Housing Headlines

WORCESTER --- A Main St. 68-bed rooming house known as the Albion has been put on the market for $1.1 million and neighborhood residents are hopeful about new ownership of the troubled property, which has been plagued by code violations, criminal activity and somebody dying "every 60 days" according to a former building manager.

QUINCY --- An update on Quincy's "luxury at a discount" urban renewal, which took off after the selected master developer plan failed, forcing the city to focus on one parcel at a time, a strategy which has resulted in 500 units proposed or under construction, and another 500 expected in the next few years.

TAUNTON --- City Councilors Tuesday have approved a special permit that will allow a renovation plan for the former Walker School on Berkley Street to become 40 one-bedroom affordable housing apartments for people 62 years or over. The board was voting on a plan proposed by Braintree-based Affordable Housing and Services Collaborative.

STOW --- The state's Supreme Judicial Court has upheld a ruling that blocks a proposed Ch. 40B affordable housing development in Stow over concerns that the design of the development's septic system - while legal - would cause unsafe nitrogen levels in neighboring wells.

READING --- Selectmen recently listened to an update from local resident Mike Sullivan, who is applying to the town for a Ch. 40B permit so he can redevelop the St. Agnes School into 20 units, five of which will be affordable.

SALISBURY --- The Institution for Savings donated a 1.8 acre of buildable land on County Road to Merrimack Valley Habitat for Humanity. The land was once owned by the Goldman family, who owned the Kartland go-cart track. The site is situated next to the new Tidewater Landing apartment complex. Habitat is hoping to build two duplexes on the site.