Historic Worcester Boys Club Reopens As Affordable Housing

WORCESTER, MA — A long-vacant historic building in Worcester has been converted into affordable housing for older adults.

A celebration marking the completion of the Residences on Lincoln Square will take place on Wednesday. Gov. Maura Healey will join city officials and WinnCompanies executives to observe the $51 million development that created 80 energy-efficient apartments for adults 55 and older near downtown Worcester.

The ceremony will be held inside the restored third-floor gymnasium at 22 Grove St. at 1 p.m.

From Boys Club To Affordable Housing

Construction began in 2024 on the project that preserves the 94-year-old Boys Club building while adding a new five-story apartment building beside it.

The historic four-story building now contains 16 apartments and community spaces. The new building contains 64 apartments and is connected to the original structure by a ground-floor glass walkway.

The development includes 19 studios, 46 one-bedroom apartments and 15 two-bedroom apartments. 68units are reserved for households earning up to 60 percent of the area median income while 12 are for households earning up to 30 percent, according to WinnCompanies. Eleven apartments are set aside for residents with disabilities.

The new 63,000-square-foot building is all-electric and was designed to meet Passive House Institute U.S. standards. Energy-saving features include triple-pane windows, continuous insulation, electric heat pumps, energy-recovery ventilation and ENERGY STAR appliances.

The former Boys Club building was constructed between 1928 and 1930 and later served as Worcester Vocational High School. It had been vacant since 2006.

State And Local Leaders To Attend

Worcester awarded the project nearly $2 million through its Affordable Housing Trust Fund, according to city records. Other financing came from state housing agencies, historic tax credits, Rockland Trust, BlueHub Capital and federal and state historic preservation programs.

Gov. Healey is scheduled to speak alongside Worcester Mayor Joseph Petty, City Manager Eric Batista and representatives from WinnCompanies, F.W. Madigan Company, Rockland Trust, the Massachusetts Housing Partnership, CVS Health and MassHousing. WinnDevelopment President Adam Stein will serve as master of ceremonies.

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