Woke Up, It Was a Chelsea Morning

From Dave Brigham:

I'm not at all a Joni Mitchell fan, but this song of hers seems to fit this post. Just as Elvis Costello set the tone for my last essay about the tightly packed city of Chelsea, Mass. (see September 2, 2023, "I Don't Wan't to Go to Chelsea...Oh, Wait, Yes I Do").

The first leg of my trip through Chelsea (and part of Everett) ended where Vale and Everett streets meet, near the commuter train tracks. For the second part of my journey, I turned north on Everett Street, then looped northeast to Washington Avenue, before heading southwest along Broadway to Winnisimmet Park.

The first thing that caught my eye was the sign and buliding for the former Floramo's Restaurant.

Founded in 1984 by Tommy and Pat Floramo, the restaurant offered a mix of barbeque, seafood and Italian specialties, according to its web site. A developer acquired the land and building last year, with plans to build lab space there, according to this NBC Boston article. The Floramos own restaurants in Malden and Wakefield, and indicated in the article that they may open in Everett again once the development has been completed.

I'm unsure of the status of the redevelopment project, which has been tagged with the name Verdynt.

Around the corner on Carter Street, I was quite intrigued by the blue door on an old office/industrial building currently being used by Igreja Betesda Boston, a church that I believe ministers to the local Brazilian population.

"CENTRAL ENGRAVING CO. INC. 1919," the circular sign reads, surrounding an image of what I presume is an engraving machine.

I haven't been able to find out much about Central Engaving. I believe it was originally located in Boston. The Chelsea assessor says this building dates to 1930.

I continued east under Route 1 and eventually wound my way south to the corner of Blossom Street and Washington Avenue, where I spied a nice old residential building with a great tower.

Sure, it's not as lovely as the day it was built in 1930, but 100 Washington Avenue still sticks out.

Across Blossom Street from here is Victoria's Diner.

I don't know how long the diner has been in business. The building, according to the assessor, dates to 1900.

A few doors down from Victoria's, heading southwest on Washington Avenue, I had to make a photo of another tower, this one at #80.

The building dates to, ahem, 1900.

I continued heading southwest, past Chelsea's city hall, central fire station, a school and other buildings, until I got to Broadway, the main commercial strip. At the intersection of Broadway, Washington Avenue and Fifth Street, I was stopped in my tracks by a fantastic mural on the side of 472 Broadway.

Created by artist David Fichter (I've featured his work numerous times on the blog; search him up), "Chelsea Resilient" presents the history of the city across four centuries. According to this Chelsea Prospers web page, "this community has repeatedly risen to overcome challenges and tragedies, responding with energy, heartfelt mutual concern, and an unquenchable drive to rebuild. The struggles and successes of each generation of Chelsea residents echo across history with a message of courage, determination, and optimism."

Among the Chelsea notables depicted is Chick Corea (seen below, center, playing piano), a 27-time Grammy-winning jazz pianist and composer. Born in Chelsea in 1941, Corea died in Tampa, Florida, at age 79 in 2021.

The building hosting the mural is currently home to a McDonald's franchise and Chelsea Discount Stop (I think. I'm going by an old Google Street View). At some point, a store named Apollo must have been here.

(Old tile entryway at 472 Broadway.)

A little further southwest along Broadway, I spied a mural along Chelsea Walk, which connects Broadway with Cherry Street, cutting between Broadway House of Pizza and Chelsea Walk Pub.

Created by Silvia Lopez Chavez, "City of Dreams" honors the city's "historic and present architecture, celebrating its resilience and capacity to re-build and dream big," according to this Wescover web page. "It also borrows the bright hues of textile patterns from countries around the world. An abstracted wave of water connects the colorful structures, flowing down like a ‘good stream’ under the buildings, also making reference to 'Winnisemet,' the native name for this area prior to being named Chelsea."

I saw many great old buildings on my walk along Broadway, but one stuck out more than the others.

Currently known as the Broadway Mini-Mall, and home to businesses including Peach's and Cream bakery, Montes Jewelry and Fresita Fashion Boutique, as well as a Spanish-language church, this Classical Revival gem started life in 1910 as Chelsea Masonic Temple.

From MACRIS: "The classical elements used to represent a temple-like structure articulate the prominence and importance of the Masonic Temple in the newly constructed street-scape. The bold Ionic columns, the entablature ornamented with rosettes and the egg and dart molding of the cornice topped with a brick parapet with stone coping are all classically inspired details. The entire facade was constructed of light cream matt glazed Atlantic terra cotta."

I'm not sure whether there is a theater in the building, or if the sign dates to an earlier era.

On Congress Avenue is a hotel that I'd made a photo of last time I walked through here (see September 4, 2013, "Chelsea Stroll"). Ten years ago I wasn't familiar with MACRIS, so I didn't have much to say about this hotel, the full name of which, according to Google, is Boston Universal Stanley Hotel & Hostel Boutique.

