Investments of $67 Million to Create and Preserve 802 Income-Restricted Homes in Boston

Mayor Michelle Wu today joined the Hyde Square Task Force, affordable housing developers, and community organizations at the site of the former Blessed Sacrament church to announce $67 million in new recommended funding from the Mayor’s Office of Housing, the Community Preservation Fund, and the Neighborhood Housing Trust (NHT) to create and preserve more than 800 income-restricted units of housing in eight Boston neighborhoods. The Blessed Sacrament site is one of the projects that will be funded. The ambitious portfolio consists of 17 projects with a total of 802 units of mixed-income housing that includes rental housing for families, while also creating new homeownership opportunities for low- and moderate-income Bostonians. Of the 802 units, 160 will be income restricted housing for seniors. These proposed projects meet the Mayor’s Office of Housing standards for zero-emissions buildings and represent transit-oriented, green development.

“We are partnering with community and using every tool that the City has to urgently address Boston’s housing crisis,” said Mayor Michelle Wu. “These housing awards represent significant investments in making our communities stronger and more affordable, ensuring that Boston remains a place that current residents, families and future generations can call home. I’m grateful to the Neighborhood Housing Trust and the Community Preservation Committee for their leadership and as we continue our work to build a Boston for everyone.” 

In 2022, the City of Boston released two Requests for Proposals (RFP) offering funds for affordable housing developments. The Mayor’s Office of Housing, the Community Preservation Committee, and the Neighborhood Housing Trust evaluated the proposals and prioritized 17 projects. These projects will promote City goals to affirmatively further fair housing, and will efficiently utilize City resources and land to increase the supply of housing available to low- and moderate-income households. 

The RFPs required developers to support and implement the City of Boston’s equity & inclusion goals. Projects where BIPOC individuals and entities represented 25% or more of the development team leadership received a high preference for the funding awards. Development teams where 25% or more of soft costs go to MBE subcontractors also received this advantage. Applicants were also required to provide information on how services offered in multifamily buildings will help support the economic mobility of residents who will live in income-restricted housing units.

“The funding being made available today will assist with the creation and preservation of 800 affordable homes.  These high quality, green developments are located in neighborhoods throughout the City and will provide our residents stable housing options that they can afford,” said Sheila Dillon, Chief of Housing. "This portfolio of projects includes both rental and homeownership opportunities, family, senior housing and supportive housing. All of these developments will benefit and strengthen our residents, our communities and our City.” 

"The development of housing that is accessible to residents at a variety of income levels is critically important to the future of Boston," said Kenan Bigby, Managing Director of Trinity Financial, Inc. "We are thankful for the City of Boston's support of the project at 2085 Washington. These funds will allow us to develop needed affordable homeownership opportunities in Roxbury."

All the new construction projects funded in this round will be required to follow the Zero Emissions Building (ZEB) requirements outlined in the MOH Design Standards. Developers were required to submit and adhere to a Net Zero Strategy as part of the design submission. New developments will use electricity and on-site solar panels as the sole (or primary) fuel source.  

“South Boston NDC is grateful for funding support from the City of Boston, which will allow us to create affordable senior housing for our most vulnerable residents,” said Donna Brown, Executive Director of the South Boston Neighborhood Development Corporation. “Funding for McDevitt Senior Homes will enable elderly residents to age in community, with the supportive services they need. We applaud the City’s commitment to providing critical resources to address our housing needs.”

The new funding for income-restricted housing was made possible in part by more than $32.5 million in municipal and federal funds administered by the Mayor’s Office of Housing. More than $13.9 million in funds come from the NHT through the City's Linkage policy, which extracts affordable housing funds from developers of large commercial projects. 

"We're proud to continue to support the Neighborhood Housing Trust through the work we do at the Boston Planning & Development Agency,” said Chief of Planning Arthur Jemison. “In 2022, the BPDA Board approved new development projected to generate approximately $40.7 million in linkage fees to support affordable housing in Boston. I am hopeful that there will be even more funding to go towards new, affordable homes for Bostonians, in the years to come.”

The Community Preservation Committee is recommending more than $20.4 million for the proposed projects. These projects are part of a larger award that includes income-restricted housing, historic preservation, and open space projects. The final slate of CPA-recommended projects will go to the City Council for review and approval in February.  

"Building and preserving affordable housing is critical for the health and vibrancy of our communities in Boston," said Felicia Jacques, Chair of the Community Preservation Committee. "As housing costs continue to rise, many families and individuals are being priced out of the city, exacerbating displacement and a loss of diversity. The Community Preservation Committee is committed to investing in well-designed, climate-ready affordable housing initiatives that provide safe and stable homes for our residents.  By doing so, we ensure that our communities remain inclusive while supporting economic growth and sustainability. Investing in affordable housing is an investment in the future of our city and the well-being of our residents."

