CENTRAL BOSTON ELDER SERVICES OPENS DUDLEY ELDERLY HOUSING AND NOW 57 SENIORS FINALLY HAVE A HOME

Some buildings are made of brick and mortar.  Then there’s Dudley Elderly Housing Development. This is a building made of brick, mortar, heart and soul.

The Dudley Elderly Housing Development is a new 57 unit one-bedroom apartment complex with private baths, private kitchens, and walk in closets.  However, it’s much more than that -- for 57 low-income seniors, it is now home. A place where they can find their connection to care.

Developed by Central Boston Elder Services (CBES) and built by Suffolk Construction, Dudley Elderly Housing is more than 50,000 square feet and cost more than $15-million to build.  “It has been a long-time coming,” says CBES Executive Director Catherine Hardaway. “Finally, after years of work, the day has come to watch our new tenants move in.  The best part is the look on their faces when they see their new homes.  What a source of pride for all of us.”

Each apartment at Dudley Elderly Housing is 540 sqf and rents range from $254 to $1156 a month.  457 seniors applied for the 57 apartments.  “What a heartbreaking day it was when we held the lottery to pick our new tenants and hundreds and hundreds of seniors showed up,” says Hardaway.  “It truly points to the dire situation our low-income seniors in Boston find themselves in.”

The creation of Dudley Elderly Housing was a true team effort between CBES, Suffolk Construction, Architect Chia-Ming Sze and five funders: the National Equity Fund, Inc.; Department of Housing and Community Development; MassHousing; Community Economic Development Assistance Corporation and Department of Neighborhood Development.

Says Deborah Burkart, vice president of specialized housing for National Equity Fund, “We are thrilled to help finance such a remarkable seniors’ development supported by one of Boston's leaders in elder services. It's so rewarding to partner with an agency that shares our vision of promoting seniors' independence and quality of life."