City Approves Mixed-Use Complex for Rutherford Ave.
The project will create 60 units, a daycare center and offer services for the disabled and homeless.
The Boston Redevelopment Authority last week approved the construction of an $18 million affordable housing site and community center in Charlestown as part of the mayor’s affordable housing plan, according to the authority.
The Bridgeview Apartment Development, at Rutherford Avenue and A Street, will have 60 apartments, a daycare center and an approximately 12,000-square-foot center providing services for the disabled and homeless.
Human service agency Life Focus Center of Charlestown will manage the complex. The center specializes in services for people with disabilities, including counseling, rehabilitation and job training.
Life Focus Center Executive Director Jack Millerick said that the center has been “chronically short of operational space.”
“We have multiple layers of programs,” Millerick said. “By having our own space, designing our own space, we’re accomplishing a dream.”
Millerick said the shortage of affordable housing in Charlestown motivated him to build the complex.
“Charlestown has gentrified and become a very expensive place to live,” he said.
People who make up to 60 percent of the city’s median income will be eligible to rent one of the one, two or three bedroom apartments, according to the BRA. A three-bedroom apartment will cost approximately $1,000, said Millerick.
Up to 20 percent of the apartments will be reserved for the homeless or previously homeless. Residents who qualify for Section 8 housing will be able to use a voucher to cover the cost of rent, according to the BRA.
In 2009, Mayor Menino extended the “Leading the Way” housing plan to its third campaign, intended in part to increase the construction of affordable housing sites such as the Bridgeview development. Since 2000, the plan has led to the construction of 5,000 affordable housing units, according to the city’s Web site.
The Bridgeview Community Center
Millerick said that the apartments would provide residents with not only a place to live but also with financial guidance. He said that by signing a lease, residents would agree to take classes about financing, building credit and managing a household budget so that they could eventually buy a home.
In addition, Millerick said that he would like the development’s community center and daycare to be state-of-the-art facilities.
“We’re just getting into seeing how affordable that will be,” Millerick said.
For example, he said he wants the community center to accommodate people who cannot speak with touch screen computer tablets that would generate artificial speech. Other residents will use the tablets to learn social skills, Millerick said.
The community center will also offer counseling and speech and occupational therapy to non-residents who qualify for day habilitation through Medicaid. In addition, the center will provide the homeless with classes on budgeting, saving and handling credit.
The Next Steps
Now Life Focus Center and its developers have to gather city and state funding and sell tax credits to banks and corporations to pay for the residential part of the complex, said Geoffrey Lewis, the senior project manager of the development review department at BRA.
Developers will begin collecting city funding within a few weeks and will solicit state funding in March, according to Lewis. If they gather enough funding, they will need to get a building permit and then start building. Life Focus Center will pay rent on the commercial space, which houses the community center and daycare, once the complex is completed.
Sean McKenna
4:47 pm on Thursday, January 20, 2011
Huh, never heard about this ...
Pita
12:15 pm on Friday, January 21, 2011
I believe Jack Millerick has been working on this for some time. Dealing with the Life Focus Center on a limited basis in the past is how I heard of it. Good, bad or indifferent it's not a go until they can raise the money.
FRANK
2:53 pm on Friday, January 21, 2011
Adding a problem to another area of Charlestown. Greed is the reason...
Just a person!
6:47 pm on Thursday, January 27, 2011
You have to love the location, A Industrial Park! and how easy they can change a place zoned Industrial to residential to accomodate, as Frank stated "GREED"
Let me ask the question as I did at the meeting that I attended WHO! would want to live there?
We are talking Trucks 24-7 and lets not even take into consideration SAFETY!
Also the design I saw at the meeting is nothing that is in the Bridge, just another change nobody knew about.
Oh! I shouldn't say that you could have gone to th BRA meeting at 5:00 at City Hall if you had anything to say or if you wanted to comment on the project (on deaf ears)
HELLO! some people work for a living!
But let's be Happy! we are getting another Low Income Housing Development for our square mile Town.
