The Community Economic Development Assistance Corporation recently approved $5,910,075 to fund the acquisition and development of three affordable housing projects, one of which is in Salem. North Shore Community Development Coalition has received a $1,000,000 acquisition loan and $100,000 front money loan for its Harbor-Lafayette development. North Shore CDC will acquire, renovate and preserve two existing single-room occupancy properties on Lafayette and Harbor streets to provide 27 supportive housing units to low income individuals. Of these residential units, 16 will be reserved for unaccompanied youth — homeless young adults ages 18 to 24 — and four units will be reserved for clients of the Department of Mental Health. North Shore CDC will provide supportive services through its YouthBuild North Shore program and partners. North Shore CDC is a nonprofit that develops affordable housing for low-income people. Its regional portfolio now totals 399 affordable housing units throughout Salem and Beverly.
Category: CEDAC
Nonprofit hopes to boost Salem’s Point neighborhood
A regional nonprofit has significantly expanded its ownership of affordable housing in Salem’s Point neighborhood through a flurry of recent acquisitions.
Since last July, the North Shore Community Development Coalition purchased 10 buildings encompassing 84 housing units, including eight buildings acquired last month. The Salem-based group now owns 247 affordable rental units in the Point, a neighborhood off Lafayette Street that the group is working with the city to revitalize.
As in all of North Shore’s purchases, deed restrictions will preserve the affordability of the 84 units, which the group purchased for $7.2 million.
The group is also stepping up its upgrading of properties, with plans to complete next month $7 million in renovations to 77 apartments it has owned since the 1990s on scattered sites on Peabody, Ward, and Harbor streets.
And in the next few years, the nonprofit plans major improvements to another 151 units. Those include 80 of the 84 units it recently purchased, according to Mickey Northcutt, the coalition’s CEO.
“We want to invest in the neighborhood to improve the quality of life not only for the residents in the properties we own, but for the neighborhood as a whole,” he said, noting that the group’s recent renovations have already begun spurring other residents to upgrade their homes.
Funding for the new acquisitions came from the Community Economic Development Assistance Corp., or CEDAC; the Local Initiative Support Corp.; the Boston Community Loan Fund; the Property and Casualty Initiative; and Salem, through its Community Preservation Act funds and federal block grants.
The coalition plans to use those sources for the estimated $23.2 million in future renovations, coupled with anticipated tax-exempt bonds and state and federal historic-tax credits. The tax credits are available because of the Point’s recent inclusion in the National Register of Historic Places.
CEDAC provided a $1 million loan to finance the coalition’s acquisition in October of a 17-unit studio apartment building on Harbor Street. CEDAC also approved a $100,000 pre-development loan to help North Shore renovate that building and a 10-unit building on Lafayette Street.
Sixteen of the 27 units will be for homeless young adults and four units for clients of the Department of Mental Health, with North Shore providing support services.
“The Harbor-Lafayette project is a good example of a community development organization working hand-in-hand with state agencies to provide solutions for homeless youth,” Roger Herzog, CEDAC’s executive director, said in a prepared statement.
The other acquisitions include a four-unit building the coalition purchased in July that it will turn into town houses; five buildings with 29 units acquired Dec. 5; and 35 units in three buildings bought Dec. 29.
Mass. Nonprofit To Build, Renovate 20 Group Homes With $17M Bond
CIL Realty of Massachusetts Inc. (CILRM) has received a $16.95 million MassDevelopment bond to create housing for disabled individuals across the state.
CILRM will use the proceeds to acquire land, construct, renovate, furnish and equip 20 licensed group homes for individuals with developmental disabilities in Amherst, Brockton, Danvers, Easton, Edgartown, Granby, Hadley, Leicester, Leominster, Montague, Orange, Pittsfield, Plympton, Randolph, Rockland, Sandwich, South Hadley and Walpole. The nonprofit currently owns 16 of the 20 facilities, which were financed through a construction line of credit that will be refinanced through the proposed bond issue.
All 20 group homes will be leased to care providers for people with developmental disabilities. Each facility will be operated and managed by the organization leasing the residence and will house four to six Massachusetts residents with developmental disabilities. The project is expected to create 183 new jobs and 39 construction jobs.
CILRM owns 120 such residences in Massachusetts.
