Ribbon cut on 76 affordable units in Mattapan

Former Cote Ford site transformed into residential, commercial space

After years of planning and construction 76 new affordable housing units have been completed on the site of the long-abandoned Cote Ford car dealership in Mattapan.

To celebrate the grand opening of the project, city planning officials were joined last Tuesday by Cardinal Seán O’Malley, local elected officials and project developers to reflect on the transformation of the property and celebrate the affordable housing opportunities it aims to create.

Dubbed ‘Cote Village,’ the development includes 76 units of affordable and workforce housing, commercial space, and community-oriented activity space. Housing is contained across five buildings with a mix of 1-bedroom, 2-bedroom, and 3-bedroom units, conveniently located blocks away from the Blue Hill Avenue Commuter Rail stop. In addition to the transportation component, the Village housing units boast amenities such as central air, on-site laundry and green space.

Twelve of the units are reserved for residents with incomes below 30% of the area median income (AMI) including 8 units set aside for formerly homeless individuals and families. Two units will be for residents with incomes below 50% AMI; 42 units will be for residents with incomes below 60% AMI; 12 units will be for residents with incomes below 80% AMI; and 8 units will be for residents with incomes below 100% AMI.

“I am proud that the former Cote Ford Dealership has been transformed into a vibrant and welcoming transit-oriented community that is now part of the diverse and lively Mattapan neighborhood,” Mayor Michelle Wu said Tuesday. “We supported this incredible transformation as part of our commitment to keep housing affordable and keep our neighborhoods strong.”

The property at 820 Cummins Highway and 30-32 Regis Road has stood vacant for decades and in 2010 and 2011 respectively was officially foreclosed. In 2014, as part of an effort by former Mayor Martin Walsh to develop parcels along transit lines, the land was put up for sale and requests for proposals were sought. A year later, the land was acquired by the Mattapan-based Caribbean Integration Community Development group and the Planning Office for Urban Affairs, a nonprofit housing developer affiliated with the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Boston who broke ground on the site in 2019.

In addition to the private developers, the state of Massachusetts and the city of Boston also contributed funds to help make the Cote Village project a reality. The Massachusetts Department of Housing and Community Development, MassHousing and the City of Boston Neighborhood Housing Trust contributed a combination of credits and loans in addition to $750,000 from the Mayor’s Office of Housing and $4.8 million from the Inclusionary Development Policy fund.

“Cote Village has helped transform a neighborhood by taking a blighted, vacant property and creating a new housing community for households with a range of incomes who will be able to live and work in Boston,” said MassHousing Executive Director Chrystal Kornegay. “The development of Cote Village is a testament to the vision and tenacity of the Mattapan community, the development team, and Boston and state officials, who took a long-neglected parcel and converted it into a true housing and economic asset for residents of Mattapan.”