New South End Latinx cultural center receives $1 million matching gift

The community development corporation overseeing the project held a beam signing and raising ceremony on Tuesday.

Attendees of the beam signing and raising ceremony pose in front of La CASA's future site. Falcón Fontánez Foto

December 4, 2024

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A Latinx community center, set to open in 2026 in Boston’s South End, received a $1 million matching gift this week, a critical step toward the complex’s goal of becoming a “vibrant hub for Latinx arts, culture, and empowerment.”

The donation from Barbara and Amos Hostetter will go toward building La CASA: The Center for Arts, Self-determination, and Activism at 85 West Newton Street — a 26,000 square-foot, $33 million project.

Previously:

A new 26,000-square-foot Latino community center is coming to the South End

The complex will offer arts programs including dance, music, visual arts, and theater workshops, as well as exhibitions, performances, and cultural events. There will also be a performance space, galleries, classrooms, and an accessible roof deck for programming and gathering, the website says.

Inquilinos Boricuas en Acción (IBA), the largest Latina-led nonprofit in New England which was established in 1968 to address displacement of low-income families due to urban development, is facilitating the project. IBA’s offices will be able to centralize in the new space, allowing for its current offices at 2 San Juan and former offices at 403 Shawmut Avenue to be redeveloped into more than 40 affordable housing units.

IBA held a beam signing and raising ceremony on Tuesday attended by local officials including, Boston City Council President Ruthzee Louijeune, City Councilor Julia Mejia, and Liaison for La Comunidad Latina for Senator Markey’s Office Isabella Loboa-Velasquez.

The beam featuring signatures from supporters of La CASA. *Falcón Fontánez Foto*

“This beam represents more than a significant milestone in the construction of La CASA —it represents our commitment to real, lasting change for Latinos and multicultural communities across Boston, Massachusetts, and New England,” IBA’s Chief Executive Officer Vanessa Calderón-Rosado said in a statement. “It’s an investment in empowerment and in the power of the arts to build strong communities and uplift future generations.”

The Campaign for La CASA has already secured $9.5 million of its $12.5 million philanthropic fundraising goal, according to IBA. The center’s building will blend brick and terra cotta to “unite the beauty” of Latin-Caribbean culture with Boston’s 19th-century architecture, the project’s website says.

“Together, we are building more than a structure – we are creating a headquarters that will inspire, uplift and empower generations to come while preserving and celebrating Latino culture,” IBA’s Chief Operating Officer Mayra Negrón-Roche said in the statement.