OWNERSHIP
CONDITIONS
HISTORY

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OWNERSHIP:
Ownership of Austin Street is uncertain. City officials have cited historical research showing that Austin Street is owned by the State. Nevertheless, in recent years the City has taken over some administrative responsibilities for the street.

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CONDITIONS:
Most of Austin Street is not actually a street, but a grassy, treeless alley that touches on American Legion Highway (at Franklin Park), the eastern campus of the Boston State Hospital site, Lena Park Community Development Corporation, homes and apartments along Lorne Street, and Harvard Street. Hunks of cement block access to the alley from American Legion Highway. Although it is relatively free of debris near this entrance, the alley/ Austin Street becomes increasingly trashy closer to Harvard Street. Austin Street does not have a clear purpose, and because of its linear shape it would not be a natural place for children to play.

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HISTORY:
Austin Street existed at least as early as 1876, before Franklin Park was established, when this area was still primarily farmland and large estates.

Before August 2000, Austin Street was known to residents and police as a problem area. The alley was strewn with stolen cars. Trash overflowed from a garbage dumpster. There was a doghouse and an outhouse in the alley, as well as chairs used by those looking for a place to drink and do drugs. Streetlights in the area had been shot out by gunfire. Efforts to correct the situation on the street were often thwarted. One woman who complained about the problems on Austin Street had a brick thrown through the window of her apartment.

In August 2000, however, City officials mobilized 150 workers from ten departments to address the situation on Austin Street, make repairs to the infrastructure, and clean up the area (Ric Kahn, "From nasty to nice: Dorchester's Austin Street gets a cleanup," The  Boston Globe, Aug. 13, 2000). These efforts do not appear to have been sustained, although the condition of the street is vastly improved from pre-2000 descriptions.

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