Southie’s drugs and gentrification for the Wall Street Journal

A view of Andrew Square near the Andrew T stop in South Boston, Massachusetts, USA. South Boston has the largest problem with heroin addiction in the Boston area. Andrew Square, at the border between South Boston and Dorchester with a Red Line T stop and close to downtown, is a hot spot for heroin usage, despite recent gentrification. There are a number of methadone clinics in the area, as well. Residents in the area say they frequently see police arrest people in the parking lot of the Tedeschi convenience store (rear right).

Keith Lombard is a former heroin addict and alcoholic, now clean for 5 and 6 years, respectively, who now works in outreach and counseling at the South Boston Collaborative Center in the Old Colony Housing Project in South Boston, Massachusetts, USA. Lombard’s addiction started with a precription for painkillers after a 47-foot fall sustained while working as a carpenter in 2003. South Boston has the largest problem with heroin addiction in the Boston area. Andrew Square, at the border between South Boston and Dorchester with a Red Line T stop and close to downtown, is a hot spot for heroin usage, despite recent gentrification. There are a number of methadone clinics in the area, as well.

Ellery Street in Andrew Square in South Boston is notorious among residents as a place where drug users congregate. South Boston has the largest problem with heroin addiction in the Boston area. Andrew Square, at the border between South Boston and Dorchester with a Red Line T stop and close to downtown, is a hot spot for heroin usage, despite recent gentrification. There are a number of methadone clinics in the area, as well.

Houses near Andrew Square in South Boston, Massachusetts, USA. South Boston has the largest problem with heroin addiction in the Boston area. Andrew Square, at the border between South Boston and Dorchester with a Red Line T stop and close to downtown, is a hot spot for heroin usage, despite recent gentrification. There are a number of methadone clinics in the area, as well.

Ellery Street in Andrew Square in South Boston is notorious among residents as a place where drug users congregate. South Boston has the largest problem with heroin addiction in the Boston area. Andrew Square, at the border between South Boston and Dorchester with a Red Line T stop and close to downtown, is a hot spot for heroin usage, despite recent gentrification. There are a number of methadone clinics in the area, as well.

A view of Andrew Square near the Andrew T stop in South Boston, Massachusetts, USA. South Boston has the largest problem with heroin addiction in the Boston area. Andrew Square, at the border between South Boston and Dorchester with a Red Line T stop and close to downtown, is a hot spot for heroin usage, despite recent gentrification. There are a number of methadone clinics in the area, as well.

Houses near Andrew Square in South Boston, Massachusetts, USA. South Boston has the largest problem with heroin addiction in the Boston area. Andrew Square, at the border between South Boston and Dorchester with a Red Line T stop and close to downtown, is a hot spot for heroin usage, despite recent gentrification. There are a number of methadone clinics in the area, as well.

A mural by the Andrew Square Civic Association decorates a parking lot wall in Andrew Square in South Boston, Massachusetts, USA. South Boston has the largest problem with heroin addiction in the Boston area. Andrew Square, at the border between South Boston and Dorchester with a Red Line T stop and close to downtown, is a hot spot for heroin usage, despite recent gentrification. There are a number of methadone clinics in the area, as well.

A view of Andrew Square near the Andrew T stop in South Boston, Massachusetts, USA. South Boston has the largest problem with heroin addiction in the Boston area. Andrew Square, at the border between South Boston and Dorchester with a Red Line T stop and close to downtown, is a hot spot for heroin usage, despite recent gentrification. There are a number of methadone clinics in the area, as well.

Andy Ward, LICSW (Licensed Independent Clinical Social Worker), has worked for 16 years at the South Boston Collaborative Center in the Old Colony Housing Project in South Boston, Massachusetts, USA. Ward provides counseling and outreach to addicts seeking recovery. South Boston has the largest problem with heroin addiction in the Boston area. Andrew Square, at the border between South Boston and Dorchester with a Red Line T stop and close to downtown, is a hot spot for heroin usage, despite recent gentrification. There are a number of methadone clinics in the area, as well.

A view of Andrew Square near the Andrew T stop in South Boston, Massachusetts, USA. South Boston has the largest problem with heroin addiction in the Boston area. Andrew Square, at the border between South Boston and Dorchester with a Red Line T stop and close to downtown, is a hot spot for heroin usage, despite recent gentrification. There are a number of methadone clinics in the area, as well.