Housing Headlines

PITTSFIELD --- Two days after being first woman to be elected governor in state history, Maura Healey participated in a roundtable policy discussion in Pittsfield where housing was a main topic. “We talked about housing and the incentives for the creation of housing that will be affordable for families here in the state because right now there are too many middle-class families who cannot afford rent, cannot afford down payments, can't afford housing," said Healey.

A shift in the way the Boston, Cambridge and Brookline housing authorities value rental vouchers has given Section 8 tenants greater ability to rent in high-cost, high-opportunity areas. According to the Boston Globe, the three housing authorities received permission from the federal government to vary the subsidies by zip code instead of one flat rate for the region. As a result, there's been a notable increase in Section 8 voucher holders moving into neighborhoods with less poverty and a higher share of adults with jobs.

GLOUCESTER --- Work has begun on turning the former downtown YMCA building into 44 affordable aparments for seniors. The $44 million project - to be financed primarily with low income housing tax credits - wil be named after former longtime Cape Ann Y executive direcctor Jack Meany. The project will have preferences for veterans and those with limited incomes, and will provide homes for 88 people older than 62.

SWAMPSCOTT --- Even with the approval of the mixed-income 114-unit Elm Place development, Swampscott's inventory of affordable housing is just 3.7 percent, making it both unaffordable to many and below the state's 10 percent threshold, which means developers can use the state's Ch. 40B process to bypass many local zoning bylaws. "I think we've got to get busy and start driving projects," said Swampscott Town Administrator Sean Fitzgerald told the select board recently.

HADLEY --- Valley Community Development plans to turn the EconoLodge on Russell Street into 50 supportive affordable apartments, studios and one bedrooms. The project is being supported by funds from the Community Economic Development Assistance Corporation - an acquisition loan of up to $4.1 million and a $400,000 predevelopment loan.

BOSTON --- The Boston Foundation Greater Boston Housing Report Card 2022 finds that housing supply continues to grow more slowly than need, and owners and renters pay among the highest rates in the country. At the same time, flaws in the systems mean that thousands of people who qualify for subsidies are getting lost in a fragmented, difficult system. The report concludes with policy recommendations.