News

Authored by Molly Marshall
Displaying 1 - 10 of 410

December 2025 Bulletin Updates

December 12th, 2025 by Molly Marshall

MACDC Health Equity Updates

MACDC’s Health Equity Committee met on December 1st and discussed several CDCs’ partnerships in the health space, including Hilltown CDC’s Complete Streets program and Codman Square NDC’s work with Boston’s Live Long and Well Initiative. We also spoke about further coordinating CDCs food access work.

MACDC’s Housing Quality and Health Equity Initiative is continuing to engage in Lynn, New Bedford, and Worcester and is working with local stakeholders to determine priority areas in each municipality. Leaders in each City met by Zoom in December.

Taylor Robinson completed her time as MACDC’s Health Equity Intern and we plan to welcome a new intern this month.

MACDC’s Massachusetts Healthy Homes Program (MHHP) Coalition will meet on Thursday December 17th at 10am. Please be in touch with Elana at elanab@macdc.org if you would like to join and Elana will share the link.

 

MACDC Policy Updates

  • Federal Advocacy Opportunity!
    • We’ve been alerted about an opportunity to weigh in on a crucial federal policy affecting affordable housing development costs. The House Committee on Financial Services is considering a bill from Rep. Mike Flood (R-NE) that would exempt HUD- and USDA-funded developments from the Buy America Build America (BABA) mandate that has contributed to the escalation in building costs. With two MA congresspeople on that committee, we have an opportunity to weigh in on a policy that could help our public investments in affordable housing go farther. See here for information on how to weigh in ASAP (the markup will be Monday the 15th!).
  • Massachusetts Legislative Updates
    • The state Senate’s initial deadline for legislative committees to report on bills was last week, and we’re happy to report that MACDC priority legislation had several positive results! The House has a slightly later deadline, so while we’ve seen a little movement there, most House bills still have a month or two before they need to be reported out. The likeliest next destination for bills that received favorable reports will be the Ways and Means Committee. See below for which of our bills have advanced in the Senate:
  • The Governor’s Environmental Bond Bill, The Mass Ready Act, has also been reported favorably from the Joint Committee on the Environment and Natural Resources and is now before the Joint Committee on Bonding. The bill is focused on a wide range of investments in environmental infrastructure, including some of our priorities like water infrastructure and permitting reform for housing. You can find a summary of that bill here, and MACDC is continuing to work with our allies to insert some of our other priorities as it makes its way through the legislative process.
  • Make sure you’ve saved the date for MACDC State House Lobby Day on April 15th! This is a great opportunity for us all to come together and demonstrate our collective power to our legislators on Beacon Hill.
  • And keep an eye out for information on our annual Donuts with your Delegation campaign. This year the campaign will run January 20th – February 13th. More info and supporting materials will be sent out in the coming days. Please be sure to keep your events within these dates, as any later risks diluting our advocacy if it’s too close to Lobby Day.
  • Our Friends in the MRVP Coalition are hosting our annual MRVP Cookie Day at the State House on February 11th. Come join us to enjoy come cookies and advocate to legislators about increased funding for the crucial program! Info here.

October 2025 Policy Updates

October 13th, 2025 by

by Nathanael Shea, Director of Public Policy

 

  • Lend your voice to eliminating void racial covenants in housing! MACDC member Harborlight Homes is leading the charge on removing old discriminatory language from property records, and their bill has a public hearing on Tuesday, October 21st! You can find more information here, and Harborlight will provide lunch for all who attend! Please be in touch with Nancy Sanchez at nsanchez@harborlighthomes.org with any questions or to RSVP.
  • The Coalition to Codify the MA Rental Voucher Program is continuing to advocate to the Joint Committee on Housing for a favorable report for this very sensible bill that is one of MACDC’s top legislative priorities. Please consider signing onto the letter that the coalition is sending to the committee. You can find the letter text here, and you can use this form to sign on. And if you want to submit your own testimony, you can use the following links to for all the information you’ll need: Testimony Guide; Fact Sheet; Extended Talking Points.
  • The AHEAD Coalition is continuing to advocate for a favorable report on raising revenue for investments in affordable housing and climate justice. It’s not too late to submit testimony to the committee, but the deadline is coming up very soon! You can use our handy dandy Testimony Guide or the quick-click option of our Action Network tool.
  • We’ve been engaged in a lot of ongoing advocacy with our coalition partners pushing for a Local Option Luxury Transfer Fee to fund affordable housing, and you can add your voice to the chorus quickly and easily by clicking here.
  • Finally, we’re hearing that the Tenant Opportunity to Purchase Act will be having its hearing in mid-November. Please stay tuned for more information on how to lend your voice to that important anti-displacement cause!

