$4 Million Grant Clears Way For Senior Living Apartments In Foxboro

FOXBOROUGH, MA — Foxborough officials were notified that the town would receive a $4 million MassWorks grant this week, which will lead to 200 affordable senior living apartments on Walnut Street.

The grant, awarded to both the town and the housing authority, will "substantially fund" the installation of a traffic signal at the Walnut Street and Commercial Street (Route 140) intersection.

Funds will also be used to extend a sewer line along Walnut Street and across Route 140.

With these improvements to infrastructure in the area, it will allow the housing authority to develop 200 affordable senior apartments on 16 acres located at the corner of Route 140 and Walnut Street.

Developing this parcel in Foxborough has long been a priority for the town, and the grant makes the execution of the idea possible.

"Foxborough has been focused on this 16-acre property for more than a decade," Land Use and Economic Development Director Paige Duncan said.

She added:

"There is a tremendous need for these senior housing units and we are thrilled for the project to take a major step forward. In addition to the much-needed housing, improving the safety of a very dangerous intersection affecting many Foxborough residents was of paramount concern. Without the signal, the affordable housing project could not be built, and without the affordable housing project, the signal would not have been funded. This is a major win for Foxborough."

According to Duncan, Foxborough qualified for the grant after receiving a Housing Choice Capital Grant in 2019, which funded the design process for the sewer and signal. Having the designs completed, plus a portion of the development team for the Walnut Street site in place, qualified Foxborough for the MassWorks grant.

Housing Authority Chair Greg Spier said this is the largest proposed senior affordable housing project in the Commonwealth, and the first one that the FHA has worked on in 20 years.

Construction of the infrastructure improvements is anticipated to begin in the spring of 2023 and will take 12 to 18 months, Foxborough officials said. The Walnut Street Joint Venture team intends to apply for initial state approvals later this month.

Assuming they are awarded the required state funding for the housing project, the development team anticipates beginning construction of the housing project in the first quarter of 2024, according to a news release.

Phase 1 of the project will consist of 141 units in two three-story buildings. Phase 2 will include 59 units in one three-story building.