SPRINGFIELD, MA - A developer has secured public subsidies and tax credits totaling $4.4 million for a 109-unit affordable housing project planned at the long-troubled, vacant Longhill Gardens Condominiums in Forest Park. Gilbert J. Winn, vice president of WinnCompanies of Boston, the developer, said Wednesday he anticipates the estimated $20 million project will begin in early 2009, with completion one year later. The project was not possible without public funding assistance, he said.
"We are very excited to get going on this very important project in the Forest Park neighborhood," Winn said. "The state and the city have truly stepped up to the plate in acting to save this failed private property." Longhill Gardens, a 211-unit condominium project on Longhill Street, was partially condemned in 2007, and has been closed and boarded since December.
The state Department of Housing and Community Development recently approved $1.55 million in public subsidies for the WinnCompanies' project, plus $1.1 million in federal low-income housing tax credits and $1.75 million in state low-income housing credits.
The Forest Park Civic Association has endorsed the new project for the site, with representatives praising WinnCompanies' track record in bringing quality housing developments to the Springfield area. "We are very excited they got the funding," said Brian P. Sears, president of the civic association. "I expect it to be a wonderful neighbor." A grassroots group, Springfield Forward, has objected to the project, with members saying they are concerned the return of dense housing will again disrupt the neighborhood, bringing back drugs and crime.
WinnCompanies said the project reduces density from 211 units to 109 units, and provides additional parking. The company will demolish condemned, unstable buildings, create a parking lot and set aside some remaining open land for sale to the city or surrounding property owners to redevelop, Winn said.
Winn said additional neighborhood meetings are planned, as sought by residents and Mayor Domenic J. Sarno. The developers are requesting follow-up meetings in September with the civic association and a first-time meeting with Springfield Forward, he said.
Sarno supported the housing project with conditions aimed at meeting some neighborhood concerns, saying the city would otherwise risk having an undesirable use at the site or have the site remain vacant and become a blight. The mayor's support helped WinnCompanies secure the public subsidies. Winn said his company anticipates acquiring an approximate $6 million mortgage on the property, held by Citibank. Under affordable housing, tenants would earn 60 percent of the area median income or less.
Richard Carpenter, a member of Springfield Forward, said he and others believe Longhill Gardens could have been developed for other uses better for the neighborhood such as senior housing or over-55 housing.
Source: MassLive.com