“CIL Realty of Massachusetts’s valuable services help people with developmental disabilities live in supportive settings,” President and CEO of MassDevelopment Marty Jones said in a statement. “MassDevelopment is pleased to continue our partnership with CILRM to help this nonprofit expand and renovate its homes in the Commonwealth to benefit a needy population.”
Cambridge Housing Authority Completes First Rental Assistance Demonstration Conversions
The Cambridge Housing Authority (CHA) has completed the conversion of its first 441 units of public housing to project-based assistance under HUD’s Rental Assistance Demonstration (RAD).
CHA plans to convert all of its 2,129 public housing units to RAD over the next 12 to 18 months. The portfolio-wide RAD conversion was approved by HUD in December 2013 and, at the time, was the fifth-largest RAD conversion in the country and the only public housing conversion in Massachusetts. In mid-December, Congress raised the national RAD cap from 60,000 to 185,000 units, which will allow conversion of about ten percent of the public housing in country.
The first five public housing developments converted by the CHA were Putnam Gardens, John F. Kennedy Apartments, Jackson Gardens, Lincoln Way and L.B. Johnson Apartments. Three more developments are out for construction bids and will close in March 2015. The remaining 13 developments and associated scattered sites will close in mid-2015 through spring 2016.
RAD provides a more stable and predictable funding platform and allows owners to leverage additional funding for capital improvements when compared with public housing.
CHA’s use of RAD was made possible by support from the city of Cambridge as well as participation in HUD’s Moving to Work (MTW) program. MTW provides on-going operating support and is being used as a vehicle to secure enhanced tenant protections, similar to those currently in place under the public housing program.
CHA’s financial partners, in addition to HUD, included Massachusetts Department of Housing and Community Development, MassDevelopment, Wells Fargo and Citibank.
“We are pleased to have this important first-step in transforming public housing in Cambridge to a more stable, long-term solution allowing us to continue to provide deeply affordable housing in one of the highest cost markets in the country. RAD will allow the CHA to provide our residents with high quality housing that will be operated and maintained at levels we can all be proud of for generations to come,” CHA Executive Director Gregory Russ said in a statement.
Preservation Of Affordable Housing, Housing Assistance Corp. Finance Affordable Housing In Cape Cod
Preservation of Affordable Housing (POAH) and its Cape Cod development partner, Housing Assistance Corp. (HAC), have closed on $10.5 million in financing to create an affordable housing complex in Dennis.
The development commonly referred to as the Dennis Community Housing, will consist of 27 new construction one-, two- and three-bedroom townhouses. The apartments are eligible to applicants whose income is 60 percent or lower of the area’s median income. POAH and HAC will work with the town to name the housing development once completed.
The site for the development, which once contained housing units owned and managed by the Dennis Housing Authority, was the subject of a Request for Proposal issued by the town of Dennis seeking a developer to construct affordable rental units. HAC responded with a development plan that replaced the abandoned and decaying buildings with a family-focused Cape Cod-inspired community. HAC then partnered with POAH to work collaboratively on the final design and financing of the project.
“With the financial closing, we are closer to reestablishing much needed affordable housing on this highly visible site. By this time next year, the town of Dennis will benefit from an affordable housing asset that will provide comfortable, energy-efficient housing to 27 low-income families,” Rodger Brown, POAH’s managing director of real estate, said in a statement. “This will continue our partnership with Housing Assistance Corp., which has been such a good steward of this and other projects on the Cape and will continue to work with us as we develop this property.”
Bank of America, Mass Housing Partnership, Massachusetts Department of Housing and Community Development and others assisted with the financing package for the development.
Affordable Housing Building In Lynn Receives $16.4M In Loans For Acquisition, Updates
MassHousing has closed on $16.4 million in loans for the acquisition, renovation and preservation of affordability for an apartment building in Lynn.
St. Stephen’s Tower, located at 25 Pleasant St., is being acquired and rehabilitated by an affiliate of St. Stephen’s Church and Beacon Communities LLC. It is comprised of 10 studio apartments, 110 one-bedroom apartments and 10 two-bedroom apartments contained in a 10-story building.
The property was originally financed with a federal Section 236 mortgage loan and a rental assistance payment contract, which were both set to expire in March 2017. St. Stephen’s Tower was selected for MassHousing’s Pilot Program for Revitalizing Severely Distressed Properties and was eligible to prepay the Section 236 loan.