September 2025 Policy Updates

September 16th, 2025 by

Fall Legislative Activity

By Nathanael Shea, Director of Public Policy

It’s going to be a busy fall for our legislative agenda. On September 9th, the Joint Committee on Revenue held its hearing on Local Option Luxury Transfer Fee legislation. There was a great showing of individuals and organizations across the state advocating for having the resources they need to build and preserve affordable housing and keep people in their homes. A particular hat tip to MACDC members MA Affordable Homeownership Alliance, CHAPA, Somerville Community Corporation, and Island Housing Trust for delivering terrific testimony. You can watch all of the testimony here, and that page also includes information on how you can submit your own written testimony in favor of a Luxury Transfer Fee. And if you want to skip ahead you’ll find the several panels from the LOHA Coalition starting at around the 2:29 mark and MACDC’s own panel (alongside MAPC and MassBudget) as part of that coalition starting around the 2:48 mark. You can also read our testimony here.  

 

The Legislature also just announced a September 25th hearing date for the Zero Carbon Renovation Fund bill, and we’ll be working with our partners in that coalition to make sure the Joint Committee on Telecommunications, Utilities, and Energy hears strong testimony about the need to invest in decarbonization. If you’re interested in getting information on sending in supportive written testimony or participating in that hearing, please feel to reach out to the great Emily Jones of LISC, who leads that coalition, at ejones@lisc.org. 

 

We’re also continuing to advocate, alongside our coalition partners, in favor of our other priority legislation like the AHEAD Act and the Tenant Opportunity to Purchase Act (TOPA). If you wish to submit testimony on the AHEAD Act, it’s not too late! Please use these templates or check out the Action Network link for quick and easy submission. And stay tuned for information on the TOPA bill, which hasn’t yet had its hearing scheduled.  

September 2025 Health Equity Updates

September 16th, 2025 by Elana Brochin

MACDC’s Health Equity Committee 

MACDC’s Health Equity Committee will be meeting next on Monday October 6th at 2pm over Zoom where we will discuss CDCs’ involvement in local food policy councils. We invite any interested MACDC members to join in this important conversation! 

 

Equity Initiative Updates 

MACDC’s Housing Quality and Health Equity Initiative (“The Equity Initiative”) team is kicking off our engagement in our second cohort of Gateway Cities: Lynn, New Bedford, and Worcester. CEDC in New Bedford graciously hosted our New Bedford stakeholder meeting, which was attended by over 15 individuals. We will be holding meetings in Worcester and Lynn later this month. Please contact Elana at elanab@macdc.org if you’d like to learn more. 

 

Introduction to the Convergence of Health Equity and Community Development 

MACDC’s Director of Health Equity, Elana Brochin, and Michelle Wiener, formerly of DBEDC, facilitated their popular training on the convergence of Health Equity and Community Development. Participants learned about the ways that CDCs are impacting health outcomes in their communities and had the opportunity to workshop ideas for how their work could have a positive impact on health and how to measure this impact. 

Community Developers Join Forces at People & Places 2025

August 20th, 2025 by Molly Marshall

Community Developers Join Forces at People & Places 2025

We’re excited to let you know about a vital gathering for the community development field. Five national networks are uniting to co-host the People & Places Conference and an influential Capitol Hill Day. We encourage you to attend and add your voice.

Who: Community developers from across the nation, partners, and funders

What: The People & Places Conference & Capitol Hill Day

When: October 5–7, 2025

Where: The Capital Hilton in Washington, DC

Why:
✔️ Gain knowledge and strength from each other.
✔️ Deliver a powerful message to Congress.

Explore the conference sessions, which examine how community developers can continue to provide affordable housing, strengthen local economies, and support communities in these challenging times. Interactive sessions and activities will nurture connection and well-being.

Plan to participate in Capitol Hill Day. Advocate for key policy priorities and deliver an urgent message to Congress about the local impact of community development funding cuts. You’ll receive virtual training before arriving in DC, plus training during the conference.

