Melnea Cass Boulevard separates the neighborhoods of Roxbury and the South End. According to data from the most recent census, Roxbury is a 53% Black, 32% White and 29% Hispanic neighbourhood with a median income of $25,937 per year. The South End, by comparison, is 55% White, 16% Asian, 14% Hispanic, and only 12% Black. The stark difference in demographics mirrors the disparity in access to resources like green space, which is clearer here than perhaps anywhere else in the city.
Urban green space has never been more essential
Green space detoxifies the air, mitigates storm water runoff and prevents extreme heat. It also provides a safe space to socialize and destress in the midst of the pandemic. Yet in the low-income largely minority community of Roxbury, this essential resource may be lost even as it’s expanded elsewhere in Boston.
By Julia Carlin, Cameron Woods, Isabella Walsh, and Bill Wu
After spending a long day cramped inside your apartment, dorm or shelter, there is nothing more refreshing than a breath of fresh air. Green space is something we all share. It provides an essential place for community bonding and recreation that has become increasingly important as the coronavirus pandemic forces most of us to stay indoors and maintain social distance. Bikers and runners alike cherish the lush greenways that run like veins through the city. The outdoors also provides a home for many people living without shelter in the city. In Boston, though, green space is at a constant risk from development.
During the COVID19 pandemic, fresh air is vital for physical and emotional health. “The ability to see green around you actually puts your mind at ease,” explained Sara Carr, assistant professor in the School of Architecture and Director of the Masters in Design in Sustainable Urban Environments at Northeastern University. “Stress is the bedrock of a lot of other mental and physical health issues experienced by those in economically disadvantaged neighborhoods.” Members of the United Neighbors of Lower Roxbury Community Garden find many benefits in the access to the garden. In the spring and summer, the garden is a lush oasis that provides a space for residents to build self-sufficient vegetable gardens in a neighborhood with little access to fresh produce. A flyer urges community members to join the fight against the Melnea Cass Redesign Project and preserve the trees lining the boulevard. The project has been placed on a temporary hold due to Covid-19 pandemic and community concerns, but the city has plans to resurrect it. Campaigns to save the trees have been ongoing for years - one side cites Boston’s continued expansion and the need for a wider highway to help control traffic. The other side focuses on the numerous environmental and health benefits the trees provide, as well as the historical context of the neighborhood and the populations that would suffer if this project was allowed to progress. Melnea Cass Boulevard was built in the 1930s, after a gentrification project sought to build a highway through what were once neighborhoods of lower Roxbury. It is now an important community space and a flourishing tree-lined greenway that residents enjoy while walking and biking. Aside from being a crucial reprieve from quarantining inside one’s home for one of the most at-risk populations, greenspaces often are their substitute home. When shelters are full or too restrictive for an individual to access them, sleeping and living outdoors is their only option remaining. Here, someone has left their clothes to dry to avoid health complications.
The park is an essential spot for community bonding, especially during the COVID19 pandemic which has forced many residents to remain socially distant from their communities and stay indoors. On the grass of Ramsay Park, a group of Boston residents from multiple neighborhoods plays soccer on a Saturday afternoon. This space is their community's meeting spot. The group of men are mostly from the Horn of Africa, Somalia and Djibouti, and shout to each other in a mix of multiple languages as they play: Somali, French, and even some Arabic. They meet to play four days a week, always at 4 p.m. Unfortunately not everyone has the privilege to see the greenspace solely as a space for recreation. Nathaniel Martin has been living outside since he was 18 years old; he spent his childhood running from abusive foster homes. Living outdoors is the only place he feels safe, especially during the pandemic. “Now with the COVID, I just want to be outside. The shelters are crowded and everybody’s getting sick and it’s too hot in there. Most of us would rather just sleep out here — it’s safer. Usually I sit on the Boulevard, but then the police started pushing us out — they didn’t want us sitting there. They said it was private property, but I know that’s not true. And anyway, we have nowhere else to go. We don’t wanna go to a different neighborhood where no one looks like us.” Martin speculated that the police are actively attempting to move homeless residents away from the Melnea Cass Boulevard area (a very visible point of access for many entering the city) to make way for further “construction” like the Melnea Cass Redesign Project and possibly Northeastern’s continuing expansion of the area adjacent to Ruggles. This has become one of the primary motivations for police cracking down on those like Martin who have been sleeping rough in the area for years. Boston’s public high schools are fully remote for the fall semester, changing the learning environment for young adults now going to high school from inside their bedroom. Some of them can find some degree of freedom in the area’s greenspaces and outdoor parks. Jasper Bergrand, currently a junior in high school, came out to the skate park with his friend Manny on a sunny Friday afternoon after his online classes had ended. Jasper said he’s been skateboarding for years but this year “it’s just something to do rather than be on my phone all day.” Jasper and Manny are exploring skateparks around the city and this was his first time at the skatepark in Ramsay Park. Not only does the foliage in green space offer shade and oxygen, but the soil itself may be the key to a healthier society. Dr. Jennifer Bhatnagar of Boston University, and her team of four PhD students take core samples of soil along the length of Melnea Cass Blvd. stretching from Columbus to Massachusetts Avenue. They believe that dealing with the pathogens within the soil may hold the key to keeping the city healthy, and because they may carry a viral load that affects those who use the space and sleep rough.Northeastern has played a significant role in the organization of space in lower Roxbury. The university’s continued expansion into Roxbury, as well as the sizable influx of students the area has seen in the past 10 years has put further pressure on the land in this area to be developed. ‘Development’ is often synonymous with gentrification, expulsion, and the paving away of vital outdoor green spaces. Some people do not have a doorstep to put a pumpkin on to celebrate the coming of the fall season. But still find joy in the fresh air. While students sleep comfortably in International Village, the University's 22 story dormitory, many residents remain outdoors.
