Newton Crossing, a highly anticipated housing development on West Newton’s Washington Street, is now accepting lottery applications for its affordable units. The 292-unit rental complex includes 73 units at reduced cost for income-qualified households.
Applications will remain open until August 11 at 2PM.
Newton’s Zoning Board of Appeals approved the project in 2021 under the state’s Comprehensive Permit Law (Chapter 40B), which seeks to encourage the construction of lower-income housing. Under the law, if a developer agrees to long-term affordability restrictions on 20-25 percent of a development’s units, the development is eligible for zoning exceptions and streamlined permitting.
The Newton Crossing project was initially spearheaded by Mark Development, the firm behind the Trio development in Newtonville and the Riverside development in Lower Falls. The project was later taken over by New Jersey-based Garden Communities, a firm that describes itself as a “real estate owner, builder and manager in the luxury multifamily niche.”
SEB Housing, the entity administering the lottery on behalf of Garden Communities, said that the first apartments are expected to be available for occupancy beginning in September 2026.
Eligibility and monthly rents
Of the development’s 73 affordable units, which range in size from studios to three-bedroom apartments, ten are reserved for households making up to 50% of the Area Median Income (AMI), and 63 are reserved for households making up to 80% of the AMI.
Household income calculations take into account all household members’ anticipated income sources for a given year, including wages and government support. Maximum income limits range from $60,000 for a one-person household at the 50% level to $159,050 for a six-person household at the 80% level. Minimum income and asset requirements range from $40,400 for a studio apartment at the 50% level to $88,700 for a three-bedroom apartment at the 80% level. Households receiving housing assistance are exempt from the minimum income and asset requirements.
Monthly rents range from $1,348 for a studio apartment at the 50% level to $2,959 for a three-bedroom apartment at the 80% level.
Prospective renters must sell any property they own before leasing an apartment, as residents in the development’s affordable units may not be homeowners. Applicants need not be Newton residents, but households that fall into “local preference categories” – those whose members live or work in Newton, or those with children attending Newton schools – may be given priority.
Several affordable units have accessibility features. Six include mobility assistance features, and two include hearing assistance features. Households with accessibility needs may be given priority for those units.
Local leaders reflect
City Councilor Julia Malakie (Ward 3), whose ward is home to the Newton Crossing development, told Fig City News that she was pleased with the project’s progress, as well as Garden Communities’ efforts to coordinate with West Newton community members throughout the construction process.
“I have been impressed by how [Garden Communities] has gotten this project built expeditiously when so many others have stalled, while also working with neighbors through the liaison committee to try to minimize disruptions,” she said.
For example, Malakie said, Garden Communities got permit approval for the development’s underground garage early in the process — so that construction workers could park there instead of blocking trash pickup and driveway egress on nearby Watertown Street.
“I look forward to the three buildings getting their occupancy permits. Not only will there be more customers within walking distance of everything in West Newton Square, we will have a more realistic picture of the Washington Street Pilot when the buildings are fully occupied, the lane diversion is eliminated, and Dunstan Street is restored to fully two-way,” Malakie said, referring to partial road closures. (The Washington Street Pilot is a traffic redesign project that the City described as “bringing safety, accessibility and beautification improvements from Chestnut Street in West Newton to Lowell Avenue in Newtonville.”)
Ann Houston, a member of the Newton Fair and Affordable Housing Partnership, said that she is excited about the positive impact that she believes the Newton Crossing development will have on the West Newton business community.
“I’m a neighbor. I live in West Newton. And we are very excited,” she said. “[Newton Crossing] is going to hopefully help us give a little lift to the West Newton neighborhood. West Newton center has really struggled for many years, so hopefully bringing in more residents will help give some additional market for retail.”
Houston added that the Partnership recently worked with Newton’s Affordable Housing Trust and Housing Authority to take a deep dive into the state of affordable housing in the city. She said that the Newton Crossing development addresses some of the major problems that the investigation identified.
“We came out really understanding that we desperately need more housing, and, particularly, more affordable housing, so [Newton Crossing] addresses that,” she said. “We’re particularly short on family housing, on two and three-bedroom units. [Newton Crossing] will be providing additional affordable two and three-bedroom units, so I think it’s a real win for the community.”
The bigger picture
The opening of the Newton Crossing lottery comes at a time of high demand for affordable housing in the Greater Boston area. According to data compiled by the Newton Fair and Affordable Housing partnership, 14 other projects containing affordable units are underway in the city.
Notably, the West Newton Armory redevelopment project continues to make progress. A building permit for the 100%-affordable development, which is slated to contain a total of 43 units, was issued in May 2025. According to the Partnership’s data, marketing for the project is expected to begin this summer.
Other high-profile projects include the Northland development on Needham Street, which began vertical construction last winter. In May, Northland announced that the final beam on the project’s first residential building had been put in place, and the firm christened the development “Pattern District.” The development is slated to contain 822 units, 145 of which will be affordable.
Northland’s separate Charlemont project, located across the street from the Pattern District development, has also made recent progress. According to the Partnership’s data, a demolition permit application was submitted in May, and construction is expected to begin in 2027.
Additionally, the Toll Brothers development at 528 Boylston Street (Route 9), which was approved in May 2024, is moving towards more visible progress. According to the Partnership, a building permit application has been submitted and is active, and vertical construction is expected to begin in late 2026.
With the exception of the Pattern District project, all of the aforementioned developments were approved under the Comprehensive Permit Law — the same law under which Newton Crossing was approved.
Marva Serotkin, who chairs the Partnership, told Fig City News that addressing housing costs is ultimately a complex issue that requires a multifaceted approach.
“Housing construction in Newton seems to be everywhere, but will the units be affordable for those whose resources cannot manage the $1 million price for owning a home or $3,500 for monthly rental? How do we ensure that Newton is for everyone, an economically diverse City?” she said. “Advocates, Newton Housing Fair and Affordable Housing Partnership, Newton Housing Trust, Newton Housing Authority, developers, and City of Newton government have made progress at addressing the critical need for real affordable housing. Yet costs remain out of reach for too many. There is no one answer. All opportunities must be pursued and applied — incentives, zoning, resources, partnerships and importantly the commitment to continue the progress.”
Lottery submissions and information session
As previously published in Fig City News, the City will host a virtual information session about the Newton Crossing affordable housing lottery on Wednesday, July 15 at 6PM, via Zoom.
Applications can be completed online, through SEB Housing’s lottery application form. A complete information packet can be found on SEB Housing’s website.
Theo Younkin is a 2026 graduate of Newton South High School, former co-Editor-in-Chief of the NSHS Lion’s Roar, and a Fig City News student intern.