Malden legislative delegation celebrates $50K Housing Choice Grant awarded to Malden

  State Senator Jason Lewis and State Representatives Steve Ultrino, Kate Lipper-Garabedian and Paul Donato applauded the announcement that the Commonwealth of Massachusetts awarded the City of Malden a $50,000 Housing Choice Grant to develop a multifamily zoning proposal that will comply with the Multifamily Zoning Requirement for MBTA Communities and further the city’s housing and economic development goals. State leaders joined together last week to celebrate this year’s Housing Choice Grant recipients. This grant is part of the state’s Community One Stop for Growth – “a single application portal and collaborative review process of grant programs that make targeted investments based on a Development Continuum” – streamlining municipal grant proposals that fund economic development projects related to community capacity building, planning and zoning, site preparation, building construction and infrastructure.

  The Housing Choice Grant Program is a competitive grant program that rewards municipalities with a Housing Choice Designation that have produced a significant number of housing units in the last five years and that have adopted or established Best Practices that encourage housing production.

  This year, through Community One Stop for Growth, Malden also received $45,050 to develop its multimodal transportation plan and $30,000 to conduct a reuse study and operator request for proposals for the planned Center for the Arts & Culture.

  “I’m very pleased to see this funding from the state to support Malden’s ongoing efforts to update the city’s zoning for multi-family housing,” said Senator Lewis. “This project will help create additional housing options with convenient access to public transportation and local services, while also continuing our efforts to confront the climate crisis through stronger zoning plans for local housing.”

  “Housing is one of the greatest challenges facing residents of Malden right now. This grant funding will help to create affordable and ethical housing for many members of the Malden community,” said Representative Donato. “It was great to work with the rest of the Malden Delegation on this funding and I look forward to seeing these projects advance.”

  “I’m thrilled that Malden has been awarded $50,000 in State funds through the Housing Choice Program,” said Representative Lipper-Garabedian. “These continued investments, which will be used to ensure compliance with the Multifamily Zoning Requirement for MBTA Communities, are a recognition of Malden’s leadership in promoting accessibility to public transit, as well as housing and economic development.”

  “This Housing Choice Grant will allow us to explore multiple zoning options that comply with the new MBTA communities multi-family zoning requirements to determine the best path forward for Malden,” said Mayor Gary Christenson. “Without these resources, we would not be able to conduct the technical analysis and public engagement needed to develop solutions that work for our community.”