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NOAH NEWS

SPRING NEWSLETTER

MISSION: NOAH, a community development corporation, promotes equity, community cohesion, environmental justice, and economic resiliency. We increase access to affordable housing,
create social and economic opportunities, and empower residents to be leaders of change.
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REAL ESTATE DEVELOPMENT 

Coppersmith Village Goes Solar

On May 1st, NOAH switched on the new solar array at Coppersmith Village in East Boston. Thank you to Resonate Energy! The transition will see more than $200,000 in electricity savings over the next 25 years - saving the equivalent amount of energy as driving a gas-powered car 200,000 miles each year! Forty percent of the energy will come from the rooftop solar array at Coppersmith, 25% will come from the Discovery Museum Community solar array, and the remaining 35% will come from utilities. NOAH participated in the Solar Technical Assistance Retrofit (STAR) program, which provides technical assistance and is designed to help remove barriers to solar for affordable housing providers. Coppersmith Village received a 10% investment tax credit through the DOE's Low-Income Communities Bonus Credit Program. Coppersmith Village is a mix of 56 market-rate and affordable apartments and 15 townhomes. To date, NOAH's Real Estate team has either rehabilitated or developed 494 units within 80 buildings in East Boston, Everett, Beverly, Holliston, North Andover, Carlisle, Webster, and Middleborough. NOAH works with many different entities in each community to achieve shared housing and preservation goals with marked sensitivity to historical, environmental, and land use concerns.

Above: NOAH Goes Solar! Attendees at the 'Throw the Switch' event on the

roof at Coppersmith Village, with the Tobin Bridge in the background.


Below, State Rep. Adrian Madaro and Director of Operations for the Boston Mayor's

Office of Housing Dan Lesser with NOAH Executive Director Phil Giffee as he throws the switch!

Progress on NOAH's Real Estate Development Projects for another 187 units...


Aileron: Aileron is a two-phase project located at 127-159 Condor Street in East Boston. Phase I consists of 7 affordable, homeownership condos at 90% completion, with new owner move-in targeted for summer move in. The Aileron Artists rental development will create 36 new affordable rental apartments, artist makerspaces /studios, a shared community gallery, and sculpture garden. The City and State are expected to re-fund the development in late 2024 or early 2025.


Ayer: Ayer Commons is a 2-phase project that will create a total of 106 rental units located at 65 Fitchburg Rd in Ayer, MA. Phase I will be comprised of 64 townhouse style housing units, and Phase II will consist of 42 affordable apartments in a mid-rise structure. The project received a 40B zoning permit and a commitment of $400k in funds from Ayer’s Community Preservation Committee. Ayer Commons is to be a passive house development, with geo-thermal sources for clean energy heating and cooling. We are awaiting an update from the State regarding the Winter One Stop round announcements.


PACO Properties: NOAH’s East Boston PACO Properties have been added to our affordable and workforce housing portfolio as a result of the generous support of the City of Boston’s AOP (Acquisition Opportunity Program) and other lenders. The City AOP helps to protect Boston’s rental housing stock from market forces. Through PACO, to date, NOAH has been able to acquire 17 East Boston triple-deckers and one two-family, for a total of 54 units. The buildings are located at various scattered sites throughout the neighborhood.  Additional State funding is expected this summer.


Taunton: Union Block is the redevelopment of the landmark Union Block building in Downtown Taunton, located at 17 Main Street overlooking the town green. This $24M, 38-unit, mixed-use, mixed-income historic preservation will provide affordable, workforce and market rate housing to residents of Taunton and surrounding communities. Construction completion and substantial occupancy are anticipated in Fall 2024.

COMMUNITY BUILDING & ENVIRONMENT

Vegetable Garden / Jardin De Vegetables

NOAH and GrowBoston have been working to assist East Boston residents grow healthy food at home by building raised garden beds, distributing compact hydroponic systems, and providing gardening education in order to address local food insecurity and food access issues. Together with community volunteers and members of the NOAH Youth Organizers, we are building 80 raised garden beds and providing 20 families with hydroponic planting systems. If you or someone you know would like a raised bed built, please APPLY NOW.

