Right now, every new Chelsea building with required affordable apartments runs its own lottery and its own waitlist. The city wants to replace that patchwork with one system.

City Manager Fidel Maltez has proposed one citywide system for the affordable units that developers must include in new buildings, according to the Chelsea Record. The Chelsea Housing Authority would run it.

How it works today

Chelsea's inclusionary zoning rules require certain private developments to set aside affordable apartments. Today, each project handles those units on its own.

That means every development must:

Write its own marketing plan

Accept and process applications

Hold its own lottery

Set up and manage its own waitlist

What would change

Under the proposal, the Chelsea Housing Authority would advertise the units, certify applicants, hold one citywide lottery and keep one central waitlist. As units open up, they would be filled from that list.

Maltez said the goal is to "preserve the integrity and fairness of the program while making it as practical and effective as possible."

Why the city is doing it

Developers have complained about the paperwork. Maltez said the current setup is costly and complicated, "especially for smaller projects." It also takes up a lot of city staff time.

At the Oct. 5 City Council meeting, Maltez said the current process can cost a smaller developer almost $30,000, according to the meeting transcript. He said the Housing Authority already runs similar systems.

Councilor Lisa Santagate called it "a fantastic initiative." Councilor Giovanni Recupero asked who would cover an estimated cost of $46,222. Maltez said the city would front the money at first, then set up a revolving fund that developers pay into over time.

Who it covers

Maltez told the council the system is only for units created through inclusionary zoning. It doesn't apply to projects built with federal or state housing money.

Part of a bigger housing update

The proposal follows other changes to the program. In June 2026, councilors voted 11–0 to revise the inclusionary zoning rules, according to the City of Chelsea.

The revised rules replaced a flat 15% requirement with a sliding scale for projects under 50 units. Buildings with 50 or more units must set aside either 10% of units at a mix of 50% and 80% of area median income, or 5% of units at 30% of area median income. The city also lowered the fee developers can pay instead of building the units, from $400,000 to $275,000 per unit, and set a review of the policy every two years.

What to watch

The council accepted the proposal as a communication on Oct. 5 without a formal vote, and no start date has been announced. The cost figures come from remarks at that meeting.

Residents interested in applying should watch for notices from the city and the Chelsea Housing Authority.