OWNERSHIP
CONDITIONS
CONTEXT
HISTORY
ENVIRONMENTAL AND DESIGN ISSUES
SOCIAL ISSUES
PLANNING PROCESSES
TESTIMONIES

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OWNERSHIP:
Boston Housing Authority

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CONDITIONS:
Archdale Village is one of two public housing complexes in Roslindale (the only one in the Heart of the City). The housing development runs along Brookway Road parallel to Washington Street and includes 283 apartments, ranging in size from one bedroom to five bedrooms, for low- and moderate-income individuals and families. These six three-story walkup buildings were opened in 1952. The brick exterior, flat roofs, and common entries are typical of Chapter 200 veterans housing that was built in the late 1940s and early 1950s.

The grounds of Archdale Village are well tended by Boston Housing Authority (BHA) staff. The landscaping at Archdale Village along Brookway Road includes barbeque pits and picnic tables, small green areas with trees and places to sit, and spacious tree pits.

There is a smokestack in the middle of the Archdale Village complex, which releases the gases emitted from burning oil to heat the units.

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CONTEXT:
Surrounding neighborhood:
Along Elven Road, across from Archdale Village, and also on Claxton Road, there are rows of vacant lots littered with loose bricks, piles of sand, pillows, and other rubbish. The lots on both sides of Elven Road, as well as the lots on Claxton are owned by the City of Boston's Department of Neighborhood Development..

Access to greenspace:
According to an employee of the Boston Housing Authority at Archdale Village, "going to the park" for local residents means going to Healy Playground. In the summertime, young people in particular use the Flaherty swimming pool. Local youth also make heavy use of Archdale Community Center at 125 Brookway Road, which offers a bright, clean indoor basketball court with high ceilings; a computer lab with classes for both children and adults; and a small recreational room where community meetings sometimes take place. The computer instructor at the center describes the center as "packed with kids every afternoon."

Although some residents make use of the Arnold Arboretum, which is less than two blocks away from Archdale Village, many only know how to access the Arboretum from the Forest Hills entrance and are not aware of access points that are much closer to their homes.

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HISTORY:
In 1951, Archdale was said to be in need of major repairs and maintenance. In 1973, about 40% of the housing in the "lower Washington" area was defined as needing significant repairs before it could meet minimum standard requirements. The housing was in particularly poor condition near the Southwest Corridor.

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ENVIRONMENTAL and DESIGN ISSUES:
-- Flooding due to backup of an antiquated, leaky sewer system has been a problem in the Archdale area during times of heavy rain, particularly in 1996 and 1998.

-- Archdale Village borders part of the Barletta Company Incorporated, Engineering Corporation. Industrial equipment is often in operation on the site right next to the housing development.

-- The Arnold Arboretum is very close to Archdale Village but connections between this part of Roslindale and the Arboretum are not facilitated. Many residents are not aware that one of the most magnificent arboretums in the world is only two blocks away from their homes. There is no signage for the Arboretum in this area. There is only one very minor entrance to the parkland at South Street/ Archdale Road.

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SOCIAL ISSUES:
-- More than 6,000 residents of state-funded public housing in Boston may face increases in rent from 30 percent of their income to 32 percent of their income in 2004, or perhaps higher. (Elisabeth Beardsley, "Plan would force steeper rents for low-income tenants,"April 25, 2003).
-- According to residents and BHA employees, the perception of crime in this area has decreased in recent years. Archdale Village is no longer considered as dangerous a place to live as it was in previous decades.

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PLANNING PROCESSES:
The City of Boston's Department of Neighborhood Development (DND) owns the lots on both sides of Elven Road. According to a Boston Housing Authority employee who was asked about the lots, a building is being planned for this site. The DND website, as of March 2002, reported that only lot 155 on Elven Road is under community review and that the other five available lots on Elven Street are being advertised. The foreclosure date for lot 155 was April of 1943, whereas the other lots were foreclosed on in 1980 or later. Currently, the lots on the northern side of Elven Street are not differentiated from one another, but are lumped together. There is another DND property available on Claxton Road, bringing the total number of lots available in this clump to seven.

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TESTIMONIES:
"I'm sure those vacant lots [on Elven Road] are going to be developed soon. People are always talking about them. These days, Rossy is hot!" (Boston Housing Authority employee at Archdale Village).

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