Image courtesy of Trinity Financial

A  developer that’s encountered neighborhood opposition to its most recent Boston projects has found a more welcoming climate in the suburban town of Medfield, and recent grants from the Healey administration toward a $235 million housing project.

Boston-based Trinity Financial was awarded nearly $5 million from a pair of state programs as it assembles financing for adaptive reuse of the former Medfield State Hospital as 344 housing units.

The firm was one of two respondents to a request for proposals for a 45-acre portion of the property acquired by the town in 2014. The site includes 27 Queen Anne-style buildings dating back to the 1890s that were featured in the 2010 psychological thriller “Shutter Island.”

“The town has spent years working on this project, so we used a gentle touch in terms of our approach to the building and the site,” said Abby Goldenfarb, vice president at Trinity Financial. “We really tried to honor what is important to the town: the preservation of this historic asset and maintaining the beautiful open space.”

Founded in 1987, Trinity Financial has developed $3 billion worth of real estate projects including affordable and mixed-income housing.

In November, the firm was designated as developer of a 686-unit income-restricted housing project on a city-owned parcel on Austin Street in Charlestown.

But it has failed to overcome neighborhood opposition at a recently-approved development in Dorchester, where neighbors went to court in January seeking to overturn approval of a 72-unit income-restricted housing project next to the MBTA’s Shawmut station.

And in December, Trinity Financial received approval for the largest income-restricted condominium development in Back Bay history, despite opposition from some neighbors and the Elliot Hotel. The 133-unit project at 415 Newbury St. will include 23 affordable condos, including three offered for $175,300.

In 2022, Medfield town meeting overwhelmingly approved the $2 million sale of 45 acres to Trinity Financial and a redevelopment plan calling for 344 housing units in the former state hospital buildings. The project will reserve 25 percent of the units for households earning 80 percent or less or area median income.

The firm was one of two respondents to the town’s request for proposals, following approval of a master plan for the property’s redevelopment. The other respondent, Pulte Homes, offered $44.1 million to demolish the buildings and build up to 702 housing units.

Trinity Financial agreed to adaptive reuse of the existing buildings, which are listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

But preservation of the buildings comes with additional costs, including asbestos removal and other remediation work estimated at $20 million, Goldenfarb said. Costs to build 1.7 miles of roads and utilities are expected to total another $30 million.

This month, the Healey administration awarded Medfield grants totaling $4.5 million from the Housing Works Infrastructure Program and the Underutilized Properties Program. The money will be used for design of roads and utilities, off-site road improvements, hazardous material testing and asbestos remediation in one building.

“Access to housing is the greatest challenge confronting our state and the Healey-Driscoll administration is committed to unlocking paths to housing production at every opportunity,” Secretary of Housing and Liveable Communities Ed Augustus said in a statement.

Trinity Financial will seek additional state funding for future phases of the infrastructure and remediation work, along with historic tax credits, as it continues to assemble its financing package this year, Goldenfarb said.