For the last 15+ years I thought it was going to be Office and Space for Life Focus!!!!!
Again, another question,why housing has to be included in the plan??
AAAM
11:48 am on Thursday, January 3, 2013
There is a meeting tonight on this project at the New Knights at 7pm. Many other items have changed in this project that the community probably does not know about. Come to the meeting and voice your opinion. I know it seems like your voice is falling on deaf ears, but this meeting is different. The developer needs community approval to keep their designation from the BRA which will expire this month. If you don't want this project come to the meeting and tell the developer, the CNC, and the BRA.
Joseph
8:49 am on Friday, January 4, 2013
How did this turn out? Is Jack still running Life Focus and using their funds to finance his personal wants? Becca, anything to report?
I looked at the "new and approved" CNC website and the minutes haven't been posted yet. Nor have the minutes from the December meeting been posted.
Remember when The Patch made these meetings announcements front and center? Actually helped keep us informed of important happenings within Charlestown? 5 things - That's what we get. And cross town comments. Truly a shame.
AAAM
10:40 am on Friday, January 4, 2013
Joseph,
Too much to put in this posting, but the meeting last night was a lively one. Almost all the residents that showed up to the meeting either oppossed the project, or felt that no new buildings should go up along Rutherford Ave until a master plan of the area can be created, considering there will be a major redesign of Sullivan Square.
The CNC took two votes, first to approve the project with certain conditions such as free rent for life for Special Townies in the building, a neighborhood advisory board to the project, and other conditions. That vote did not pass.
A second vote was taken to withdraw support for the project and ask the BRA not to extend the designation to the developer, which would start the planning for the parcel a new. (BRA orginally gave the desgination in 1985). This vote passed. The BRA meets this month to decide if the designation should be extended, if they do extend it will be without community support.
Just looked at the CNC website as well. I see the minutes for October and November as well as some committe meeting minutes. I beleive December's minutes go up after they are reviewed and ratifyied at the January meeting next week.
Joseph
12:17 pm on Friday, January 4, 2013
AAAM - Thank you for your response. But this does beg a few questions....
The CNC took a vote about whether or not to support this project. The conclusion of this vote was that the CNC does not support the extension to the developers, correct? I mean, 30yrs and nothing developed, why extend it, right? Yet you conclude by stating that the BRA is going to ignore this vote, then decide behind closed doors, without resident input, whether or not to extend this designation? Wouldn't that be a completely slap in the face to residents of Charlestown? I'm confused. Can you dumb this down for me?
As a result of this vote, isn't the CNC required to prevent the BRA from extending this designation? What relationship does Mark Rosenshein have with the BRA?
Hey Patch - If you're looking for articles to write, how about getting in on some of the fishy development that the BRA is doing within our town?
AAAM
2:40 pm on Friday, January 4, 2013
I don't think it needs to be dumbed down. You've got it right. It would be a slap in the face from the BRA to the CNC and Charlestown residents. The CNC cannot make the BRA or the City do anything. Similar to what happened with Dominos, where the residents voiced they did not want the Dominos, CNC voted against it, but the City gave them the permit anyway. Mark Rosenshein does not have a relationship with BRA and does not gain anything either way, in fact I have seen him call the BRA out on many issues. You are reaching for something that isn't there. However, you are right to question the BRA if they go forward without community support, and the Patch and other media should inquire as well.
Joseph
2:58 pm on Friday, January 4, 2013
Wow. I was hoping it wasn't that obvious and that I was misunderstanding you. Thank you. G'day.
Just a person!
9:56 am on Tuesday, January 8, 2013
This is a joke,just like the meeting,now that the life focus is not a part ,now they are seaching for another non-profit and using the "special Townies" to be the engine. And not giving them anything for it, they have cut the space down for the non-profit usage and also want to charge them rent!
Are you serious? Jack Milerick was getting free space and rent, and probaly a little more.
Disgraceful!
Just like jack Milerick this project should be thrown out, and a new developer found
I feel that Jack may still be involved somehow, if his developer is.