Keystone Site Finally Reborn: $21 Million Project Brings 45 New Homes Downtown
NEW BEDFORD — After decades of vacancy and uncertainty, the long-dormant Keystone site on Union Street is finally getting a new chapter.
Mayor Jon Mitchell and local and state officials broke ground Wednesday on a $21 million mixed-use housing development at 193–197 Union St. The project will create 45 new housing units and ground-floor commercial space, transforming a prominent vacant lot along Downtown New Bedford’s main commercial and cultural corridor.
The development is being led by One Circle Co. and DW Capital, with financial support from a combination of public and private partners at the local and state levels.
The site carries a long history in the city. Built in 1861, the Keystone building operated as a furniture store from 1914 until 1981. Years of deterioration eventually took their toll. In 2004, a portion of the building’s roof collapsed, sending debris onto Union Street. The historic structure was demolished shortly afterward.
For the next two decades, the property remained vacant as multiple developers considered different plans for the site, none of which ultimately moved forward. The state purchased the property in 2014 through MassDevelopment.
Now, New Bedford native Lauren Jezienicki, CEO of One Circle, has assembled the financing and partnerships needed to finally move the long-awaited redevelopment forward.
“Twenty-two years after the historic Keystone Building collapsed onto Union Street, the site will be reborn as a beautiful apartment building,” Mitchell said. “It will offer new housing opportunities for our residents and will fill a gaping cavity in the Downtown streetscape.”
Mitchell also praised Jezienicki for taking on what he described as a complex and important project for the city.
For Jezienicki, the development is more than just another housing project — it is deeply personal.
“Over the course of my 20-year career in multifamily development, no project has held more meaning for me than this one,” she said. “Growing up in New Bedford, it has been both a privilege and a personal honor to collaborate with this exceptional stakeholder team in restoring the Keystone to new life.”
The project received $1.25 million in support from the City of New Bedford, including a $1 million American Rescue Plan Act award from Mitchell intended to help spur housing development. One Circle also received $250,000 through the Community Preservation Act, along with a 20-year property tax increment exemption.
Additional financing includes a $3.55 million Housing Development Incentive Program tax credit from the Massachusetts Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities, $9.5 million in construction financing from Coastal1 Credit Union, and $6.1 million from the Massachusetts Housing Investment Corp.’s Neighborhoods Equity Fund.
The approximately 42,000-square-foot building is expected to take about 18 months to complete.
Once finished, the development will include:
- 20 one-bedroom apartments
- 20 two-bedroom apartments
- 5 studio apartments
- Ground-floor retail and commercial space
After years of sitting vacant, the former Keystone site is poised to once again become an active part of Downtown New Bedford — this time bringing much-needed housing, new commercial space, and a major piece of the city’s streetscape back to life.
