Massachusetts awards $158 million to 14 projects; Cranberry Commons in Plymouth to add 62 senior units

Governor Maura Healey on Wednesday announced $158,000,000 in first-round state awards to 14 housing projects across Massachusetts, and highlighted Cranberry Commons, a 62‑unit affordable senior development planned for Plymouth.

The awards, administered by the state Secretariat of Housing and Livable Communities, are intended to fund a mix of new construction and preservation projects. "We are laser focused on housing," Governor Maura Healey said, adding the administration aims to bring thousands of new units online through a statewide plan and a combination of tax credits and direct grants.

Secretary of Housing and Livable Communities Ed Augustus said the 14 awards will create or preserve 1,138 affordable units in 12 cities and towns. "Ninety‑five percent of the units funded in these developments will be affordable to seniors or families earning less than 60 percent of area median income," Augustus said.

Town Manager Derek Brandisi and local developers outlined Cranberry Commons, a 62‑unit, one‑bedroom senior community planned adjacent to Red Brook Village Center. Walter Ohanian, managing director of the Grantham Group, described the units as income‑restricted to tiers at or below 30, 60 and 80 percent of area median income, averaging about 690 square feet with step‑in showers and in‑unit laundry. Ohanian noted the project will include common areas and be built to the state's stretch energy code.

The project received several local contributions that state officials said strengthened the application: Plymouth Town Meeting approved $4,000,000 in Community Preservation Act funds; the town's affordable housing trust provided $100,000; and A.D. Makepeace Company provided an in‑kind land contribution and site work to ready the parcel. "Without you as partners, this project doesn't exist," Ohanian said, thanking local officials and the Healey administration.

Lieutenant Governor Kim Driscoll framed the awards as part of a broader effort to ensure a workforce and middle class can live near where they work. Michelle Bridal, Plymouth's commissioner of health and human services, cited local demographics: she said 42 percent of Plymouth residents were age 55 or older and that a UMass Boston Gerontology Institute needs assessment identified a shortage of affordable senior housing. Bridal quoted survey respondents who said remaining in Plymouth as they age is important but increasingly unaffordable.

State officials credited a recent change in state tax policy and other tools with increasing the flow of projects. Augustine (sic) and others said the low‑income housing tax credit was increased to $60,000,000 annually from $40,000,000, and that last year's programs and awards produced roughly 4,000 units statewide.

No formal vote by the state legislature occurred at the event; state officials announced award decisions and local officials noted prior town approval of funds. The governor and other state officials invited the award recipients forward for photos following remarks.

Proponents said Cranberry Commons will allow older Plymouth residents to remain in town near services, and developers emphasized proximity to the Red Brook Village Center, community gardens, the YMCA and medical offices. Construction timing and final financing steps were not specified at the event.

For residents and local officials, the immediate outcome is the combination of the state award and previously approved local contributions that together made the application competitive; state officials said this was the administration's first round of awards and that further rounds are planned.