Major Redevelopments Coming To Worcester's Lakeside Apartments

WORCESTER, MA –All 202 units which make up Worcester's Lakeside Apartments will be demolished and rebuilt and many others added in a complete redevelopment project, the Worcester Housing Authority announced in a Friday news release.

The Lakeside Apartments complex—located off Park Avenue near the Coes Pond recreational area—will be revitalized thanks to a partnership with Boston Capital and E3 Development, according to the Worcester Housing Authority. Both firms specialize in developing affordable housing.

By the project's completion, Lakeside will boast a total of 374 units, 248 of which will be reserved for residents earning 30 percent of area median income, and another 57 for those earning 60 percent area media income, the Worcester Housing Authority said. It will also offer 44 units available to first-time homebuyers, creating the opportunity for families to own their own property. Twenty-five units will be available at workforce/market rates.

Built in 1949, the Lakeside Apartments complex includes one-, two- and three-bedroom apartments which after the three-phase renovation will be fully handicap accessible and offer energy efficiencies and other amenities.

The project is being done through the Resident Assistance Demonstration program, which allows the Worcester Housing Authority to leverage future guaranteed rents and subsidies to secure the loans needed to bring the project to fruition, officials said. Funding will come from multiple sources at the local, state, and federal level.

"We are excited for this opportunity to work with WHA and the residents to transform Lakeside Apartments," said E3 Development founder Eliza Datta. "We see tremendous potential to modernize the housing and increase affordability at Lakeside, while preserving the wonderful amenities that this community enjoys."

Boston Capital Partner and Managing Director Rich Mazzocchi said that creating affordable housing units across is "a passion of ours."

“We’ve done [projects like this] across the country,” he added.

Answering questions from residents at a meeting at a Lakeside courtyard Tuesday, WHA Chief Executive Officer Alex Corrales said the project could begin construction in about one and a half to two years and could take anywhere from five to 10 years. Corrales added that during the redevelopment process, residents will be temporarily relocated while their new apartment is being built.

Any increase a tenant might experience if they relocate should not affect them, Corrales said, as residents will either be relocated to other public housing or given a housing voucher to use.

“The high-efficiency apartments, that’s what we need," said Sandra Jeanlouis, a Haitian immigrant who lives at Lakeside. “Everything new sounds good.”