2022 Development that Best Preserves Existing Affordable Housing
Lyman Terrace Phase 2
Developer: The Community Builders, Inc.
Location: Holyoke, Massachusetts
An aging public housing authority property in Holyoke, Massachusetts, that was in jeopardy due to a deteriorated physical condition was renovated, including the 76-apartment Lyman Terrace Phase 2 development spearheaded by The Community Builders Inc. (TCB).
Built in 1939, Holyoke’s oldest PHA community and one of the oldest in the country was functionally obsolete before being transformed. One-hundred and sixty-four apartments were preserved, including these 76, as TCB leveraged a hybrid Rental Assistance Demonstration/Section 18 HUD structure in two phases to convert to private project-based voucher contracts. The development also benefited from investment through the federal opportunity zones incentive. The redevelopment plan included a gut rehabilitation of the existing public housing buildings with new construction, modular additions to make the living areas larger, and new infrastructure. There is a new community building with program space for the Boys & Girls Club of Greater Holyoke and other resident services.
The Lyman Terrace Phase 2 development overcame the challenges of redeveloping aging physical buildings on a constrained urban site. The $43.7 million development received $17.9 million in state and federal LIHTC equity from Key Bank.