Dorchester couple building affordable housing by hand to create reasonable apartments

BOSTON — A Dorchester couple seems to have pulled off an impossible feat.

They just built a new apartment building at 141 Westville with 14 affordable studios.

The rent is just $750 a month.

From the outside, the building looks a standard structure one would find in this section of Boston.

But the rents for the units are anything but run of the mill.

Elisa Girard said they are “14 super affordable micro-apartments, and we’re going to rent them for $750.”

Elisa and her husband Vivian are long-time Dorchester residents.

The high, and rising, cost of living there became more apparent to them when they ran a neighborhood bakery and café.

“The staff, we realized, had to live with roommates because it’s just unaffordable to have a space by yourself if you have a restaurant job,” Elisa said.

According to www.apartment.com, a studio in Dorchester now averages $2,385.00 a month.

• A one-bedroom unit fetches $2,458.00.
• A typical two-bedroom goes for $2,891.00.
• And a three-bedroom lists for $3,987.00.

“For most developers, the goal is maximum return, which we understand, but for us, it was about maximum affordability,” said Vivian.

The couple believes the units are a great space for one-person and might be suitable for the right couple.

The building comes with a common room, laundry facilities, storage space for bikes, and a private patio.

So how did the Girard’s create all of this and keep affordable?

Elisa responded: “We built the whole thing ourselves. We had a master plumber and a master electrician, and we had people do the sprinklers, but everything else we did. We built walls, we raised them, we insulated, painted, did the roof, gutters, everything.”

Their attention to detail is evident thru out the building, with extensive woodwork and ornamental railings.

Vivian said they put in thousands of hours, but didn’t really pay themselves. Instead, it was a labor of love. “We’re not going to starve from this. It’s fine.”

They’re not sure other developers would – or could – do everything they’ve done to create affordable housing.

But it’s something they felt they had to do to preserve their community.

Elisa added, “What could be replicated is just trying to keep price down. I mean people don’t have to maybe charge as much as they’re charging.”

Vivian said, “We hate to see people being displaced because they can’t afford to live here. That’s just not right.”

Their goal is to get their final occupancy permit by the first of September.

There’s already a waiting list for the apartments.

The Girard’s aren’t sure what their next project will be. They’re thinking about trying to create an affordable condo complex in the city, if they can find the right piece of land.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates as more information becomes available.

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