Major housing developments in the communities of Lowell, Westford and Fitchburg are coming online in part due to $140 million in state tax credits and subsidies, part of Gov. Maura Healey’s commitment to jumpstarting the commonwealth’s housing production.
Healey said both the awards reflect the administration’s push to increase housing supply in every region of Massachusetts — from downtowns to neighborhoods to smaller communities.
“The Affordable Homes Act gave us new tools to move faster and smarter, and this first round of Commercial Conversion tax credits will help turn underused commercial properties into homes, bring new energy to our downtowns and lower housing costs for residents,” Healey said at an event Tuesday in Pittsfield.
The Healey-Driscoll administration funded $8.4 million from the new Commercial Conversion Tax Credit Initiative to help communities transform empty or rundown commercial buildings into new homes. The program will support the creation of 339 homes.
The initiative was created in the Affordable Homes Act, an initiative to increase housing production and invest in livable communities, which the governor signed in 2024.
An additional $139.5 million in low-income housing tax credits and subsidies through the Affordable Housing Development grant program will support the creation of 1,008 homes, including 903 affordable homes of which 284 homes will be for extremely low-income households and those transitioning from homelessness.
The awards support projects in downtowns and neighborhood centers where commercial buildings are underutilized and where new housing can help bring foot traffic, customers and energy back to local business districts.
“Too many downtown buildings across Massachusetts are sitting dark and empty when they could be part of the solution to our housing shortage,” Healey said in a statement.
The Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities is awarding the first-ever CCTCI credits to five projects, including The Main Street Lofts @ 280, which will receive $1,298,757 to convert a historic office building in downtown Fitchburg into rental housing, that will include street-level retail. The project will also leverage historic tax credits.
As part of EOHLC’s Affordable Housing Development grant program, the administration is also awarding a combination of federal and state low-income housing tax credits and EOHLC subsidy funds to 15 housing projects.
In Lowell, the Revitalization Effort Towards New Urbanism, a non-profit affiliate of the Lowell Housing Authority, along with its development partner, Trinity Financial, was awarded low-income housing tax credit funds and state subsidies to bring the Merrimack Corridor Development to life.
The Lowell Housing Authority, a quasi-governmental agency is the third-largest housing authority in the commonwealth. The LHA manages more than 3,000 federal and state housing units serving the needs of more than 6,000 residents in low-income families, seniors, veterans and people with disabilities. It is the largest provider of these services in Lowell comprising 8% of the city’s housing stock.
The new construction of the Merrimack Corridor project will bring an additional 118 low-income units to Lowell’s housing market. A majority of the units will be deeply affordable at or below 60% average median income, while the remaining units will be priced at or below 30% AMI.
The buildings are designed to achieve passive house standards and meet Enterprise Green Communities criteria, ensuring that the residents live in energy-efficient homes.
The Town Farm Road Residences in Westford will provide 35 homes affordable to seniors at or below 60 percent AMI, including 10 of those homes at or below 30 percent AMI, on a site adjacent to a fire station and a food pantry.
The housing project is a joint venture between SCG Development Partners and CHOICE Housing Opportunities for Intergenerational and Community Endeavors.
Economic reports indicate the commonwealth needs to produce at least 200,000 new units by 2030 to keep up with housing demand and to make sure people can stay and work in the state. The AHA legislation and 49 related initiatives support the production, preservation and rehabilitation of more than 65,000 homes statewide over the next five years.
Since taking office, Healey has focused on increasing housing production and lowering costs by speeding up the permitting process, converting state land into potential housing development, legalizing accessory dwelling units, and other initiatives like those announced Tuesday.
“We’re grateful to the Legislature for their partnership and for the developers who stepped up to build new housing through both of these programs,” Healey said.
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