Governor Charlie Baker addressed those gathered at Somerville City Hall last week to witness the presentation of the $4.4 million grant by MassWorks in support of the Clarendon Hill redevelopment project.

By Jim Clark

A $4.4 million grant was formally presented to the City of Somerville by Governor Charlie Baker at a gathering of state and local officials and other interested parties at City Hall last Wednesday, December 4.

The state grant is intended to fund renovation of streets and other infrastructure elements associated with the Clarendon Hill redevelopment project.

The grant will be specifically used to fund the building of streets in and around Clarendon Hill and redesign of the Alewife Brook Parkway rotary, converting it to a lighted four-way intersection.

Somerville Mayor Joseph A. Curtatone addressed those gathered at the presentation and reflected on the importance of the project, saying in part, “Two of the biggest challenges, I think we’re all aware that Somerville and the entire Boston Metro Region, I think are housing and transportation. The work being done at Clarendon Hill will help us locally address both. As with much public housing across the country, Clarendon Hill housing has been sorely in need of renovation and modernization.”

“Capital investment in public housing has been chronically underfunded at the federal level,” Curtatone continued. “They’ve basically run away from the housing business. And states have struggled to fill the gap. This project represents a new creative approach to taking on a seemingly intractable challenge. It combines state, city, non-profit and private resources in a collaborative effort that will do more than just update the existing units.”

The MassWorks grant will provide vital funding for infrastructure improvements in and around the renovated Clarendon Hill neighborhood.

The mayor elaborated on the specific improvements being implemented at Clarendon Hill. “Along with needed improvements to these homes, this project is taking a more modern approach to subsidizing housing. The new Clarendon Hill development will break away from the old model of separating public housing and instead create a mixed income neighborhood, with new modernized and enhanced public housing units, to affordable units and new market rate units.”

But to create a neighborhood where people are excited to live and visit, we also need safe transportation that will connect Clarendon Hill to other part of the city,” Curtatone said. “Thanks to Governor Baker and his administration, with this $4.4 million MassWorks grant the City of Somerville will be able to complete important infrastructure work that will allow Clarendon Hill residents to safely get to nearby neighborhoods.”

Governor Baker addressed the gathering, saying, “We have managed to find a number of opportunities to do projects like this one in other parts of the Commonwealth, and they are in many respects a very important tool to dealing with. some of the issues that we all face around housing generally, and especially around preserving affordable housing here in the Commanwealth of Massachusetts.”

“Through the MassWorks program and through our housing programs generally, some of which are overseen by Undersecretary Chan and some of which are overseen by the folks at MassHousing,” said Baker. “This has made it possible for us over the course of the past five years to preserve and develop above fourteen-thousand units of housing. We have significant challenges, but when I talk to a lot of governors in many other states, I think they would trade my challenges all day long for theirs. And our greatest issues are making sure that we find the tools and the capacity and the resources and the strategies and the collaborations to actually deal with these issues in a positive way, and make them work for us. Which in many ways projects like this one do.”

The current 216-unit Clarendon Hill complex will ultimately be expanded to a total of 591 units, with a mix of both market rate and affordable homes as the end result.