NOAH Youth Organizers (N-YO)

The bilingual youth organizers program offers East Boston teens the opportunity to develop their leadership skills and gain experiential knowledge as they manage and spearhead numerous community activities that address negative socioeconomic and environmental issues within their own neighborhood.


Pictured to the right, NOAH Youth with Boston Mayor Michelle Wu at the 2024 Mayor’s Youth Summit, from left to right: Mayor Wu, Andrea, Djahida, Kristel and Yeimi.


Clean Air and Climate Initiative

East Boston is a heavily urbanized area surrounded by water and hosting a major airport, and is susceptible to numerous climate risks, including extreme temperatures, poor air quality, and recurrent waterfront/coastal flooding. One way NOAH is working to mitigate these impacts is through the Clean Air initiative, working with Mothers Out Front and AIR Inc. The air filter project, in which NOAH's youth organizers address the poor air quality in East Boston by building and distributing free HEPA filters, has provided 70 air filters to residents at heightened risk of respiratory illnesses, ten filters to local businesses, and four filters to East Boston High School. The initiative has also included community focused education events and air quality data tracking using sensors. Additionally, the youth continue their efforts to support East Boston's Tree Canopy in an effort to reduce the 'Heat Island' effect in the neighborhood, working with Tree Eastie and friends.

Summer Programming

Over the summer, NOAH’s youth organizers will help coordinate and host free bilingual activities and events for the community throughout East Boston. The children's soccer program becomes more popular each year and will bring young neighborhood residents together for important community-building and physical activity while helping to preserve one of East Boston’s limited green spaces. 'Learn to Kayak and Boating Safety' will also be returning this summer at Constitution Beach, free and open to all, from July 13 to August 18. The first of NOAH's summer kayaking day events will be at Chelsea Creek on June 29.

ESOL, Citizenship, & Tech Goes Home

NOAH’s ESOL program helps new Bostonians learn, improve, and practice their use of the written and oral English language in a comfortable, communal environment, and encourage engagement in building a stronger community.


Pictured left: ESOL Instructor Jim Dougherty and class members.


NOAH educates between 100-150 individuals annually though ESOL-related programing, including its Intro to Citizenship courses to help community members navigate the citizenship application process; and Tech Goes Home IT classes. NOAH is very proud of its dedicated instructors, current attendees and all our past graduates!


If you are interested in NOAH's English for Other Languages classes or want to find out more about any of NOAH’s related programing, please contact Manlio Mendez at mmendez@noahcdc.org or 617- 418-8242.

NEIGHBORWORKS WEEK 2024

This year, June 1-8, marks the 45th NeighborWorks Week! Throughout the week, NeighborWorks network organizations around the country celebrate how their organizations, NeighborWorks, and residents all come together to transform lives. To celebrate NW Week, NOAH will be hosting a free and inclusive community celebration event on June 8th, a Green Art Festival, with our Community Leadership Institute (CLI) team. The CLI program from NeighborWorks aims to strengthen the voices and skills of community, resident, and volunteer leaders. For more information on NOAH's NeighborWorks Week Event, please contact NOAH's Senior Community Organizer, Manlio Mendez, at mmendez@noahcdc.org.


NeighborWorks America has a proven track record of impacting communities and keeping families in homes. In fiscal year 2023, NeighborWorks America and the NeighborWorks network yielded a direct investment of $10.8 billion in communities across the country; and provided 428,201 total housing and counseling services; created 16,269 new homeowners; owned and/or managed 204,563 rental homes; and more. NeighborWorks is committed to providing solutions to housing issues across the nation and increasing opportunities for more Americans to become homeowners.


NOAH was very pleased to host eight department representatives from key NeighborWorks America programming areas in May! Attendees heard all about NOAH's operations and programming, including homeownership and community building. NWA rates our organization as 'exemplary'. NOAH is proud to be a NeighborWorks network member!


Pictured below from NWA (alpha order): We welcomed Amanda Blatnik of HSCP, Angela Laughman of Homeownership, Elena Kaye-Schiess of Rural, Elizabeth Celaya of Community Engagement, Paula Planthaber of Lending, Phil Hood of Asset Management and Yvonne Aguilar-Lau of Operations.

