MAYOR WU, ASIAN COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION, AND CHINATOWN RESIDENTS BREAK GROUND ON DEVELOPMENT PROJECT AT 55 HUDSON STREET

MAYOR WU, ASIAN COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION, AND CHINATOWN RESIDENTS BREAK GROUND ON DEVELOPMENT PROJECT AT 55 HUDSON STREET   New development will create 110 affordable homes and a permanent Chinatown branch of the Boston Public Library

BOSTON - Wednesday, September 17, 2025 – Mayor Michelle Wu today joined the Asian Community Development Corporation (ACDC), the Boston Public Library (BPL), the Mayor’s Office of Housing (MOH), the City of Boston’s Public Facilities Department (PFD), the City of Boston’s Planning Department, the Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities (EOHLC), MassHousing, elected officials, and community partners to celebrate the groundbreaking of the Parcel R-1 redevelopment at 55 Hudson Street in Chinatown. The project will bring 110 affordable homes and a new permanent Chinatown branch of the Boston Public Library to the neighborhood, turning a city-owned parking lot into a community anchor. The 12-story, mixed-use building will include 66 affordable rental apartments and 44 affordable homeownership units, built above a two-story, 17,000-square-foot library. This development fulfills a decades-long request from Chinatown residents for a permanent library while ensuring that working families can continue to call the neighborhood home. “55 Hudson Street will bring new affordable housing units and a vibrant library branch to Chinatown, supporting residents with the resources they need,” said Mayor Michelle Wu. “I am thankful for the leadership of the Asian Community Development Corporation and the incredible collaboration between our City departments, which allowed this groundbreaking project to come to life. As we work to make Boston a home for everyone, these new additions to Chinatown will ensure that Boston remains a city where our communities can thrive.” “It has never been a more critical time to be building more affordable housing units in the City of Boston, particularly in Chinatown. Not only will the community see 100 new affordable units with this project, but it will also bring about a new Chinatown branch library, helping fulfill a long promise to the people of this neighborhood,” said Representative Aaron Michlewitz, Chair of the House Committee on Ways & Means (D-Boston). “I want to thank the Mayor for her support of this project and for her steadfast commitment to the Chinatown community. I also want to thank the Asian Community Development Corporation and the countless other people in the community who made this project a reality.”  “This project is more than new housing and a library, it’s an investment in the long-term stability of Chinatown,” said Sheila Dillon, Chief of Housing. “55 Hudson creates affordable homes for families at a range of incomes, while also adding a permanent space for learning and gathering. It represents the kind of community-centered development that strengthens neighborhoods and keeps Boston affordable for generations to come.” Chinatown has not had a permanent library branch in nearly 70 years. In 2018, a temporary 1,500-square-foot branch opened in the basement of the China Trade Center at 2 Boylston Street. The new branch library will provide state-of-the-art spaces and expanded services that reflect the needs and aspirations of the community: reflecting and reinforcing the culture of the Chinatown community, providing multi-generational gathering space, and providing services to support the community’s needs.  “ACDC is honored to lead this project in partnership with the City of Boston and the Chinatown community,” said Angie Liou, Executive Director of ACDC. “For decades, community activists and residents have fought against urban renewal and gentrification in Chinatown. By creating affordable housing opportunities and a permanent home for the Chinatown Library, this development will complete the reknitting of the fabric of historic Hudson Street.”  The branch will feature more than 7,000 square feet of space dedicated to collections and reading areas, as well as separate teen and children’s spaces. Additionally, it will include nearly 4,000 square feet of community and multi-generational gathering spaces, including a community room with a capacity for 100 people.  “This is a truly historic day,” said David Leonard, President of the Boston Public Library. “After nearly 70 years, it is time to return a permanent branch library to the Chinatown community. We are grateful to Mayor Wu for the capital investments that make this possible, and we are especially grateful to the Chinatown community and many generations of young advocates for their decades-long, fierce advocacy for library services. We look forward to significantly expanding access to learning, technology, and connection for all of Chinatown’s residents and visitors.” “MassHousing is proud to be part of this visionary project creating 110 new homes and building a vibrant community space for the residents of Chinatown,” said MassHousing CEO Chrystal Kornegay. The design, led by Stantec, features a glazed brick and glass façade and energy-efficient elements, including LED lighting programmed with animation sequences at night. The project is part of Boston’s Housing with Public Assets initiative, which utilizes public land to deliver affordable housing paired with essential neighborhood resources. “This groundbreaking is the culmination of decades of advocacy by the Chinatown community for affordable housing and a neighborhood branch of the Boston Public Library,” said Chief of Planning Kairos Shen. “I am proud we were able to offer this public land to create new, affordable homes and a vital community space which Bostonians will use for decades to come. Thank you to the many staff people involved in this process, and of course to the community for their collaboration.” “The Community Preservation Act was designed to ensure Boston invests in lasting community assets,” said Thadine Brown, Director of the Community Preservation Office. “By helping fund 55 Hudson, we’re supporting both affordable housing and a permanent library — resources that will strengthen Chinatown for generations. This project shows how CPA dollars can directly improve quality of life for residents while preserving the character and vitality of our neighborhoods.” “We are proud to be building the new Chinatown Branch Library through a first-of-its-kind collaboration that combines affordable housing with a vital public asset,” said Carleton Jones, Executive Director of the Public Facilities Department. “This project, made possible through partnership with several City departments, the Asian Community Development Corporation, and designers Utile and Stantec, will create a modern, multigenerational hub that reflects Chinatown’s culture and identity while meeting the community’s evolving needs.” The 55 Hudson Street project builds on years of planning and advocacy for affordable housing and community facilities in Chinatown. It reflects Mayor Wu’s commitment to making Boston a home for everyone. To expand affordable housing across the city, Mayor Wu has directed new financial resources into mixed-income housing, commissioned a public land audit to maximize the use of City-owned land, and streamlined approval processes to cut permitting times by more than 25 percent. She has also advanced changes to zoning and development policies, including Linkage and Inclusionary Zoning, that are helping drive the creation of affordable housing by private developers. These efforts, combined with new developments like 55 Hudson Street, are bringing more affordable housing to neighborhoods across Boston.