l-r: Robert Golden, Marvin Siflinger, Thomas Gleason, Barbara Fields, Aaron Gornstein, Susan Gittelman, John Drobinsky, and Larry O’Brien
Sudbury, MA – B’nai B’rith Housing recently broke ground on its newest housing development, The Coolidge at Sudbury, a 64-unit apartment complex serving active seniors and adults aged 55 and over.
A breakfast reception was followed by a short speaking program.
“This is a huge milestone for us for a development that will allow more local seniors to remain in their community by choosing to live at The Coolidge,” said Susan Gittelman, executive director of B’nai B’rith Housing, based in Brighton. “All the pieces are in place, and once construction is complete, we look forward to an opening and the arrival of new residents in late summer 2014.”
The new development includes 64 apartment units in an elevator building with surface parking. The planned development will include common space and amenities, which include a meeting room, a library, a fitness center, and outdoor patios on the east and west sides. A property management office will be located on site.
B’nai B’rith Housing, which completed 33Comm, a nationally recognized, mixed-income condominium complex in the Chestnut Hill neighborhood of Newton, specializes in working in partnership with individual towns to realize a plan that responds to local affordable housing needs.
Sudbury, similar to some surrounding communities, has more than 25% of households with at least one person over 60 years old. More than a fourth of these are living alone, often in homes that are larger than needed and considerably less efficiently operated.
The architect for the project is The Architectural Team of Chelsea. The general contractor is Keith Construction Inc. of Canton.
Guests at the breakfast reception included B’nai B’rith Housing executive director Susan Gittelman; Marvin Siflinger, board president, B’nai B’rith Housing; Robert Golden, member of the board; Aaron Gornstein, undersecretary for Housing and Community Development of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts; Barbara Fields, regional administrator of U.S. Housing and Urban Development; Tom Gleason, executive director, Mass Housing; Mass. state Sen. Jamie Eldridge, Cochair of the joint committee on Housing; Thomas R. Gleason, executive director of MassHousing; John Drobinsky, chairman of the Sudbury Board of Selectmen; Larry O’Brien, former chair of the Sudbury Board of Selectmen; Marvin Siflinger, president of the board of B’nai B’rith Housing; and Robert Gallery, Massachusetts president of Bank of America Merrill Lynch.
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“There is a huge need for affordable housing for elderly people,” said Gittelman. “We’re responding to that need … to create a beautiful, high-quality place.”
HUD Regional Administrator Fields said, “Massachusetts is always leading the way. When we create housing, that produces jobs” and contributes to a healthy economy.
Gornstein, state Undersecretary for Housing and Community Development, said, “Sudbury has been making steady progress on affordable housing,” and he praised “the partnership between the nonprofit developer and the town.”
Thomas R. Gleason, Executive Director of MassHousing, noted the agency’s work with B’nai B’rith Housing. “You assemble in all your deals the dream team of affordable housing,” he said.
“Sudbury has a great need for affordable housing for seniors, and The Coolidge is going to provide 64 new apartments and be a valuable housing asset for Sudbury and its residents for many years to come,” Gleason said. “B’nai B’rith Housing is a premier developer of affordable housing, and MassHousing is pleased to be part of a top quality project like The Coolidge.’’
State Sen. Eldridge said, “This is a tremendous development. It’s a very, very proud day in Sudbury.”
John Drobinski, Chairman of the Board of Selectmen of Sudbury, said, “This project will have a positive impact on our affordable housing goals in several ways. The project will provide 64 rental units that we have a limited supply of, will serve seniors exclusively, and will increase our affordable housing. It sends a positive message for seniors and demonstrates Sudbury’ commitment to diversity in our housing stock.”
O’Brien, former Chair of the Sudbury Board of Selectmen, noted that Sudbury created a Community Housing Trust to help close a funding gap for the project. Speaking to a group of about 100 people assembled on a brilliant fall day, with construction work continuing nearby, O’Brien point out that the location of Coolidge is a former greenhouse site, which once produced thousands of carnations and roses. “We now create a new bloom in Sudbury… that will also create a new benefit in affordable housing,” O’Brien said.
B’nai B’rith Housing, the developer, is a nonprofit, nonsectarian developer that focuses on creating affordable and mixed income housing in underserved suburban communities of Greater Boston.
The development is financed through housing tax credits, state housing programs, the Town of Sudbury Housing Trust, and the West Metro HOME Consortium. Bank of America/Merrill Lynch is the construction lender and investor limited partner.
The name “The Coolidge” pays homage to the Coolidge family, which began a substantial greenhouse operation on the six-acre site in the 1800s and ceased operations a number of years ago.
The new development includes 64 apartment units in an elevator building with surface parking. The planned development will include common space and amenities, which include a meeting room, a library, a fitness center, and outdoor patios on the east and west sides. A property management office will be located on site.
B’nai B’rith Housing, which completed 33Comm, a nationally recognized, mixed-income condominium complex in the Chestnut Hill neighborhood of Newton, is an experienced developer of housing of the highest quality. It specializes in working in partnership with individual towns to realize a plan that responds to local affordable housing needs.
“Our Sudbury development provides a housing alternative that does not currently exist in Sudbury – an option for existing Sudbury residents as well as seniors who may relocate to be closer to adult children and grandchildren,” said Gittelman.
“The plan is to create a rental community that promotes active living,” she said. Our service-enriched model of senior housing focuses on resident wellness and social engagement, maintaining connection to civic, family and other interests that enrich the lives of seniors and allow them to stay active to the best of their abilities over time.
Sudbury, similar to some surrounding communities, has more than 25 percent of households with at least one person over 60 years old. More than a fourth of these are living alone, often in homes that are larger than needed and considerably less efficiently operated.
The need for affordability is supported by the fact that, of Lincoln-Sudbury seniors, according to U.S. Census data, 30 percent of households whose occupants are over 65 years old earn less than $50,000 annually.
“The housing that we create is very special, and not only because it is of the highest quality possible,” said Gittelman. “Our goal is to work closely with area senior-service agencies to promote education, wellness, and health.”