Help build the future of community development. You’ll head home with new strategies, a sense of solidarity, and renewed energy to serve your communities.

Learn more and register by September 14.

 

August 2025 Health Equity Updates

August 20th, 2025 by Elana Brochin

Health Equity Committee Field Trip 

Fourteen people attended our fourth annual Health Equity Field Trip on August 13th. The group met at Dorchester Bay EDC to learn about the work of the Fairmount Indigo CDC Collaborative as well the work of the CDCs that make up the Collaborative: Southwest Boston CDC, Codman Square CDC, and Dorchester Bay EDC. The group had the opportunity to discuss the ways in which these MACDC members are working at the intersection of Climate Justice and Health Equity. Everyone had a great time and learned a lot! 

 

 

Massachusetts Community Health and Healthy Aging Fund 

  

Ahead of the next application cycle for the Funds in January 2026, the Massachusetts Community Health and Healthy aging fund is accepting idea submissions from eligible MA-based entities working to address social determinants of health and the root causes of health inequities. The idea phase is open to organizations considering applying for funding for work on Policy, Systems, and Environmental (PSE) change, Healthy Aging, and Community Health Improvement Planning (CHIP) processes. This is an opportunity to receive feedback about alignment with the Funds’ purpose before submitting a full application. The second round for idea submissions will be open from August 11th to September 8th. Visit Idea Submission Phase Self-Assessment to take a self-assessment to determine if your organization is eligible and to learn more about what they are looking for, or head directly to mahealthfunds.org/apply to submit an idea. 

 

Congratulations to JPNDC and Codman Square NDC! 

Congratulations to Jamaica Plain NDC and Codman Square NDC who are receiving funding as part of City of Boston and the Boston Public Health Commissions Live Long and Well population health equity agenda to close the life expectancy gap in Boston by 2025. Codman Square will be working with others in Dorchester to support economic mobility services including housing and credit-building support, financial coaching, workforce development, and resources for childcare, transportation, and food access. JPNDC will work with others to expand Upham’s Community Care’s outreach vans to visit several Dorchester and Roxbury sites two days a week, with the goal of serving 3,480 people over two years. In addition to basic primary care services, the vans will provide access to economic mobility coaches and community food services.     

 

 

Equity Initiative Updates 

MACDC’s Housing Quality and Health Equity Initiative (“The Equity Initiative”) team are beginning work in a second cohort of Gateway Cities, including Lynn, New Bedford, and Worcester. The goal of this work is to identify local concerns and to identify ways to support work to improve housing quality concerns in these cities. The Equity Initiative team also held its second multi-city gathering for individuals from the first cohort of Gateway Cities, Brockton, Holyoke, and Springfield, in order to continue to support the work in these cities. In response to suggestions from the first cohort of Gateway Cities, the Equity Initiative Team also recently published their first Better Health Through Better Housing newsletter. Please contact Elana at elanab@macdc.org if you’d like to learn more. 

August 2025 Economic Development Updates

August 20th, 2025 by Yari DeJesus

Economic Development Updates

by Yari DeJesus

 

 

Supplier Diversity Program Launch Recap 

On July 23rd, MACDC hosted an introductory meeting to relaunch and expand our Supplier Diversity Program statewide. The program aims to strengthen MBE and WBE participation in CDC-led real estate projects by providing tools, monthly convenings, and a data collection framework. Over 30 CDC staff joined the kickoff, where we shared program goals, walked through new resources available on Boardable, and gathered thoughtful feedback to guide the implementation. Monthly meetings will begin in August, with data reporting starting later in 2026. We strongly encourage all participating CDCs to join the Boardable platform, which will serve as the central hub for accessing program resources, participating in group discussions, and staying connected. 

MACDC Staffing update 

Yari DeJesus, MACDC’s Director of Economic Development, will be out on maternity leave starting at the end of August as she welcomes her first baby. During her leave through the fall season, Supplier Diversity Program convenings and related communications will be managed by Don Bianchi, Director of Housing and Gracie Theobald-Williams, Data and Equity Specialist. We thank you in advance for your support during this transition and look forward to Yari’s return after the fall season. 

