By Anne Steele, News Staff
Mayor Thomas M. Menino announced Wednesday that Northeastern purchased 320 Huntington Ave. from the Greater Boston YMCA, and signed a 20-year lease allowing 67 units of transitional housing to continue to operate in the Hastings Wing of the building.
Vice President for City and Community Affairs John Tobin said the original plan for the YMCA dorm construction project included a provision for third-party developer Phoenix Properties to purchase the Hastings Wing, but during negotiations Northeastern decided to buy the wing to show a commitment to neighbors.
“Some people were saying the university would fulfill its commitment to the city then bail out of the dorm, but this shows a commitment,” Tobin said.
In addition to housing nonprofits, university dorms and classrooms, the Hastings Wings quarters 67 beds over two floors, which are part of the Cardinal Medeiros Program for men transitioning from homelessness to permanent housing.
Tobin said the purchase guarantees the preservation of these units.
“We worked with city to come up with an arrangement to make sure those beds are protected,” he said.
The partnership, assisted by Menino, “furthers the City’s plan to end homelessness by preserving housing opportunities in Boston while also recognizing the need for Northeastern University’s continued growth,” according to a press release from the mayor’s office.
“I applaud Northeastern University for working with us to preserve 67 units of transitional housing in Boston’s Fenway neighborhood,” Menino said in the statement. “I am pleased that the 20-year lease will allow Cardinal Medeiros Program to continue to provide services to the some of our most vulnerable citizens in the Hastings Wing of the building.”
This new collaboration also addresses housing and homelessness in the Fenway neighborhood, which Massachusetts Housing and Shelter Alliance (MHSA) President and Executive Director Joe Finn said the organization is pleased to have the mayor’s support on.
“We welcome this new partnership with Northeastern University and look forward to continuing to provide these critical services in the Hastings Wing,” he said in the statement.
Northeastern President Joseph E. Aoun praised the mayor’s support and guidance through the process.
“At Northeastern, partnering with the community and our neighbors is part of our character as an institution,” he said in the statement. “Once again, the mayor has played a key role in strengthening the fabric of our city.”
Despite controversy over the construction of university dorms behind the YMCA building, Tobin said he thinks the city is more comfortable with Northeastern buying the wing rather than a for-profit company.
“They know who we are, they trust us,” Tobin said. “As far as it relating to our growth with the Y building, I think it’s an important step to making that happen.”
But Joyce Foster, a 12-year Fenway resident and a Fenway Community Development Corporation (CDC) board member, voiced concern over the seeming lack of community input. Foster had not heard of the sale before a reporter called Wednesday night, and she said she did not feel comfortable commenting on the specifics of the plan.
“One of the things that disturbs me is that an agreement has been made without any advance information,” she said. “The community in the Fenway feels strongly about anything that happens here and we want the university to come to us before these kinds of negotiations and that didn’t happen. I find that disturbing and troublesome.”
Tobin stressed that there is currently no plan to do anything new with the Hastings Wing.
“Down the road, if it comes to pass, it will be Northeastern’s responsibility to make sure that [transitional housing] program is still in place somewhere in the Fenway neighborhood,” he said.
He also said the university is proud of the negotiation.
“This really happened between President Aoun and Mayor Menino and both gentlemen instructed their teams to get the deal done,” he said. “It’s good for both organizations and it’s really a total win for MHSA. I think it was a good idea to buy it outright to show our commitment to project for the long term,” he said, pointing out that Northeastern already has a presence – and a long history – in the building.
“Northeastern was born literally out of the YMCA basement so this relationship goes back to 1898 and I don’t think anyone is looking to ruin 114 years of good relationships. I think that was the main motivation,” he said.
