Boston Mayor Thomas M. Menino has proposed a third phase to his Leading the Way campaign, designed to create and preserve affordable housing in the city.
In 2000, Menino first announced the campaign, Leading the Way. Since then, the city has overseen the creation of more than 18,000 units of housing, 5,000 of which have been affordable units, while another 9,500 affordable units have been preserved.
This represents upwards of $5 billion in private and public investments in the first two phases of Leading the Way.
Leading the Way III will focus on workforce housing production, rental housing preservation, revitalization of foreclosure neighborhoods, and a plan to reduce long-term and family homelessness by 50 percent, the mayor said. The campaign will address changing housing needs by addressing the foreclosure crisis, reversing the rise in homelessness, preserving and stabilizing Boston’s rental housing and by meeting the diverse housing needs of the city’s workforce, the mayor said in a statement.
A multi-agency approach was taken to the issue of housing, bringing together staff from a cross-section of city departments, including the Department of Neighborhood Development (DND), the Boston Redevelopment Authority (BRA), the Boston Housing Authority (BHA) and the Inspectional Services Department (ISD), to implement effective strategies to improve all housing options, including affordable, workforce and market rate housing, for the people of Boston.
Through this collaborative effort, the city was able to achieve some impressive results that strengthened the quality of life for residents and dramatically increased the supply of housing in the city.
"However, with more individuals and families fighting homelessness as others struggle to realize their dream of homeownership in today’s difficult economic climate, we are challenged to do even more to help create and maintain stable housing options in Boston," said Menino. "That’s why I’m proud to announce that we are entering a new phase in our efforts by introducing Leading the Way III. I recently joined Lt. Gov. Tim Murray, along with several top housing and homelessness advocates to outline a vision that will effectively address our city’s housing needs. Although economic uncertainty still prevails, we are resolved in our focus to reach out to every neighborhood and help people of every income level attain stable housing."