"As Boston continues to grow and thrive, it's critical that we prioritize affordable housing to ensure that our communities remain diverse and inclusive," said Catherine Hardaway, chair of the Neighborhood Housing Trust. "Affordable housing not only provides stable, quality homes for families and individuals, but also supports economic development and social equity. The Neighborhood Housing Trust is dedicated to advancing affordable housing solutions in Boston, working in partnership with developers, community groups, and residents. By investing in affordable housing, we can build stronger, more resilient neighborhoods that provide opportunities for all residents to thrive."

In addition to these City sources, the Mayor’s Office of Housing has at its disposal significant federal funding from the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) that can be used for income-restricted housing development. In July, the Boston City Council approved Mayor Wu’s precedent-setting investment in income-restricted housing from ARPA funds, committing more than $205 million to address specific housing issues. These investments include:

• $58 million for income-restricted housing production and financial support to homebuyers
• $30 million to transform publicly-owned land into green, mixed-income communities 
• $26 million for property acquisitions to prevent displacement
• $20 million for greening income-restricted housing through deep green energy retrofits of existing buildings
• $19 million to create new permanent supportive housing for homeless individuals with substance use and behavioral health disorders

The following is a complete list of the proposals that are receiving funding from the Mayor’s Office of Housing and NHT, as well as recommended projects for inclusion in the current round of the CPA funding: 

ALLSTON

• The Allston Brighton Community Development Corporation’s renovation of the Brian Honan Apartments will be made possible with $1,500,000 in funding. This preservation project will implement a green-energy retrofit to renovate 50 income-restricted units in several townhouse-style buildings, which will extend their existing 30 year housing restriction to be in perpetuity.    

CHINATOWN

• The Asian Community Development Corporation’s using $11,803,510 in funding will redevelop Parcel R-1 to create 66 units of income-restricted rental housing and 44 units of income-restricted homeownership on the parcel with 17,700 square feet for a new Chinatown branch of the Boston Public Library.

DORCHESTER

• Dorchester Bay EDC and the Preservation of Affordable Housing (POAH) will renovate the historic Dorchester Saving Bank in Uphams Corner and create Columbia Crossing, a mixed-use, mixed-income development, which will create 48 income-restricted rental apartments and approximately 3,500 square feet of community space and below-market commercial space. Columbia Crossing will also designate twenty percent of the units to be set aside for artists' work-live spaces. The project will be made possible with $3,900,000 in funding.  
• DVM Consulting will transform five vacant City-owned parcels located along a stretch of Blue Hill Avenue in Dorchester and Mattapan into twelve units of income-restricted rental housing, eighteen income-restricted homeownership opportunities, and 3,300 sq ft first-floor commercial space made possible with $5,056,138 in funding. Two of the new first-floor income-restricted rental units will be set aside as artists' live/work spaces.

JAMAICA PLAIN

• Pennrose Development and the Hyde Square Task Force will redevelop the former Blessed Sacrament Church with $6,250,000 in funding. The development team will create 55 mixed-income units of rental housing and a new performance space for the Hyde Square Task Force Creative Arts Program. 
• The Jamaica Plain Neighborhood Development Corporation will redevelop the Boston Housing Authority's Mildred Hailey Housing’s Phase 2 with $5,200,000 in funding. This phase includes demolition and abatement of two existing buildings to create a new 6-story, 100% income-restricted, 65-unit building, consisting of 23 public housing replacement units and 42 new units of income-restricted housing restricted at 60% of AMI or below.
• Urban Edge Community Development Corporation will redevelop the Boston Housing Authority's (BHA) Mildred Hailey Housing Phase 3 with $4,000,000 in funding. The development project includes demolition and abatement of the existing building to create a new six-story building with 60 units of income-restricted rental housing with 22 of the units being BHA housing replacement units, in addition, 38 of the new income-restricted housing units are restricted at 60% of AMI or below.

MATTAPAN

• 2Life Development, Inc. will construct Brooke House at Olmsted Village, a 125-unit mixed-use building with senior supportive housing, live-in property management, staff, a child care center, a health care center, a community space, and a small convenience store utilizing $6,000,000 in funding. This will be the first building in the final phase of the redevelopment of the Mattapan State Hospital campus. 

MISSION HILL

• The Roxbury Tenants of Harvard will develop 775 Huntington, a new 12-story, mixed-use, mixed-income, transit-oriented development with 81 income-restricted units of housing, including 57 rental units, 24 homeownership units, and first-floor commercial spaces and utilizing $6,000,000 in funding. 

