$14 Million Made Available for Affordable Housing in Boston

Mayor Walsh solidified his commitment last week to build 6,500 new units of affordable housing by 2030 by providing $14 million in funding available through two Request for Proposals, each for $7 million a piece. 

These RFPs define the criteria by which projects will be evaluated to receive funding.

Mayor Walsh reiterated the fact that “we must keep Boston equitable and affordable for all of our residents” in order to stay on pace for the ambitious goals set forth in his “Housing a Changing City: Boston 2030” plan.

According to the criteria, new developments must utilize city-owned land. The developments must cater to a mix of incomes from homeless housing to units catered to restricted incomes. The projects must be built efficiently, and must be available to quickly move to construction. The proposed projects must also serve certain segments of the population, including disabled, elderly, veterans, and artists. The projects should also create new affordable housing in some of Boston’s high-income neighborhoods.

Roughly half of the funds will be drawn from the Neighborhood Housing Trust, which is created from the development of commercial property around Boston. The rest of the funding will be provided by the Inclusionary Development Fund. In addition to these two sources, some funding will be drawn from Federal programs like HOMES and CDBG.

Since becoming Mayor, Martin Walsh has made over $70 million in funds available for the creation of affordable housing, so long as developers follow guidelines for design and energy efficiency.