KentXie
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Affordable Housing Project Receives Mixed Reaction
Some Call It a Token Offering: Others See It as Chinatown?s Future
Aug 17, 2007
By Austin Woerner
Plans are materializing for a new apartment building that could bring more affordable housing to Chinatown.
The Chinese Economic Development Council last week unveiled a proposal for a new 12-story affordable-housing complex on the parking lot between Oxford and Ping On streets.
The proposed brick-fa?ade tower, which would rise slightly above the neighboring buildings and cut off passage between Oxford and Ping On, is for 48 rental units, offered at mostly affordable rates, said Dennis Lui of the CEDC.
To execute the proposed project, the CEDC has joined hands with developer Ori Ron of Hudson Group North America, LLC, who aims to convert the aging Dainty Dot Hosiery building on 120 Kingston St. into a 29-story luxury-housing tower.
To create the affordable-housing development site, which is currently a parking lot next to Sun Sun Market, the CEDC will use land given by Ron as well as land it hopes to purchase from a Chinatown group, the Chinese Consolidated Benevolent Association.
At a community meeting announcing the plans on August 8, Ron and members of the CEDC stressed the project's potential benefits for Chinatown.
Ron, who in effect would pay for the development of 27 of the affordable units of the project, lauded the CEDC for its plan to offer 20 more units at affordable prices.
If successful, the groups would create an affordable-housing tower with nearly twice the number of units required by the City of Boston for Ron's proposed luxury high-rise at Kingston St.
Under a City of Boston development policy, most new residential projects must provide affordable housing units equal to 15% of the market-rate units being built. If developers don't want to build the affordable units on site, they may instead pay cash -- about $200,000 per unit -- for the construction of the affordable housing in another location.
Ron is opting to do the latter, and will provide the CEDC with the mandated sum of about $5.4 million, which includes about 4,340 square feet of donated land at Ping On and Oxford streets. This, the groups say, will allow them to create the required affordable housing and possibly much more.
Lui praised Ron for swearing not to open the doors of his development until the Oxford St. project is completed.
"This would be realized gains for Chinatown, instead of waiting for some date in the future," said Lui of the CEDC.
According to the current plan, the developers would offer half the affordable project's units to city residents earning moderate incomes of about 60% of Boston's area median income. The other half would be for low-income earners: A quarter of the units would be rented to Boston residents earning about a third of the city's median income, and the other quarter would be rented through a federal subsidy program, called Section 8, that allows tenants to pay only a third of their income in rent.
Ron called this "a very aggressive plan" for an affordable-housing project.
The project will not likely be completed until three years from now, said Lui. In addition, the question remains of how the CEDC will obtain the rest of the $22 to $23 million required to construct the development. Lui says the CEDC plans to use tax credits and explore other forms of fundraising.
If approved, the affordable housing tower would be the CEDC's first large-scale development project since it constructed Mei Wah Village, an affordable housing complex, 11 years ago. The CEDC, through a for-profit corporation, also owns and operates Oxford Place, located across the street from the proposed affordable-housing project, which is one reason why Ron said he chose the CEDC.
There is no clear consensus among Chinatown community members as to whether the new affordable building would be a boon or a burden. This is because it's tied to the proposed Kingston St. high-rise. Those who oppose the plan cite concerns that the construction of a 380-foot luxury apartment complex on Kingston St. will feed the frenzy of area development, further driving up rents and forcing working-class residents out of Chinatown.
"This huge influx of luxury housing has sped up the gentrification of the neighborhood," said Lydia Lowe of the Chinese Progressive Association, referring to recent luxury developments such as Archstone Boston Common and the Kensington Place, both of similar size.
Shirley Kressel, a neighborhood activist and former landscape architect, echoed Lowe's sentiment. "These little affordable-housing tokens are merely greasing the wheels for the destruction of the neighborhood," said Kressel.
However, some are more optimistic about the effects of the Kingston tower and its little sister on Oxford Street.
Anna Yee, a community activist, expects that the affordable housing project would stabilize the neighborhood and help the community grow, especially as Chinatown's role as a hub of immigration appears to be dwindling. "I think Chinatown still has a role to play for new immigrants," she said.
The housing tower on Kingston Street could have its benefits, too, according to Tony Yee, president of Chinatown Main Streets. An influx of new residents could help Chinatown's businesses, and increased foot traffic could make the neighborhood safer, he said.
Ron says that he will not proceed with the luxury development unless he has full support of the Chinatown community. "I have no intentions of going against the neighborhood," he declared.
He claims that, at present, he has the support of 70% of individuals and groups involved, but judging from reactions at community meetings, many are still uneasy with the project.
Ron may have a tough row to hoe in order to convince dissenters like Lowe. "We have made it very clear that we cannot support the project the way it is," said Lowe. "We keep telling him that we oppose it, but I think he has selective hearing."
According to Lowe, the Chinese Progressive Association, the Chinatown Resident Association, and the Chinese Historical Society of New England are among those who still oppose the project.
