Cambridge, MA -- Neville Community Partners will hold the Grand Opening of its new assisted living residence, Neville Place at Fresh Pond, 650 Concord Avenue, on Thursday, November 29 at 3:00 p.m. Federal, state and local officials, healthcare professionals and the larger Cambridge community are expected to attend the celebration. The public is also invited.

Refreshments will be provided, along with guided tours of the newly renovated historic building, which now houses 71 assisted living apartments and a variety of comfortably furnished community rooms with views toward Fresh Pond. The site itself is an "urban jewel" featuring expansive grounds, community gardens and easy access to the walking path that follows the perimeter of the pond. The stately brick building was first opened in 1928 as The Cambridge Home for the Aged and in the mid-1970's was renamed the Mayor Michael J. Neville Manor. The $8 million historic renovation of the "new" Neville Place restored many of the building's original features, including an attractive front entrance with columns and third floor dormers.

Neville Place is a development of Neville Community Partners, a consortium of Cambridge-based housing and health organizations and Boston-based Affirmative Investments established in 1997 by the Cambridge Housing Authority to redevelop the former Neville Manor nursing home into affordable assisted living. To achieve its goal of serving seniors with a range of incomes, Neville Place offers a variety of financial assistance programs for low to moderate-income seniors who need assistance with daily living activities, with a priority on service for Cambridge residents.

Daniel J. Wuenschel, Executive Director of the Cambridge Housing Authority, said, "As our population ages, there is a strong and growing demand for the benefits assisted living has to offer. Now residents of Cambridge have an affordable option to help them stay in the community they love. At Neville Place they can enjoy the independence of their own private apartment with services tailored to their specific needs. Neville Place serves another local need by providing a specialized program that caters to assisted living residents with memory loss and early-stage Alzheimer's Disease."

Mr. Wuenschel continued, "I would like to thank the City of Cambridge and so many concerned Cambridge residents for working with us closely over the past five years to make this day a reality."

In addition to the relocation of a City storage yard, the City of Cambridge is funding a youth soccer field next to Neville Place. Cambridge City Manager Robert Healy's noted the significance of the City's efforts, "Through the work of many individuals and City departments, we were able to transform a project that once was a source of concern into an opportunity to increase and improve the public open space surrounding Neville Place, and enable an important project to move forward in the process." Mr. Healy added, "It is great to begin to see the results of those efforts."

Neville Place is the first phase of a planned senior living campus providing a continuum of care for Cambridge residents in need of healthcare services and housing. To complement the traditional assisted living and specialized care for seniors with memory loss available at Neville Place, a new state-of-the-art skilled nursing center, scheduled for completion in 2003, will offer both short-term rehabilitation and long-term care. Residents of Neville Place assisted living will have access to the skilled nursing center next door, should the need ever arise.

Neville Place was financed through a combination of loans, grants and equity capital from a variety of private and public sources. East Cambridge Savings Bank provided construction financing of $3.4 million and the Massachusetts Housing Partnership provided permanent financing of $3.4 million. National Equity Fund, Inc. (NEF, Inc.) purchased housing and historic tax credits for $6.3 million in equity capital on behalf of lead investor Met Life, which provided $3 million to fund the project, and other NEF, Inc. investors, including Freddie Mac, J.P. Morgan Chase, World Book, Wells Fargo, Fifth Third Bank, Charter One Bank and Beneficial Mutual Savings. A variety of additional loans included $675,000 from the City of Cambridge, a $750,000 loan from the Local Initiatives Support Corporation, a $500,000 HOME loan from the Massachusetts Department of Housing and Community Development, a $500,000 Housing Innovations Fund loan from the Community Economic Development Assistance Corporation, and a $250,000 grant from the Federal Home Loan Bank of Boston through East Cambridge Savings Bank.

"Projects like Neville Place really show the power of public-private partnerships," commented Joseph S. Hagan, NEF, Inc. president and CEO. "Not only has the Cambridge Housing Authority restored a historically significant building, it has provided an opportunity for low-income seniors to access decent, affordable housing that lets them age with dignity and without surrendering their independence," he said.

Executive Director of Neville Place Randy Nason said, "We truly appreciate the warm welcome we have received from our neighbors. We look forward to becoming an integral part of the Cambridge community and an important resource to local seniors. Neville Place provides residents all that assisted living has to offer, including individualized personal care, medication management assistance, healthy delicious meals served in our lovely dining room, social, cultural and wellness programs, scheduled transportation, and more."

The team that came together to create Neville Place has extensive experience in the assisted living and elderly housing fields. The Cambridge Housing Authority, the lead developer, manages 1,200 units of senior housing in the City of Cambridge. Boston-based Affirmative Investments, which assembled the project's financing, has developed 10 affordable assisted living communities in the Northeast. Senior Living Residences, LLC, the manager of daily

operations at Neville Place, is an independent professional management firm based in Boston that specializes in affordable assisted living. SBA/Steffian Bradley Associates of Boston, an award-winning architectural design firm, provided renovation design services. The renovation work was conducted by Columbia Construction Company, which specializes in construction management, general contracting and design building services throughout New England and New York. Currier & Associates, Inc. of Newburyport, which specializes in assisted living, did the interior design.

Neville Place is conveniently located at 650 Concord Avenue just off the Fresh Pond rotary. Cambridge residents who are interested in more information about Neville Place can call for a private appointment and tour at 617-497-8700 or visit www.seniorlivingresidences.com.