ROXBURY 

• The Madison Park Community Development Corporation and the Urban League of Eastern Massachusetts (ULEM) will demolish the existing vacant building and create 84-88 Warren Street, a 43-unit mixed-income rental housing and a 22-unit income-restricted homeownership development, as well as a modernized office and meeting space for ULEM. This funding for 84 to 88 Warren Street is for 58 new income-restricted units made possible with $6,143,229 in funding. 
• Nuestra Comunidad Development Corporation will create Copeland Corner, a 12-unit mixed-income ownership development with 6 income-restricted units of homeownership in Roxbury with $1,918,730 in funding. 
• Trinity Financial and Madison Park Community Development Corporation will develop 2085 Washington Street, the third phase of the Parcel 10 redevelopment in Nubian Square, which will create a total of 96 units of income-restricted housing utilizing $4,500,000 in funding. The project will create a 7,000 SF mixed-use development with 64 units of income-restricted rental housing, 32 mixed-income homeownership opportunities, and first-floor commercial space, along with approximately 25 parking spaces. This third phase of funding will be used to create the 32 units of income-restricted homeownership.

SOUTH BOSTON

• The South Boston Neighborhood Development Corporation will redevelop the existing McDevitt Hall, a former convent, into the McDevitt Senior Homes, creating 36 units of income-restricted senior rental housing for people aged 62 and over, and one resident manager unit. This project will be made possible with $5,145,000 in funding. This project will also create new program spaces for the Paraclete Center, allowing the Paraclete Center to continue to offer after-school programs in South Boston that ensure excellence through education for students in 3rd to 8th grade.

To help choose appropriate developments for funding and best achieve the City’s goals to create equitable mixed-income housing, the City of Boston established funding priorities that were adhered to while making these awards. Proposals submitted were expected to fall under at least one of the priority criteria:

• Affordable housing developments that utilize City-owned land.
• Affordable housing developments targeting a mix of incomes: from units for homeless households to units targeted and restricted to incomes representative of Boston's workforce. The City prioritizes proposals that, in addition to the homeless set aside, provide some portion of units targeting extremely low-income tenancies. 
• Affordable housing developments have reduced the cost to build and/or efficiently use subsidies so that the project can move into construction more quickly.  
• Affordable housing developments provide units that serve the disabled community, elders, veterans, artists, aging-out youth, etc.
• Acquisition of unrestricted housing developments to stabilize the tenancies and provide long-term affordability for a mix of incomes (i.e. unrestricted properties).
• Developments that are at risk of losing their affordability within 5 years.  
• Large projects with more than 50 units of housing, of which at least 51 percent will be deed-restricted income-restricted units.
• Projects that create new income-restricted units in high-cost neighborhoods where most of the IDP funds are generated.
• Projects that contain income-restricted units that cannot be funded from other subsidy sources available under this RFP, or through the NHT RFP.
• Projects that can quickly acquire existing unregulated units and convert them into long-term income-restricted housing.

About the Mayor’s Office of Housing (MOH)

The Mayor’s Office of Housing is responsible for housing people experiencing homelessness, creating and preserving income-restricted housing, and ensuring that renters and homeowners can obtain, maintain, and remain in safe, stable housing. The department develops and implements the City of Boston’s housing creation and homelessness prevention plans and collaborates with local and national partners to find new solutions and build more housing income-restricted to all, particularly those with lower incomes. For more information, please visit the MOH website.

About the Neighborhood Housing Trust Fund (NHT)

The NHT Fund supports homeownership, rental, cooperative, transitional, and permanent housing developments. The fund provides financing for projects serving households earning at or below 50% AMI and gives preference to populations that face barriers in securing housing, including seniors and people with disabilities. Funding is awarded as gap financing, and each applicant may receive no more than $750,000 per project. Priority is given to projects serving the greatest number of low-income households. The program also has a preference for projects that are near transit, and include family-sized units with two or more bedrooms. Boston's Neighborhood Housing Trust Fund is funded through a commercial project linkage payment fee system. 

About the Community Preservation Act (CPA)

After Boston voters adopted the CPA in November 2016, the City created a Community Preservation Fund. This fund is capitalized primarily by a one percent property tax-based surcharge on residential and business property tax bills that began in July 2017. The City uses this revenue to fund initiatives consistent with statewide CPA guidelines: income-restricted housing, historic preservation, open space, and public recreation. The funding of any project requires a recommendation from the Community Preservation Committee and appropriation by the City. For more information, please visit the Community Preservation webpage.