| NEWS RELEASE FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE July 25, 2025 |
Contact: Dave Cavell Executive Consultant, BCDC dave@brooklinecdc.com |
BCDC Protects Affordable Housing in Brookline Through Strategic Refinancing of Beacon and Boylston Properties
$1M+ Reserve Fund Created, Decades of Affordability and Green Upgrades Cemented for Low-Income Tenants
BROOKLINE, MA — The Brookline Community Development Corporation (BCDC) announced today the successful closing of a major refinancing initiative for its two affordable housing properties at 1017 Beacon Street and 154-156 Boylston Street, in partnership with Rockland Trust Bank.
The refinancing guarantees affordability for tenants at both properties for at least the next 20 years, while establishing a replacement reserve exceeding $1 million. This reserve was carefully designed to complement existing public grant funding, ensuring that anticipated capital needs can be addressed throughout the life of the loan.
“This moment is about more than numbers on a balance sheet,” said Deborah Brown, Chair of BCDC’s Board of Directors. “It’s about our neighbors who deserve stable, safe, and climate-friendly homes. This refinancing means we can continue to serve them with dignity for many decades to come.”
Both properties are currently undergoing substantial preservation and deep energy retrofit projects funded by state, local, and philanthropic sources, including the Community Preservation Act (CPA), Climate Ready Housing Program, American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA), Community Development Block Grants (CDBG), Massachusetts Clean Energy Center (MassCEC), Low Income Energy and Affordability Network (LEAN), and a grant from the Brookline Community Foundation. Upgrades include new energy-efficient windows, exterior upgrades, electrified building systems, and modernized kitchens and bathrooms. Work is expected to be completed on these projects by early next year, which will bring immediate improvements to air quality for residents, cut harmful carbon emissions, and reduce electric bills.
“This is what long-term stewardship looks like,” said Dave Cavell, Executive Consultant to BCDC. “We are protecting affordability for our residents and increasing financial stability for this organization while building a greener and fairer future for Brookline.”
At 1017 Beacon Street, BCDC partners with Pine Street Inn, one of the nation’s most respected providers of supportive housing, to manage the property and ensure responsive maintenance and wraparound support for tenants. Both Beacon and Boylston serve low-income households, many of whom face the highest barriers to housing stability in Brookline’s increasingly unaffordable housing market.
“Pine Street Inn is deeply appreciative of the support shown by the Brookline community and the Brookline Community Development Corporation,” said Pine Street Inn’s President and Executive Director Lyndia Downie. “It means so much to our tenants to have a safe, stable place to live, and these improvements will further enhance the lives of our residents.”
Rockland Trust worked closely with BCDC to structure the refinancing in a way that accounted for existing investments and upcoming renovations, allowing every dollar in the reserve fund to go further in maintaining and improving the properties over time.
“We are thankful for the opportunity to work with a great community partner like Brookline CDC in creating safe, affordable housing for Brookline’s residents,” said Thomas Golden, Rockland Trust Bank’s Senior Vice President, Director of CRA and Fair Banking. “The partnership between the two organizations creates a solid foundation to build successful projects in the future.”
This strategic refinancing underscores BCDC’s role as Brookline’s only community-based provider of affordable housing and is part of the organization’s broader plan to grow its impact, deepen its partnerships, and fight displacement in one of Massachusetts’ most expensive towns.
###
Founded in 1980, the primary purpose of the Brookline Community Development Corporation (BCDC), formerly the Brookline Improvement Coalition (BIC), is to develop, own and maintain decent, safe, and sanitary affordable housing for low- and moderate-income households in Brookline, Massachusetts. BCDC’s vision is to create successful partnerships and programs to improve access to affordable housing for Brookline’s residents, leading to better health outcomes, economic prosperity, security and quality of life for those of lesser financial means. Learn more at https://brooklinecdc.com/