Housing Headlines

MATTAPAN -- A California developer has filed plans to replace a vacant lot at 1471 Blue Hill Ave. in Mattapan with an energy-efficient, five-story, 48-unit affordable apartment building. All the studios, 1-, 2- and 3-bedroom units would be rented to people making between 30 and 70 percent of the area median income, including people with Section 8 vouchers.

BOSTON --- City planners have released a study that proposes to turn Mattapan into a “10-minute neighborhood” by allowing the construction of up to 2,400 additional homes, a more diverse mix of retail and installing and street improvements that will make it safer for pedestrians. The goal is to transform Mattapan - a majority Black/African neighborhood - into a place where people are within a 10-minute walk of amenities and improve the lives of residents, who have the longest commutes of any neighborhood in the city.

SOMERVILLE -- Based on Matthew Desmond’s Pulitzer Prize–winning book of the same name, the traveling exhibit “Evicted” includes eviction data from every state and a section highlighting stories and photos of Somerville residents at risk of eviction. The exhibit is on display at the Somerville Armory through November 4.

EASTHAMPTON --- The City Council has given the go-ahead for Mayor Nicole LaChapelle to prepare a request for proposal that would seek a developer to redevelop three schools near downtown. The vote caps four years of community input and technical planning were guided by the city's new strategic plans for the downtown and affordable housing production. The goal of the RFP is to create affordable housing in one or all the buildings.

Boosting the housing stock with starter homes could ensure that future generations can stay and thrive in Massachusetts, but a bill that would allow starter home zoning districts sits in limbo in the state legislature.

BOSTON -- After a frenzied run-up in demand and prices during the pandemic, Greater Boston’s housing market is slowing down. Homes are selling for a little less. But rising mortgage rates, inflation, and a stark supply shortage have pushed housing even further out of reach for many,