The Cambridge Redevelopment Authority has paid $3.5 million for a chunk of the Margaret Fuller Neighborhood House parking lot on Pine Street, a deal meant to fund an overhaul of the nonprofit's aging food pantry while clearing the way for new homeownership housing on a lot many Port residents have used for decades. The purchase has split opinion in the historically Black and working-class neighborhood, with some longtime residents welcoming the investment and others warning it will strain parking and erase a gathering space that predates the current debate over density.