Pictured below: In April, NOAH ED Phil Giffee, along with other regional NWA leaders, participated in the annual NeighborWorks America Executive Directors' meeting in Washington DC, visiting with state legislators in the House and Senate, including Senator Elizabeth Warren's staff, Senator Ayana Pressley, and others

RENTAL HOMELESSNESS PREVENTION SERVICES

NOAH’s Rental Homelessness Prevention and Emergency Housing Assistance programming, largely funded by the City of Boston, helps residents maintain or obtain apartment homes and avoid or mitigate homelessness. The focus is on serving current tenants who suffer from being displaced, or who are vulnerable to dislocation shortly. This programming also assists those who are newly homeless to obtain shelter or a new apartment, including fire, flood and other emergency related victims. Last year, NOAH served 1,714 renter households, including emergency hotel stay clients, with 753 at-risk households retaining their apartment homes, and 178 obtaining new ones. These services are part of our commitment to low- and moderate-income Boston residents in need of support related to accessing affordable housing opportunities in the region.


We would like to express our deep gratitude to Boston Mayor Michelle Wu, and to Chief of Housing and Director of the Mayor's Office of Housing, Sheila Dillon, for the much-needed funding which is the backbone of this programming!

HOMEBUYER SERVICES

Financial Capability

NOAH offers free bilingual financial capability seminars and individual coaching for those who need assistance with managing their finances. NOAH's Financial Capability programming runs a series of courses on an ongoing basis, each designed to give the attendee the knowledge, skills, and tools to feel confident in their financial decision-making skills. The team recently completed another Matched Savings round, once again with a 100% participant success rate.


Sign up for a free, personalized, financial coaching session.

Make a plan to reach your financial goals, manage your spending and improve your credit.

Sign up here:

https://calendly.com/nkallab/individual-coaching-session

Entendiendo el Crédito y Protección de Identidad

Únase a nosotros para una sesión interactiva y reveladora que hará más facil su camino hacia un futuro financieramente seguro.

Registrar Aquí

First-Time Homebuyers

NOAH's First-Time Homebuyers (FTHB) classes cover everything one might need to know about buying a first home including addressing unique challenges presented by rising home costs and the current economy. NOAH annually offers 15 or more CHAPA-certified FTHB Zoom workshops as well as an on-demand online course – in both Spanish and in English. Be sure to click HERE to register for upcoming classes.

Foreclosure Prevention Services

NOAH's Foreclosure Prevention Program has a focus on assisting consumers who are in imminent default and so in danger of losing their homes, and offers homeowners help in understanding their options and determining the best and most affordable solutions based on their own personal financial situations. ​Our HUD-approved counselors meet with clients one-on-one to develop an action plan based on individual needs, create budgets, work to obtain loan modifications whenever possible, contact lenders to advocate for homeowners, and more. All programming is offered in English and Spanish - with other languages also available with translation services - and is free of charge. If you or someone you know has received a petition for foreclosure, please contact at 617-418-8266.

NOAH’s bilingual Homebuyer Services and Financial Capability workshops, classes, and client counseling remain accessible over Zoom, and the staffers continue to have various bilingual virtual speakers from financial institutions and other companies to provide expert advice to workshop and course attendees. If you have any questions about the Homebuyer Services Department programming, please contact Director Diana Franco at 617-418-8266 or dianaf@noahcdc.org.

PROPERTY MANAGMENT

Celebrating Twenty Years at 143 Border Street in East Boston!

On April 20 this year, NOAH celebrated 20 years at our offices on 143 Border Street in East Boston. NOAH was organized as a 501 (c) 3 non-profit, and began serving East Boston, in July of 1987 as a two-person organization operating from the basement of Our Savior’s Lutheran Church. NOAH now serves the Greater Boston region out of our Border Street office and continues to use this space for its organizational needs, as well as to meet with housing program clients and to host essential neighborhood programing classes such as ESOL, Tech Goes Home, and Intro to U.S. Citizenship.


