Boston Mayor Thomas M. Menino recently announced that the Leading the Way II housing strategy is halfway completed and, in some areas, ahead of schedule. The four-year initiative, which aims to product residential units in the Hub – many affordable and some targeted toward decreasing homelessness – has been one of the flagships of Menino’s campaign to create housing.

Both Leading the Way I and II called for the city’s housing organizations – the Department of Neighborhood Development, Boston Housing Authority, Boston Redevelopment Authority and Department of Inspectional Services – to join forces in order to be able to meet the proposed goals.

“Each organization has a different focus, and because of that we all bring different things to the table. We all try to share with the agenda in order to further it as much as possible,” said Sandra Henriquez, administrator and chief executive officer of the BHA.

Leading the Way II was launched on July 1, 2003, on the heels of the success of the Leading the Way I campaign, which began in 2000. The three-year Leading the Way I plan called for the creation 7,500 housing units, but ultimately resulted in 7,900 – 2,200 of which were affordable.

“We made a promise to the city in Leading the Way I, which is always risky business. We articulated benchmarks with numbers and clear goals, and then timetables for reaching those goals. That’s not often done. It results in a clear way to measure ourselves and for the public to gauge our success. But we surpassed our goal and so the mayor said ‘let’s do it again,'” said Charlotte Golar Richie, housing chief and director of the Department of Neighborhood Development.

‘Definitely Achievable’

As of June 30, Leading the Way II’s total new housing production has exceeded expectations. Since the program’s inception, 5,420 new units of housing have been permitted, more than 400 units ahead of the four-year target of 10,000 units. The private market was the origin of most of the housing production, resulting in 85 percent, or 4,586 units. City-assisted housing production and BHA vacant units comprised the remaining 834 units.

In Leading the Way I, the BHA contributed 1,100 vacant units that it already had in its portfolio, some that had been stalled for years.

“It didn’t make sense to talk about production of new homes when we had these units we could put people in first. We made a concerted effort to get boards off of all the windows and get people inside those spaces,” Henriquez said.

New affordable housing units are also ahead of schedule – 1,090 units have been permitted out of a goal of 2,100 units. Units came from the following sources: 668 (60 percent) from affordable housing developments and DND; 360 (34 percent) from inclusionary units and BRA; and 62 (6 percent) from vacant public housing and BHA. Those figures mark a significant increase in the number of inclusionary units; Leading the Way I resulted in the permitting of only 225 units.

The city is slightly ahead of a target of ensuring that 75 percent of affordable units would be available to low- to moderate-income households, with 75.3 percent of the new units considered affordable. The city defines low-to-moderate income as earning under $59,550 for a family of three.

Retaining affordable rental housing is another key focus of Leading the Way II, with a goal of preserving 3,000 units. Currently, 1,361 units (45 percent) have been preserved including 689 expiring use federal and state properties, 406 BHA units and 266 other preservation units.

Another central element of Leading the Way II’s plan to promote affordable housing is a target of raising $25 million, which will support both the creation and preservation of that type of housing. To date $13.9 million has been raised and sources for the balance have been identified. The sale of Hayward Place is expected to supply $10 million; the sale of One Lincoln St. provided $7.5 million; $6.4 million will come from inclusionary development; $770,000 is planned from hotel loan pool income; and $330,000 is expected from surplus property sales, resulting in the goal of $25 million.

“I think Leading the Way II is critically important in preservation and affordable housing production because as a city we’re just not providing enough as is. With the economics of the job market as they are, a lot of people cannot afford high-end rent or condo fees or homeownership costs. You need people in the middle and lower economic sectors because they’re the lifeblood for the workings of the city, for corporations and organizations. Displacing those people means Boston will become less vital over time,” said Henriquez.

Housing for the homeless is another cornerstone of Leading the Way II, with a goal of raising $10 million for homeless housing developments and programs. The BHA has housed 1,400 families and individuals in the area over the last two years and 110 new housing units are specifically slated for the purpose of aiding those without homes or those who are at the greatest risk being homeless.

Some Boston properties that have been created as a result of the Leading the Way programs are the largest Habitat for Humanity development in America, which is now under construction on Blue Hill Avenue, an adaptive reuse project called Court Square Press at 9 Broadway that will yield 132 new units and a public housing redevelopment on West Broadway in South Boston that will provide housing for 36 families at risk of being homeless and is currently under construction.

Both those involved with the program and those outside of the planning team are hopeful that Leading the Way II will continue on its current pace until its completion on June 30, 2007.

“The plan going forward is to keep cranking out these units, keep getting what needs to be done, done,” said Richie.

Greg Vasil, acting president of the Greater Boston Real Estate Board, is confident that Leading the Way II’s goals are reachable.

“This target is definitely achievable,” said Vasil, who noted that the state of Boston housing is contingent upon such city-sponsored programs. “When you look at the whole mosaic of housing in the city, you have different types of product for different types of needs. One of those is government-assisted housing and you can’t take it away. It’s absolutely necessary. It’s integral to the housing market.”

As of June 30, a total of 6,809 units were in the development approval process, while 673 city-sponsored affordable units and 600 affordable inclusionary units are planned. Another 54 housing units for the homeless are also in the works.