A crowd of 50 people gathered at Roxbury Community College Thursday evening to discuss the reconstruction of the Dillaway-Thomas House, which is located at Roxbury Heritage State Park.
The project was recently taken over by the Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation, who hired Campbell Construction Group to begin restorations on the house, according to Leo Roy, commissioner of the DCR.
Roy began the meeting by stating the mission of the DCR and its purpose in hosting a public meeting.
“We’re here tonight to give you an update on the project schedule and logistics,” Roy said. “We at the DCR really recognize the importance of this property, as a community landmark and also as a symbol of the enduring spirit of the community moving forward.”
Patrice Kish, the acting chief of the Bureau of Planning, Design and Resource Protection, went over the history of the Roxbury State Park project as well as the anticipated floor plans for the Dillaway-Thomas House.
“The final process really resulted in us improving the scope [of the house], focusing more on the building and taking care of a lot of what was deferred maintenance items,” Kish said. “One thing that we heard in the public process was that we really needed to do a better job in making this a more welcoming site.”
Steve Athanas, a business manager at Campbell Construction Group, elaborated on the company’s background in restoring historic properties and assured attendees that effects would be minimal.
“We do not anticipate any after hours and very little weekends if at all,” Athanas said. “If that stuff does come up, we will absolutely coordinate with the community well in advance.”
Athanas also addressed residents’ concerns for the safety of the construction site, since there are both a school and a church adjacent to the park.
“Safety is of the utmost importance, [and] there will be construction fencing securing the site,” Athanas said.
The DCR and Campbell Construction plan to start construction in February and complete the project by July 2017, Athanas said.
Massachusetts State Representative Chynah Tyler addressed the issue of diversity in the hiring process of the reconstruction.
“With this particular project, there are nine subcontracts in total,” Tyler said. “Seven of the nine were selected by DCR. The problem that I saw was that of those seven, there was only one minority company chosen.”
Citizens from Roxbury and neighborhoods close by also expressed frustration after the meeting with the lack of minority and community employment after the meeting. They said the slow pace of the project is also problematic.
Angela Paige Cook, 69, of Highland Park, said she wonders how the DCR would address racial diversity as they are hiring workers on the project.
“This is a black community, and children are going to be walking by and seeing who is doing the work,” Cook said. “We want them to see people who look like them, so they know when they grow up they’ll have that opportunity as well.”
Cook said she has been involved in this project since its inception.
“I’ve been here 50 years, so I’m really invested in what happens in the neighborhood,” Cook said. “I’m concerned because there was a two-year delay and no one ever got in touch with us and the buildings and grounds [of the park] were locked up.”
Marcus Johnson, 34, of Roxbury, said the neighborhood is lucky to have a state park.
“I don’t think anyone’s looking for something super modern,” Johnson said. “That actual house is so historic … we want to be able to drive by and have our kids know that’s there.”
Massachusetts State Representative Byron Rushing told the Daily Free Press after the meeting that he came to the meeting to support his constituents, who are eager to see the project completed.
“I’ve worked on this since the beginning,” Rushing said. “I don’t need any changes [to the project]. I need this thing to be done.”
