DEMOLITION DERBY… Two long-time South End buildings have begun to be demolished this week to make way for new buildings on the same site. First, West Newton Street closed down this week, and by Tuesday morning a good part of the old Villa Victoria Center for the Arts had been demolished. The Center, a former German church from the 1800s, was structurally unstable and condemned last year. IBA is hoping to build a new Center on the site within two year.
Meanwhile, the former Tubman House on the corner of Mass and Columbus Avenues (inset) was nearly gone by Tuesday morning as crews continued its demolition. Human service organization USES sold the building to New Boston Ventures, which is developing it into housing and community space.
