Mass. awards $18 million in HDIP tax credits to spur 288 homes across six gateway cities

Governor Maura Healey announced the award of $18,000,000 in Housing Development Incentive Program tax credits to developers working in Massachusetts gateway cities, saying the funding will unlock new homes in Fitchburg and five other communities.

The governor made the announcement at a downtown Fitchburg event with Lieutenant Governor Kim Driscoll, Secretary Augustus of Housing and Livable Communities, U.S. Rep. Lori Trahan, local officials and developers. "We're here today to announce the award of $18,000,000 in tax credits to unlock new homes in cities all across Massachusetts," the governor said.

Why it matters: state officials said the HDIP awards are intended to close financing gaps that make historic-building rehabilitation and market-rate housing in older industrial downtowns financially viable. Secretary Augustus said the $18 million announced at the event will create 288 units across six gateway cities and is part of a larger fiscal-year allocation of roughly $57 million for gateway-city housing.

State context and goals Governor Healey framed the awards as one part of a broader state housing agenda that includes a one-time $57 million boost for HDIP, a permanent tripling of the HDIP cap to $30 million annually, a 50% increase in the low-income housing tax credit, a doubled senior tax credit now worth up to $2,700 per eligible senior and implementation of the $5 billion Affordable Homes Act. "We know that housing costs are the greatest challenge that residents of Massachusetts face," the governor said, adding that the administration released the state's first comprehensive housing plan and an inventory of state-owned land that could be used for housing.

Officials cited program results and local examples Secretary Augustus said the HDIP awards and related tools have jump-started production: officials reported that the state has put ‘‘close to 1,300’’ new homes into production in gateway cities this fiscal year, which the governor characterized as roughly a 600% increase over previous performance. The administration also noted that 119 communities have adopted the MBTA Communities law provisions, which officials say have produced about 4,000 homes in production.

Project list and local impact At the Fitchburg event, Secretary Augustus and local developers identified specific awardees and projected unit counts tied to the announced HDIP funding round. Projects named in remarks included: - Prime Real Estate Investment — 16 units in Fitchburg - PProps Development — 8 units in Fitchburg - C. Elliott Developers — 14 units in Holyoke - Calhoun Commons (developer Jack Dewey) — 8 units in Hyannis - Spartan Cleaners Realty — 46 units in Hyannis - Mass Mills boiler building (Mullins Company) — 65 units in Lowell - Mass Mills Main Power Building (Mullins Company) — 30 units in Lowell - The Emery (Heritage Properties) — 36 units in Lowell - 38 Norman — project in Salem (not specified further in transcript) - One exchange in Worcester (CMK Development Partners) — 44 units

Secretary Augustus said the announced awards will create 288 units across six gateway cities; the administration thanked developers and local partners for helping move projects through permitting and financing.

Local developer perspective and partnerships Paul Tassi, CEO of the Tassi Group, described the Fitchburg Main Street project as a case study in restoring historic buildings and credited state programs including HDIP and support from MassDevelopment for enabling work on a 150-year-old structure. "A project like this could never have been possible without the HDIP program and the housing initiatives that are here," Tassi said. He described plans for additional Main Street projects that he said would bring 100 market-rate units to the corridor over time.

Public-facing details and next steps Officials said the awards are part of ongoing implementation rather than a single new program: Governor Healey and Secretary Augustus urged continued collaboration among state, local and federal partners to speed projects from permitting to construction. The transcript does not record a formal vote or municipal appropriation tied to the announcement; the awards were presented as administrative decisions and program allocations.

Quotes from event participants "This is through our Housing Development Incentive or HDIP program," Governor Healey said. "This fiscal year, we've awarded $57,000,000 for new housing in gateway cities through these HDIP tax credits." Secretary Augustus said, "Today's investment of $18,000,000 in HDIP Awards will create 288 new units in 6 gateway cities across the state." Paul Tassi said, "This building is 150 years old and could have never been restored without the programs that were put into place by this administration." Congresswoman Lori Trahan called the program a "game changer for gateway cities," praising state-federal partnership on housing.

What the transcript does not show The transcript records the announcement and remarks by elected officials, agency staff and developers but does not include a legislative vote, contract documents, or award letters in the record. Specific award amounts tied to each named project were not provided in the transcript, and the transcript does not specify which portion of the $18 million is allocated to each project. Several project names and developer spellings were read aloud at the event; where the transcript provided abbreviated or ambiguous names (for example, "38, Norman in Salem"), the article records the name as said in the remarks and marks further project details as not specified.

Ending Officials said the administration will continue to use tax incentives, programmatic tools and the Affordable Homes Act funding to accelerate production. At the conclusion of the event, speakers encouraged local patronage of Main Street businesses and said they planned to return as projects come online.