Melnea Cass Boulevard is a major street in

Boston, Massachusetts Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

,connecting

Dudley Square Nubian Square (formerly Dudley Square) is the primary commercial center of the Roxbury neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts, located at the intersection of Dudley Street and Washington Street. It has long been the center of African America ...

in Roxbury to the South End. Named after prominent community and civil rights activist Melnea Cass, the boulevard has historical roots as part of the proposed—but ultimately canceled— Interstate 695 (the Inner Belt).Inner Belt Expressway (I-695 and I-95, unbuilt)
/ref> There is also an

MBTA The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (abbreviated MBTA and known colloquially as "the T") is the public agency responsible for operating most public transportation services in Greater Boston, Massachusetts. The MBTA transit network in ...

Silver Line station named Melnea Cass Boulevard on this street. The boulevard begins at its eastern terminus at the Mass Ave Connector and continues westward, intersecting several major thoroughfares in Roxbury, as well as a few smaller streets. It concludes at its western terminus near Columbus Avenue, behind Ruggles station and

Northeastern University Northeastern University (NU or NEU) is a private university, private research university with its main campus in Boston, Massachusetts, United States. It was founded by the Boston Young Men's Christian Association in 1898 as an all-male instit ...

. Melnea Cass Boulevard is primarily a four-lane road, with additional turning lanes at key intersections. Its history as a planned right-of-way for the Inner Belt contributes to its unique character: it is largely devoid of buildings, except for a few city-owned properties built on previously vacant lots. Most structures along the route are concentrated at the intersections with major cross streets.

Cancelled planned renovation

The City of Boston began planning a complete rebuild of the street in 2011, publishing a plan in 2018 that would add separated bike lanes and raised crossings to improve safety on one of the city's most dangerous streets. It canceled the awarded $25.6 million contract for this rebuilding in January 2021 due to the objections of local residents over the removal of mature trees.

Drug and homelessness issues

Due to its concentration of service providers, the area around the "Mass and Cass" intersection has attracted a large number of people dealing with

homelessness Homelessness, also known as houselessness or being unhoused or unsheltered, is the condition of lacking stable, safe, and functional housing. It includes living on the streets, moving between temporary accommodation with family or friends, liv ...

and drug addiction, especially after the closure of the treatment facility on

Long Island Long Island is a densely populated continental island in southeastern New York (state), New York state, extending into the Atlantic Ocean. It constitutes a significant share of the New York metropolitan area in both population and land are ...

. The effects on local residents and the city's attempts to deal with the problem have generated considerable controversy, with the reconstruction of the bridge to Long Island delayed by opposition from the city of Quincy. As of September 2021, there is a homeless community in the Melnea Cass Boulevard area, which has an area nicknamed "

Methadone Methadone, sold under the brand names Dolophine and Methadose among others, is a synthetic opioid used medically to treat chronic pain and opioid use disorder. Prescribed for daily use, the medicine relieves cravings and opioid withdrawal sym ...

Mile" (after the

opiate An opiate is an alkaloid substance derived from opium (or poppy straw). It differs from the similar term ''opioid'' in that the latter is used to designate all substances, both natural and synthetic, that bind to opioid receptors in the brain ( ...

based drug used for treating opiate and

opioid Opioids are a class of Drug, drugs that derive from, or mimic, natural substances found in the Papaver somniferum, opium poppy plant. Opioids work on opioid receptors in the brain and other organs to produce a variety of morphine-like effects, ...

heroin Heroin, also known as diacetylmorphine and diamorphine among other names, is a morphinan opioid substance synthesized from the Opium, dried latex of the Papaver somniferum, opium poppy; it is mainly used as a recreational drug for its eupho ...

addiction). There were estimated to be over 100 residents in one concentration, mainly living in tents and structures. It was referenced by Fergie the Florist in

The Town (2010 film) ''The Town'' is a 2010 American crime thriller film co-written and directed by Ben Affleck, adapted from Chuck Hogan's 2004 novel ''Prince of Thieves''. The film stars Affleck, Rebecca Hall, Jon Hamm, Jeremy Renner, Blake Lively, Titus Well ...

as being the location where Doug MacRay's mother took her own life while under the influence of drugs.

References

{{Attached KML, display=inline,title Homelessness in the United States Streets in Boston

Cancelled planned renovation

Drug and homelessness issues

See also

References