BBH Breaks Ground on The Coolidge at Sudbury, Phase 2!
On Friday, May 3, the B’nai B’rith Housing team, along with members of the BBH Board of Directors, and federal, state and town officials, joined friends and supporters for a festive groundbreaking celebration for Phase 2 of The Coolidge at Sudbury. Phase Two will provide an additional 56 units of high-quality, affordable rental housing for seniors and build on the success of the fully occupied, 64 unit, Phase 1 building that opened in 2014.
Within days of the event, the Town of Sudbury also approved Community Preservation Act funds for the development. We are so grateful to all of our partners and funders, including Bank of America, MA Department of Housing & Community Development (DHCD), MA Executive Office of Housing and Economic Development, MassHousing, Massachusetts Housing Partnership, Sudbury Housing Trust, WestMetro HOME Consortium, and the Charles H. Farnsworth Trust, Bank of America, N.A., Trustee. Thank you to everyone!
We’ll be providing periodic construction updates, so be sure to read your e-news and check out our website to follow along as the construction gets underway.
New Gen2Gen Series Continues – Register Now!
Gen2Gen’s new series, “Beyond Subsidized Housing: Big Ideas To Solve Boston’s Big Housing Crisis,” will continue with its second installment on Tuesday, June 18th.
“Transit and Housing: The Ties That Inextricably Bind Them,” will look at how eastern Massachusetts’ under-equipped transit system has created a major barrier to solving our region’s housing crisis. What are the systemic issues at the root of transit insufficiencies? How does poor transit service impact housing and the viability of our communities? What bold steps are municipalities throughout the country doing to address these issues? And how can we advocate for improvements here at home that will provide better transit – and more housing choice – for millennials and other members of the workforce being left behind by the current market?
Join us to learn more and find out what you can do in your community to advocate for policies that will improve the quality of life in our region.
Meet Our Residents: The Faces of Affordable Housing
Meet Jenny! Born and raised in Michigan, Jenny agreed to relocate to Massachusetts in 2014, after years of persuasion from her daughter. “I loved my place, but my daughter worried about me. My arthritis and my eyesight were getting worse, so I packed my things up and made the move.”
Jenny feels very fortunate to have found a home at The Coolidge at Sudbury. “This is such a gorgeous place – more spacious than a lot of similar apartments and it allowed cats. My daughter likes that I am only a few minutes away. She has someone come in a few times a week to help me out, but I can still do a lot of my housework, cook for myself, and be independent.”
Jenny loves the active lifestyle at The Coolidge and the sense of community it affords. Whether she is playing Mahjong in the library or enjoying chair fitness classes in the community room, the many activities and services available provide Jenny and her neighbors with the tools they need to thrive. “It really comes down to the staff and putting yourself out there,” said Jenny. “My neighbors are so friendly, and the staff here really care. Rarely a day goes by without them stopping by to say hello.”
In the coming weeks, the BBH team will be responding to a Request for Proposals (RFP) issued by the Boston Housing Authority (BHA) with the hopes of receiving the designation to redevelop the Patricia White Apartments (PWA). PWA is a 225-unit, multi-family property located at 20 Washington Street in Brighton, directly next door to BBH’s Covenant House Communities. BBH knows this neighboring property well with many residents at PWA having participated in our resident services programs and community events over many years.
BBH hopes that receiving the designation from the BHA will allow us to best serve the residents of PWA. It will also allow us to continue to nurture and expand service-enriched housing opportunities in Brighton, something that we have been doing since 1980. Please consider showing your support for BBH’s proposal by adding your name to our group letter or writing a support letter of your own before June 24th. The BHA is interested in connecting with Brighton residents, service providers, and other community members who share BBH’s belief that quality affordable housing options build strong inclusive communities..
Let’s Invest In Making Density Bonuses Work
In her latest op-ed, Executive Director, Susan Gittelman encourages all of us to take a second look at the advantages of density bonuses. In an effort to produce more affordable housing, municipalities are exploring tools like inclusionary zoning and density bonus incentives. However, in the absence of significant data, density bonuses are not well-understood and can be difficult to deploy effectively. Susan stresses the importance of carefully crafted density bonuses that are tailored to the unique needs of individual communities in order to achieve the best results.
Our corporate sponsors are the foundation we depend on to build more quality affordable housing! When you contribute to our 2019 Campaign, you will be helping us grow our impact and create more places to call home. Your support will make a huge impact on those in need – please become a 2019 Corporate Sponsor today!
What We’re Reading:
A Troubling Study on Our Aging Population
The journal Health Affairs recently released a study projecting housing and health care needs, by income, for the country’s growing senior population. Titled, “The Forgotten Middle,” it examines the plight of an alarming number of seniors who will have insufficient resources for housing and health care in the coming decade. This group of middle-income people are too wealthy to qualify for public programs but not wealthy enough to pay the costs at many senior housing communities for a sustained period of time. What can organizations like BBH learn from this study? And what opportunities does it provide for us and policy makers to course correct and address these issues successfully?
We’re Always on the Lookout for New Opportunities!
BBH is always on the lookout for new housing sites as well as opportunities to acquire and rehabilitate existing housing – please keep us in mind! We have a successful track record working locally to invest in affordable housing resources to expand and serve specific housing needs. We have used a diverse set of local and state tools to advance housing production; we are a Chapter 40T designee; and we are excited about expanding our role in safeguarding precious community-based housing resources.
The need for quality, affordable housing is ever growing. Give us a call to learn more about our areas of expertise and how working with BBH can help your nonprofit or for-profit organization.
Please contact Max Glikman at 617.238.6088 or via email at max@bbhousing.org.
