News  Governor Healey Awards More Than $3.5 Million for Creative Place Making Projects in Public Housing

BOSTON — Governor Maura Healey today announced more than $3.5 million in Creative Place Making grants to 10 local housing authorities to improve shared spaces, strengthen connections among residents and support community well-being at state-aided public housing developments.

The grants, administered by the Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities in partnership with the Massachusetts Cultural Council, will support improvements including community centers, recreation areas, outdoor gathering spaces, gardens and public art. Each project includes a physical improvement to the buildings or grounds of a state-aided public housing development.

“We want Massachusetts to be a place where people can afford to live, put down roots and be proud of the community they call home,” said Governor Maura Healey. “That means building more housing, preserving and improving the homes we already have, and investing in the neighborhoods around them. These projects will help create stronger housing communities and better quality of life for residents across the state.”

“Our housing work is about creating more opportunities for people to live and stay in Massachusetts while strengthening the communities they call home,” said Lieutenant Governor Kim Driscoll. “These investments will improve shared spaces, bring neighbors together and build on our broader work to create stronger, more affordable communities across the state.”

"Every resident deserves to feel proud of the place they call home and connected to the community around them,” said Housing and Livable Communities Secretary Juana Matias. “These investments will turn underused spaces into welcoming places where neighbors can gather and build community. By listening to residents and investing in the spaces they value, we’re strengthening public housing communities across Massachusetts."

The grants are part of the administration’s broader commitment to strengthening state-aided public housing. The Affordable Homes Act authorized $2.2 billion for state-aided public housing, including $2 billion for capital improvements across more than 43,000 public housing homes and $200 million for the Public Housing Demonstration Program, which supports innovative approaches to preserve and create public housing.

The award recipients are:

• Avon Housing Authority — $490,000 to rehabilitate the community center at Fellowship Circle.
• Boston Housing Authority — $450,000 to redesign and reconstruct the recreation area at Archdale.
• Bridgewater Housing Authority — $490,000 to create the Hemlock Place Community Center, which will serve the Hemlock Drive and Heritage Circle developments.
• Brookline Housing Authority — $370,000 to improve the Family Learning Center and other shared spaces at High Street Veterans. The project includes technology upgrades, private resident service space, improvements to the food pantry, community meeting space and laundry facilities, outdoor gathering and quiet recreation areas and durable indoor and outdoor art installations.
• Easthampton Housing Authority — $155,000 to renovate the community room at Cliffview Manor.
• Easton Housing Authority — $490,000 to create wildlife gardens, install resident-selected wooden sculptures and construct accessible outdoor structures for residents to enjoy the gardens.
• Franklin County Regional Housing Authority — $260,025 to revitalize indoor and outdoor community spaces in a rural development.
• Greenfield Housing Authority — $100,500 to transform underused outdoor spaces at Elm Terrace into accessible, resident-centered areas incorporating art, ecological design and community participation.
• Quincy Housing Authority — $490,000 to build a community center serving the Snug Harbor, Little Snug Harbor and Harborview developments.
• Somerville Housing Authority — $231,000 to resurface and redesign the basketball court at Mystic River.

The awards total $3,526,525 and will support projects beginning in fiscal 2027.

The Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities was created in 2023 to create more homes and lower housing costs for Massachusetts residents. Since taking office, the Healey-Driscoll Administration has advanced a comprehensive housing strategy that includes the Affordable Homes Act, statewide accessory dwelling unit reforms, MBTA Communities implementation, Seasonal Communities designation, the Momentum Fund, the Commercial Conversion Tax Credit and expanded Housing Development Incentive Program awards to support new housing production across Massachusetts.