Harborlight Homes (HH) is a non-profit, Massachusetts-certified Community Development Corporation. By focusing on the housing needs of underserved populations and creating, preserving and operating, safe, affordable housing with supplemental supportive services, HH strives to make homes available to all, because everyone deserves a home.
Harborlight Homes Residents
92 %
Earn Less than $35,000
Homes in the Development Pipeline
Harborlight Homes Communities
98 %
Residents at or below 60% North Shore Median Income
Property Taxes Paid on the North Shore
On Our Housing Wait Lists
Units Owned / Managed
Supportive Service Partners, which allows Aging-in-Place/Family Mobility
Residents are Very Satisfied with Harborlight Homes
Housing Mission Founded
1963
Turtle Creek & Turtle Woods
1981-1996
HCP Founded
2009
First Two HCP Projects
2011
Community Land Trust of Cape Ann
2012
Rockport High School & Bold Changes
2013
A New Day for HLH
2015
Boston Street Crossing
2018
Current Projects
Today
In 1962, appointed FBC members took up a review of the feasibility of the church opening a home for elderly residents of Beverly. Despite the recommendation to not move forward due to financial risk, and upon the urging of Rev. John Wilbur, on October 2, 1962, church membership, with a leap of faith, narrowly voting (64-60) to purchase the property at One Monument Square (the former home of the first mayor of Beverly and the adjacent building at 24 Abbott Street. In 1963, Harborlight House was opened. This extraordinary vote that changed the course of FBC resulted in a chain of events that would impact hundreds of lives in decades to come.
About two decades later, the First Baptist Church (FBC) again took a bold step, creating Beverly’s Turtle Creek, which broke ground in 1981, to house low and fixed income seniors. Other locations and proposals were brought forth, until the 110 unit-ground up construction on Route 22 in Beverly was complete. In 1985, FBC broke ground a second time on an adjacent building, a second senior living home with 69 units. With this, Turtle Woods, was created. For about 30 years, these three homes operated independently – Harborlight House, Turtle Creek and Turtle Woods – providing affordable senior housing, and each with its own overseer board.
In 2008, the non profit boards that operated these individual facilities proactively leveraged the combined years of experience to form a stronger, regional North Shore affordable housing organization. Through this merger, on January 1, 2009, Harborlight Community Partners came to be; subsequently, by merger, several smaller organizations sought the stability and strength of this combined organization. Soon after, in 2010, the North Shore Affordable Housing Trust also sought to merge with the new HCP, adding 10 more units to the portfolio with Whipple Riverview Place in Ipswich.
Hamilton: Firehouse Place was HCP’s first “new” project as the merged organization. Firehouse Place, named for the historic firehouse it once was, today houses four affordable units and secures a location for the Acord Food Pantry. Firehouse Place was Hamilton’s first affordable housing project to access Community Preservation Funds.
Rockport: December of 2011, following a multi-year effort, and thanks in large part to the Town of Rockport’s investment through the Community Preservation Fund and the Rockport Housing Partnership, HCP acquired Pigeon Cove Ledges, offering 30 units of elder affordable housing. This acquisition preserved the affordability of these units for decades to come, which would have otherwise been lost to market rate rents. To vastly improve the building, substantial upgrades were made in 2012.
The Community Land Trust of Cape Ann merged with HCP to assume the administration and responsibility of the land trust’s 51 affordable first-time buyer condominium units to ensure the permanent affordability of the units. Originally developed in 1988, the condominiums are sold to first-time homebuyers earning less than 80 percent of the area median income. The Land Trust retains title to the land, which ties the resale price of the units to local wage rates, ensuring continued affordability.
Rockport: In 2013 HCP acquired and preserved the affordability of these 31 units of senior housing along with extensive upgrades throughout while honoring the historic elements of the building. This was locally supported through the Town of Rockport’s Community Preservation Fund and the Rockport Housing Partnership, and preserved the units from becoming market-rate.
Beverly: In 2013, HCP wins federal, corporate, local and state support to renovate and financially restructure Turtle Creek. The unprecedented $18.3 million transaction ensured not only that 109 units of affordable senior housing remain affordable for decades to come, but also that the 30-year old facility could undergo extensive upgrades. At the heart of the project was new HUD financing structure pilot program, combining HUD insured loans and housing tax credits. This was only the 12th deal of its kind nation-wide and the 4th in New England. The extensive interior and exterior renovations included several green energy features, including a cogen system that were completed in 2014.
The flagship property of HCP underwent renovations to accommodate an increasingly more frail elder population. In late 2014, HCP received an award from DHCD of $3,00,000 to renovate Harborlight House (HLH). The award also provided 30 project-based MRVPs (MA Rental Voucher Program) to ensure the affordability of each unit, safeguarding the housing needs of very low-income, frail seniors. Significant renovations to HLH began in summer 2015 and continued through 2016. Extensive unit renovations, made while the building was occupied, made each unit accessible and added kitchenettes; a dining room expansion allowed for better accommodate of mobility equipment; a new elevator, exterior improvements, and safety systems were all completed.
Boston Street Crossing in Salem is the renovation of two older rooming houses to create 26 units of SRO housing; each unit has a private bath and kitchenette and offers case management and supportive services. This unique project is a direct response to the need for supportive housing for homeless individuals and is a result of regional needs as directed from the Mayors Regional Homelessness Task Force.
Harborlight Community Partners has a lot in the works! See more about our exciting projects on our Current Projects page.