Final Report from the Massachusetts Poverty Commission Released 

After more than a year of in-depth research, public hearings, and stakeholder engagement, the Massachusetts Special Legislative Commission to Study Poverty has released its final report: Pathways to Possibility – A Ten Year Roadmap to Expand Economic Mobility in Massachusetts. Yari DeJesus, MACDC’s Director of Economic Development, proudly served as one of 32 appointed commissioners contributing to this statewide effort. The report offers a comprehensive framework to reduce poverty through targeted policy recommendations across four key areas: access to essential support, stability for individuals and families, opportunity for economic mobility, and systems coordination. It also includes data on the state of poverty, lived-experience testimony, and spotlights on recent legislative achievements. The final report reflects extensive commissioner feedback and is designed to guide legislative and programmatic actions toward a more equitable and economically secure Commonwealth. 

You can access the full report HERE: 

Final Report - Special Commission to Study Poverty.pdf 

 

Virtual Brownfields Roundtable 

On September 9th, MassDEP in partnership with MassDevelopment will be hosting a virtual Brownfields ‘Roundtable’ webinar for everyone who is interested in learning about current funding and technical assistance available from: MassDevelopment, UConn Technical Assistance to Brownfields, the US EPA, and MassDEP. 

Please register to attend this 90-minute meeting at 6:00 PM EST on the Zoom platform [prior registration is required].  

Registration Link: https://lnkd.in/eEnuCRnd 

August 2025 Housing and Real Estate Updates

August 20th, 2025 by Don Bianchi

Housing and Real Estate Updates

by Don Bianchi, Director of Housing

 

 

State’s Rental Round Awards Will Create or Preserve 1,245 Homes 

MACDC Members on Track to Develop 513 Rental Units 

 

On July 31st, in Winchester, Governor Healey, Lieutenant Governor Driscoll, and Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities (EOHLC) Secretary Augustus, announced the award of $182 million in low-income housing tax credits and other subsidies to 21 affordable rental housing projects. 

 

These 21 developments will create or preserve 1,245 rental homes across the Commonwealth. MACDC Member organizations received 10 of these awards, to create or preserve 513 apartments, 41% of the total apartments that will be developed. In the 2024 rental round awards announced last summer, 31% of the homes to be developed were by MACDC Member organizations- meaning MACDC members’ share of the awards increased by 10% from the prior year! 

 

Of the 10 projects containing 513 rental units which will be created by MACDC Member organizations, 487 affordable units (95% of the total) will be affordable- and 188 of these affordable apartments will be affordable to extremely low-income (ELI) households- many of them homeless- with incomes below 30% of area median income. 

 

Four of the ten MACDC Member projects will be in the City of Boston: 

  • Southwest Boston CDC will preserve and rehabilitate 68 Homes, a scattered-site family housing project. Of the 68 rental units, 67 will be affordable, and 22 of these will be further reserved for ELI households. 
  • 250 Seaver Street, sponsored by Commonwealth Land Trust, will provide 16 single-room occupancy units for homeless individuals, who will be able to access supportive services. 
  • VietAID will preserve and refinance 1392 House/19-21 Faulkner in Dorchester, to continue providing 18 units of both affordable family housing and single-room occupancy housing for homeless individuals, with extensive supportive services provided. 
  • Mildred Hailey 2, a new construction project for families in Jamaica Plain, will be developed by Jamaica Plain NDC. This phase of the Bromley Heath public housing redevelopment will consist of 65 affordable apartments, and 17 of these further reserved for ELI households. 

 

Three MACDC Member projects will be in Western Massachusetts: 

  • Home City Development will newly construct Ferry Street in Easthampton, on a site including former mill buildings. The project will offer 96 rental units, including 91 affordable apartments, with 27 of these reserved for ELI households. 
  • EconoLodge Redevelopment in Hadley is the adaptive reuse of a closed hotel as permanent supportive housing.  Valley Community Development will produce 50 affordable apartments, with 31 of these units further reserved for extremely low-income households, primarily homeless individuals. 
  • Hearthway will newly construct Eagle Mill Phase II in Lee, in partnership with Rees-Larkin. The project will provide 44 units, including 24 affordable apartments, with 8 apartments reserved for ELI families. 

