A vacant hotel on Morrissey Boulevard in Dorchester has reopened as 99 supportive apartments for older adults who have experienced homelessness, giving residents like Reginald a permanent address after years without one. Reginald lived on the street for two years after losing his home before moving into the new building at 900 Morrissey Blvd.
Mayor Michelle Wu joined state leaders, community partners, and housing advocates on Wednesday at the grand opening of the complex, according to Boston 25 News. The redevelopment of the former Comfort Inn cost an estimated $49 million for acquisition and build-out, funded through public and private partners including MassHousing, the City of Boston, the Massachusetts Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities, and Eastern Bank, as reported by Multi-Housing News. The project was also funded by the Boston Housing Authority and the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.
“Having a safe home here with The Community Builders, everything changed. My apartment gave me room to breathe, reconnected with the community, and rebuild my life,” Reginald said, describing the turnaround the new building has brought to his life. The building now provides on-site services supporting residents' health, independence, and long-term housing stability for people who have experienced homelessness.
Plans for Housing Chronically Homeless Adults
Developers proposed a facility of roughly 100 units for chronically homeless people, according to background compiled on Wikipedia.
Each studio unit covers approximately 305 square feet with private kitchenettes, and the renovated building was designed to meet Enterprise Green Communities 2020 standards, featuring water-saving aerators projected to save 500,000 gallons of water annually, per Multi-Housing News. All 99 studio apartments are reserved for individuals earning at or below 30 percent of the Area Median Income, with support from HUD’s Section 8 program.
Pine Street Inn's Track Record Backs the Model
Service provider Pine Street Inn maintains a 96 percent housing retention rate after one year among residents in its permanent supportive housing programs. The organization supports 1,100 individuals in 39 housing locations, according to MassHousing.
The financing behind the building reflects a broader statewide push. The 900 Morrissey project was among 19 state housing developments awarded tax credits following Massachusetts' $1 billion tax relief package signed in late 2023, which set the annual state Low-Income Housing Tax Credit allocation at $60 million, the Multi-Housing News report notes. Non-profit developer The Community Builders also entered into an 18-year Payment In Lieu Of Taxes agreement with the City of Boston for the site.
Wu Points to Citywide Gains in Fighting Homelessness
At the opening, Wu said 16,000 new housing units have been created over the last five years, tying the Morrissey Boulevard project to the city's broader housing agenda. She pointed to Boston's 2026 point-in-time homelessness count, which reported a 19 percent decline in overall homelessness since 2021.
Boston has long emphasized a Housing First approach to its homelessness crisis. Unsheltered street homelessness in Boston accounts for roughly 3 percent of the overall unhoused population, one of the lowest rates in the nation, according to Pine Street Inn executive director Lyndia Downie, as reported by Hoodline in 2024.