In this transaction, MassHousing and Beacon Communities, used an innovative loan that was underwritten with a 17-year term and a 35-year amortization period with servicing based on a declining loan balance. As a result of the MassHousing financing, the property will receive Section 8 project-based vouchers through the HUD Moving to Work program, which is administered by the Cambridge Housing Authority. This transaction will extend the affordability at St. Stephen’s for the next 30 years.
Property updates will include repairs and renovation to common areas and apartments, repair and replacement of building systems and increases in energy and water efficiency.
The contractor will be Keith Construction Inc., the architect is Bechtel Frank Erickson Architects Inc. and the management agent is Beacon Residential Management.
Patrick Administration Announces New Funding to Create Over 235 Units of Supportive Housing
Friday, December 19, 2014 –Department of Housing and Community Development Undersecretary Aaron Gornstein today announced more than $15 million in funding to create over 235 new units of supportive housing for veterans, homeless and very low income households across the Commonwealth. With these new units, the Patrick Administration has funded a total of 3,065 supportive housing units, tripling the amount of Governor Deval Patrick’s goal a year early.
“Governor Patrick has made permanent supportive housing a high priority because it is a key part of the solution to reducing homelessness over the long-term. By providing a range of support services–which may include workforce development, education, child care, or mental health services– our local non-profit partners can help to ensure a successful and sustainable tenancy.”
In December 2012, Governor Patrick announced a goal of creating 1,000 new units of supportive housing across the Commonwealth by December 2015. To reach this goal, 18 state agencies signed a memorandum of understanding partnering to improve existing processes, make recommendations for new, collaborative efforts and develop a long-range action plan to meet the need for supportive housing among the Commonwealth’s residents. The creation of the Commonwealth’s Interagency Supportive Housing Steering Committee and Working Group, co-chaired by the Secretaries of Housing and Economic Development and Health and Human Services, has played a critical role in helping Massachusetts reach this goal, and recently released a report celebrating this achievement.
Supportive housing helps individuals and families that are homeless or facing homelessness, institutionalized or at-risk of institutionalization, people with disabilities and the elderly. Additionally, the agencies continue to assess the extent of public cost-savings generated as a result of providing permanent supportive housing and will recommend strategic reinvestments.
In addition to a providing housing for families, supportive housing, which is operated in conjunction with a network of non-profit agencies across the Commonwealth, can include services such as childcare, access to job training, mental-health care and other opportunities that give participants a hand up towards stability and success.
Alongside these new supportive housing units, the Patrick Administration also awarded 149 project-based vouchers from the Massachusetts Rental Voucher Program (MRVP). The vouchers are available to owners of existing, affordable rental properties, who provide services or partner with an agency that has experience with successfully stabilizing homeless or very low-income households.
The MRVP vouchers allow homeless families to move into existing housing developments with long-term affordability restrictions. The non-profit agencies that own the properties provide participating families with comprehensive supportive service programs to help ensure that they do not fall back into the cycle of homelessness and emergency shelter, while helping them move toward stability and self-sufficiency. Funds for supportive services in the amount of $2,500 per unit will be used to provide a wide array of services, including job search and training, financial literacy and planning, self-sufficiency training and coaching, counseling, parenting, early education and childcare, mental health and addiction treatment, adult education, and GED and skills training.
“The Commonwealth of Massachusetts has recognized the importance of creating quality supportive housing for communities in need and has been pro-active in creating an active pipeline for these projects,” said Roger Herzog, executive director of the Community Economic Development Assistance Corporation (CEDAC). “The awards that have been granted today will make sure that both much-needed housing and services are available to homeless families and individuals, persons with disabilities, veterans, seniors, and youth, among others.”
Earlier this month, Governor Patrick announced the launch of a Massachusetts Pay for Success (PFS) initiative that will leverage philanthropic and private capital investments to reduce chronic individual homelessness, creating a new model of sustainable state support for chronically homeless individuals. The initiative will provide 500 units of stable supportive housing for up to 800 chronically homeless individuals over 6 years, improving the well-being of individuals while saving taxpayer dollars by reducing the utilization of costly emergency resources like shelter and Medicaid payments.
In addition, DHCD has been committed to providing supportive housing for the Commonwealth’s veterans. The Department has awarded funds to produce 370 new units of affordable housing for low income veterans since the release 2013, exceeding the Patrick Administration’s three-year goal of 250 units.
The Patrick Administration continues to focus its efforts and resources on homelessness prevention and permanent housing to reduce the number of families living in hotels and at the same time to maintain one of the strongest safety nets in the country.