 

Three MACDC Member projects will be located in Eastern Massachusetts, outside of Greater Boston: 

  • Asian CDC will newly construct 213 Main Street in Malden, which will offer 20 affordable family units. Of these, 5 units will be reserved for ELI households. 
  • HSL Stoughton, a new construction project for seniors in Stoughton sponsored by Hebrew Senior Life, will provide 96 units affordable to seniors, with 36 of these apartments reserved for ELI seniors. 
  • NeighborWorks Housing Solutions will newly construct Cranberry Manor Phase II in Wareham. All 40 units will be affordable to seniors, with 8 of these homes reserved for ELI seniors. 

 

Emily Haber, MACDC’s President & CEO, attended the award announcement in Winchester, and noted the following: “MACDC is proud that of the 21 projects funded in the recent Rental Housing round, 10 of them are being developed by MACDC members, resulting in the production and preservation of 487 units of affordable rental housing. We are excited to see so many of our members recognized by the Administration in this important funding round as we know MACDC members are making a difference addressing the affordable housing crisis in communities across the Commonwealth.” 

 

August 2025 Public Policy Updates

August 20th, 2025 by

Policy & Advocacy Updates

Nathanael Shea, Director of Public Policy

 

June State House Briefings 

 

In early June, MACDC co-organized two legislative briefings at the State House. One presented the Tenant Opportunity to Purchase Act (TOPA), helping to dispel myths and to educate new lawmakers and their staffs on the benefits of this policy that has come so close to passage multiple times over the past few legislative sessions. See a post about the briefing here. The other briefing walked legislators and their staff through various options for raising revenue to invest in climate justice. MACDC’s Director of Public Policy presented at this hearing on behalf of the AHEAD Act. See here for some information about the event, and you can find the slide deck from the presentation here, with what was presented on AHEAD and the other two great bills.  

 

 

July Hearings on MACDC Priority Bills 

 

On July 15th, MACDC testified at two important State House hearings. In the first, the AHEAD Coalition rolled out 3 panels before the Joint Committee on Revenue, highlighting how raising our uncompetitively low deeds excise fee should be a crucial tool in our toolbox to fight our interrelated housing and climate crisis. You can watch the hearing here – our portion starts at the 42 minute point in the video. Big thanks to our coalition partners MAPC, Fairmount Indigo CDC Collaborative, CHAPA, Better Future Project, Conservation Law Foundation, the Boston Climate Action Network, and the MA Alliance of HUD Tenants for joining the panels. The hearing was a great success, and the coalition is now meeting with individual members of the committee to lobby for support of the bill. And if you wish to submit testimony in favor of the bill yourself or on behalf of your organization (or both!), you can use these templates or for a super quick click-and-send version use this Action Network link produced by our partners at FICC.  

 

Later that day, we also joined our friends at LISC and Power Options to testify before the Joint Committee on Environment and Natural Resources, to testify in favor of adding a Zero Carbon Renovation Fund to the new environmental bond bill that the Governor has filed (the Mass Ready Act). You can view the (very long!) hearing here, and if you want to skip right to us, our panel comes in right around the 3 hours and 2 minutes mark.  

 

 

What’s Ahead in the Fall 

 

The coming fall promises a lot of Beacon Hill activity. There are still a few of MACDC’s priority bills awaiting their public hearings – Local Option Real Estate Transfer Fees, TOPA, and the stand-alone Zero Carbon Renovation Fund bill. In addition, there is likely to be a continued revisiting of our state budget, depending on how deep an impact the impending federal cuts make on our fiscal landscape here. So stay tuned for opportunities to advocate! 

 

 

Lobby Day Photos 

 

Thank you to everyone who joined us for MACDC Lobby Day in the spring. Please see here for photos that were taken at the event. You’re welcome to use them in your materials, and if you do we just ask that you give photo credit to Liese Jones Photography.  

Public Policy Update June 2025

June 13th, 2025 by

The Legislature’s Joint Committee on Housing held two by-invitation informational hearings last month. Our Director of Public Policy, Nathanael Shea, and our board’s Policy Chair, Jay Coburn of Community Development Partnership, delivered testimony on behalf of MACDC. You can find our full testimony here (which was submitted as written testimony after the hearing). You’re able to watch archived streams of the two hearings here (this is the one we testified at) and here (this is the follow-up hearing). In addition to MACDC, there was fantastic testimony delivered by many of our affordable housing allies, including CHAPA, MAPC, MA Law Reform Institute, Homes for All, Abundant Housing MA, and many others.  

Picture 2, Picture

Pages

Subscribe to News