JWA announces two new shelter and housing projects

JWA has a long standing history of supporting Clinical Support Operations, a critical social service agency serving residents of western Massachusetts with mental health, addiction, family support, shelter and housing assistance. In 2021, after a deep dive in the firm’s own research into the housing crisis and an annual retreat with staff, JWA began actively pursuing more opportunities to work in the affordable housing arena.

In 2022 CSO began exploring ways to increase it’s inventory of units of permanent supportive housing and shelter space at the Friends of the Homeless site on Worthington Street, Springfield. JWA supported a study effort that has led to the design of a congregate shelter with 36 units of studio apartments to be built next to the current Friends of the Homeless facility. Piggy-backing on this project’s efficient design process, CSO then asked JWA to re-design an existing housing project at 60 Wells Street in Greenfield into 40 beds of shelter and 36 studio apartments with a larger commitment of space to counselling services and resources. Both projects have been successful at acquiring local public approval and pre-development financing. Both project are on track to begin construction in 2023 but await approval from the Massachusetts Department of Housing and Community Development.

Render of renovation/addition at 60 Wells Street, Greenfield

Render of 775 Worthington Street, Springfield