A sneak peek at what might top ’25’s local stories in Dorchester, Mattapan

Two people walked up to a shuttered Carney Hospital in Dorchester on Tuesday, Sept. 3, 2024. What happens next at the Dorchester Avenue campus will be one of the most closely-watched stories of the new year. Alison Kuznitz/SHNS photo

What does the year 2025 have in store for the neighborhoods on the south side of Boston?

As a new, but familiar, and, for many, a menacing administration takes power again in Washington, it’s also a mayoral election year in Boston, and while Mayor Wu has not yet drawn a clear challenge, it’s expected that there will be at least one candidate who will emerge to counter her campaign to seek a second, four-year term.

Mayoral election years – even if there’s not a hotly contested race – can have profound influence at the street-corner level. That’s likely to be the case this year again.

Here’s a preview from the editors’ desk perspective of the stories we think will be frequent topics in The Reporter’s pages over the coming months.

A ‘reboot’ at Carney campus
Two boards appointed mainly by representatives of state and city government are expected to make recommendations in the early part of the new year that could bring sweeping consequences for this part of Boston for decades to come.

The first is a 33-member “working group” charged with setting a course for the re-use of the 10-acre Carney Hospital campus on Dorchester Avenue. The loss of Carney amid the state-facilitated dissolution of Steward Health Care was undoubtedly the top local story of 2024. Carney’s demise last September eliminated a critical emergency room option for tens of thousands of people, most of them already underserved and living in zip codes where health disparities are among the most pronounced in the Commonwealth.

Mayor Wu and her chosen lieutenants have been firm in their message that Carney must— and will on her watch— be repurposed for health care services. What those will be, in what model, and how soon they can be restored are all open questions. The “Dorchester working group” — which has now met several times since November— is expected to provide concrete answers to these and other matters before the spring.

It’s important to note that the Carney campus is still owned by a Steward-era holding company that has been radio silent about its plans for the site, which is thought to be worth well north of the $76 million value listed on the city of Boston’s assessing site. The Healey administration, which fast-tracked Carney’s closure last summer over the objections of other elected leaders, notably did not seek to seize the Carney property by eminent domain— a tactic it did deploy to intervene at Brighton’s St. Elizabeth’s Medical Center, which is still open and operating.

The working group’s recommendations will go to both Gov. Healey and Mayor Wu, but it’s really Wu’s team that has been most vocal and engaged in triaging the post-Carney plans. How the mayor opts to proceed with the guidance that flows from the working group will be closely watched and critiqued in these pages over the coming weeks.

For Morrissey Boulevard, a path forward – maybe?
A state-authorized commission set up in 2023 to advance plans on how to rebuild and reconfigure Morrissey Boulevard was originally expected to make recommendations to the Legislature by the end of 2024. That timeline has already been extended into the new year, although it remains unclear when precisely such a report will be finalized. In November, the board seemed close to resolving major questions around new intersections and related infrastructure. But residents have continued to raise questions about berms and other barriers near the Savin Hill beaches. The project – once finalized – is expected to cost between $273 million to $352 million over a five-year period. At this point, work isn’t expected to actually begin until 2029. But this year— most stakeholders hope— is the critical moment for coming to a consensus and getting plans in front of lawmakers and the governor for funding.

New eateries will add to Dot’s growing marketplace
A flurry of new restaurants are expected to come on line in the new year. The popular Mission Hill café and restaurant Milkweed— owned by the people who used to run The Blarney Stone— are building out a second location on Morrissey Boulevard that should open before the spring.

Sweet Teez Bakery will open in ground-level retail space in the Dot Block complex later this year. Nearby, a Vietnamese-owned and operated events space centered around a cafe called Lêgacy is targeting a ’25 opening in what used to be Dorchester Tire on Dot Ave.

Gourmet Kreyol, a Haitian restaurant, is expected to open in Codman Square and El Punto, a large, sit-down Dominican-themed eatery and function hall, is also expected to come online in 2025. We’ll also be tracking new liquor licenses for several existing businesses in Dorchester and Mattapan, which have been made available through state law passed in 2024. City officials expect the first round of new licenses to be awarded by the end of March.

Blue Hill Avenue
City planners, their efforts fueled by an infusion of federal grant dollars, continue to map out a reconfiguration for Blue Hill Avenue that currently includes a new center-running bus lane. The center-bus concept has drawn fierce opposition from many residents and merchants who worry that dropping vehicle lanes will add to congestion woes and hurt small businesses along the thoroughfare. Advocates say the new design will ease commutes for the tens of thousands riding buses each day. Construction isn’t expected until 2026, but this year will almost surely bring clarity— if not consensus— to the final design.

City council contests?
A mayoral contest – if there is one – will take center stage. But city councillors will also be on the ballot in 2025. Council President Ruthzee Louijeune, who topped the ticket in ‘23— is a favorite to once again lead the pack among citywide vote-getters. But she will have to relinquish her president’s gavel at the end of the year. Who might take the presidency next will be a later-in-the-year dynamic.
Meantime, a new crop of potential candidates will likely take shape between now and the filing deadline in May. One district seat that will be closely watched is District 7, where the incumbent Tania Fernandes-Anderson now stands accused in federal court of an alleged kick-back scheme. She has refused to step down from her seat but has already drawn two likely challengers in the fall election.

Uncertain impacts from immigration crackdowns
The manner and speed with which the Trump administration follows through with its pledge to deport millions of people now living in the United States is a huge wildcard locally. If, as threatened, the feds seek to expel people who were granted asylum and protected status under previous administrations, there could be major disruptions in communities like Dorchester and Mattapan. Much could depend on the degree to which local authorities cooperate with any presidential orders are issued in the coming weeks.

In the last Trump regime, former Mayor Marty Walsh used Washington’s more aggressive policies aimed at migrants as an effective political foil that boosted his standing locally. Could we see a similar dynamic play out in this year’s contest? Stay tuned.


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