Private

The potential project, located at 1501 Commonwealth Avenue, will become available for redevelopment in the near future. The property provides an opportunity to expand the inventory of much needed affordable housing with in the Allston-Brighton community.

The lot and building are both approximately 32,000 square feet. The building is both two and three stories and is in an "L" configuration. The property was originally developed in the mid-1960s as a nursing home and continues to operate as the Provident Skilled Nursing Center. The property is located with in a Multifamily Residential (MFR-1) zoning district.

Status:
1501 Commonwealth Avenue is currently privately owned. The City of Boston is preparing to foreclose on the property due to long-standing balance of unpaid taxes. Once the property has been foreclosed, the Department of Neighborhood Development will issue an RFP to identify a buyer who will commit to redevelop the site. Allston Brighton CDC is working with local officials to help ensure the property will be committed to an affordable housing opportunity.

The potential affordable-housing initiative that we are looking to develop is currently known as Parcel A. The development is situated in the Residential Chinatown Sub-district zoning area, within a PDA overlay district, on the corner of Washington Street and Marginal Road. It has a surface area of roughly 27,000 square feet; a maximum buildable height is 80', and an FAR of 4. This past year the Mayor of Boston publicly pledged that fifty percent of the housing units provided on Parcel A would be affordable. Parcel A occupies a unique space in that it is located in a very dense residential community in downtown Boston. It straddles the border of 'traditional' Chinatown and the 'posh' South End neighborhoods and lies directly across the street from the Josiah Quincy Lower School. Chinatown is one of the fastest changing communities in Boston but has also been the hub of Asian culture and identity in New England for over 130 years. Residents of Chinatown are determined to keep their community intact but also recognize the tremendous need for affordable housing in the commonwealth. The challenge is how do we balance competing demands for affordability and quality of life amenities within a very dynamic and historic Boston neighborhood.

Status:
Currently, the Boston Redevelopment Authority owns Parcel A and has held one public meeting to discuss the request for proposal process for the parcel. At present the Josiah Quincy Upper School has semi-permanent classroom trailers on Parcel A, until they relocate to their permanent home. The school has already begun the process of relocation and it is anticipated that they will be completely relocated by September 2005.

In their very tentative schedule the BRA had projected the designation of a developer by September 2005, however, the BRA is now reluctant to continue public debate around Parcel A due to the high number of development projects occurring in and around Chinatown. We now anticipate that the Parcel A request for proposal will be released sometime within the next two years with a developer designation shortly thereafter.

CODMAN SQUARE NDC proposes a community-based transit-oriented planning study that would combine affordable rental housing, first time homeownership development around one of the proposed Fairmont Commuter Rail stations, and with possibly an adjoining commuter garage on an underused
triangle of largely light industrial land hard against a commuter rail line just outside Codman Square, the cross roads of Dorchester. A major goal would be to test the community on their vision of density since we want to explore an urban village concept of transit, housing, commercial and auto related services.

Building on the award-winning 2003 Affordable Housing Competition that looked at housing uses as far as the edge of the present proposal, this study takes it out to one of the major surface streets of Dorchester, well served by a bus line located under a commuter rail right-of-way pass on a steel bridge. The railroad, which is raised on an earth berm along its entire length to avoid grade crossings, separates an old working-class community of woodframe multifamily homes from a new complex of affordable rental housing built by CSNDC in 2003.

The chief goal of the study is to integrate a new commuter rail station and parking with a residential neighborhood while maximizing land use, exploring multi use development, for example, housing over retail or even a public garage while maintaining the present demographics, income mix (as documented in the 2000 census) and scale of the community.

The secondary goal is to reuse auto-related light industrial buildings that are nestled against the railroad and the housing to make it more compatible with the current housing needs of the community while maintaining jobs and private ownership of these businesses.

The third goal is to enlarge the residential constituency built with the first plan to include three-family homes for households with a lower income level than rest of the community.

Codman Square NDC has a 24-year record of building mainly affordable housing as well as commercial/retail development. As a member of the CDC Fairmount/Indigo Line Collaborative Initiative, a multi-cdc collaborative advocating for transit equity (for the line to stop in/serve our community) and responsible development along the 9-mile commuter rail line, CSNDC is working on acquiring real estate for community development purposes (for example, affordable housing development, economic and open space development, etc), along the existing MBTA Fairmount Commuter Rail Line. A key goal of the NDC's work individually, and through the Collaborative, is to undertake smart growth and transit-oriented development strategies and to ensure that the inevitable development that will occur as this line is converted into rapid transit, happens in a way that safeguards the affordable housing and economic development prospects of the low- and moderate-income constituents that we serve. This community development project will benefit low-income and minority neighborhoods, including housing, the urban environment, and economic development.

CSNDC has considerable land-use data in hand and a committed community based group in place. We believe that the FHLB/CHAPA 2005 Affordable Housing Competition will be a great opportunity for both the student team and the NDC to further explore opportunities combining transit-oriented planning with affordable housing development and community development.

Status:
CSNDC is working on acquiring real estate for community development purposes (for example, affordable housing development, economic and open space development, etc), along the existing MBTA Fairmount Commuter Rail Line.

This brownfield site is the former location of the Frye Boot Factory. Remediation is underway. The city and most residents are interested in assisted living or senior housing.

Status:
The city has taken the site by eminent domain. Attempts are still underway to reach consensus on whether the project should be affordable senior housing or affordable assisted living.

