The City of Cambridge is moving forward with Fiscal Year 2027 (FY27) Community Preservation Act (CPA) funding to support affordable housing, preserve historic and community resources, and improve parks and open spaces across the City.
The FY27 recommendations were developed by the Cambridge Community Preservation Act Committee following a public process that included hearings on project recommendations and funding allocations. The Committee voted on its recommendations in August before they were presented to the City Council in September. This year’s process drew nearly 150 comments through public meetings, email, the CPA website, petitions, and other forms of public input.
Affordable Housing Funding
The largest share of FY27 CPA funding, $19 million, will support the Cambridge Affordable Housing Trust.
CPA funding is one of the City’s major tools for creating and preserving affordable housing. Through FY27, approximately $278.5 million in CPA funding had been allocated or appropriated for affordable housing, supporting the preservation of 1,631 affordable units, the acquisition or creation of 1,024 rental units, and 250 first-time homebuyer units. CPA funds committed to affordable housing have also leveraged more than $600 million from other public and private sources.
The investment comes as Cambridge continues to face significant demand for affordable housing. More than 19,000 households are currently on the Cambridge Housing Authority waiting list, while the Housing Department has more than 5,500 applicants in its affordable rental housing pool.
Recent CPA-supported housing efforts include the completion of 106 affordable rental units at 52 New Street in June 2026. Meanwhile, efforts to create or preserve more than 1,000 additional affordable units are underway across Cambridge.
Cambridge’s History and Community Spaces
Historic preservation projects are also one of important initiatives that FY27 CPA funding support, which aims to restore recognizable Cambridge landmarks to protect records that document the City’s history.
Among the projects are $150,000 to restore Gift of the Wind, the 46-foot kinetic sculpture that has marked the entrance to Porter Square Station since 1983, and $500,000 for façade restoration at Odd Fellows Hall, home of The Dance Complex.
Also, at St. Augustine’s, funding will support a larger effort by Black History in Action in Cambridgeport to renovate and revive the historic church as a center for history, culture, and community, including new stairs and an accessible lift.
At the Cambridge Community Center, the funding will help restore the exterior of a building constructed in 1882 that has served as the Center’s home since its founding by Black pastors and community leaders in 1929.
CPA funding will also help preserve Cambridge’s historic documents. $50,000 for the Black Cambridge Historical Collections will support work by the Cambridge Public Library’s Archives and Special Collections to preserve, process, and make accessible collections documenting Cambridge’s Black community. The Library currently holds approximately 100 feet of unprocessed materials, including family and professional papers, organizational and church records, rare books, videos, and newsletters created by Black Cantabrigians.
Additional funding will support conservation of City documents and vital records, restoration of the City Hall belfry, weatherization of historic City Hall windows, preservation grants, and restoration of stained-glass windows at the Cambridge Cemetery Lodge. In total, the FY27 historic preservation recommendations account for $2.38 million.
Cambridge Open Space Projects
Another $2.38 million in FY27 CPA funding will support five open space projects across Cambridge, ranging from neighborhood park improvements to ecological restoration.
The largest investment is $1.4 million for Hoyt Field in the Riverside neighborhood. The project will focus on replacing playground areas and repairing and improving surrounding paved areas, with the design informed by an ongoing community engagement process. Construction is currently anticipated to begin in late 2027 or early 2028.
Another $750,000 will support Wilder-Lee Park in Mid-Cambridge, where future improvements will be guided by a neighborhood parks vision planning process and a site-specific design planned for 2027.
Community-led environmental projects will also receive CPA support. $97,000 for the Alewife Brook Reservation will support invasive species management, native habitat restoration across eight acres, and continued development of a woodland trail and educational signage. Another $65,000 will support native plantings at Hell’s Half Acre and tree care along Memorial Drive, while $30,000 will fund improvements at the Lynch Family Skatepark, including additional seating, a bike rack, and other amenities identified through community outreach.
More Than Two Decades of Community Investment
Cambridge residents voted to adopt the Community Preservation Act in 2001, establishing a 3% surcharge on property tax bills, with certain residential exemptions, to support affordable housing, historic preservation, and open space. The Commonwealth provides additional matching funds. Since its adoption in 2001, CPA funding has provided more than $278.5M in support of affordable housing and $347.9M total for projects.
“The FY27 projects continue that investment, translating community priorities and public input into improvements that preserve Cambridge’s history, strengthen our neighborhoods, expand affordable housing opportunities, and care for the public spaces residents use every day,” said Taha Jennings, City of Cambridge Budget Director and Chair of the Community Preservation Act Committee.
Additional information about the Community Preservation Act process in Cambridge can be found at:
www.cambridgema.gov/cpa.
