By Courtney Murtagh

Governor Charlie Baker joined MassHousing Executive Director Chrystal Kornegay and a number of elected officials, stakeholders and developers June 26 to celebrate the completion of Gateway North Apartments: a $31 million, 71-unit mixed-income property in Lynn.
The ribbon-cutting ceremony was especially monumental because Gateway North was the first development funded in-part through MassHousing’s $100 million Workforce Housing Initiative.
MassHousing Relationship Manager Sarah Hall coordinated the Gateway North transaction from its earliest stages through closing.
"Gateway North was easily the most challenging project I’ve worked on, but it was also the most rewarding," Sarah said. "To see the complete transformation of the Gateway site from an acre and a half of dirt to 71 new homes in a truly mixed-income community was a great reminder that all of the hard work that is required to get to a closing really does matter."
It was at Gateway North, two years ago, where Gov. Baker announced MassHousing’s Workforce Housing Initiative, and where he committed his administration to building 1,000 workforce housing units from the funds. It made MassHousing’s Workforce Housing Initiative the largest state-led middle-income housing effort in the country.
To date, MassHousing has committed $59 million in workforce housing funds to 26 projects located in 15 cities and towns in Massachusetts. The funds will help to build 2,374 housing units, including 631 new workforce housing units.
The Workforce Housing Initiative supports the creation of rental housing that is affordable for working families earning above 60% of the Area Median Income (AMI), which is too high to qualify for traditional affordable housing but too low to keep up with market rents.
The initiative is aimed at complimenting traditional affordable housing, not replacing it.
Gateway North is comprised of 53 traditional affordable housing units, 10 workforce units, and eight market-rate units.
The overarching theme of the June 26 ribbon-cutting ceremony was opportunity. Gov. Baker, Lynn Mayor Thomas McGee and Lynn Housing Authority & Neighborhood Development (LHAND) Executive Director Charlie Gaeta all talked about how the completion of Gateway North Apartments marks a vital step for further developing Lynn’s economy, and how it will increase opportunities for low- and moderate-income households.

The property is centrally located in the city’s Sagamore Hill District, near a business and retail hub and across the street from North Shore Community College. Situated two blocks from a commuter rail station and close to major highways, Gateway North was made with commuters in mind.
The one-, two-, and three-bedroom apartments are spacious and contain energy efficient appliances to help keep utility costs down. Inside the building is a community room as well as a gym.
The site was purchased for $600,000 in 2015 by LHAND, Neighborhood Development Associates Inc. and Hub Holdings LLC. Before Gateway North Apartments was built, the location was home to a vacant parking lot.
MassHousing provided $21 million in financing, including $1.6 million in Workforce Housing funds. This will ensure the 71 mixed-income units remain for at least 30 years. Residents have begun to move into the development and the workforce housing units are serving people working in the government, nonprofit and health care sectors.
In addition to MassHousing’s financing, Gateway North also received funding from LHAND, the AFL-CIO Housing Investment Trust, City of Lynn HOME funds, Boston Capital, Neighborhood Development Associates, EDIC/Lynn and the Massachusetts Department of Housing and Community Development.