The following projects were announced today:
Harborlight House, Beverly
Harborlight House in Beverly is a supportive housing project serving frail low-income seniors who need various services in order to live with some degree of independence. The sponsor is an experienced non-profit, Harborlight Community Partners. When rehabilitation is finished, the project will house 30 seniors in a prime Beverly location.
Residences Betances, Boston
Residences Betances is located in the South End of Boston. Sponsored by the non-profit Inquilinos Boricuas En Accion (IBA), the project will house extremely low-income individuals with developmental challenges and diagnosed mental illness. The residents of the completed property will receive numerous services tailored to their individual needs. The completed property will feature four studios and seven single rooms.
Howard House, Brockton
Howard House in Brockton is a historic rehabilitation project that will offer 14 units of permanent supportive housing for homeless veterans on the site of the Brockton VA Medical Center. The sponsor is a joint venture including Peabody Properties, Windover Development and Father Bill’s Mainspring. The project will receive extensive support from the federal Veterans Administration, as well as from the state. The homeless veterans who become Howard House residents will be offered numerous services tailored to fit their needs.
O’Connor Sisson, Dartmouth
O’Connor Sisson in Dartmouth is a rehabilitation project intended to serve homeless veterans in need of support services. The sponsor is the Dartmouth Housing Authority. The completed project will offer nine efficiency units for extremely low income veterans, who will receive extensive services such as employment counseling, financial planning and therapeutic counseling. In addition to state subsidies, the project will receive Community Preservation Act funds from the Town of Dartmouth.
4 Leighton Street, Fitchburg
4 Leighton Street in Fitchburg is a project that will provide 15 units of supportive housing for extremely low-income individuals, including individuals making the transition from homelessness. The experienced sponsor is the non-profit Twin Cities CDC. The completed project will offer extensive services to the new residents, including services to help residents maintain sobriety.
Harvard Elms, Harvard
Harvard Elms in Harvard is a new construction project intended to serve low and extremely low-income families, some of whom will participate in DHCD’s supportive housing initiative and will receive support services. The sponsor is the experienced non-profit CHOICE, based in Chelmsford. The project has been permitted locally through Chapter 40B. When completed, Harvard Elms will offer nine affordable units, including supportive housing units for families making the transition from homelessness.
20 Willis Street, New Bedford
20 Willis Street in New Bedford is a project intended to serve homeless veterans. The sponsor is the non-profit Southern Massachusetts Veterans Housing Program. When completed, Willis Street will offer 40 units of single-room supportive housing for homeless veterans, as well as community space, a kitchen and dining room, and service space. Extensive services will be available to the veterans who become Willis Street residents.
St. Mary’s, Boston
St. Mary’s Center for Women and Children is developing a 12-unit transitional housing program for pregnant and parenting young adults. Priority will be given to homeless families who face numerous obstacles to independent living. A full –time support service coordinator will help identify the services most needed by each young family.
Gifford Street, Falmouth
The Falmouth Housing Corporation will add support services for three homeless families to the Gifford Street project with funding from the Massachusetts Rental Voucher Program (MRVP). Supportive services will be provided by the Falmouth Housing Authority’s existing housing stabilization program. Specific services will include transition counseling, job placement assistance and direct case management.
Columbia Park, Haverhill
Emmaus Inc. will create 16 units of permanent, supportive housing for homeless families currently residing in emergency shelters/motels. Fourteen units will be located at Columbia Park Apartments in Haverhill, a 32-unit complex that Emmaus has owned since 1992. Two units will be sited in a two family house, also in Haverhill. Services will be provided through an expansion of Emmaus’ existing supportive housing program.
Redfield, Pittsfield
The Berkshire Fund in Western Massachusetts will use the Housing Preservation and Stabilization Trust Fund to provide MRVP subsidy and support services for four units of existing housing within a 23-unit supportive housing program serving high risk pregnant and parenting young adults. Families served by the program will receive specialized support services designed to help them become responsible tenants, self-sufficient and committed members of the community.
Harbor and Lafayette Homes, Salem
Sponsored by the North Shore Community Development Corporation, Harbor and Lafayette Homes will preserve two existing single room occupancy properties in Salem’s historic Point Neighborhood as 26 service-enriched, affordable apartments for low-income individuals, and one apartment for a resident manager. The 16 service-enhanced MRVP subsidies will serve extremely-low-income youth aging out of the foster care system. These tenants will receive a comprehensive package of supportive services from North Shore CDC.
