851, West Roxbury, including Roslindale and Jamaica Plain, seceded from the Town of Roxbury. West Roxbury was divided into five precincts: Jamaica Plain, Roslindale, Claredon Hills, West Roxbury Village, and Germantown. The most rural precincts were West Roxbury Village and Germantown (Bacon, Walks and Rides About Boston, 1896). The Town of West Roxbury was at this time developing Forest Hills, a garden cemetery intended for widespread public use. Cemeteries such as these, which served not only as a place to honor the dead, but also as an arboretum, a place for recreation, an antidote to the environmental ills of the city, and a showcase for art, paved the way for the establishment urban parks of the late 19th century.

At this time the population of Jamaica Plain was growing rapidly and becoming increasingly foreign-born. Between 1865 and 1880, the population grew from 5,450 to 32,750. By 1880, 25% of all households in the area were Irish. Jamaica Plain also became home to a large number of German Americans, Progressive reformers, and mainstream politicians. The remaining upper-middleclass Protestants were the local social elite and included farmers, the wealthy elite, and business commuters (von Hoffman, A., Local Attachments, 1994).

Jamaica Plain finally became annexed to the City of Boston in 1874, after first being part of the Town of Roxbury, and then being a part of the Town of West Roxbury.

Population of Jamaica Plain over time:

1850 - 2,730
1875 - 9,190
1880 - 12,810
1900 - 32,750
1910 - 40,620

Although Jamaica Plain retained some of its identity as a rural retreat, the centrality of industry to the life of the neighborhood increased, and Jamaica Plain became associated with industries such as the Haffenreffer Brewery. Residents of all social levels developed deep attachments to the neighborhood through real estate deals, their proximity to work, and strong local Catholic parishes (von Hoffman, A., Local Attachments, 1994). Social ties were also fostered through practices such as spigots outside the brewery that allowed workers to fill their containers with free beer.

In 1903, the Elevated Orange Line was constructed above the major thoroughfare of Washington Street. "The El," as it came to be known, became a blighting influence on the neighborhood that it overshadowed, particularly in the Egleston Square section of Jamaica Plain.

The Pondside section of Jamaica Plain became a popular home for Boston politicians. In 1915 when politician James Michael Curley's house on 350 Jamaicaway was designed with shamrocks carved into the shutters, it was clear that the elite of Jamaica Plain and Boston politics would need to make room for the Irish. In the 1950s and 60s, politicians such as John Collins lived in Jamaica Plain, as well as myriad police and city employees. Jamaica Plain was considered the most stable of all of Boston's neighborhoods (Levine & Harmon, Death of an American Jewish Community, 1992). While other neighborhoods rapidly lost their populations between 1950 and 1965, the population of Jamaica Plain was steady at 42,400. The minority population of Jamaica Plain was less than 5% in 1960 (1965/1975 General Plan for the City of Boston and the regional core).

The deterioration of part of Jamaica Plain was driven by the history of the Southwest Corridor, which was slated to become Interstate 95. By the late 1960s, a final design for the highway was well underway. The State had acquired the strip of land -- dubbed the southwest corridor -- and begun to demolish homes and business to clear the way for the interstate. Between 1960 and 1968, 20% of the housing that remained had moved from sound to the deteriorating or dilapidated categories. In 1968, due in large part to neighborhood resistance, the governor canceled the plans to run I-95 through Jamaica Plain, Roxbury and Roslindale and the cleared land was left alone. The cleared and vacant land along the Southwest Corridor simply languished unused. Sam Bass Warner called the corridor "a wide, unattended scab" through the neighborhoods (Warner, S. To dwell is to garden: a history of Boston's community gardens, 1987).

