Housing Headlines

SUDBURY --- Two senior housing developments have begun construction this summer and when they are completed, they will push the town's supply of senior-only housing to nearly 300 units. The Coolidge at Sudbury will add 64 apartments while the Dudley Brook Preserve will have 26 condominiums. Coolidge, which is being constructed by B'nai B'rith Housing, is anticipating opening to residents in mid-2014; Dudley Brook, being developed by the Green Co., could have models available as soon as this fall.

WALPOLE --- Anxious to gain the ability to control developer attempts to build housing through Chapter 40B, selectmen have approved an affordable housing plan, which if approved by the state, would give the town more control over 40B proposals, providing the town adds affordable housing as planned. The plan - done by PCG Associates - said Walpole should look into affordable housing for seniors and first-time homebuyers, and identify areas in town where affordable housing would be appropriate.

BOSTON, Aug. 6, 2013 --- A pivotal Uphams Corner property near the Fairmount commuter rail became embroiled in controversy recently after neighbors learned that the city was discussing turning the former industrial site into a public works yard. The news surprised local stakeholders, who have been advocating that the city-owned site become a mixed-use transit-oriented development. The controversey died down when a spokesperson for Mayor Thomas Menino said that the mayor "agrees" with the neighbors.

BOSTON, Aug. 6, 2013 --- In an Aug. 6 Boston Globe op-ed, Commonwealth Magazine's Paul McMorrow - a regular Globe contributor - questions the legislative tactic of attaching to an affordable housing funding bill an amendment designed to block a specific affordable housing development proposal.

SALEM --- Nine years after it closed, the transformation of the former St. Jospeh's Church complex into 51 affordable rental homes is nearly complete, with applications being accepted, a lottery scheduled for September and the project expected to be done and fully occupied by Jan. 2014. The new housing, which will be called 135 Lafayette, is being developed by the Planning Office for Urban Affairs, a developer affiliated with the Archdiocese of Boston.

NEEDHAM --- Mill Creek Residential will get a third public hearing Aug. 15 on its proposal to build a 300-unit apartment complex on Greendale Avenue in Needham, even as the town is urging that the project be downsized due to its potential impact on the neighborhood. The town has the 6-acre site zoned so that a maximum of four residential units can be built on one acre, although town officials said guidelines would allow up to 10 units per acre for affordable developments. The developers have applied to the town for a Ch. 40B permit, which would allow them to build 50 units per acre.