Timeline

Early December 2013 Recruitment of students and development sponsors

Mid-January 2014 Developer registration

January to Early February Student registration

Early February introductory sessions with students and development sponsors to form teams

Mid-February Competition kick-off

Mid-February to March Seminars on affordable housing – TBA

Mid-April Proposals due

Late April/Early May Awards ceremony

ContaCts

For more information on the competition, please call Tobi Goldberg or Theo Noell of the Federal Home Loan Bank of Boston at 617-292-9600; Karen Wiener of CHAPA at 617-742-0820; or student organizers, Elaine Magil, at sem02@bu.edu or Ashley McCaulley, at mcculley.a@husky.neu.edu.

Information and applications are also available at www.fhlbboston.com/compete. For questions about what participation involves, please visit the How to Form a Team section on the competition web site, or e-mail the student organizers or compete@fhlbboston.com.

The Federal Home Loan Bank of Boston is a whole-sale bank that facilitates and enhances the availability of credit for housing and eco-nomic growth for low- and moderate-income families in New England. The Bank promotes housing finance and neighborhood develop-ment by providing its mem-bers with low-cost funds, special lending programs, liquidity, and technical assistance.

fhlbboston.com

Kevin P. Martin & Associ-ates, P.C. is a nationally rec-ognized public accounting and business-consulting firm serving a diverse for-profit and nonprofit client base, including an array of CDCs and real-estate syndication, development, and manage-ment companies. KPM has extensive experience work-ing with Low Income Hous-ing Tax Credit properties and projects funded under HUD and various state programs. Our experience, knowledge, and network help clients plan, capitalize, complete and manage proj-ects, regardless of the econ-omy. With development costs well into the billions, our clients have built and manage more than 500,000 apartment units and millions of square feet of commercial space.

kpm-us.com

The Boston Society of Architects is a membership and cultural organization that works to enhance the understanding of architec-ture, design and communi-ty-building. As one of the American Institute of Architects’ largest and most active chapters, we encour-age students to participate in our events, programs and committees. BSA student affiliate membership is open to all full-time students. We welcome everyone to tap into our vibrant design community, enjoy exhibits and programs on architec-ture, and to make lifelong personal connections.

architects.org

Boston-based ICON archi-tecture, inc., a women-owned firm with 35 staff, provides award-wining work focused on sustainable ur-ban development, housing, and education architecture. Our mission of “shaping where you want to be” re-sults in innovative approach-es to contemporary living and learning environments.

iconarch.com

Citizens’ Housing and Planning Association is the nonprofit umbrella organiza-tion for affordable housing and community develop-ment activities in Massachu-setts. Encouraging the production and preservation of housing for low-income families and individuals, CHAPA advocates with gov-ernment officials; provides research, education and training; and works to build consensus among broad interests in the field.

chapa.org

sponsors

SPonSoReD By

The Federal Home loan Bank of Boston

Kevin P. martin & Associates, P.C.

Boston Society of Architects/AiA

iCon architecture, inc.

Citizens’ Housing and Planning Association

Fourteenth AnnuAl GreAter Boston AFFordABle housinG development Competition

about the Competition

The need for affordable housing in Greater Boston has dramatically grown in the past several years. Due to market pressures and changes in the economy, increasing the supply of housing and maintain-ing existing units have become re-gional priorities. Affordability often eludes middle-income earners such as teachers, firefighters, and police officers. In addition, policymakers, cities, and towns are discussing housing density as a way to address problems associated with sprawl development and improve the vitality of communities.

Now in its fourteenth year, the competition is designed to focus a new generation of thinkers on these very issues. By matching graduate students with professionals, the competition provides the opportu-nity to combine classroom experi-ence with real-world practice in affordable-housing development. The competition integrates a wide range of academic subjects and in-novative ideas to spark new interest in the housing issues affecting Greater Boston. Students learn the multilevel process of design and production and the value of part-nering with housing organizations to address the need for affordable housing.

The sponsors are pleased to continue their support of the competition in 2014.

Who Competes?

Graduate students from all Boston-area colleges and universities are welcome to participate.

partiCipating sChools (to date)

Babson College • Boston Architectural College • Boston University • Emerson College Harvard University • Massachusetts Institute of Technology • Northeastern UniversityTufts University • University of Massachusetts, Boston • Wentworth Institute of Technology

Fourteenth AnnuAl GreAter Boston AFFordABle housinG development Competition

development organizations

Developers provide a site, informa-tional materials, and assistance with composing proposals. Each site has been under consideration for housing development, giving the development partner a profes-sional stake in the final submission.

