How a vacant Boston school was transformed into thriving housing for LGBTQ+ seniors

*This is reported by NBC News.

An old school building in Boston’s Hyde Park neighborhood, once vacant and “creepy,” is now buzzing with life while teaching new lessons in community and inclusion.

Exactly one year after opening its doors, The Pryde has transformed the historic 1902 structure into New England’s first LGBTQ+ welcoming affordable senior housing community.

Karmen Cheung, Pennrose New England Regional VP, recalled the building’s previous state.

“I remember walking in and doing a tour of the building when it was vacant for the first time,” Cheung said. “It was actually kind of creepy, cold, dark.”

The vision, however, was clear: to turn an historic building into an independent living space where LGBTQ+ seniors could feel a strong sense of belonging. The result is a vibrant community that residents like Brian Salvaggio deeply appreciate.

“It’s bright, it’s open, it’s lively,” Salvaggio said. “It’s really the first group of people that’s lived here, so you feel part of something.”

For many residents, The Pryde offers a much-needed haven.

“As we get older and we want more community around us and we want more support around us, that’s really what brought us here,” resident Pat Xavier said.

The 100% accessible building addresses a critical need for a generation of LGBTQ+ elders who grew up without the legal protections and societal acceptance now afforded to younger generations, according to Gretchen Van Ness, executive director of LGBTQ Senior Housing.

“This generation of LGBTQ elders has faced such losses that they come into their elder years with a much smaller safety net than a lot of other folks are lucky to have,” Van Ness said.

The journey to create The Pryde was a dedicated nine-and-a-half-year collaboration between LGBTQ Senior Housing and Pennrose Management. Throughout the renovation, developers diligently preserved the building’s historic charm, retaining elements like original chalkboards and bell systems.

“Every unit is actually a little different because of those historic pieces,” Cheung said.

The Pryde is open to anyone over 62 who qualifies for affordable housing, though demand has far outstripped availability.

“We are 100% occupied,” Van Ness said. “This community is full and it’s hopping and there’s a million things going on.”

For residents, the most significant impact is the feeling of safety and liberation from discrimination and isolation.

“That’s just a wonderful feeling because, you know, there’s no more hiding,” Brian Salvaggio said. “Not at our age. We want to be who we are and enjoy the time we have.”

After a year of operation, residents and representatives alike believe The Pryde stands as a powerful blueprint for LGBTQ+ senior living communities everywhere, demonstrating how inclusive spaces can transform lives.

June 17, 2025 0

A hotel kicked a lesbian out of a women’s restroom for being “a man.” Now it’s changing its story.

*This is published in LGBTQ Nation.

After defending the actions of a security guard who threw a lesbian couple out of a women’s restroom and accused one of them of being a man, a five-star hotel in Boston has suspended the guard and admitted he acted in error.

In addition to sidelining the staff member, the Liberty Hotel on Boston’s Beacon Hill said all staff are being retrained “on inclusive practices and guest interaction protocols.” The hotel is also donating to a local LGBTQ+ organization, WBZ News reports.

“The Liberty Hotel is and always will be an ally of the LGBTQ+ community and a place where everyone is welcome and celebrated,” the hotel said in a statement. “We will continue to educate and train our team to ensure that everyone feels safe and accepted within our four walls, and guests who do not show tolerance and acceptance towards others will be removed.”

The hotel’s statement issued Tuesday was in stark contrast to their initial reaction to the incident on Saturday during a Kentucky Derby viewing party, when the guard stormed into the women’s restroom in the hotel lobby and began banging on stall doors. He accused one of the lesbian partners of being a man.

“All of a sudden there was banging on the door,” said one of the women, Ansley Baker.

“I pulled my shorts up. I hadn’t even tied them. One of the security guards was there telling me to get out of the bathroom, that I was a man in the women’s bathroom. I said, ‘I’m a woman.’”

Baker’s partner, Liz Victor, was waiting by the sinks and heard the commotion.

“I looked down and I saw her shoes, and that’s when I was like, ‘What is going on?”

As Baker was escorted out, the women said, other women in line for the restroom hurled insults at her, calling Baker “a creep” and demanding she be removed. The security guard then demanded to see the women’s IDs to prove their gender.

After a heated exchange, the couple was told to leave the hotel.

In their initial statement issued Monday, the Liberty Hotel accused the two women of sharing one stall.

“An incident occurred at the Liberty Hotel on Saturday, May 3 where several women alerted security of two adults sharing a bathroom stall,” the hotel wrote. “The bathroom was cleared out as two adults in one stall are not permitted. After leaving the bathroom, a member of the couple from the stall put their hands on our security team and it was then that they were removed from the premises.”

“The Liberty Hotel has a zero-tolerance policy for any physical altercations on our property,” the hotel continued. “The safety of our guests and staff is our priority, and this event is under investigation.”

With the investigation complete, the hotel has changed its story.

The couple vehemently denied being in the same stall.

“If that’s what he thought the issue was once he opened the stall door, obviously there was only one person in there, so it should’ve been case closed,” Victor said. “Let her tie up her shorts and go about her day.”

The couple said they went public hoping to make a difference for others experiencing the same kind of treatment.

“We know we’re not the only ones that face this kind of thing and just hope it doesn’t happen again and that other people who go through this receive the same support,” said Baker.

Victor added, “It was a very scary situation, but trans women experience this every single day in the U.S. and across the world.”

Since 2016, Massachusetts state law has allowed all people to use restrooms and locker rooms that are most aligned with their gender identity.

May 7, 2025 0

Leaders approve resolution to make Boston sanctuary city for LGBTQ+ community

*This is reported by NBC Boston.

City councilors in Boston voted 12-1 Wednesday to make Boston a sanctuary city for members of the LGBTQ+ community.

Councilor-at-Large Julia Mejia and District 9 Councilor Liz Breadon called on Boston to adopt the measure supporting transgender people, pointing to what they see as harmful rhetoric coming from President Donald Trump and the White House.

“Boston is not going to back down,” Mejia said Wednesday. “We’re seeing attacks on our trans loved ones, and here on the local level, a lot of folks are feeling helpless.”

It comes one month after Worcester city councilors approved a similar resolution.

City Councilor Ed Flynn was the only member of the body to vote against the measure.

“I would like to learn more about what this resolution does as it relates to sanctuary cities, the Trust Act, what impact it has on city services, what role the city departments will play,” Flynn said, according to The Boston Herald. “I don’t want to be disrespectful to anybody, but it’s just something I would like to have before I vote.”

Sam Whiting of the Massachusetts Family Institute, a group that describes itself as recognizing “the male and female sexes as a real and enduring part of a person’s created nature, not an imaginary social construct,” pushed back on the councilors’ framing of the Trump administration’s actions.

“We think it misrepresents the executive orders, and we do support these orders and the efforts to protect children from the harms of gender ideology,” Whiting told NBC10 Boston.

Mejia said the measure is critical.

“It’s really a love letter and an opportunity to set the groundwork for the legislation,” she said.

March 13, 2025 0