Nonetheless, Ron is still confident. "The debate goes on, and the project goes on," he said
Some Call It a Token Offering: Others See It as Chinatown?s Future
Aug 17, 2007
By Austin Woerner
Plans are materializing for a new apartment building that could bring more affordable housing to Chinatown.
The Chinese Economic Development Council last week unveiled a proposal for a new 12-story affordable-housing complex on the parking lot between Oxford and Ping On streets.
The proposed brick-fa?ade tower, which would rise slightly above the neighboring buildings and cut off passage between Oxford and Ping On, is for 48 rental units, offered at mostly affordable rates, said Dennis Lui of the CEDC.
To execute the proposed project, the CEDC has joined hands with developer Ori Ron of Hudson Group North America, LLC, who aims to convert the aging Dainty Dot Hosiery building on 120 Kingston St. into a 29-story luxury-housing tower.
To create the affordable-housing development site, which is currently a parking lot next to Sun Sun Market, the CEDC will use land given by Ron as well as land it hopes to purchase from a Chinatown group, the Chinese Consolidated Benevolent Association.
At a community meeting announcing the plans on August 8, Ron and members of the CEDC stressed the project's potential benefits for Chinatown.
Ron, who in effect would pay for the development of 27 of the affordable units of the project, lauded the CEDC for its plan to offer 20 more units at affordable prices.
If successful, the groups would create an affordable-housing tower with nearly twice the number of units required by the City of Boston for Ron's proposed luxury high-rise at Kingston St.
Under a City of Boston development policy, most new residential projects must provide affordable housing units equal to 15% of the market-rate units being built. If developers don't want to build the affordable units on site, they may instead pay cash -- about $200,000 per unit -- for the construction of the affordable housing in another location.
Ron is opting to do the latter, and will provide the CEDC with the mandated sum of about $5.4 million, which includes about 4,340 square feet of donated land at Ping On and Oxford streets. This, the groups say, will allow them to create the required affordable housing and possibly much more.
Lui praised Ron for swearing not to open the doors of his development until the Oxford St. project is completed.
"This would be realized gains for Chinatown, instead of waiting for some date in the future," said Lui of the CEDC.
According to the current plan, the developers would offer half the affordable project's units to city residents earning moderate incomes of about 60% of Boston's area median income. The other half would be for low-income earners: A quarter of the units would be rented to Boston residents earning about a third of the city's median income, and the other quarter would be rented through a federal subsidy program, called Section 8, that allows tenants to pay only a third of their income in rent.
Ron called this "a very aggressive plan" for an affordable-housing project.
The project will not likely be completed until three years from now, said Lui. In addition, the question remains of how the CEDC will obtain the rest of the $22 to $23 million required to construct the development. Lui says the CEDC plans to use tax credits and explore other forms of fundraising.
If approved, the affordable housing tower would be the CEDC's first large-scale development project since it constructed Mei Wah Village, an affordable housing complex, 11 years ago. The CEDC, through a for-profit corporation, also owns and operates Oxford Place, located across the street from the proposed affordable-housing project, which is one reason why Ron said he chose the CEDC.
There is no clear consensus among Chinatown community members as to whether the new affordable building would be a boon or a burden. This is because it's tied to the proposed Kingston St. high-rise. Those who oppose the plan cite concerns that the construction of a 380-foot luxury apartment complex on Kingston St. will feed the frenzy of area development, further driving up rents and forcing working-class residents out of Chinatown.
"This huge influx of luxury housing has sped up the gentrification of the neighborhood," said Lydia Lowe of the Chinese Progressive Association, referring to recent luxury developments such as Archstone Boston Common and the Kensington Place, both of similar size.
Shirley Kressel, a neighborhood activist and former landscape architect, echoed Lowe's sentiment. "These little affordable-housing tokens are merely greasing the wheels for the destruction of the neighborhood," said Kressel.
However, some are more optimistic about the effects of the Kingston tower and its little sister on Oxford Street.
Anna Yee, a community activist, expects that the affordable housing project would stabilize the neighborhood and help the community grow, especially as Chinatown's role as a hub of immigration appears to be dwindling. "I think Chinatown still has a role to play for new immigrants," she said.
The housing tower on Kingston Street could have its benefits, too, according to Tony Yee, president of Chinatown Main Streets. An influx of new residents could help Chinatown's businesses, and increased foot traffic could make the neighborhood safer, he said.
Ron says that he will not proceed with the luxury development unless he has full support of the Chinatown community. "I have no intentions of going against the neighborhood," he declared.
He claims that, at present, he has the support of 70% of individuals and groups involved, but judging from reactions at community meetings, many are still uneasy with the project.
Ron may have a tough row to hoe in order to convince dissenters like Lowe. "We have made it very clear that we cannot support the project the way it is," said Lowe. "We keep telling him that we oppose it, but I think he has selective hearing."
According to Lowe, the Chinese Progressive Association, the Chinatown Resident Association, and the Chinese Historical Society of New England are among those who still oppose the project.
Nonetheless, Ron is still confident. "The debate goes on, and the project goes on," he said
