A project that will create 72 new affordable apartments on Centre Street next to the Shawmut MBTA station was the subject of good news from state officials last week. They had secured a key round of financing, putting the roughly $60 million development on track to start construction during the first half of next year.
The 150 Centre St. project — first proposed by almost a decade ago— will be included in a round of funding from the Healey-Driscoll administration as part of a broader $278 million package of financing and tax credits intended to support more than 2,500 new homes statewide.
The state award comes on top of $4.475 million in affordable housing funds previously committed by the city of Boston, according to Trinity Financial co-principal Jim Keefe, the developer behind the project.
“This award is a perfect example of the shared commitment of the Healey-Driscoll Administration and Mayor Wu’s administration to creating critically needed affordable housing in highly transit-accessible locations,” said Keefe, who also credited state Rep. Russell Holmes with helping secure the new financing. The precise dollar figure is not yet set, but Keefe and Trinity say the expect it will be sufficient to finalize their plans.
The development will replace the Fitzpatrick Brothers auto body business with a building that has been the subject of years of neighborhood controversy and litigation. Trinity first proposed development on the site in 2017 and later reduced an earlier 91-unit plan to 72 apartments in four-stories before winning BPDA approval in 2023.
Opponents, including the neighboring Epiphany School and other residents, filed lawsuits challenging the project after it had won approvals from city planners. In April 2025, a Suffolk Superior Court Judge dismissed the cases on procedural grounds, ruling that the plaintiffs had missed the statutory deadline for challenging the planners’ okay.
The legal obstacle was gone, but Trinity still needed to assemble financing before construction could proceed— a hurdle that came down last week, according to Keefe.
Plans call for one-, two-, and three-bedroom apartments serving households at a range of income levels, including units reserved for residents earning at or below 30, 50, 60, 80 and 120 percent of Area Median Income. The all-electric building also will include rooftop solar and other energy-efficiency measures.
“This investment brings us an important step closer to delivering 72 new homes in one of the most transit-accessible locations in Dorchester,” said Michael Lozano, Trinity’s vice president of development.
Lozano said the company plans to maintain communication with neighbors to minimize disruption as it moves toward construction. With the latest financing in place, Trinity plans to complete final design and pre-construction work with the goal of breaking ground before next July.
Copyright © 2026 Boston Neighborhood News, Inc. This content may not be re-published or re-used without written permission.
