In Dense Chinatown, Housing Can Come at Cost of Trees

In a neighborhood starved of both new affordable housing and greenery, a development project has forced residents and activists to choose between the two — and the former has won out ... for now.

At the center of the trade-off was a project headed up by the Asian Community Development Corporation to build 110 affordable apartments and condos and space for a new Chinatown branch library over a city-owned parking lot in Chinatown. The project, which just broke ground, is expected to be completed in two years.

But the development is not without community sacrifice. A group of advocates has been rallying around saving three mature trees — among the few of the remaining ones in the dense neighborhood — but they were cut down on Hudson St. to make way for the building as this story was being reported.

“My grandma, she picks up my sister on that street, and that street, it’s like there’s no shade, and it’s a very popular bus stop for many kids,” said Leah Huang, a resident of Chinatown, who opposed cutting down the old trees. On sunny days, Huang said, those tree gave people needed relief from the sun.

Huang has been involved with Boston’s Asian Youth Essential Services, and has been opposed to the removal of the trees. She said she had met with the Asian Community Development Corporation to discuss her concerns and has put together an Instagram account and a petition that got 350 signatures in an attempt to block the trees from getting cut down.

But the Asian Community Development Corporation said that moving forward with the project while preserving these trees wasn’t feasible, as the construction would disrupt the root systems. It also pointed to the community benefit of building 66 affordable apartments and 44 affordable condos as well as new library space on two floors.

“In discussing with our contractors, once we start the underground work, it is impossible to avoid touching any of those three trees’ root systems. They could be very extensive, given how big those trees are. Once we damage those trees’ roots, they will be compromised, and they will probably slowly die over the next few years,” said Angie Liou, the executive director of the Asian Community Development Corporation. Liou stressed the importance of this project regarding the area’s housing struggles over the years.

“For many years, we’ve lost a lot of housing due to urban renewal and institutional expansion. And in more recent years, housing continues to be an issue because of severe gentrification and displacement. So, really, housing is the number one issue that has faced Chinatown for many years. So, being able to create an all-affordable housing project at this site is something that’s long overdue for Chinatown,” said Liou.

She also pointed to the overwhelming demand for the existing affordable housing options in the neighborhood.

Huang, however, has expressed that although she is in favor of the housing project, she was concerned about the lack of shade in Chinatown without these trees, as Chinatown is already considered a heat island.

And her activism won the support of at least one city councilor, Erin J. Murphy, who wrote a letter to the Boston Parks and Recreation Department urging a way to save the trees.

“In the City of Boston, the average tree canopy lands around 27%; however, in Chinatown, that figure equates to about 7%. Elders of the community, as well as growing families and constituents, depend on shaded areas to alleviate the massive amount of heat that is present in Chinatown.” Murphy said in her letter. “It is of utmost importance that mature trees are given the highest degree of consideration when maneuvering through this project.”

Liou said her group has found a remedy to replace trees over the long term by installing an underground irrigation system during construction, and planting six new trees on both Hudson and Tyler Streets.

“We will be adding three trees back there and then adding another three new trees along Tyler Street,” Liou said.

But Murphy and Huang express concern over how long it would take for you trees to grow to size of the ones cut down.

“Sapling trees simply do not provide the same benefits of shade and air quality improvement as normal trees,” Murphy said in her letter.