Affordable housing project underway in heart of Chelsea
A local nonprofit is transforming the site of a former light industrial building in downtown Chelsea into homes for local families. The Neighborhood Developers recently began construction of the new five-story building at 25 Sixth St. near Bellingham Square. It will yield 62 mixed-income rental and ownership units, all of them at affordable prices, according to Rafael Mares, the organization’s executive director.
The $33.5 million project, which is being undertaken with the help of significant state and federal financing, will bring much-needed housing to the city at a site ideal for it, he said.
“It’s a great location because it’s right next to the MBTA Silver Line station, and steps away from City Hall. With that also comes convenient access to all the different bus lines,” Mares said. “We like building transportation-oriented developments and this is right in the center of Chelsea.”
He said the plan also provides for public access through the site to and from Bellingham Square and the Silver Line station, which will make it easier for people to walk to the MBTA facility and enhance the vitality of the square.
Designed by Utile Architecture & Planning, the 71,469square-foot rounded-corner building will include 56 one-, two-, and three-bedroom apartments, and six two- and threebedroom condominium units for first-time home buyers.
The project also features ground-floor parking, a community room, a roof-deck courtyard, shared laundry facilities, and landscaping. It is designed to meet high energy-efficiency standards.
Eight rental apartments are restricted to households earning up to 30 percent of the area median income, 36 for those earning up to 60 percent, and 12 for those earning up to 90 percent. Three ownership units are restricted to households earning up to 80 percent of the median income, and three for those earning up to 100 percent. The area median income is $140,300 for a household of four.
The condominium units will be priced between $240,800 and $393,200, according to Mares.
Chelsea City Manager Thomas Ambrosino said the development is “an exceptionally beneficial project for the city.”
“Providing affordable housing is among the greatest challenges facing Chelsea. This project directly addresses it by developing 60+ affordable units,” he said. “It also advances the city’s desire to increase home ownership opportunities by including six affordable condominium units. And being directly adjacent to a Silver Line stop, it epitomizes transit-oriented development.”
The financing package includes loans, grants, and federal and state tax credits from MassHousing, the state Department of Housing and Community Development, and the North Suburban HOME Consortium.
MassHousing’s financing includes $1.32 million from the CommonWealth Builder Program to help fund the ownership units. The program began in 2019 to boost construction of affordable homes in communities of color, and was expanded through $115 million allotted by the state Legislature from the American Rescue Plan Act. The Chelsea project was the first to be awarded such funds.
Chelsea-based The Neighborhood Developers owns and manages 611 affordable rental apartments in Chelsea, Everett, and Revere, some of which it developed. The firm also has bought and sold affordable town homes, and recently developed six of them in Everett.
The Chelsea property was formerly the site of a 1965 building housing a food service equipment installer that closed at the end of 2019. The Neighborhood Developers purchased the building in December 2019.
TND plans to start marketing the project in the summer of 2023, with a lottery set for that November to select future tenants and home buyers.