Elis O’Brien, 24, works on perfecting a pot at the Mud Flat Studios on Broadway in East Somerville. Easy access to studios and other outlets for creativity will make East Somerville popular in 2010.
Where are the hot hoods in ’10?
Where to find the next big thing
Metro takes a look at four neighborhoods that will heat up in 2010:
Fort Point Channel
Some artists who lived in lofts here long before others found it trendy lament what has become of the area, but it’s hard to ignore the changes to a once-dormant region.
Mission Hill
It’s a challenge to walk a block in these parts and not see an old home being renovated, some of which offer views east of the skyline and west to a sunset.
Fort Hill
Residents here consider themselves part of a unique nook attracting a nice mix of homeowners beneath the Highland Park spire.
The city’s oldest and most diverse neighborhood blends new- and old-school commercial ventures, despite it being “cut off” from the rest of the city by major arteries on all sides.
“There are a lot of opportunities for people both moving into the apartment market and the buyers market to come into the neighborhood,” said Carrie Dancy, executive director of East Somerville Main Streets. “It’s definitely the most affordable part of Somerville, especially when you consider the T access.”
Home sales in the neighborhood — many of them condominiums or multi-family units — took off toward the end of 2009. And rents remain lower than in other parts of the city.
A four-bedroom apartment can still be found for under $1,500 and some Victorian homes with loads of charm are less than half a million.
There still exists an old guard which fears the gentrification that has hit other Somerville nooks such as Davis Square. And many real estate agents are still reeling from the poor economy.
“Business is slow, slow, slow,” George A. Ross, owner of Ross Real Estate.
But crime is below the national average and the area’s offerings are finally taking the forefront after years without notoriety.
Cheap rent is one of the factors that makes East Somerville such a hot place for 2010.
Assembly redux
The renovation of nearby Assembly Square, backed by $65 million in federal recovery funds, will offer a new mixed-use area just minutes away.
Where a shopping center Where a tired shopping center once stood will be gleaming new shops — some of which are already up. An IKEA is expected to be completed next year.
A proposed new MBTA station is being eyed for the area as well.
