Community Corner
Worcester Awards $1.35M For 74 Affordable Homes
Worcester officials have approved funding for four affordable housing projects across the city.
WORCESTER, MA — Worcester officials approved more than $1.35 million for four affordable housing projects across the city.
The Worcester Affordable Housing Trust Fund Board of Trustees awarded $1,358,362 in Community Preservation Act funding during its Spring 2026 round. The funding will support four different developments that will create 74 deed-restricted affordable homes, the city announced on Thursday.
The projects include new construction, adaptive reuse, public housing redevelopment and smaller infill housing for households earning between 30 percent and 80 percent of area median income.
The awards are expected to leverage more than $154 million in total development investment, according to the city.
“These awards reflect the Affordable Housing Trust Fund’s continued commitment to investing in projects that increase Worcester’s supply of affordable housing while leveraging significant public and private investment,” City Manager Eric D. Batista said in a statement. “This funding supports projects at a variety of scales, from transformative neighborhood redevelopment efforts to smaller infill developments, helping ensure Worcester residents have access to safe, high-quality, affordable homes.”
Lakeside Apartments
The largest award, $600,000, will support Phase 3 of the Worcester Housing Authority’s Lakeside Apartments redevelopment. The project, led by Lakeside Developer LLC, a joint venture between Tremont Development Partners and E3 Development, will include a new four-story building with 103 apartments, of which 38 are net new affordable homes.
Phase 3 is part of a broader redevelopment of the Lakeside public housing community into a mixed-income neighborhood with about 350 rental and homeownership units, according to the city. The phase will include homes affordable to households earning 30 percent, 50 percent and 60 percent of area median income, plus 11 accessible units, community amenities and open space.
Heywood Boot & Shoe Company Building
The trust fund also awarded $585,632 for the adaptive reuse of the historic Heywood Boot & Shoe Company Building at 70 Winter St. in the Canal District. The Beantown Companies plans to convert the vacant 1879 mill building into 77 mixed-income rental apartments with about 3,691 square feet of ground-floor commercial space.
15 of the apartments will be income-restricted, including five affordable units supported directly by the trust fund, according to the city.
Colony on Grove
Colony on Grove Phase III received $100,000 to continue the redevelopment of Colony Retirement Homes’ senior housing campus. The project will replace 24 aging apartments with 52 newly built affordable senior apartments, creating 28 net new affordable homes and six fully accessible units.
The city said all apartments in that phase will be income-restricted, with affordability extending in perpetuity. The project will also include Passive House design and accessible and adaptable units.
South Worcester Urban Infill Housing
A $72,730 award will support South Worcester Urban Infill Housing, a project by ABG Real Estate LLC. The development will create three affordable rental homes across two properties in south Worcester, including a two-family building and an accessory dwelling unit.
The city said the infill project will use all-electric, energy-efficient designs.
All funded projects will be subject to long-term affordability restrictions and must meet trust fund underwriting, legal and closing requirements before funding agreements are executed.
