The Mayor’s Office of Housing and the Planning Department hosted a virtual public meeting on July 29 to discuss the potential re-use for community space of two empty parcels owned by the city of Boston on Norfolk and Mascot streets.
“We do agree that we’d like for a green space where community members can come together and unite together and have some place to have different events and some place to meet new neighbors,” said Nina Johnson, chair of the Woodrow Avenue Neighborhood Association (WANA).

Trena Matos Ambroise, a member of the group Redefining Our Community (ROC) said there is demand for such open space for programming.

“We just really want to do something for the community that connects both of the land parcels,” said Ambroise. “We want to have something to make our community a more healthy, a more cohesive, and a safer, more informed place to be.”

City Councillor Brian Worrell told The Reporter that he agrees with those expectations. “I’m hopeful that the Mayor’s Office of Housing and Planning Department will issue an RFP [Request for Proposals] that aligns with the residents’ desires for community open space,” he said. “I’d encourage our many community-based organizations to take a look at the parcels and see if they can get involved in the RFP process. This is a great opportunity for organizations to control the land in their neighborhoods.”

The idea for the RFP surfaced during an earlier meeting in March that was focused on the potential re-use of the vacant lot at 301-307 Norfolk St. During that discussion, it was suggested that the lot at 82 Mascot St be included as well. In response to that, a city project manager, Theresa Strachila, reached out to the Planning Department to ask if they should submit a joint request for proposals.

“MOH and the Planning Department are required to conduct an open, fair, and competitive process that places all proposers on common footing,” Strachila said. “Soliciting information allows us to make manageable and meaningful comparisons of the offers and base our decisions solely on the information solicited in the request for proposals.”

There was plenty of feedback throughout last week’s meeting about community-based activities for the parcels, including exercise classes, movie nights, gardens, concerts, and more. The neighborhood groups made it clear that it’s time for a space like this and that they had many ideas on how to use it.

A request for proposals is expected to be made public this fall.