| The Community Economic Development Assistance Corp. (CEDAC) recently committed over $8.5 million in financing to Fenway Community Development Corp. (Fenway CDC) to purchase and preserve Burbank Gardens, an existing affordable housing development located in the Fenway.
In 2009, the Massachusetts legislature passed Chapter 40T into law, giving the state’s Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD) and CEDAC tools to monitor and address the expiring use challenge.
When the seller of Burbank Gardens put the property on the market in early 2016, Fenway CDC was designated by DHCD through Chapter 40T to purchase and preserve the 52-unit residence. The seller accepted Fenway CDC’s offer in September 2016.
“Preserving Burbank Gardens is an important step in the Commonwealth’s ongoing efforts to maintaining affordable housing,” Roger Herzog, CEDAC’s executive director, said in a statement. “It demonstrates once again that the innovative Chapter 40T law remains an effective tool and is a national model for preserving quality affordable housing.”
CDC plans to ensure that 51 of the 52 apartments remain affordable for low and moderate income households. The property currently consists of 52 studio, one- and two-bedroom apartments. CEDAC provided a $313,000 predevelopment loan and, with participation by Eastern Bank, an $8,268,525 acquisition loan to Fenway CDC for this important preservation effort.
