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Affordable housing project at former Keene school site gets $1M boost
New affordable apartments will be the first phase of this project, with 30 more slated for beginning of summer 2025
The former Roosevelt School at 438 Washington St. in Keene, shown in April 2023, is the site of a 60-unit residential project by the Monadnock Affordable Housing Corp., an affiliate of Keene Housing.(Photo by Hannah Schroeder, Keene Sentinel)
Having recently received $1 million in congressionally directed spending, the Monadnock Affordable Housing Corp. expects to break ground on 30 residential units this summer at the former Roosevelt School in Keene.
These new affordable apartments will be the first phase of this project, as the Keene Housing affiliate aims to build 30 more there beginning in summer 2025.
Josh Meehan, Keene Housing’s executive director, said he estimates the first 30 units will be brought online and fully occupied by fall of 2026, with the second phase coming the following year. At this time, about three-quarters of the apartments are expected to be one-bedroom units, the rest two-bedroom.
As this project brings a modest boost to Keene’s housing supply, Meehan said it’ll mean a small victory against a statewide housing shortage.
“I think it’s a small step in the right direction,” he said Friday. “As we know, we need a significant number of units available for rent for people of all income strata, but especially for those who have lower incomes.”
Meehan has previously estimated that the project will cost around $22.5 million, primarily funded through various federal and state sources.
In a letter to the U.S. House Committee on Appropriations in March 2023, U.S. Rep. Annie Kuster, D-N.H., requested funding be granted to the project, which she said will provide residents of lower income with affordable housing close to downtown Keene and potential employers.
In a prepared statement to a reporter, Kuster, who was due to tour the project site at 438 Washington St. on Friday, noted the impact of New Hampshire’s housing crisis.
“Projects like Roosevelt East will have a positive impact on Keene by expanding the city’s affordable housing stock and addressing workforce shortages through its proximity to the downtown area and business centers,” she said. “While this is an exciting project, I know that more must be done to address New Hampshire’s housing supply—this issue calls for a collaborative approach and creative solutions.”
Kuster said she’s pushed for legislative action to encourage more affordable housing development in New Hampshire and across the country. She also welcomed more than $30 million headed to New Hampshire from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) to help expand the state’s affordable housing stock.
Meehan said Monadnock Affordable Housing Corp. is working on securing funding for the second phase of the project.
“Putting together financing for a project like this is incredibly difficult and every dollar we can find goes into the project and helps make it happen,” he said. “We’re incredibly grateful to Congresswoman Kuster for helping us get funding for the project.”
Data from the Southwest Region Planning Commission estimates Keene will need 1,019 more housing units by 2040. Of that total, SWRPC says current demand will require 373 rentals, with 91 needing to be affordable to people or households making below 60 percent of the area median household income. (The area median household income in Cheshire County is $89,100, per SWRPC).
Meehan said these first 30 apartments will be marketed toward people and households making between 30 and 60 percent of the area median income.
Keene Housing’s waiting list has 1,500 households from the city or an adjacent community awaiting affordable housing.
In the future, Meehan said Keene Housing will open a site-specific waitlist for the Roosevelt School apartments. Once available, people can apply for an apartment directly. Letters will be sent to everybody already waiting for a Keene Housing apartment so they can also apply, he added.
These new apartments will enable maybe 60 households to get out of the queue, but there will still be a large number of people left waiting, he noted.
“We’re part of a large effort for housing and we’re trying to contribute as much as we can to that,” he said.
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