Boston - On June 4, 2025 the Healey-Driscoll Administration is awarding $7.4 million in support of two office to housing conversion projects that will create nearly 200 new units in downtown Boston:

• 31 Milk Street (16-18 Hawley Street), Boston has been awarded $4 million to create 110 new rental units, of which 22 will be income restricted.
• 15 Court Square, Boston has been awarded $3.4 million to create 80 new rental units, of which 16 will be income restricted.

“We need to build more housing across the state to lower costs for everyone. That’s why I directed my administration to identify every resource already available to us that could be turned into housing,” said Governor Maura Healey. “Earlier this week, we announced that we’ve identified hundreds of acres of state-owned lands that will be turned into 3,500 units of housing. Today, we’re supporting projects in downtown Boston that will turn vacant office space into hundreds of new apartments. We’re making it more affordable for families, workers and seniors to live in Massachusetts, while also supporting our local businesses and business owners.”

“Office to housing conversions are transformative for our main streets and downtowns,” said Lieutenant Governor Kim Driscoll. “Building new housing from vacant buildings is a long-term investment in the community, providing more living options for residents, a renewed tax base and more customers for local businesses. This is just the beginning – through the Affordable Homes Act, we’re going to keep supporting projects like this across the state.”

“This partnership will create more than just housing in the heart of Downtown, it creates another opportunity for more families to call Boston home,” said Boston Mayor Michelle Wu. “The state’s funding will allow nearly 200 additional homes in our office-to-residential conversion program to get under construction by the end of the year, for greater downtown vibrancy and support for our local small businesses.”

“We are glad to partner with the City of Boston to deliver new housing in the city,” said Housing and Livable Communities Secretary Ed Augustus. “Office to housing conversions can be complicated, but by working with communities we can provide the stable investment that makes new housing possible.”

“I’m thrilled to see state and city collaboration delivering real results for our community. These office-to-housing conversions at 31 Milk Street and 15 Court Square are exactly the kind of bold, creative solutions we need to address our housing crisis while breathing new life into underutilized spaces,” said Senator Lydia Edwards, Third Suffolk District. “I want to thank the Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities, MassHousing, and the City of Boston for stepping up with critical funding and support to move these projects forward, creating more homes—including affordable ones—for the people of Boston.”

Office to housing awards are funded through the Healey-Driscoll Administration’s Commercial Conversion Program, which supports the transformation of vacant or underutilized commercial properties into residential or mixed-use development. The program was created by the Affordable Homes Act, which was proposed and signed into law by the Governor last year. The goal is to re-use vacant commercial properties and parcels to build new housing on land that is already connected to utilities and close to downtowns, main streets and other public services. More statewide awards are expected later this year. 

Both of the awarded projects also received support from the city of Boston’s Office to Residential Conversion program. The City of Boston’s Office to Residential Conversion Program, launched by Mayor Wu in October 2023, provides a payment in lieu of taxes (PILOT) incentive to convert vacant office space into housing that meets Inclusionary Zoning and new energy standards. The program addresses several city goals including housing production and bringing foot traffic to Downtown and was recently expanded to include student and workforce housing. The program currently has 15 applications to convert 20 Class B and C office buildings into 762 homes, 139 of which will be income restricted.

The Healey-Driscoll Administration is committed to increasing the production of housing across the state to lower costs. Earlier this week, the administration announced the sale of 450 acres of state-owned surplus property to be used for the creation of up to 3,500 new units. Last week, the administration announced that 75% of MBTA communities have approved multifamily zoning, with over 4,000 new housing units now in the development pipeline.  

Earlier this month, the first-in-the-nation Momentum Fund made its first investments in two reasonably priced, mixed-income properties totaling 262 units. And in February, Accessory Dwelling Units were allowed by-right statewide for the first time under the Affordable Homes Act, with wide adoption expected to produce an additional 8,000-10,000 units in the coming years.