Hearthway Acquires Former Polish Club for Affordable Housing
PITTSFIELD, Mass.— Plans are coming into focus for housing at 55 Linden Street, better known as the former Polish Community Club.
Hearthway, in partnership with Causeway Development, has acquired the property for a 47-unit complex that maintains the historic building. The former club will have six apartments, and the remaining units will be in new townhouse and apartment buildings.
Matt Kropke, Hearthway's director of real estate development, assured the Affordable Housing Trust that the lone existing building's facade will remain intact.
"For historic purposes, we want to keep the exterior of the existing building exactly the way it is, and just do a full gut rehab on the inside," he said during Wednesday's regular meeting.
The affordable housing nonprofit was allocated Community Preservation Act funds from Pittsfield's Affordable Housing Trust and is seeking Low-Income Housing Tax Credits from the Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities.
Kropke reported waiting "anxiously" to hear back from the EOHLC. With the Affordable Housing Trust's support and the property acquired and fully remedied, he is feeling optimistic and thanked them twice over for the funding.
With the state's support, Hearthway plans to rent about eight of the 47 apartments to people earning around 30 percent of the area's median income. After financing is secured, the project is estimated to take about a year and a half to complete.
"This is a real benefit, I think, for the city, and also I appreciate you keeping the existing historic building," said Director of Community Development Justine Dodds.
"I think that is really important."
In late 2025, Heathway cut the ribbon on a nearly 40 supportive housing units; nine at The First, located within the Zion Lutheran Church, and 28 on West Housatonic Street. The Housing Resource Center, funded by Pittsfield's American Rescue Plan Act dollars, hosted a celebration for a project that is named for its rarity: The First.
The Zion Church apartments have a Certificate of Occupancy, and Kropke expects people to be able to move in in the next couple of days. The units at 111 West Housatonic Street are about a month out, he reported.
"The city of Pittsfield is a place where things are actually being done to help with the homelessness and the near homelessness, and affordable housing issues that face us," Trust member Michael McCarthy said.
"And I congratulate you and your whole team."
He believes the measure of success will be sustainable and successful support services. Tenants will need and deserve those supports, he added, and if they fail or are mediocre, the project won't be as successful as it could be.
