Design and Construction Report staff writer
More than $16 million in public funding will support renovations, accessibility upgrades and stormwater improvements at the Fairmount public housing development in Boston’s Hyde Park neighborhood.
The funding will support a mult phase modernization project at Fairmount Apartments, a state public housing development built in 1951 that contains more than 200 units.
Boston Mayor Michelle Wu, U.S. Rep. Ayanna Pressley, Massachusetts Housing and Livable Communities Secretary Juana Matias, state Rep. Rob Consalvo and Boston Housing Authority Administrator Kenzie Bok announced the funding alongside residents.
The funding includes a $10 million High Leverage Asset Preservation Program grant from the state’s Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities, $5 million in city capital funding and $1 million in Community Project Funding secured by Pressley and U.S. Sens. Edward Markey and Elizabeth Warren.
The Boston Public Health Commission is also contributing funding for open space improvements and community gardens.
The Boston Housing Authority is launching a master planning process to establish a long-term vision for the development while beginning the first phase of physical improvements.
Initial work will include modernizing apartment interiors, making 5% of units fully accessible, electrifying heating and hot water systems and adding cooling. Building envelope upgrades and green stormwater infrastructure are also planned to improve energy performance and climate resilience.
“Over the last five years, Boston has built nearly 16,000 new units of housing throughout our neighborhoods,” Wu said. “In order to make our city a home for everyone, we must also preserve and modernize the affordable homes that already exist.”
The project will help preserve the development as affordable housing while upgrading living conditions for residents, Bok said.
The funding also supports stormwater management measures intended to reduce flooding and pollution. The city and housing authority have collaborated on stormwater projects serving the Fairmount, Gallivan and Franklin Field communities. Additional federal funding secured by the congressional delegation will support flood mitigation at affordable housing developments, including BHA properties.
At Fairmount, planned work includes a community garden and rain gardens to help manage stormwater runoff. Through Boston’s PowerCorps program, local residents will receive training in building and maintaining rain gardens while earning credentials for careers in the green economy.
“Residents in the Massachusetts 7th not only deserve a safe, stable place to call home, but also one that reflects modern-day needs in accessibility, resiliency, and sustainability,” Pressley said.
Matias said funding made available through Massachusetts’ Affordable Homes Act is helping expand resources to preserve and improve the state’s public housing.
The investment is part of a broader effort to modernize existing affordable housing while addressing accessibility, energy efficiency and climate resilience.
