Featured Apartment:
Boston-South Boston - Newly renovated, pet-friendly studio in Southie with a state of the art kitchen. Utilities are negotiable and owner may provide fridge. Includes yard, storage space, laundry hook-up, and great closet space. View More Listing -->
South Boston Information
South Boston is a densely populated neighborhood in Boston, Massachusetts,
located south of the Fort Point Channel and abutting Dorchester Bay. It was
formerly known as Dorchester Neck and today is referred to as "Southie" by its
residents. South Boston is an Irish-American neighborhood, though a portion of
its residents are of Lithuanian, Polish and Italian descent. According to the
2000 U.S. Census 86.98 percent of South Boston's population is white.
Asian-Americans are the next largest ethnic group with just under four percent,
and African-Americans are just under three percent of the population.
The City Point area of South Boston, labeled "East Side" by realtors, has seen a
major increase in property values due to its close proximity to downtown Boston
and gentrification. Poorer areas around Andrew Square and the Lower End,
referred to as the "West Side" by real estate brokers, face a lot of the same
problems found in many city neighborhoods including drug addiction and street
crime.
The section of South Boston north of First Street is targeted for massive
redevelopment by the administration of Mayor Thomas Menino and the Boston
Redevelopment Authority. Originally called the Seaport District, this area was
renamed the South Boston Waterfront after virulent protest from local
politicians, including City Councilor James Kelly. The Central Artery/Tunnel
Project, also known as the "Big Dig" has created a completely new transportation
network for this area and quite a few new hotel and office projects have come
online in the past few years. The recently opened Boston Convention and
Exhibition Center straddles D Street and a new home for the Institute of
Contemporary Art hangs over Boston Harbor just north of Northern Avenue.
South Boston is served by three Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority Red
Line rapid transit stations: Broadway, Andrew and JFK/Umass (formerly Columbia).
MBTA bus service connects these stations with the residential areas of South
Boston, downtown Boston and the Back Bay. The MBTA Silver Line, a bus rapid
transit service running partly in a tunnel from South Station, also serves the
north side of South Boston and City Point.
