MassHousing has closed on $29.7 million in affordable housing financing to the nonprofit NeighborWorks Housing Solutions (NHS) for the construction of 94 new affordable apartment homes adjacent to Brockton’s Campello Commuter Rail station.
NeighborWorks Housing Solutions is remediating and redeveloping a former industrial site at 1200 Montello Street into a new five-story, all-electric building designed to meet Passive House standards. A towing company and fuel storage facility previously occupied the site before relocating. NHS demolished the remaining vacant garage and office and removed contaminated soil prior to starting construction on the new Brockton South TOD housing community.
“By repurposing this parcel right next to a Commuter Rail station with 94 brand new affordable, energy-efficient apartments homes, NHS is helping with the city’s efforts to revitalize the Campello neighborhood,” said MassHousing CEO Chrystal Kornegay. “The residents who will live in these new homes will breathe new life and vibrancy into the neighborhood, much like new housing communities have recently transformed Brockton’s downtown.”
Other financing sources include $36.4 million in equity from an allocation of state and federal Low Income Housing Tax Credits by the Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities (EOHLC), $7.7 million in direct support from EOHLC, $3 million in American Rescue Plan Act financing through the Affordable Housing Trust Fund, which MassHousing manages on behalf of EOHLC, $1.2 million from the Community Economic Development Assistance Corporation (CEDAC), $750,000 in Brownfields funding from MassDevelopment, and $2 million in Congressional Directed Spending. The tax credit investor is National Equity Fund, Inc., and the construction lender is Eastern Bank.
NHS has entered into a power purchase agreement with a solar energy provider to install photovoltaic panels on the development’s roof to provide lower cost, solar-produced electricity to common areas. The ground floor will include a community room, a gym for residents, and 1,473 square feet of commercial space.
Of the 94 new apartments, 14 will be restricted to households earning up to 30 percent of the Area Median Income (AMI) and supported by the federal Section 8 program (eight units) and the Massachusetts Rental Voucher Program (six units), 65 apartments will be restricted to households earning up to 60 percent of AMI and 15 apartments will be restricted to households earning up to 80 percent of AMI. There will be 31 one-bedroom apartments and 63 two-bedroom apartments.
The general contractor is NEI General Contracting, the architect is Utile, Inc., and the management agent will be WinnCompanies. Construction is expected to be completed by August 2026.
NeighborWorks Housing Solutions is a one-stop-shop for finding and maintaining safe, affordable, high-quality housing and growing financial skills and resources. They provide the answers and support individuals and families need. Their services include rental assistance; emergency financial help; shelter and homelessness prevention; first-time homebuyer education and counseling; financial coaching; foreclosure prevention; affordable residential and small business loans; and construction and management of high-quality rental housing across Southern Massachusetts. A charter member of the national NeighborWorks America network, NHS is a full-service NeighborWorks Homeownership Center with locations in Quincy, Brockton, Kingston, New Bedford, and Taunton.
MassHousing (The Massachusetts Housing Finance Agency) is an independent, quasi-public agency created in 1966 and charged with providing financing for affordable housing in Massachusetts. The Agency raises capital by selling bonds and lends the proceeds to low- and moderate-income homebuyers and homeowners, and to developers who build or preserve affordable and/or mixed-income rental housing. MassHousing does not use taxpayer dollars to sustain its operations, although it administers some publicly funded programs on behalf of the Commonwealth. Since its inception, MassHousing has provided more than $29 billion for affordable housing.