Kudos to Department Director Mal Nelson and the whole team at Benfield Farms for being one of the top scorers in the state for the Public Drinking Water Awards Program! This is the third year in a row that they have captured one of these spots. Awards were presented on May 9th. And thank you to the Town of Carlisle for funding new door locks and for providing funds to assist in the replacement of the septic field.

NOAH's Property Management staff have been working hard to maintain and upgrade NOAH's properties and offices. NOAH owns 389 rental units & five commercial units in East Boston, Holliston, North Andover, Carlisle, Webster and Middleborough. Altogether, over 870 individuals reside in NOAH rental homes. Department staff have been successfully assisting tenants with rental relief and other key assistance applications to help with home retention. If you have any questions, please contact propertymanagement@noahcdc.org.

THANK YOU TO ALL OUR GREAT SUPPORTERS!

NOAH would like to say THANK YOU to all our wonderful recent funders for their support:

Adam Dobson, Adrian Madaro Committee, Alexandra Granbury, Alfred E. Chase Charity Foundation-Bank of America N.A. Trustee, Better Beaches, Benjamin Swanson, Blackbaud Giving Fund, Boston Harbor Islands National & State Park - Innovation Islands (Boston Harbor Now), Bushrod H. Campbell and Adah F. Hall Charity Fund, BlueHub Capital, Brian Gregory, The Cabot Family Trust, Cambridge Savings Charitable Foundation, Cambridge Trust, Mr. & Mrs. Greg Comeau, Chrystal Kornegay, Charles H. Farnsworth Trust-Bank of America N.A. Trustee, Citizens Bank, City of Boston, David Bryant, David and Lynn Blake, Bob Dorman, Amy Dufour, The East Boston Foundation, East Boston Neighborhood Health Center, East Cambridge Bank Foundation, English for New Bostonians, Fidelity Charitable-Charles Trust Advised Fund, The Greater Boston Association of Realtors, Mr. & Mrs. George Koehler, Susan Koffman Esq. & Thomas Cooper Esq., Hackett Feinberg P.C., Hancock United Church of Christ, HarborOne Bank, Harvard Memorial Church, Paul Linton, Jeanne Lundell, Jeffrey Loeb, Jessica Curtis, John Connell, Joy Street Design, Liberty Mutual Foundation, Klein Hornig LLP, M & T Bank Charitable Foundation, Mary Stevens, Massachusetts Attorney General's Office, Massachusetts Division of Banks, Massachusetts Mortgage Bank Foundation, MHIC, MHP, Mifflin Memorial Fund, Monterrosa Consulting, Narrow Gate Architecture LTD, Needham Bank, NeighborWorks America, Network for Good, Speak for the Trees, O'Donoghue Insurance Company, Pentecostal Tabernacle, The Perry/Wood Family Trust, Resolution Architects, Rockland Trust, Rick High & Anne Perkins, Rockland Trust, Sailors Snug Harbor, Santander Foundation, Suffolk County DA, B. Swanson, T.D. Charitable, UMASS Boston, United Way of Mass. Bay & Merrimack Valley, Webster Bank, the Well Coffee House, Zachary Levin, anonymous and more.

 

NOAH would also like to extend a special thank you to: Cambridge Savings Bank for its donation; to Citizens Bank, which awarded NOAH another Financial Literacy grant award; to T.D. Charitable for their awards; and to the Liberty Mutual Foundation for their generous award to our affordable housing preservation service line.


And, as always, a great big THANK YOU to our fantastic long-time funding partners NeighborWorks America and United Way of Massachusetts Bay & Merrimack Valley!


With our generous supporters, we are able to continue to create and maintain more sustainable neighborhoods, community services and affordable housing opportunities than ever before.


If you would like to make a donation, please reach out to Linda Foster at linda@noahcdc.org or 617-418-8246, or donate online on NOAH's website

NOAH would additionally like to thank those who have joined us to volunteer! Volunteer opportunities range from long-term law school and college interns and AmeriCorps volunteers to half-day project volunteers, such as working in our youth-led community garden or performing maintenance upkeep at Trinity House for the formerly homeless in East Boston, as well as first-time homebuyer education, and working on work-force preparation skills with new immigrants. We thank you all!

