Editor’s note: The headline and story were updated to reflect that this is an affordable housing project.
MANCHESTER, NH – On Tuesday night, the Manchester Board of Mayor and Aldermen (BMA) unanimously approved a recommendation by the BMA Committee on Community Improvement to allocate $200,000 to create eight new units of affordable housing on Newbury Street for women.
The funds for the zero-percent interest loan, which will be given to Robert and Kristie McKenney as part of a $700,000 project to create affordable housing at 50 Newbury St. to be run by Light of Life Ministries. The two-family home sought by Light of Life has eight total bedrooms and according to Kristie McKenney, seven women will be able to move in immediately, and after a small variance change once the property is purchased, they will be able to accommodate eight women.
This fund came from the $1.13 million in sales generated from the recent auction of 15 vacant city lots.
“Homelessness is a complex issue that requires a comprehensive response, which we’ve tackled with the implementation of 12 different initiatives since January. The Board’s vote of confidence reflects the city’s determination to meet homelessness head on and increase affordable housing,” said Manchester Mayor Jay Ruais. “The eight units that will be made available for currently unhoused women at a rate of $800 a month is an incredible start. This is a microcosm of what we need to build city-wide. The lack of affordable housing is one of the biggest challenges to solving homelessness. It creates a bottleneck in our shelters, and it stops people from getting off the streets permanently. That’s what we are building on and working towards.”
Light of Life also received $767,517 to operate a women’s shelter at 15 Brook St. for two to three years, taking the place of a women’s shelter once run by the YWCA on that site. That funding was part of $3,851,256 in ARPA and HOME funds for Affordable and Supporting Housing initiatives, with $2,550,000 going to 142 dwelling units to be construed at the site of the former police station; $300,000 for the Manchester Housing and Redevelopment Authority’s Housing Applicant/Landlord Partnership Program and $236,729 for 45 units at the Pearl Street Parking lot.