LGBTQ+ senior housing center to open in Hyde Park
HYDE PARK - There is something special going on in Hyde Park and Philippe Saad is at the center of it.
Twelve years ago, Saad came up with an idea to develop a LGBTQ+ senior housing complex. A community that would focus on providing safe and comfortable living conditions for people over 62.
"It's a lot of work but it is also a lot of love and it's a lot of determination," said Saad. "To tell you that it was easy, it was not easy."
Saad is an architect for DiMella Shaffer and used his skillset to come up with a plan to turn the former Rogers School into an apartment building with 74 units.
"We're creating a community and I think that's the most important thing for anyone," said Saab. "Me, myself, my friends, want to live in a community."
Over the course of the next decade, Saad would create a task force and eventually create "LGBTQ Senior Housing Inc." The nonprofit would work to get the project and funding for The Pryde. Saad would enlist the help of Aileen Montour.
"I'm not someone to sit around and twiddle my thumbs, I need a purpose," said Montour. "It became a calling. I couldn't not do it and I like to get things done."
The apartment complex is designed to function as more of a community than just a place to live. There are common spaces and venues for actives and performances. The Pryde will feature mix-income housing and its tenants will be selected through a lottery. Montour said the list of applicants exceeded 900 with the apartment building containing 74 units.
"People tell me they're afraid when they move into regular senior housing, what about their fellow residents who are the ones who beat them up when they were younger and called them names, and they don't feel safe.," said Montour.
Saad and Montour are featured among this year's Portraits of Pride. The exhibition was on display all June on Boston City Hall Plaza and recognizes people doing impactful work in the LGBTQ+ community.
The Pryde is set to be completed by the end of the year with residents moving in within six months.