BOSTON - Friday, March 8, 2024 - Mayor Michelle Wu yesterday joined the State of Massachusetts Housing Secretary Edward Augustus, Beacon Communities, The Pine Street Inn, Mount Vernon Company, and local elected officials to celebrate the Grand Opening for 140 Clarendon. The redevelopment project created 210 affordable apartments at the historic Boston’s Young Women's Christian Association (YWCA) building, located at the intersection of Clarendon and Stuart Streets in Back Bay. The Pine Street Inn, a homeless services organization, is providing services for 111 supportive housing apartments designated for people exiting homelessness.  
 
"Making sure residents have a safe, stable place to live is critical in our efforts to ensure Boston is a safe, strong, and resilient city for everyone,” said Mayor Michelle Wu. “The 140 Clarendon community shows how public, private, and nonprofit partners can work together to strengthen our neighborhoods to be a home for everyone."
 
The Boston YWCA Building was constructed between 1927 and 1929 and has served as the YWCA’s headquarters for nearly a hundred years. Beacon Communities bought the property in 2021, and the grand opening is the culmination of their work in renovating the historic building. The development team was able to retain the existing commercial tenants, including the Lyric Stage Theatre and the Snowden School. This historic property was renovated to the Secretary of the Interior's Standards for Historic Preservation. The building also qualified for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification. LEED is the world's most widely used green building rating system.
 
“We are excited to expand Beacon’s footprint in Boston with the adaptive reuse that preserves the historic YWCA building while providing homes for formerly unhoused individuals with wraparound services and affordable homes for those in need,” said Beacon Communities CEO Dara Kovel. "Investing in the redevelopment of existing buildings in this case helped us bring these residences online quickly, a model for what’s possible.”
 
The Pine Street Inn, a critical partner in the development, will provide wrap-around services to the formerly homeless residents in the supportive housing apartments, ensuring that they remain stably housed and reach their highest level of independence. Through a partnership with Boston Health Care for the Homeless and the Visiting Nurses Association, residents have access to on-site medical and mental health resources. Pine Street Inn provides on-site housing stability support to help tenants remain in their apartments and programs that assist with increasing their income and provide them with skills and tools to live more independently. This includes job training and volunteer opportunities with the goal of reconnecting the residents to the community. The property is staffed to provide twenty-four hour crisis intervention.  
 
“The developers, working closely with the Back Bay community have come together to imagine and create a very special development, one that will serve Boston residents for decades to come,” said Chief of Housing Sheila Dillon. “The Mayor’s Office of Housing was honored to invest in this affordable housing project, which will provide over 200 households with an affordable home, including 111 for individuals who were formerly homeless. In addition to the affordable homes, the development team was able to retain the existing theater, businesses and a local school. A model development for us all.”
 
“140 Clarendon Street is living proof that Boston can be a city for all of our residents, regardless of income, when we come together to make it so,” said BHA Administrator Kenzie Bok. “We are so proud to support this thriving affordable housing community in the heart of Back Bay, and look forward to supporting more such projects in all our neighborhoods.”
 
“Pine Street Inn is thrilled to be part of the 140 Clarendon community,” said Lyndia Downie, President and Executive Director of Pine Street Inn. “The support services provided by Pine Street are key to ensuring that vulnerable individuals have the resources they need to successfully settle into their new apartments and the larger community. 140 Clarendon embodies the mission of Pine Street to end homelessness by making the safety and stability of permanent housing a reality for 111 tenants.”
 
Onsite amenities for tenants include a library, community room, fitness center and computer lab. The Beacon resident services team will provide onsite computer training, and fitness classes. Additionally, there are free weekly community meals hosted by the resident services team.
 
The Mayor’s Office of Housing supported the project with $3,689,955 of Community Development Block Grant-Cares Act funds and $2,600,000 of Coronavirus Relief funds for a total of $6,289,955. The Boston Housing Authority is providing Project-Based Vouchers (PBV) to all the apartments in the new development. The vouchers represent a $6.3 million annual subsidy from the Department of Housing and Urban Development and will ensure that residents can remain in the apartments regardless of their income. 
 
In addition to City support, the project received State and Federal low income tax credits from the State’s Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities (EOHLC), and Federal Historic Tax Credits. Financing for 140 Clarendon includes funding from the Mayor’s Office of Housing, the Massachusetts EOHLC, MassHousing, Capital Magnet Fund, Bank of America, and State and Federal tax credits.
 
“This project highlights our shared values in Massachusetts," said Secretary Ed Augustus, Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities. “It’s not enough to provide housing to our most vulnerable residents, we must provide services to those who need it most. I am proud of this public-private partnership and hope others will be inspired by this new community.” 
 
“MassHousing is grateful for its partners at the city, state, and federal levels that provided the funding and resources necessary to bring this project to life,” said MassHousing CEO Chrystal Kornegay. “140 Clarendon provides a crucial link between housing, transit, and economic opportunity. We are thrilled to begin welcoming new residents to the neighborhood.”
 
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