By Patrick Strohecker
When it’s nice outside, Jeff Ransom likes to sit on his front porch in Mission Hill and watch as people stroll past. Ransom has enjoyed this relaxed ritual for 18 years, since moving into his apartment at the corner of Tremont and Parker streets.
“It’s close to transportation, close to shopping, grocery shopping, drugstore and all that. So it’s a convenient area,” Ransom said.
In a way, Ransom feels like part of a rapidly changing demographic in Mission Hill. At 54, though, he said that he stands out for being older than the many students in the neighborhood. And while the neighborhood around him is filled with transient tenants, Ransom has stayed in the same apartment for two decades.
“It’s a high turnover rate because, the students, they come in [and] they come out,” Ransom said.
Like most neighborhoods in and around Boston, Ransom said there is a high homeless population and some “illegal activity.” But he remains relatively unconcerned about the state of Mission Hill.
“There’s a lot of buildings, apartments, condominiums and stores [being built], so that’s always good,” Ransom said. “Nothing really concerns me at this point.”
Ransom works north of the city as an animal interpreter at the Stone Zoo in Stoneham.
About this project
The Scope’s student journalists spoke with community members in Mission Hill. #MissionHill100 is a collection of their stories.
