Boston – Leaders from all levels of government recently joined with residents of the Mary Ellen McCormack public housing complex to celebrate the start of WinnCompanies’ effort to redevelop the historic community, breaking ground on the first phase of construction for the 3,300-unit mixed-income and mixed-use project.
With 200 people looking on, the groundbreaking marked a milestone for residents as it triggered provisions for the Mary Ellen McCormack Task Force to gain an ownership stake in all 1,016 affordable housing apartments planned for the 30-acre site. The project also features the first-ever underground geothermal heating and cooling system installed by WinnCompanies and the Boston Housing Authority.
Massachusetts Governor Maura Healey
Massachusetts Congressman Stephen F. Lynch, Governor Maura Healey, Boston Mayor Michelle Wu and other dignitaries spoke near the newly poured footings and foundations for the first apartment building of the project, known as Building A. The 112,000sf structure will provide 94 modern apartments for low-income families currently living at the Mary Ellen McCormack community when it is ready for occupancy in the fall of 2026.
In addition to the $62 million apartment building, construction of Building A features $8 million in public infrastructure improvements designed to strengthen climate resiliency and connect the community to surrounding South Boston neighborhoods. It will include a new Veterans Park with an accessible tot lot and splash pad, two-way, separated bike lane, reconfigured public streets and associated intersections with pedestrian enhancements, new street trees, planting areas and pedestrian zones.
The redevelopment will replace all 1,016 public housing units on site, and all current residents in good standing will have a right to return. Existing buildings will be demolished in phases in a complex relocation strategy choreographed to maximize existing households moving directly into new apartments.
Building A will feature 37 one-bedroom units, 44 two-bedroom units, 12 three-bedroom units and one four-bedroom unit. It is being built about 600 feet from the Andrew Square MBTA Red Line subway station, using a U-shaped design with heights that step down from six to four stories, responding to the Andrew Square neighborhood of South Boston. It will be constructed to meet Passive House certification standards. In addition, the building will be 100% electric with a geothermal system for heating and cooling. A network of 22 closed-loop wells, installed 800 feet beneath the building site in the last few months, will connect heat pumps in apartments and common areas.
Building A / Renderings courtesy of The Architectural Team
Once Building A is completed, financing will be secured for, and construction will begin on, Building B, which will offer 300 mixed-income apartments, and Building C, which will offer 196 mixed-income apartments, with 172 units reserved for seniors who are 62 or older with on-site resident services and programming. In all, eight new residential buildings will be built over the course of a decade during Phase One of the redevelopment. There will be 1,310 apartments built, replacing 529 aging public housing apartments for BHA households and creating 781 additional apartment homes for middle income and market rate renters.
Phase One construction will redevelop the northern 18 acres of the property, increasing open space by 73% with new pedestrian walking paths, bike infrastructure and gathering spaces. In addition, 33,000sf of ground-floor retail space will be created for local small businesses, including a possible grocery retailer. The new community will also include a new community center named after former BHA Administrator Bill McGonagle and operated in partnership with the Greater Boston YMCA.
Because the site is susceptible to current and future flooding from nearby Boston Harbor, construction work will raise the grades of the property by 5 to 7 feet. All new buildings will be constructed above the 2070 projected flooding scenario projected by Climate Ready Boston.
Building A
WinnDevelopment vice president, Andrew Colbert, is leading permitting and overseeing the construction effort. Lee Kennedy Company is serving as general contractor for the construction in a joint venture with H. J. Russell & Company. The Architectural Team is the architect for the project.
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WinnCompanies expects to begin seeking permits for Phase Two in 2026 so that the remaining 2,000 apartments and open spaces can be developed as soon as Phase One is completed. When the entire project is completed the Mary Ellen McCormack property will offer 1,016 units of low-income and affordable housing and 2,284 units of workforce and market rate housing.