During this same period, many of the industries along the Washington Street corridor closed, including the Haffenreffer Brewery in 1965. By 1965, approximately 24% of the 12,600 housing units in Jamaica Plain were unsound. By the 1970s, arson had become a major threat in the neighborhood and the population of Jamaica Plain was declining. Between 1970 and 1980 the total population of the neighborhood declined by 17.7%. It became difficult to sell real estate. Robert Glassman, a real estate broker with Jamaica Plain Realty, described the period in this way: "The period from 1973 to '77 was a black hole -- a void. On some streets you couldn't give houses away."

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DESIGN ISSUES:
The following is a short introduction to two of the many social issues facing Jamaica Plain. 

Demand for housing:
The demand for housing in Jamaica Plain, particularly for affordable housing units, is high. The supply of new housing each year is small in comparison, in part because land for new housing development and new parking is extremely limited. In many cases, residents value small pockets of open space in their community and resist the potential for more congestion and traffic on their streets that they fear new housing development would bring. In other cases, remaining developable land may be located on steep slopes, in awkwardly-sized lots, or near undesirable land uses. 

Traffic, parking and congestion:
In many sections of Jamaica Plain, but in particular along major residential streets with many pedestrians and cyclists, such as Arborway/ Jamaicaway, Forest Hills Street, Washington Street, and South Street, concern about traffic is high. Residents throughout the neighborhood have called for traffic-calming measures.

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SOCIAL ISSUES:
The following is a short introduction to three of the many social issues facing Jamaica Plain. 

Housing and Displacement:
Housing prices in Jamaica Plain have dramatically increased over the past decade. According to the Jamaica Plain Neighborhood Development Corporation, the median rent for a studio apartment in the neighborhood went from $549 in 1995 to $1,158 in 2001. According to Banker & Tradesman, the average price for a single-family home in Jamaica Plain went from $173,201 in 1995 to $426,818 in 2001.

For those who own their homes, this trend has meant a significant increase in wealth. For those who rent their homes, this trend has translated into insecurity and sometimes displacement. The phasing out of Section 8 housing vouchers has accelerated the displacement and increased anxiety among residents that rely on subsidies for their housing. 

Crime:
In 2000, there were fewer homicides in Jamaica Plain and Roslindale than in other sections of the Heart of the City. There were, however, clusters of robbery and attempted robbery in the Egleston Square area and to a lesser extent along part of Centre Street and on Heath Street. In a typical police beat period, the most common crime is breaking and entering motor vehicles, followed by vandalism or stolen motor vehicles. 

Education:
As with all Boston neighborhoods, concern about the quality of public school education in Jamaica Plain is high. In 1999, according to a Boston Public Safety Survey, education was the number one concern of Boston residents. Heart of the City schools such as the bilingual Rafael Hernandez Elementary School received attention in 2002 for good MCAS results, while the Young Achievers in Science and Mathematics Pilot School has been exceedingly popular among parents. In June 2002, English High School was one of six schools to be identified by a new State accountability program as "underperforming." Two small, private alternative schools have sprung up in recent years in residential sections of Jamaica Plain.

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PLANNING PROCESSES:
Numerous planning processes are underway in Jamaica Plain on a variety of scales. Some of the most significant planning processes include planning for the redevelopment of the Arborway Yard and for the return of the Arborway Green Line light rail trolley to Centre Street and South Street. The governing body of the neighborhood -- the Jamaica Plain Neighborhood Council (JPNC) -- is extraordinarily active in decisions that affect the neighborhood. Some of the JPNC's highest-profile and most contested decisions relate to proposed developments in the neighborhood, but JPNC committees make decisions and participate in planning processes of all kinds.

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TESTIMONIES:
"The common bonds of neighborhood and economic opportunity overcame barriers interposed ethnic and religious differences" (Alexander von Hoffman, on Jamaica Plain in the mid- to late-1800s).

"If you drive straight east from the Jamaicaway to Franklin Park, you will see the quality of the housing go steadily down from upper to middle to poor to some of the worst in Boston...until you pass the railroad tracks. Then the pattern reverses itself" (Reverend W. Donald Campbell of St. Andrews Church on housing in Jamaica Plain in the 1970s).

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