First phase of Roxbury housing development opens

Harvard President Larry Bacow joined Boston Mayor Martin J. Walsh, Massachusetts State Rep. Chynah Tyler, Boston City Councilor Kim Janey, and others cut the ribbon on the first phase of the Bartlett Station, mixed-use development in Roxbury.

Harvard President Larry Bacow joined Boston Mayor Martin J. Walsh, Massachusetts State Rep. Chynah Tyler, Boston City Councilor Kim Janey, representatives of Nuestra Comunidad Development Corp., and others to celebrate the ribbon cutting for the first phase of Bartlett Station, a mixed-use development in the Roxbury neighborhood of Boston.

Harvard University contributed more than $600,000 in pre-development financing for the project. Through the Harvard Local Housing Collaborative, the University has partnered with three local, nonprofit community-development lenders to create and preserve affordable housing, build and revitalize healthy communities, and create economic opportunities for low- and middle-income residents throughout the region.

The initiative, first launched in 2000 and formerly known as 20/20/2000, committed $20 million in low-interest, flexible loans. Since then, the fund has revolved more than two times, and its impact can be felt throughout the region. It has helped leverage more than $1.3 billion in housing developments with more than 5,500 affordable units in Boston and more than 1,600 affordable units in Cambridge.

Harvard University recently announced it would recommit $20 million to an initiative aimed at increasing the amount of affordable housing in Greater Boston.