Last year’s developers were Neighborhood of Affordable Housing, Planning Office of Urban Affairs, Somerville Community Corporation, South Boston Neighborhood Development Corporation, and The Community Builders.

mentors

The following served as finance mentors in 2013: Boston Private Bank & Trust Company, City of Boston, Eastern Bank, Massachusetts Department of Housing and Community Development, and The Richman Group.

Last year’s design mentors were, Davis Square Architects, ICON architecture, Studio G Architects, and TBA Architects, Inc.

FaCulty advisors

Faculty advisors include professors, department heads, and program coordinators who provide resources within their schools and expertise throughout the process.

prizes

Cash prizes of $10,000 (first place), $6,000 (second place), and $3,000 (third place) will be awarded for proposals that best meet the judg-ing criteria. Each award will be equally divided between the devel-oper and the winning team. For example, the first place prize pays $5,000 each to the developer and the students. The awards are intended to encourage the future design and conception of afford-able housing in the Boston area.

the proCess

Students and development spon-sors come together for a series of sessions that describe the logistics of the competition and assist with the formation of the teams. Student teams have one week to establish a working relationship with their de-velopment sponsor, and thereafter teams have two months to produce an affordable-housing plan tailored to their site. Each team of students, faculty, and sponsors is responsible for creating a working timeline. A commitment of about 15 hours per week is expected and course credit may be granted, depending on school policies. Each team will receive a stipend of $300 for ex-penses related to the competition.

Format

The competition brings together students from diverse academic backgrounds and interests. Each team must include representatives from at least two schools, and mem-bers cover the range of disciplines required by the proposal. Each team pairs with a development organization, responsible for pro-viding a feasible design site and information on that location, and a faculty advisor who provides guid-ance. Teams create a rehabilitation or development plan for their site. Plans must reserve 40 percent of their units for households earning a maximum of 60 percent of AMI, and must also address a variety of other aspects, including:• Site-acquisition strategies• Design• Housing density• Community-participation plans• Financial analyses• Smart-growth and sustainable-

development principles• Zoning and regulatory approvals• Operation details• Environmental analyses• Property-management strategies • Market studies

The finished product, modeled after a professional proposal, is judged by a panel of interdisciplinary hous-ing and community-development authorities.

Judging Criteria

20% Project financing 20% Physical design 20% Responsiveness to

community needs 20% Environmental sensitivity 10% Feasibility of plan10% Innovation

Judging

A panel of professionals from Greater Boston judges the pro- posals. Using explicitly defined standards, each plan is carefully analyzed for feasibility, creativity, and ingenuity.

aCademiC Credit

Some participants receive academic credit for the competition, depend-ing on their school’s policy. Other students participate in lieu of a final paper or thesis project.

last year’s suCCess

Graduate students in architecture, business, law, real estate, planning, and public policy from Boston University, Harvard University, Massachusetts Institute of Tech-nology, and Northeastern University formed five teams to develop sites in Boston, Brockton, and Somerville Massachusetts. Each plan, custom-ized to its location and unique issues, demonstrated a strong commitment to developing afford-able housing. The competition also sponsored seminars related to affordable-housing development to help students prepare their proposals. Similar seminars will be offered in 2014.

last year’s Winners

First plaCe

The Edgerly, Somerville, is an adaptive reuse of the historic Edgerly Education Center, an anchor for community education and youth development for more than 80 years. The LEED platinum- certified initiative will provide 42 much-needed affordable apart-ments and a flexible community space. The apartments will be a mix of studios and one-, two-, three-, and four-bedroom apart-ments, permanently affordable to low-income and very low-income residents, and financed through a mix of Low-Income Housing Tax Credits equity, state and city housing subsidies, as well as permanent and construction loans.

seCond plaCe

The Corsa, Boston, is an infill devel-opment on a 4,000 square-foot, city-owned parcel on West Broad-way. Responding to market pres-sures in the neighborhood and a lack of housing for moderate-in-come workers, the project compris-es of 24 rental units for households making less than 80 percent of Boston’s area median income. To best target this demographic and maximize benefits to the neighbor-hood, The Corsa implements care-fully designed micro-units that maximize the impact of local and state funding sources by leveraging the affordability potential of the micro-unit typology. The Corsa also enhances the neighborhood through a ground-floor retail café.

third plaCe

Taking advantage of the site’s stra-tegic location for the neighborhood and Harvard University, LA355, Brighton, will be developed as the junction at which both Harvard and neighborhood communities inter-sect to create a mutually beneficial development. LA355 will establish affordable mixed-income and mixed-tenure housing, as well as a 13,000 square foot commercial space to foster economic develop-ment, education, technology, and craftsmanship. The lynchpin of the project is Makerspace, a place that encourages hands-on learning and making with cutting-edge tools and technology that are often out of reach of the average person.