Stonewall Communities' future looks uncertain

Stonewall Communities announced last February that it was shelving plans to build an LGBT retirement community in Audubon Circle due to the gloomy real estate market, but on April 7 the organization announced to its members that it is contemplating purchasing a 62-unit condo development in Dorchester, the Schoolhouse at Lower Mills. In an e-mail to supporters of the organization Stonewall Communities president David Aronstein wrote that Stonewall would purchase the Schoolhouse if there was sufficient demand from prospective buyers interested in transforming it into an LGBT retirement community.

"We have the unique opportunity to purchase it and make it our own. With the addition of some more common space, this could be a wonderful first Stonewall Community. There's no lengthy construction period; no waiting to move in. It's ready to go if we want it," wrote Aronstein.

The developers that own the Schoolhouse at Lower Mills, Urban Capital Partners and Landworks, said that they have no plans to sell it to Stonewall Communities.

"The Schoolhouse at Lower Mills opened last month, and already more than 10 percent of our units are under agreement. The location, value and amenities that Schoolhouse offers are unmatched in the marketplace," wrote Vin Norton of Urban Capital Partners in a statement to Bay Windows. "We've been receiving some incredibly positive feedback about the development and continue to move ahead with marketing and selling these units as condominiums, especially for the first time home buyer. At this time, there are no negotiations ongoing with Stonewall Communities or any other developer."

Joshua Payne, a spokesman for Stonewall Communities, did not respond to a request to comment on Norton's statement.

Stonewall Communities' efforts to shop around for a new location for its LGBT retirement community, coming just two months after the decision to abandon construction of Stonewall Audubon Circle, raises questions about the future of the organization's plan to create such a community. Spokespeople for Stonewall Communities declined multiple requests to discuss the potential acquisition of the Schoolhouse at Lower Mills. When asked what impact such a purchase would have on the plans for Stonewall Audubon Circle, Payne said, "We've been very clear that we have no comment on that at this time."

While the developers behind the Schoolhouse say there have been no negotiations with Stonewall Communities, Aronstein's e-mail to supporters, which was also sent to Bay Windows, suggested that such a deal was imminent. Aronstein asked recipients to complete a survey gauging their interest in moving into the building, and he urged people to respond by April 11, writing, "There is a very limited amount of time to structure a deal with the developer so your immediate feedback is critical."

Aronstein's e-mail seemed designed to sell supporters of Stonewall Communities on the prospect of establishing an LGBT retirement community at the Schoolhouse. "We know that making a move can be daunting. We are able to help you with all the mechanics related to the purchase of your new home - financing, the logistics of moving - and sale of your current home," he wrote.

The condos in Lower Mills are a very different product than the prospective homes at Audubon Circle that the organization has spent the last two years promoting. While the site of Stonewall Audubon Circle is located in the heart of the Fenway area, right near Landmark Center, Kenmore Square, and Fenway Park, with easy access to the Green Line, the Schoolhouse at Lower Mills is located on the outskirts of Dorchester near the border of Milton. It is also far less accessible to downtown. According to a website promoting the Schoolhouse created by Urban Capital Partners and Landworks, the development is a free trolley ride away from Ashmont Station on the Red Line, which is eight stops away from the heart of downtown Boston.

Aronstein said in his e-mail if Stonewall Communities purchases the Schoolhouse the condos will range in price from $250,000 to $400,000 for one and two-bedroom units. By contrast Stonewall Communities planned to price the Audubon Circle condos at between $400,000 and $800,000.

Stonewall Communities has been promoting the concept of an LGBT retirement community in one form or another since 1999. When it launched Aronstein and five other lesbians and gay men between the ages of 40 and 70 worked to create a mailing list of 3500 older gay and lesbian people and survey them about their specific needs. At the start the goal was to create a retirement community aimed at LGBT people within Boston. In 2006 Stonewall Communities purchased the site for the Audubon Circle project at 23 Miner Street, and the Boston Redevelopment Authority approved the project the following year. Last August Stonewall Communities offered prospective buyers the chance to put down a refundable deposit to reserve a unit in Audubon Circle, and construction had been slated to start this spring. In February Stonewall Communities announced that construction had been put on hold until the real estate market improves, but at the time Aronstein told Bay Windows it was unclear how long it would be before construction begins.