Bixby Road, Spencer
This project will incorporate 11 supportive housing units within a 42-unit townhouse style family development in Spencer. The supportive housing units will be designed and structured for formerly homeless occupants who face particular life challenges, such as a chronic physical illness or disability, and who need support services. The services will be provided through a tenant supportive services program operated by the project sponsor, South Middlesex Opportunity Council.
Kenwyn and Quadrangle, Springfield
HAP Housing in Springfield will use eight Housing Preservation and Stabilization Trust Fund service-enhanced MRVP subsidies to assist homeless families as they transition from shelters, such as HAP’s Residential Resource Center, a temporary housing facility that provides shelter for 36 families. The MRVP subsidies will allow families to move into permanent rental housing at either Kenwyn or Quadrangle Court, and the support service dollars will permit the continuation of service delivery to the families in their new location. Services will include parenting classes, domestic violence counseling and financial education seminars.
E. Henry Twiggs Estates, Phase I, Springfield
Better Homes, Inc. is working on a plan to support the comprehensive redevelopment of 75 scattered site units in the Bay and Upper Hill neighborhoods of Springfield. As an integral part of the first phase of the project, Better Homes will convert 13 affordable rental units into permanent supportive housing for low income families. Services will be provided through an expansion of Better Home’s existing supportive housing partnership with HAP Housing, also of Springfield.
Patrick Administration Funds 235 New Units Of Supportive Housing
Department of Housing and Community Development Undersecretary Aaron Gornstein today announced more than $15 million in funding to create over 235 new units of supportive housing for veterans, homeless and very low income households across the commonwealth. With these new units, the Patrick Administration has funded a total of 3,065 supportive housing units, tripling the amount of Gov. Deval Patrick’s goal a year earlier.
In December 2012, Patrick announced a goal of creating 1,000 new units of supportive housing across the commonwealth by December 2015. To reach this goal, 18 state agencies participated in a task force dedicated to encouraging collaboration and removing obstacles that hindered development.
Supportive housing helps individuals and families who are homeless or institutionalized, people with disabilities and the elderly. Additionally, the agencies continue to assess the extent of public cost-savings generated as a result of providing permanent supportive housing and will recommend strategic reinvestments. Supportive housing can include services such as childcare, access to job training, mental-health care and other opportunities that give participants a hand up towards stability and success.
Alongside these new supportive housing units, the Patrick Administration also awarded 149 project-based vouchers from the Massachusetts Rental Voucher Program (MRVP). The vouchers are available to owners of existing, affordable rental properties, who provide services or partner with an agency that has experience with successfully stabilizing homeless or very low-income households. Funds for supportive services in the amount of $2,500 per unit will be used to provide a wide array of services, including job search and training, financial literacy and planning, self-sufficiency training and coaching, counseling, parenting, early education and childcare, mental health and addiction treatment, adult education, and GED and skills training.
“The commonwealth of Massachusetts has recognized the importance of creating quality supportive housing for communities in need and has been pro-active in creating an active pipeline for these projects,” Roger Herzog, executive director of the Community Economic Development Assistance Corp., said in a statement. “The awards that have been granted today will make sure that both much-needed housing and services are available to homeless families and individuals, persons with disabilities, veterans, seniors, and youth, among others.”
The following projects were included in the funding round:
Harborlight House, Beverly
Harborlight House in Beverly is a supportive housing project serving frail low-income seniors who need various services in order to live with some degree of independence. The sponsor is an experienced non-profit, Harborlight Community Partners. When rehabilitation is finished, the project will house 30 seniors in a prime Beverly location.
Residences Betances, Boston
Residences Betances is located in the South End of Boston. Sponsored by the non-profit Inquilinos Boricuas En Accion, the project will house extremely low-income individuals with developmental challenges and diagnosed mental illness. The residents of the completed property will receive numerous services tailored to their individual needs. The completed property will feature four studios and seven single rooms.
Howard House, Brockton
Howard House in Brockton is a historic rehabilitation project that will offer 14 units of permanent supportive housing for homeless veterans on the site of the Brockton VA Medical Center. The sponsor is a joint venture including Peabody Properties, Windover Development and Father Bill’s Mainspring. The project will receive extensive support from the federal Veterans Administration, as well as from the state. The homeless veterans who become Howard House residents will be offered numerous services tailored to fit their needs.
