Affordable Suburban Boston Project Secures $27M Loan

MassHousing provided the financing for the first phase of an adaptive-reuse project in Lawrence, Mass.

608 Broadway. Image courtesy of ICON Architecture

Trinity Financial has received a $26.9 million financing package for 608 Broadway, an 87-unit affordable housing project in Lawrence, Mass. The Massachusetts Housing Finance Agency provided the funding for the first phase of the $46.8 million redevelopment project at the historic Marriner Mill complex.

The MassHousing financing includes a permanent loan totaling $2.3 million, $22.5 million as a tax-exempt bridge loan, along with $2.1 million through its Workforce Housing Initiative.

Financing also includes a $35 million construction loan originated by TD Bank and $26.1 million in low-income tax credits allocated by The Massachusetts Department of Housing and Community Development. DHCD also provided $2.4 million through the agency’s Housing Stabilization fund. The same amount was provided from the Affordable Housing Trust Fund, which MassHousing manages on behalf of DHCD. Additional funds consist of $7.9 million in federal historic tax credit equity and $2.4 million in state historic tax credit equity.

The development team includes Red Stone Equity Partners as the tax credit syndicator, TD Bank as the tax credit investor, with Aberthaw Construction Co. serving as general contractor. ICON Architecture is heading the design of the project. Upon completion, Trinity Management will handle operations at the community.

A long-term transformation

The redevelopment of the 1896-built Marriner Mill will span several years, with the first phase expected to be delivered in the summer of 2023. The 450,000-square-foot building was originally developed by Arlington Woolen Mill Co. and acquired in the 50s by Malden Mills Co.

608 Broadway is set to include 17 units for those earning up to 30 percent of the area’s median income, 49 units will serve residents earning below 60 percent AMI, and 21 units will be set aside as workforce housing, available to those earning up to 80 percent AMI.

The community will be within walking distance of several dining options and within a mile of downtown Lawrence. Downtown Boston will be roughly 29 miles to the southeast.

608 Broadway is the third residential project in the redevelopment of the 34-acre Arlington Mills Smart Growth Overlay District. In 2018, MassHousing, Trinity Financial and TD Bank teamed up to convert the Van Brodie Mill into an affordable community totaling 102 units.

Until now, MassHousing has provided funding for 13 properties encompassing 1,507 units in Lawrence. In July, the agency partnered with Trinity Financial for a project in Brockton, Mass. The 111-unit second phase of a mixed-income community received a $19 million loan from the agency.

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