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By adamg - 2/29/24 - 2:39 pm

Boston Police report arresting a man they say kept taking money from people interested in renting a room in Dorchester he had no intention of actually renting. Read more.

By adamg - 2/21/24 - 10:21 am

A housing advocacy group today sued a series of Boston-area landlords and brokers it says violated state law by refusing to consider prospective tenants who said they had Section 8 or other government housing vouchers. Read more.

By adamg - 2/16/24 - 1:24 pm

The BPDA today sued the owners of the building that's now home to the Savin Bar + Kitchen and 14 apartments on Savin Hill Avenue in Dorchester, saying that while they agreed in 2018 to rent one of the apartments as "affordable" for at least the next 30 years, they have consistently rented the unit for more than allowed. Read more.

By adamg - 2/1/24 - 11:17 am
Ben Weber at council meeting

Weber explains his proposal.

The Boston City Council yesterday agreed to look at setting up a pilot program to help tenants facing eviction by giving them access to a housing attorney. Read more.

By adamg - 1/28/24 - 3:36 pm

The Boston Housing Authority and National Grid announced Friday they will replace the current gas-fueled boiler system in seven Franklin Field buildings with a new system that uses heat pumps connected to pipes drilled deep into the ground. Read more .

By adamg - 1/8/24 - 10:34 am

The state Attorney General's office last week sued the BHA over its treatment of a family with two girls with asthma and developmental issues, charging the authority ignored repeated complaints for three years about the unsanitary conditions in their Franklin Field apartment that were so bad the girls had to seek emergency care at a local hospital two to three times a month. Read more.

By adamg - 12/18/23 - 9:38 am

Update, 12:45 p.m.: Outage numbers now around 6,112 in Boston, with numerous outages in Hyde Park and Mattapan.

As of 9:30 a.m., Eversource reported more than 3,400 businesses and homes in Boston have lost power - including 1,600 or so in Roxbury, where falling tree limbs knocked out power at 6:32 a.m. and 1,400 in Jamaica Plain, where the power went off at 8:09 a.m.

By adamg - 12/15/23 - 2:47 pm

The condo association at One Dalton - the Back Bay tower that also includes a Four Seasons Hotel - today sued the owner of a 35th-floor unit they say has disregarded repeated entreaties and even fines to stop screaming, playing loud music and partying at all hours of the night. Read more.

By adamg - 12/14/23 - 9:40 am

The Dorchester Reporter sums up a recent Metropolitan Area Planning Council report that found that 21% of the home sales in the Boston area between 2004 and 2018 were to investors - but that that figure rose to 31% in parts of Roxbury, Dorchester, and Mattapan.

The complete report and a map: Homes for Profit: Speculation and Investment in Greater Boston.

By adamg - 12/13/23 - 4:03 pm
New West End library and apartments proposal

Between Charles River Plaza and the Otis House: 12 stories including 2 stories of library space.

A non-profit housing group and its investment partner have won preliminary city approval to replace the current West End BPL branch at 151 Cambridge St. with 119 affordable apartments atop a new two-story library branch. Read more.

By adamg - 11/27/23 - 9:34 am
Two renegade basketball hoops in West Roxbury

First hoop asks: Wanna piece of me?

A determined citizen spent part of Sunday night cruising West Roxbury looking for wheeled basketball hoops just sitting on sidewalks like they owned the joint, and reported not one but two hoops on Willowdean Avenue and another 1.5 miles down the parkway at Temple Street and Temple Terrace. Read more.

By adamg - 11/10/23 - 10:31 am

WBUR reports the state's family shelter program reached its maximum capacity of 7,500 families yesterday, meaning new applicants will be put on a wait list instead of immediately finding them a place to stay - the first time that's happened since the program began 40 years ago. State officials say it's partly due to the overall unaffordability of Massachusetts housing, partly due to the busloads of immigrant families southern border states are now sending here.

By adamg - 11/3/23 - 11:41 am
Map showing power outages across West Roxbury, Dedham, part of Roslindale

Outages at 11:30 a.m., via Eversource outage map.

Update, 3:15 p.m. Eversource reports 139 homes and businesses still without power in Boston, but no outages in Dedham, Brookline and Newton.

Eversource is blaming "equipment damage" for widespread outages that started around 10:45 a.m. in an area that extends from Brookline and Newton streets in the north to most of West Roxbury and Dedham in the south. Parts of Roslindale as far east as Roslindale Square are also affected. Read more.

By adamg - 9/29/23 - 10:58 am

GBH reports on the end of a crisis for resident who are disabled or elderly and who couldn't get down the stairs from their apartments without help.

By adamg - 9/25/23 - 11:26 am

GBH reports on an elevator that has now been out of service for nine days at the Ruth Lillian Barkley Apartments on Washington Street.

By adamg - 9/20/23 - 3:31 pm

B’nai B’rith Housing, joined by city and state officials, today officially opened its 1208 Parkway complex of 60 income-restricted apartments off Baker Street in West Roxbury - with its entrance on VFW Parkway. Read more.

By adamg - 9/1/23 - 12:36 pm

Complaints to 311 about mattresses on Boston Move-In Day. Allston/Brighton and Mission Hill, of course, but a fair number of complaints from South Boston, too. Also see: Allston Christmas Bingo - North End edition.

By adamg - 8/15/23 - 3:38 pm

A Dorchester woman admitted Friday she stole more than $100,000 in a year from people applying to rent apartments in Hyde Park, Dorchester and Roxbury by charging them twice as much for security deposits as her employer normally would, the Suffolk County District Attorney's office reports. Read more.

By adamg - 8/8/23 - 11:07 am

Gov. Healey today declared a state of emergency because the state is running out of room to house all the migrants coming here - we're currently at 20,000 individuals in state shelters. Read more.

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