Before I get to the history of this place, I want to share a few choice reviews from Trip Advisor: "Absolutely Disgusting. I'm surprised I didn't leave with hepatitis. I wouldn't recommend this to my worst enemy" - from March 2023. "Shady characters and room very small and nasty. Clean towel has hairs on it. Glad to have made it out alive!!" - from July 2019. And finally, from October 2013, "Leaking ceiling on me and my girlfriend while sleeping, MOUSE IN OUR ROOM!!!!. Just that nasty.itchy feeling when get.when you know.your.in.a unclean nasty.dirty rat infested.place. Please if you think about staying here think twice and go down the road and sleep.in the park...trust me you'll be more comfortable."

To be fair, one of the six reviews is positive, although it was written in April 2008: "Good to go to on Short notice.Not fancybut ok for by the hour. Smells good. No rom service but can get pizza down the street."

Now, let's learn the back story.

This Classical Revival building was erected in 1908. Damnit, MACRIS, that's all you got?!

Well, having read the reviews, you get the idea that this place is perhaps a bit more than rough around the edges, and likely has been for quite some time. I imagine it was perhaps not as cheery as the rooming house in "Eraserhead."

Along Division Street, I spied three excellent murals. Across from the Universal Boutique Hotel, on the corner with Division, on the side of El Dorado restaurant, is a nice work by Kim Villafuerte Barzola.

The art depicts "a scene common to Barzola's home in Peru and the property owners who emigrated from Colombia and the Dominican Republic," according to the Chelsea Prospers web site. "The mural pays homage to the hard work of coffee farmers."

A few steps east along Division is part of a collaborative work done by a group calling itself the Sirens Crew.

From the Chelsea Prospers web site: "...Fernanda Lopez, Jenna Feldman, Laura Smith, Alison Miller, Melissa Clark & Ruth Henry...[are] a collective of female identified artists who create socially-engaged public art as expressive art therapists, educators, and activists. Their approach uses nature imagery as a metaphor for imagining a better, co-created world. The Sirens Crew uses the metaphor of a lotus flower to explore the strength and resilience of the Chelsea community and the people served by the North Suffolk Health Association."

Next, I headed west-southwest along Division, across Congress Avenue and Cross Street, to find another great work of art, this one done by Demetrius Fuller.

Once more, from Chelsea Prospers: "Demetrius Fuller teaches art in the Chelsea school system and is frequently a part of productions at the Apollinaire Theatre. For the rear of their building, the team behind the Chelsea Theatre Works tapped Fuller to refresh the mural with a landscape and a llama."

As for the front of the Chelsea Theatre Works building....

The Renaissance Revival building was built in 1906 as a U.S. Post Office, according to MACRIS. Horatio Alger, father of the famed author of the same name, was Chelsea's first postmaster, MACRIS continues.

At some point, this building was converted to an Odd Fellows Hall. You can see the organization's name carved over the door. The building also served as an Elks Lodge. These days, in addition to the theater group, the building hosts tenants including fashion retailer Variedades Michelle.

The acting troupe was founded in 1995 as TheatreZone, and originally operated out of Boston near the city's Theatre District and Combat Zone, according to the group's web site. In 1999, the group purchased its current building and changed its name to Chelsea Theatre Works. After years of applying elbow grease and money to the building, the group in 2007 changed its name to Apollinaire Theatre Company, after French poet and playwright Guillaume Apollinaire.

The troupe most recently performed "Hamlet."

Next door is the B. Burman Building, which dates to 1910.

I like the architecture description from MACRIS: "[T]his office building exhibits the eclectic elements of early 20th century commercial buildings. The heavy bracketed cornice indicates an Italianate tradition while the arched entrances flanked by fluted pilasters and quoins at the edges refect Georgian Revival qualities. This building also reflects a 20th century solution of concentrating revival-style detail at top and bottom, leaving the middle stories to look after themselves. In this building, modern Chicago-type windows were used with painted glass used as decorative ornament."

Current tenants include J&B Restaurant Equipment and Revere Restaurant Equipment, which I assume are sibling companies.

Directly east of the restaurant supply building is the Panonia Building, on the corner of Broadway and Cross Street.

Built in 1908, this Classical Revival beauty "is one of the first new buildings to replace original structures [damaged in a massive fire] that lined Broadway from this location up to Bellingham Square," per MACRIS. "Cross St. was put in sometime after the Fire (sic) which destroyed the original property on the site."

Tenants include Orion Super Market.

The last building in this area I want to highlight is across a parking lot from the Panonia Building.

The Charles Wesson Building rose in 1910, another post-fire structure. MACRIS doesn't have much to offer about this place. I made the photo above because of the ghost sign, which advertised Barrabee & Sons Boots and Shoes.

As I headed north back toward my car, I realized I had one more place to document, at the intersection of 4th Street and Broadway.

Chelsea Station opened in 2015, as a "Traditional American Pub with a Modern Twist," per its web site. The building is a former "horse & carriage fire house" that seems to have been in operation from 1908 until 1973. I assume that in the latter years, the firefighters had trucks.