Six existing 1920s buildings, ranging from triple-decker to small garage, on three small adjacent lots in urban setting. Redevelopment for affordable home ownership (five to six units) will involve a mix of demolition, rehab, and new construction.

Status:
Site has just been acquired by MVHFH. Survey is done. Preliminary job costing of some aspects, and discussion of project scope is in progress.

The Quincy Commercial Project involves the development of a 22,000 square foot city-owned vacant lot (vacant for about 34 years) in Roxbury, Massachusetts, at the intersection of Quincy Street and Blue Hill Avenue. The new site will create 15,600 square feet of commercial space and 33-36 units of affordable elderly housing.

Status:
Nuestra CDC is currently designated by the city to develop the site and the purchase and sale agreement is expected to be signed within the next few weeks. Nuestra CDC also hopes to acquire at least one abutting lot in an effort to provide better site access and parking for patrons and residents.

The City of Portsmouth Cultural Commission, in partnership with The Housing Partnership, JSA Architects, and the Friends of the Pearl Street Church, submits the 361 Hanover Street project to the 2005 Affordable Housing Competition Affordable housing for the cultural workforce is a high priority for the City of Portsmouth. One of the Mayor's 2005 priorities is to find ways to "hang on to Portsmouth's arts and culture" community. Artists are leaving this hip city in search of more affordable housing. The suggested housing program for the 361Hanover Street project is cultural workforce housing including live/work space for artist families.

The 361 Hanover Street project is an assembly that is described in the site control section. Located in the Islington Creek neighborhood, it is in close walking distance to downtown Portsmouth, abuts a rail corridor, and overlooks Portsmouth's North Mill Pond. The Islington Creek neighborhood was once
home to a number of mill industries. The centerpiece building the 361 Hanover Street project is an historic industrial building. The surrounding neighborhood's housing stock reflects its working-class history. Because of its close proximity to downtown and the Northern Tier, which is slated for redevelopment as another downtown hub, and its cohesive neighborhood character and solid housing stock, the area is rapidly gentrifying.

The project is located in a gateway area. The vicinity has been identified in the City of Portsmouth Cultural Plan and Citywide Master Plan as one anchor of an arts corridor. In addition to the project site, the Pearl Street Church, a public park with an artist-designed open-air stage, a community garden, and a sprinkling of existing artist studios all play important roles in this realizing this
concept for this area.

There are few underutilized sites, suitable for housing, remaining in Portsmouth. The project area is underutilized in terms of its potential residential use and capacity. The site's proximity to the rail corridor and the significant land assembly afford the student team an opportunity for creative use of height and massing and the creation of open space in the interest of housing density.
Project also presents urban design, historic preservation, housing planning, and open-space/cultural programming opportunities.

The project area is approximately the size of one city block located in downtown Portsmouth. The Cultural Commission will include an additional $275 in travel stipend for up to six individual round trips to project site. A bus runs hourly from South Station to Portsmouth; car-pooling is strongly recommended.

Status:
The 361 Hanover Street projectis an assembly of sites owned by different parties. JSA Architects, a key project sponsor, owns the core site that includes the historic industrial building. The City of Portsmouth, an interested party, owns the adjacent Department of PublicWorks maintenance yard. The Friends of the Pearl Street Church, a nonprofit dedicated to preserving the oldest African-American Church in the State of New Hampshire, is in the process of acquiring the Church building for purpose of establishing a cultural center for African-American organizations and a small performance center.

SSHDC is the designated developer for seven acres in Scituate to create 20 units of family housing on Housing Authority land. The project should use tax credits and other sources as available. The site is near the new Greenbush commuter rail terminal.

Status:
Scituate Housing Authority has owned the land for 10 years. There are no preconceptions beyond 20 units of family housing.

WATCH proposes to develop a mix of housing and community performance and meeting space on a site that would help extend Waltham's thriving downtown district. South Middle School sits at the Intersection of Moody and High Streets, at the edge of Waltham's downtown strip that boasts a wide array of international cuisine, gift shops, jewelry stores, art galleries and a movie theatre. Part of the Mayor's vision for this area is to extend the attractive streetscape to include the block where South Middle School sits. WATCH's concern with this plan is that it not exclude or displace the South Side's low-income families, as has been the trend in this neighborhood.

WATCH's vision for this site includes affordable rental housing, or possibly a limited equity cooperative. Waltham is fast losing its rental stock as condo conversions and demolition of rental housing for dense, luxury, condominium developments sweep throughout the city. Additionally, we envision a large public meeting room that could be sectioned off to create smaller rooms, and potentially community theatre space as well.

Status:
The South Middle School site is currently owned by the Waltham School Department and is scheduled to be surplused by June 2006 as the City's new school construction program ends. The school is currently being used to house students from another Middle School while their school is rebuilt. Partly as a result of WATCH's advocacy efforts, the Waltham City Council recently voted to set aside two of the surplused school buildings for affordable housing development and the Mayor is likely to approve this measure. There are three school buildings expected to be surplused by the School Department, so there is a good chance that South Middle will be set aside by the city for affordable housing.

WATCH has conducted several public meetings that have included the solicitation of ideas from the public on how this site should be redeveloped. Affordable housing and public meeting space have generally topped those lists, so we see the potential for this idea to gain widespread grassroots support, as well as appealing to the Mayor and Council.