34 East Springfield
Developer: MPZ Development, LLC
Total Units: 5
Expected Start Date: Fall 2020
34 East Springfield Street is a five-unit public housing development in the South End neighborhood of Boston. The three-and-one-half-story attached brick row house was constructed ca. 1865 in the Italianate architectural style. It has a garden level and fronts immediately onto the sidewalk within the vibrant and architecturally important Worcester Square Neighborhood. The historic building is also within the boundaries of the South End Landmarks District.
The building has been part of the BHA portfolio for a number of years, but has suffered from neglect as a result of more than a decade of vacancy. The project goal is to redevelop the long-vacant building and to preserve the affordable housing as rental units. The revived building and affordable units will provide necessary and quality housing options in an expensive neighborhood of Boston and will continue to be an asset to the surrounding community.
In December 2019, BHA issued a Request for Proposals for certain developer services for the disposition and redevelopment of 34 East Springfield Street. In February 2020, BHA designated MPZ Development, LLC (MPZ) as the developer for the project. The locally-based developer has significant experience working on smaller scale, mixed-income, multi-family, and mixed-use residential developments across Massachusetts, including affordable housing projects in the Boston area. In addition to several subsidy sources, the developer plans to leverage funding from both the state and federal historic tax credit programs to finance the redevelopment of the building.