Siraad Yusuf and her three children have been bunking with her sister and family in a crowded Roxbury townhouse for two years. Yesterday, the Somali refugee was elated to witness her new home — a three-bedroom Dorchester condominium built with the help of Habitat for Humanity-Greater Boston — begin to take shape.
“I touched it and said it will be my house,’’ she said with amazement.
Yusuf, a doctor in Somalia who now works in a Boston health clinic, is one of three homeowners who will be moving into the new condos on Blue Hill Avenue on the border of Dorchester and Roxbury. The construction marks the last phase of a five-building project called Blue Hill Place, made possible by Habitat for Humanity volunteers and about $3.5 million in public and private funding.
The nonprofit yesterday hosted a celebration at the site to thank Delta Air Lines Inc., which contributed $150,000 and more than 225 volunteers who are working to complete the three-unit building by next summer. Delta is one of a series of private companies that have supplied volunteers and money for the 24-unit project located along a long troubled urban corridor.
“Bringing new homeowners to the once-blighted Roxbury-Dorchester neighborhood speaks to Habitat for Humanity’s vision of re vitalizing neighborhoods around the world through increased home ownership,’’ said Lark Palermo, president of the local Habitat for Humanity branch.
Al Garvey, Delta’s director of Boston Airport Customer Service, said the airline was eager to participate, since many of its local staff live in the city.
“Our Boston employees have found this project energizing and moving, given its historical significance in bringing homeowners back to Roxbury and North Dorchester,’’ Garvey said.
Applicants such as Yusuf are able to finance the homes, which cost about $200,000, through zero-interest, 30-year mortgage loans, and with no down payment. To qualify, they must be employed, have solid credit, and complete homeownership classes to learn about house repair and credit management.
Lark said the nonprofit is still seeking qualified families to buy the two remaining units. As part of the deal, new homeowners also must put 300 hours of “sweat equity’’ into construction of their homes.
Yusuf said she and her two nephews, age 17 and 21, have invested about 60 hours into their building, hammering nails, painting, and lugging supplies. “They cannot wait to move in,’’ she said. “We are very crowded. There, they’ll have their own rooms.’’
Jenifer B. McKim can be reached at jmckim@globe.com.
Source: The Boston Globe
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