Phase 1 of the Campello Apartments redevelopment. Image courtesy of BWA Architecture
The city of Brockton will be gaining two new housing developments thanks to financing from Eastern Bank, Santander Bank and MassHousing.
MassHousing announced last week that it had closed on a $50 million financing package for the first phase of the redevelopment of the Campello Apartments public housing complex in Brockton, with construction lending coming from Santander Bank.
And Eastern Bank is providing $15.5 million in construction financing to Causeway Development for the conversion of a historic mill building at 142 Main Street in Brockton.
The mill building conversion will feature 30 mixed-income housing units, and the building will feature three ground-level commercial spaces, including a community-oriented coffee shop. Ten of the units will be market-rate, 15 will be affordable units designated for households earning up to 60 percent of the area median income, and five Massachusetts Rental Voucher Program units for households earning up to 30 percent of AMI.
“Eastern Bank understands our vision for community-oriented development, and has been a trusted partner across several affordable and mixed-income projects,” Causeway Development Principal Dave Traggorth said in a statement. “We’re proud to work together again on the revitalization of this historic downtown Brockton property, which will bring new housing, new energy and a renewed sense of place to Main Street.”
The first phase of the Campello Apartment project involves the construction of a seven-story, 144-unit building, beginning the three-phase redevelopment. The original building was constructed in 1972. The redevelopment plan involves the demolition of a single-story building and two existing Campello high-rise buildings, which currently include 398 public housing units. The demolished buildings will be replaced with three newly constructed buildings containing 398 replacement units and two new units.
MassHousing is providing $28.2 million in permanent financing, $20.7 million in tax credit bridge financing, and $1 million in Capital Magnet Fund financing. Financing of the first phase also includes $2.2 million from the Affordable Housing Trust Fund, $7.4 million in direct support from the Massachusetts Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities, $43.9 million in federal and state Low Income Housing Tax Credits allocated by EOHLC, $10.8 million in Brockton Housing Authority loan financing, and $1 million in Brockton HOME funds. The tax credit syndicator is The Richman Group and the construction lender is Santander Bank.
The general contractor is Shawmut Construction and the architect is BWA Architecture.
The building will have 143 one-bedroom units and one two-bedroom unit, including seven accessible units. All 144 units will be subsidized with project-based Section 8 vouchers, with 36 units restricted to households earning up to 30 percent of the AMI, 36 units restricted for households earning up to 50 percent of the AMI, and 72 units restricted for households earning up to 60 percent of the AMI.
The building will also offer a main lounge at the ground floor as well as laundry, fitness and social spaces on the upper floors. There will be resident parking with EV charging stations, and the project aims for a low carbon footprint through the implementation of all-electric heating and cooling systems, an airtight building envelope consisting of high-performance windows and insulated assemblies, water conservation through the use of low-flow fixtures and efficient plumbing design, and solar-ready roofs.
Also, indoor air quality will be delivered through a centralized balanced energy recovery ventilation system. Resident appliances will be Energy Star labeled, and all lighting will be LED. Additionally, the building has been designed to comply with the Enterprise Green Communities certification program.