O’Connor Sisson, Dartmouth
O’Connor Sisson in Dartmouth is a rehabilitation project intended to serve homeless veterans in need of support services. The sponsor is the Dartmouth Housing Authority. The completed project will offer nine efficiency units for extremely low income veterans, who will receive extensive services such as employment counseling, financial planning and therapeutic counseling. In addition to state subsidies, the project will receive Community Preservation Act funds from the town of Dartmouth.
4 Leighton Street, Fitchburg
4 Leighton St. in Fitchburg is a project that will provide 15 units of supportive housing for extremely low-income individuals, including individuals making the transition from homelessness. The experienced sponsor is the non-profit Twin Cities CDC. The completed project will offer extensive services to the new residents, including services to help residents maintain sobriety.
Harvard Elms, Harvard
Harvard Elms in Harvard is a new construction project intended to serve low and extremely low-income families, some of whom will participate in DHCD’s supportive housing initiative and will receive support services. The sponsor is the experienced nonprofit CHOICE, based in Chelmsford. The project has been permitted locally through Chapter 40B. When completed, Harvard Elms will offer nine affordable units, including supportive housing units for families making the transition from homelessness.
20 Willis Street, New Bedford
20 Willis St. in New Bedford is a project intended to serve homeless veterans. The sponsor is the non-profit Southern Massachusetts Veterans Housing Program. When completed, Willis Street will offer 40 units of single-room supportive housing for homeless veterans, as well as community space, a kitchen and dining room, and service space. Extensive services will be available to the veterans who become Willis Street residents.
St. Mary’s, Boston
St. Mary’s Center for Women and Children is developing a 12-unit transitional housing program for pregnant and parenting young adults. Priority will be given to homeless families who face numerous obstacles to independent living. A full-time support service coordinator will help identify the services most needed by each young family.
Gifford Street, Falmouth
The Falmouth Housing Corp. will add support services for three homeless families to the Gifford Street project with funding from the Massachusetts Rental Voucher Program. Supportive services will be provided by the Falmouth Housing Authority’s existing housing stabilization program. Specific services will include transition counseling, job placement assistance and direct case management.
Columbia Park, Haverhill
Emmaus Inc. will create 16 units of permanent, supportive housing for homeless families currently residing in emergency shelters/motels. Fourteen units will be located at Columbia Park Apartments in Haverhill, a 32-unit complex that Emmaus has owned since 1992. Two units will be sited in a two family house, also in Haverhill. Services will be provided through an expansion of Emmaus’ existing supportive housing program.
Redfield, Pittsfield
The Berkshire Fund in Western Massachusetts will use the Housing Preservation and Stabilization Trust Fund to provide MRVP subsidy and support services for four units of existing housing within a 23-unit supportive housing program serving high risk pregnant and parenting young adults. Families served by the program will receive specialized support services designed to help them become responsible tenants, self-sufficient and committed members of the community.
Harbor and Lafayette Homes, Salem
Sponsored by the North Shore Community Development Corp., Harbor and Lafayette Homes will preserve two existing single room occupancy properties in Salem’s historic Point Neighborhood as 26 service-enriched, affordable apartments for low-income individuals, and one apartment for a resident manager. The 16 service-enhanced MRVP subsidies will serve extremely-low-income youth aging out of the foster care system. These tenants will receive a comprehensive package of supportive services from North Shore CDC.
Bixby Road, Spencer
This project will incorporate 11 supportive housing units within a 42-unit townhouse style family development in Spencer. The supportive housing units will be designed and structured for formerly homeless occupants who face particular life challenges, such as a chronic physical illness or disability, and who need support services. The services will be provided through a tenant supportive services program operated by the project sponsor, South Middlesex Opportunity Council.
Kenwyn and Quadrangle, Springfield
HAP Housing in Springfield will use eight Housing Preservation and Stabilization Trust Fund service-enhanced MRVP subsidies to assist homeless families as they transition from shelters, such as HAP’s Residential Resource Center, a temporary housing facility that provides shelter for 36 families. The MRVP subsidies will allow families to move into permanent rental housing at either Kenwyn or Quadrangle Court, and the support service dollars will permit the continuation of service delivery to the families in their new location. Services will include parenting classes, domestic violence counseling and financial education seminars.
