Housing Headlines

BOSTON --- In Boston, where the Zoning Board of Appeal often gives great weight to neighborhood sentiment and the opinions of neighborhood associations, community support has become a crucial commodity that can sometimes be bought, according to an extensive Globe review of city records, e-mails, and court documents.

BOSTON --- Boston is well on its way to exceeding Mayor Martin Walsh’s stated goal for the creation of new housing units set back in 2014, according to the city’s Department of Neighborhood Development (DND), which released figures this week showing that the city has already added more than 10,000 new units in the last two years. Add in housing starts currently under review or in construction and the estimated number jumps to 39,120 — or enough housing for 67,600 new residents.

AUBURN --- Selectmen have voted unanimously to issue a request for proposals to turn the former school buildings into housing for residents age 55 and over. The RFP is expected to be formally posted by the end of the month, with bids tentatively due in late November. A proposal could be selected by the end of the year.

BOSTON --- In its ongoing coverage of a family working to escape welfare, WBUR reporter Anthony Brooks reports on how the Skinner-Seney family has progressed from welfare to work but now faces a new challenge of trying to figure out how to buy a home and build wealth in the red-hot Boston real estate market.

SUDBURY --- As the town moves to support Avalon Bay's 250-unit plan and deny another plan known as Sudbury Station, a new proposal has surfaced as the B'nai B'rith Housing New England is proposing to expand The Coolidge at Sudbury senior housing complex by adding 56 units to the 64 completed last year.

MARLBORO --- Capitalizing on a 2014 zoning change to promote downtown development, local developer Kevin Brett has proposed to convert the former Marlborough Cooperative Bank building on Main St. into a mixed use property featuring a ground floor restaurant and 32 condominiums on the upper floors. Brett’s project is the second to come before city officials since the zoning change was approved. George Voyiatzis, owner of Fish Restaurant, recently received the go-ahead to construct 40 new apartments above his building at the corner of South Bolton Street and Granger Boulevard.