Thousands of new affordable housing units will be built in western Massachusetts in the next few years, but local housing advocates say this still will not be enough to meet the massive regional demand for housing relief.

The lack of affordable housing is a growing problem nationwide, and the impact has been particularly acute in Massachusetts. The western part of the state, though more rural and less densely populated than the greater Boston area, has not been immune to the sting of a highly limited housing stock.

A count of homeless populations conducted this year by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development found that the number of homeless families in Hampshire County has doubled over last year, with a lack of affordable housing as a prominent driving factor.

A 2022 study conducted by Way Finders and the Donahue Institute at the University of Massachusetts found that there was an 11,000-unit shortage of housing in the Pioneer Valley in 2018, which is expected to grow to a 19,000-unit shortage by 2025.

Keith Fairey, president and CEO of Way Finders, said a preliminary survey was recently conducted among member organizations of the Western Massachusetts Housing Coalition, which estimated that about 1,500 units are currently slated to be built in the region in coming years.

“It’s not even close to filling that gap,” Fairey said.

Currently, Way Finders and the Donahue Institute are working on a new study “to see where we are,” said Fairey. While the growing housing gap presents a daunting challenge, support from various levels of government also offer opportunities and resources that affordable housing developers are optimistic about.

On the state level, an ambitious legislative package referred to as the Affordable Homes Act was recently passed by the Senate, packed with a combination of policy and $5.4 billion in funding resources. Now, it must be reconciled with a version of the bill from the House before heading to the governor’s desk.

Alexis Breiteneicher, executive director of Valley Community Development, said that the bolstered state support for affordable housing development makes it “an exciting time” for their work.

“The whole thing is pretty exciting because it’s the most amount of money the state has ever put toward affordable housing,” she said.

Development aboundsin Easthampton

Though the ultimate goalpost for affordable housing stock may be moving as need continues to grow, Easthampton is on track to meet the state goal of having affordable housing make up 10% of the city’s overall housing stock in a matter of years.

One affordable housing development on Ferry Street is gearing up to begin construction, and aims to have tenants move in as early as 2026. The Ferry Street development, undertaken by Springfield nonprofit Home City Development Inc., will yield a five-story, 96-unit residential development with 91 one- to two-bedroom units designated affordable, and five two-bedroom units at market rate. Of the affordable units, 27 will be set aside for those at or below 30% of area median income (AMI), and 64 of the affordable units will be for residents at 60% AMI.

Peter Serafino, senior project manager at Home City Development, said they hope to have a construction plan about 75% complete by Labor Day.

“In our most optimistic scenario, we’ll be starting construction this time next year,” he said. “It’s about a 12-month construction period.”

The Sierra Vista Commons development at the former Tasty Top site on Routes 5 and 10 is also swiftly moving forward. This mixed-use development will feature Roots learning and gymnastics centers, restaurants, 10 mid-rise apartment buildings, and more. Overall, the development will create 202 new housing units, roughly a quarter of which will be affordable at an average of 60% AMI.

Sierra Vista Commons will be constructed in phases, and is being pursued by Tasty Top Development. The first phase will include 44 units of affordable housing, with an estimated move-in start in 2027.

Growing Green: Easthampton, a project along the Manhan River coordinated by The Community Builders in partnership with Kestrel Land Trust, also will be introduced in phases beginning a few years later, in 2029. This development at 385 Main St. will offer the community 87 new, 100% affordable units, as well as 43 acres of conservation land.

“This is a unique and exciting partnership between an affordable housing developer and a land trust,” said Rachana Crowley, senior director of real estate development at The Community Builders. “Land conservation and affordable housing being conceived of and brought about together is really interesting … I hope it opens a new gateway of looking at how affordable housing can be built.”

Growing Green is currently undergoing the permitting process with Easthampton’s Zoning Board of Appeals.

Easthampton has two more affordable housing projects waiting in the wings, both of which will re-use existing buildings important to the city’s history.

The old Town Lodging House on Oliver Street is slated for 30 affordable housing units in a project undertaken by Valley CDC, but Breiteneicher says that project is currently “at a standstill.”

Not only is the property still owned by the city and “in quite a state of disrepair,” according to Breiteneicher, but Easthampton’s Planning Department currently has an abundance of vacancies that Valley CDC must wait for them to fill.

“Right now, there isn’t anybody there to do the work,” said Breiteneicher.

