A long-vacant Savin Hill eyesore has a new owner and a new lease on life.

A Dorchester-based developer has purchased the old Savin Hill Variety building at 102-110 Savin Hill Ave. and is poised to turn it into a mixed-use project that he hopes will “help to fill a void.”

James Baker, who heads 102-110 Savin Hill Ave. LLC, purchased the property at the corner of Savin Hill Avenue and Sydney Street in late July from longtime owner Anthony Desmond. Baker said he will propose a mixed-use structure with some residential components and first-floor commercial space.

Local elected officials and community members have clamored for movement on the boarded-up brick building, which once housed Savin Hill Variety and has languished in disuse for years.

The building is ripe for a throwback to its former purpose, Baker said.

“We definitely want to do some kind of retail market for the community,” said Baker, who is the brother of District 3 councillor Frank Baker. “We’re not sure what that’s going to entail, but clearly there’s a need.”

The LLC purchased the 3,858-square foot lot for $850,000, according to documents filed with the Suffolk County Register of Deeds on July 29, 2016. Desmond has owned the parcel since 2003, according to registry records. City records evaluate the land and existing structure at $333,000.

Inspectional services will work with the new owners to assess the building’s structural integrity, a department spokeswoman said last week.

Attempts to rehabilitate the former variety store have been full of stops and starts over recent years. A lease agreement in 2012 fell apart for a potential market at the site, and the city “seized” the property in November 2015 for failure to pay back taxes.

A municipal lien against the property filed with the Suffolk County Register of Deeds in March 2016 established about $9,254 in overdue taxes. The city foreclosed on the property, leaving Desmond with one year to either pay the amount owed, forfeit the property to the city, or enter into a purchase agreement that would include the back taxes.

Among the conditions for the property purchase was absorption of all existing outstanding taxes, Baker said.
The full amount has been paid to the city, he said.

Negotiations for the purchase dragged out, Baker said, and “because we weren't sure we would be able to purchase the property, we didn’t do any design.”

The corner of Savin Hill Avenue and Sydney is already seeing substantial improvements this season as work proceeds on a new condo and commercial building on what was long termed the Savin Hill “hole,” adjacent to the existing Savin Bar and Kitchen restaurant. The new building— rising three stories above the street— will likely set a precedent for height at the old variety site that Baker has acquired.

Starting the design ball rolling is a priority, Baker said. He anticipates 9 to 12 months before permitting can get underway, but hopes to present something to the community as soon as this fall.