COMMUNITY INVESTMENT TAX CREDITS DONATIONS

We would like to take a moment to remind you about the impactful 50% Massachusetts Community Investment Tax Credit (CITC) program, which enables donors of $1,000 or more to double the power of their donations! NOAH has been awarded $300,000 by the State for 2024, which can generate $600,000 in flexible funding.


Through CITC, even donors who do not have any tax liability are eligible to receive a 50% rebate; and donors who have a state tax liability can receive half of their donation to NOAH back in state tax credits. If you choose to invest in our work, you can double your impact and get half of your entire donation back. NOAH will reserve 50% tax credits for all donors of $1,000 or more, and will assist CITC donors in utilizing the fairly simple credit-claiming process.

There is a mounting crisis in the area of housing and shelter in Greater Boston. Over our 36-year history we have never seen anything like it. The numbers of families reaching out for housing assistance continue to grow exponentially. NOAH helped a record-breaking 6,600 individuals from 4,300 families in 2023. Of these, over 5,600 were housing-related clients - and over half of them were children. Your financial support at any level at this time can make a major difference in the lives of local residents struggling to retain or obtain their homes. Please help now if you can.

CITC donations or contributions of any amount can be made online at noahcdc.org/donate or by mailing a check to NOAH, 143 Border Street,

East Boston, MA 02128.

UPCOMING EVENTS

NOAH Celebrates the 45th NeighborWorks Week

Saturday June 8, 2024, 10AM

'Green Art Festival', Umana School, Border St., East Boston


Kayaks at Chelsea Creek

Saturday June 29, 2024, 10:30AM

Condor Street Urban Wild, East Boston

Music, games, food and more


Free Children & Youth Soccer

July 10 to August 16 American Legion Field, East Boston


Free Learn to Kayak and Boating Safety July 12 to August 18 Constitution Beach, East Boston


Free Eastie Community Trip to Georges Island

Saturday, July 20, 2024


Upcoming Free Financial Capability Courses:

-Entendiendo el Crédito y Protección de Identidad

Tue, Aug 20 • 6:00PM EDT Registrar Aquí

-Understanding Credit & Identity Protection

Tue, Sep 17, 2024 6:00PM EDT Register Here

-Equilibrando sus Ingresos y Gastos

Thu, Oct 10, 2024 6:00PM EDT Registrar Aquí


Upcoming First-Time Homebuyer Classes:

Register Here/Registar Aqui

-CURSO DE PRIMEROS COMPRADORES – 11 y 12 de Junio, 2024

Martes, 11 de Junio 5:30 - 9:30PM (Parte 1)

Miércoles, 12 de Junio 5:30 - 9:3PM (Parte 2)

-CURSO DE PRIMEROS COMPRADORES – 11 y 12 de Junio, 2024

Martes, 11 de Junio 5:30 - 9:30PM (Parte 1)

Miércoles, 12 de Junio 5:30 - 9:30PM (Parte 2)

-FIRST TIME HOMEBUYER CLASS – July 16 & 17, 2024

Tuesday, July 16 (Part I) 5:30 - 9:30PM

Wednesday, July 17 (Part II) 5:30 - 9:30PM

-CURSO DE PRIMEROS COMPRADORES – 6 y 7 de Agosto, 2024

Martes, 6 de Agosto 5:30 - 9:30PM (Parte 1)

Miércoles, 7 de Agosto 5:30 - 9:3PM (Parte 2)

KEEP UP TO DATE - FOLLOW US ON SOCIAL MEDIA!

Facebook  Instagram

Keep up to date by visiting our FACEBOOK and INSTAGRAM pages. Click LIKE and FOLLOW to stay connected with NOAH. And, did you know we also have two community Facebook groups? East Boston Environmental and Grupo Ambiental Latino en East Boston. Join the groups and stay connected.

Make a BIG impact even with a SMALL Donation!

Please consider making a secure tax-deductible donation to

NOAH today. To donate online CLICK HERE.   

 Thank you for your interest in NOAH! You can find out more information on our website at www.noahcdc.org. 
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