Malden in Transition

Featured

Habitat for Humanity provides affordable homes for a select group of Malden residents

March 29, 2024 Jack Drees 2

By Jack Drees Habitat for Humanity has a presence here in Malden. As you stroll down Main Street near the Melrose line, you’ll come across two new townhouses next to a construction site. Several Malden families have new affordable homes thanks to Habitat for Humanity Greater Boston. An independent affiliate of Habitat for Humanity International, the Massachusetts non-profit has given housing to people with low to moderate incomes since 1987. The group, which has thousands of volunteers, buys land or restores existing buildings and then passes the houses on to people in need. Habitat Greater Boston’s coverage area includes Boston and 25 surrounding communities. To date, the organization has built homes in Boston, Belmont, Malden, Needham, and Newton. Upcoming projects include plans for affordable homes in Dorchester, Roslindale, and Weston. With the city’s first project completed in 2022, Malden is officially a part of the Habitat family. The project resulted in two single-family homes on Main Street. Each one is complete with three bedrooms, a living room, kitchen, one full, and one-half bathroom. Also in […]

Business

Plans for new behavioral health facility move forward

June 21, 2023 Shannon Garrido 0

Shannon A. Garrido It’s been over two decades since Hallmark Health officially closed Malden Hospital, effectively leaving residents on the Medford line to deal with the vacant property. After years of failed plans aiming to finally develop the former hospital, Tufts Medicine and Acadia Healthcare Company announced on June 30, 2022 that they are planning a behavioral health facility on the site. The joint venture is set to build a 144-bed inpatient facility that will address the critical need for accessible behavioral health services for patients of all ages in the Greater Boston area. Amanda Linehan, city council representative for Ward 3, where the site is located, explains that the residents are keen on developing the site as well as preserving part of the land.  “When I was going door to door asking folks what ‘would you like to see there?’ It was a mixture of preservation,” says Linehan. “[Others] would say, ‘it was great having a community hospital there, I wish we could have some type of health care or public health use.” Mayor […]

Featured

Malden’s housing crisis reaches far and wide

October 20, 2022 Shannon Garrido 0

By Shannon A. Garrido Berges As more people—students and families alike—occupy Malden’s newly vibrant downtown, looming housing instability threatens to stall the city’s economic progress. As the region recovers from the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, residents are dealing with both a growing economy and a housing crisis. Many citizens in Malden are finding it harder to keep up with the housing cost burden, leading many to rely on a faulty, sometimes exploitative rental market. Neighborhood View interviewed Amanda Linehan, city council representative for Ward 3, about the landscape of housing in Malden today and what the future might hold.  “Over the last few decades, we have not produced enough entry-level housing that’s affordable to working families and working households. And on the other side of that coin, there isn’t anywhere for retiring folks to downsize into,” said Linehan. “So a lot of the larger homes, even apartments that in another generation would have cycled over to a younger demographic [don’t, and] those folks have nowhere to go.” Alex Pratt, Malden Community Development Director, also […]

Business

Coffee for a Community: Choices abound in Malden Center

April 8, 2022 Nikita Sampath 1

By Nikita Sampath In Malden, there is a cup of coffee for everybody. The city’s downtown has five spots to grab a cuppa joe, all within a short walk of one another. Each spot tells a story about the people who live here. Tous Le Jour Right across from the Malden Station on Commercial Street is Tous le Jour, a spot that offers French-style bread and pastry with Asian inspired flavors. It’s the only place in Malden where you can get a kimchee-filled croquette and a taro latte. Owner Dennis Diao was a longtime resident of Malden when he first came to the United States from China for a program at Northeastern University. Despite moving away from the city, he chose to open a branch of Tous le Jour in the J Malden luxury apartment complex in June, 2021. “Malden is a city with potential. Everybody who lives in J Malden and everyone who takes the T is a customer,” he says. Tous le Jour allows for customers to grab a quick bite or spend extended […]

Events

March 26 candlelight vigil in Malden honors Atlanta shooting victims, calls for anti-racist policies

April 4, 2021 Kamila Rodrigues 2

By Kamila Rodrigues Last week’s vigil in Malden decrying violence against Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders (AAPI) began with a simple Facebook post and blossomed into a multi-faceted community gathering.  On the afternoon of March 21, Malden resident Maddie Lam made a post to the Facebook group “Malden Neighbors Helping Neighbors,” after the targeted attacks on Asian American women in Atlanta in which eight people were killed. Lam, a musician, poet, and painter, described the fear she felt and expressed concern for the Asian community and their safety. Her statement resonated with many; dozens of Malden community members responded and hundreds liked the post. Karen Colón Hayes, a community member and organizer, saw the post and sprang to action. “I immediately reached out to her and we began planning. We had a Zoom call with members of both MaldenCORE and GMAACC and we centered Maddie as the lead,” said Colón Hayes.  Lam joined Greater Malden Asian American Community Coalition (GMAACC) and began planning for the community vigil alongside Malden Community Organizing for Racial Equity (MaldenCORE). […]

Featured

Last Stand at the Bunker: Hobby Bunker to close its doors on Exchange Street

March 12, 2021 njforgione 0

Photos and Text by Nicholas Forgione After more than 20 years of selling toy soldiers, board games, books and hobby supplies, the Hobby Bunker is retreating from 33 Exchange Street.   From its cavernous location beneath “the old CVS” at the eastern end of Pleasant Street, the Hobby Bunker was a place for local gamers and hobbyists to meet for games, show off their work in the store’s display cases, and purchase stuff for their  hobbies.  The Hobby  Bunker is also one of the last places in Malden, other than Stop & Shop and Walgreens,  that sells books.  According to its website, The Hobby Bunker will relocate on April 1 in Wakefield at 103 Albion St.  For Al, a Malden resident and long-time employee who asked that his last name not be used, this is more than a business relocation. “It is kind of crazy.  I have been coming here since I was a kid.” For Al, the Bunker leaving Malden represents the end of an institution. The gaming tables are a meeting place, similar to a local bar.   The staff knows its customers: Al has a pretty […]

Education

City hosts E-Vehicle Fair and Sustainability Forum

March 30, 2019 ditikohli 0

Residents explored electric vehicles at the E-Vehicle fair outside the Beebe School and First Parish Church on March 21. Officials, locals, and a representative from the Massachusetts Department of Transportation gathered at the sustainability forum to discuss transportation initiatives afterward. Organized by City Councillor-at-Large Stephen Winslow, the event hoped to initiate a “cycle of change” towards further environmental conservation in Malden. View the news video below for more information. This video was produced and edited by Diti Kohli.