E. Henry Twiggs Estates, Phase I, Springfield
Better Homes, Inc. is working on a plan to support the comprehensive redevelopment of 75 scattered site units in the Bay and Upper Hill neighborhoods of Springfield. As an integral part of the first phase of the project, Better Homes will convert 13 affordable rental units into permanent supportive housing for low income families. Services will be provided through an expansion of Better Home’s existing supportive housing partnership with HAP Housing, also of Springfield.
State Approves Funding for Affordable Senior Units in Beverly
Beverly will gain 30 affordable units for low-income seniors as part of more than $15 million in state funding announced by the Patrick Administration on Friday.
Department of Housing and Community Development Undersecretary Aaron Gornstein announced the funding, which will create more than 235 new units of “supportive housing for veterans, homeless and very low income households” across the commonwealth. The Patrick Administration has now funded 3,065 “supportive housing units,” according to a press release.
“Governor Patrick has made permanent supportive housing a high priority because it is a key part of the solution to reducing homelessness over the long-term. By providing a range of support services — which may include workforce development, education, child care, or mental health services — our local non-profit partners can help to ensure a successful and sustainable tenancy,” he said.
The Beverly portion will fund Harborlight House, which is a “supportive housing project serving frail low-income seniors who need various services in order to live with some degree of independence. The sponsor is an experienced non-profit, Harborlight Community Partners. When rehabilitation is finished, the project will house 30 seniors in a prime Beverly location,” according to the press release.
According to the press release by the Patrick Administration:
“Supportive housing helps individuals and families that are homeless or facing homelessness, institutionalized or at-risk of institutionalization, people with disabilities and the elderly. Additionally, the agencies continue to assess the extent of public cost-savings generated as a result of providing permanent supportive housing and will recommend strategic reinvestments.
“In addition to a providing housing for families, supportive housing, which is operated in conjunction with a network of non-profit agencies across the Commonwealth, can include services such as childcare, access to job training, mental-health care and other opportunities that give participants a hand up towards stability and success.
“Alongside these new supportive housing units, the Patrick Administration also awarded 149 project-based vouchers from the Massachusetts Rental Voucher Program (MRVP). The vouchers are available to owners of existing, affordable rental properties, who provide services or partner with an agency that has experience with successfully stabilizing homeless or very low-income households.
“The MRVP vouchers allow homeless families to move into existing housing developments with long-term affordability restrictions. The non-profit agencies that own the properties provide participating families with comprehensive supportive service programs to help ensure that they do not fall back into the cycle of homelessness and emergency shelter, while helping them move toward stability and self-sufficiency. Funds for supportive services in the amount of $2,500 per unit will be used to provide a wide array of services, including job search and training, financial literacy and planning, self-sufficiency training and coaching, counseling, parenting, early education and childcare, mental health and addiction treatment, adult education, and GED and skills training.”
“The Commonwealth of Massachusetts has recognized the importance of creating quality supportive housing for communities in need and has been pro-active in creating an active pipeline for these projects,” said Roger Herzog, executive director of the Community Economic Development Assistance Corporation (CEDAC). “The awards that have been granted today will make sure that both much-needed housing and services are available to homeless families and individuals, persons with disabilities, veterans, seniors, and youth, among others.”
City of Cambridge, Harvard celebrate renovation of Chapman Arms
A little more than three years ago, tenants of Chapman Arms were unsure what the future of their homes would hold. But at a special ceremony held recently, the city, Homeowners Rehab Inc. and Harvard University celebrated the final steps in the acquisition, preservation and renovation of 25 affordable housing units in Harvard Square.
In 2011, HRI acquired the 50-unit Chapman Arms — with 25 affordable housing units and 25 market rate units, the first acquisition under the commonwealth’s preservation statute, Chapter 40T. Harvard University, owner of the land under Chapman Arms, supported the acquisition and worked with the city and HRI so that the building could be kept affordable for the long term.
In 2009, an analysis by the city’s Community Development Department identified 10 properties containing 1,094 affordable units at risk of losing their affordability by 2021. Since that time, through the efforts of the city, the Cambridge Housing Authority and other partners, more than 424 affordable units in seven properties have been preserved, ensuring these homes will remain affordable for future generations.
Cambridge produces new affordable housing by using funding from the Community Preservation Act to leverage other public and private funds. In the last five years, the city has used CPA funds to preserve or create more than 1,000 affordable units through preservation of existing housing, new construction, conversion of non-residential properties to affordable housing, and by purchasing market-rate units.