Valley CDC has completed an archaeological survey of the property due to its age and history, which yielded no findings inhibiting development. Moving forward, Breiteneicher said Valley CDC hopes to conduct more neighborhood outreach and education as well, because previous community meetings about the project evinced an abundance of resistance and concerns that Breiteneicher attributed to “gross misinformation.”

The city also has plans to refurbish and convert its three old elementary schools into new housing units. With the construction of the Mountain View School, Maple, Center, and Pepin elementary schools have become unused assets. But Arch Communities has plans to turn the three buildings into about 70 new housing units, at least 20% of which will be affordable.

Easthampton Mayor Nicole LaChapelle has been a vocal advocate for the city’s affordable housing efforts. After the completion of these projects, she says the city will likely be over its 10% affordable housing requirement.

“More housing will let us continue the dynamic economy we see in Easthampton … and continue the evolution we’ve been seeing,” she said. “Community members have taken a lot of formal measures to support these projects and the people who are going to be living in them.”

“Last time we approved big affordable housing projects like this was in 2015, and that was Treehouse and Parsons [Village],” she noted.

Beacon Communities, which manages Treehouse, recently began a deep retrofit of the development using funding from federal and state Low Income Housing Tax Credits along with local funds from the city’s Community Preservation Act.

“The goal is that it’s energy -fficient to the point that residents will actually see a difference in utility bills,” LaChapelle said.

Sixty residential units, 55 of which are affordable, will be retrofitted.

More local projectsin the works

Easthampton is among good company when it comes to affordable housing efforts in western Massachusetts. In Northampton, Valley CDC has three 100% affordable housing projects in the pipeline. In April, the nonprofit broke ground on 20 units of family housing at 23 Laurel St. According to Breiteneicher, they hope to finish construction on this project next spring.

“It’s an exciting time to be doing this work because the state is so committed to building affordable housing, which is something that’s needed to happen for a long time,” said Breiteneicher.

They also have plans to rehabilitate the city’s old nursing home on Bridge Road, creating 60 more housing units. Construction for this development, deemed Parsons Place, will proceed in August and last 13-15 months. And at 7 Crafts Ave., an estimated additional 30 studio apartments have been proposed. Breiteneicher said Valley CDC plans to begin the funding application process for this project in 2025.

In Hadley, Valley CDC will rehabilitate a former EconoLodge on Russell Street, turning 60 rooms into 50 affordable studio and one-bedroom apartments. Breiteneicher said they expect to start submitting for this project’s funding “soon.”

Finally, Valley CDC expects to close on a property in North Amherst and begin the construction of the Amherst Community Homes development in 2025. This development will establish an estimated 30 homes in 15 duplex condos geared toward first-time homebuyers of low to moderate income.

Way Finders also has a project on its way to Amherst, with construction expected to begin in 2027. The Amherst Affordable Housing Development will create 78 mixed-income apartments across two sites.

Just a little ways away in Pelham, Home City Development has been constructing Amethyst Brook Apartments, an apartment complex of 34 affordable rental units. Construction of this project, which comprises a 28-unit building and a six-unit building, began last fall with an estimated timeline of 16 months.

Both Home City Development and Way Finders also have projects in the pipeline in Springfield. Home City Development’s Gemini Town Homes, Chestnut Supportive Housing, and Old Hill projects will bring about 80 new units to Springfield together, while the New Court Terrace and Rainville project by Way Finders will create 88 units.

In addition, Way Finders expects to close on a South Hadley property around the new year that will become a 60-unit apartment building dubbed Plaza Apartments, according to Fairey. They also will soon wrap up construction on over 60 units in an Agawam development called Rosewood Way, and just recently broke ground on a roughly 43-unit development in Ludlow called Greenstead Grove.

Fairey expressed excitement that Way Finders would also likely close on a Holyoke property on Chestnut Street around the new year. This development, called Essex Village, will create 41 affordable units on five sites through the rehabilitation of one building built in 1888, and the construction of three new ones.

Urbanist Development is working to create new housing opportunities out of some of Holyoke’s historic buildings. They recently secured $2 million through the state’s Housing Development Incentive Program (HDIP) for the construction of 19 new apartments on High Street, in the Wrights Block building.

These projects represent some of the work being done to provide housing relief in the region. While affordable housing goals are constantly shifting to meet a growing need from national to local levels, Crowley emphasizes that every affordable housing project is “a step in the right direction.”

“What we need is for every community to be part of the housing solution,” she said.

Alexa Lewis can be reached at alewis@gazettenet.com.