Housing Headlines

BOSTON --- Boston developer Doug George is pitching plans to build a $12.5 million, 40-unit residential condo development on a section of Massachusetts Avenue in Dorchester that has been the home of a used-car dealership next to the new Dorchester Brewing Company.

BOSTON --- A series of state laws during the recession slowed foreclosure activity, but lenders are now gradually working through the backlog, a building activity that has seen foreclosure starts see year-over-year increases for 28 straight months dating back to 2013. Reporter Shira Schoenberg takes a look at the toll it is taking on families and what experts and advocates say about the situation.

WILLIAMSTOWN --- Based on feedback from the planning board, the Massachusetts Housing Partnership is outlining a scope of services that will guide two consulting firms it will hire to help the Town of Williamstown determine its housings needs and develop policies to meet those goals.

MEDFORD --- Mayor Stephanie Burke and other local officials gathered with Dark Horse Capital Partners to break ground on Sphere Luxury Apartments, a 42-unit apartment complex in Ball Square near one of the new transit stops planned for the proposed MBTA Green Line Extension. The $12 million project will include four affordable units.

HAMILTON --- The town's attempts to add affordable housing by allowing the nonprofit Harborlight Community Partners to build on a town-owned site continues to meet resistance, as discussions about using the Council on Aging site on Bay Road for housing has drawn concerns from seniors who use the facility. Earlier this year, selectmen voted not to support Harborlight's intentions to apply to the town for a Ch. 40B permit so it could build 108 units at a site it controlled on Longmeadow Way near the high school.

BILLERICA --- With a $15,000 housing planning grant from the Baker-Polito administration, the town can now hire a consultant to do a study on how feasible it is to build affordable housing on land it acquired from the Cabot Corp. for $2 million in 2005. Much of the 40-acre site near the Concord River is wetland but about 15 acres are believed to be buildable, according to Town Manager John Curran.