An Essential Housing Tool Is Hiding in Plain Sight: Massachusetts’ Redevelopment Authorities

Unique Powers Could Unlock New Social Housing, But Need Legislative Help

By Susanne Schindler, Becca Heilman and Chris Herbert | Special to Banker & Tradesman | May 24, 2026 |

Our research was primarily driven by a concern over the lack of housing affordable to middle-income households, a concern shared by the Cambridge Redevelopment Authority (CRA), the Cambridge Community Foundation and the Rappaport Institute for Greater Boston at the Harvard Kennedy School, who funded the study.

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Cambridge’s first social housing project may already be identified, and a task force hasn’t even met