HCA is planning to build 40 energy-efficient affordable apartments at the properties we own at 840 Mass Ave and 17 Newman Way.
The 40 units will be located in two buildings: one on the large lawn in front of the 840 Mass Ave building and another in the place of the 2-family home that is now at 17 Newman Way. HCA will provide coordination and cover all costs for the relocation of the existing two Newman Way households and support their rent in their new homes for a period of time after their move. The project will include a large interior courtyard with native plants, a commercial office space facing Mass Ave, and new landscaping along Mass Ave.
Project Highlights:
- 40 affordable homes serving a range of low-income households (below 30%, 50% or 60% of the Area Median Income)
- 26 of the units have 2 or 3 bedrooms, the rest have 1 bedroom
- Walkable, transit-oriented development on or steps from multiple bus routes
- Built to very high energy-efficiency standards — Passive House and perhaps also Enterprise Green Communities
- High quality buildings with thoughtful designs that suit the neighborhood: larger density on Mass Ave and a three-story building on Newman Way
- Large inner courtyard for tenants with native plantings and seating
- Ground floor commercial office space on Mass Ave
- New pathways through the site to connect directly to existing crosswalk
- Significant support and funding from state and from the Town of Arlington to acquire the property and enable new housing to be built
Why Call it Emma’s Court?
HCA was originally referring to this project as NewMass Homes. In December 2025 we updated the project name to Emma’s Court, to honor Emma Lockeland Sprague.
Emma inherited the land from her father, Henry Josiah Locke. Henry Locke was an Arlington Selectman and very community minded. He and his daughter ran a farm and farmstand on the 840 Mass Ave site, while living in a house on the adjacent site. When he passed away in 1906, Henry Locke passed the family farm and its farmstand business on to Emma, who continued to operate them (initially with her husband, and then on her own) for many years.
In 1923 Emma sold her family’s land so it could be redeveloped as Lockeland Court: the L-shaped building that remains on the site today. When that building was initially completed in 1927 Emma Locke Sprague moved into it, and lived there until her death in 1936. We are proud to name this project after Emma, not only because of her link to the land, but because of the generosity and care she showed for her community. Upon her death Emma Locke Sprague left significant resources to the people of Arlington, including trust funds for Robbins Library and for “indigent widows” in Town. She also left funds for Symmes Arlington Hospital, First Parish Unitarian Church, and Visiting Nurses Association. Additionally, she created a fund for maintaining the flag and flagpole in front of Arlington High School, which she stated in her will that she admired daily from her home directly across the street.
[Information here largely thanks to the writeup from the Mass Historical Commission inventory list by Arlington resident Richard Duffy]
To join the email list to receive notifications about the project contact:
Erica Schwarz, Executive Director
ESchwarz@HousingCorpArlington.org
781-859-5294 x1
or
Andrew Wofford, Project Manager
AWofford@HousingCorpArlington.org
781-859-5294 x3
PROJECT DOCUMENTS
Zoning application materials submitted to the Arlington Redevelopment Board, December 2025:
Emma’s Court_Application Cover Sheet
Emma’s Court_Dimensional and Parking Information
Emma’s Court_Design Drawings_Site Plan Review
Emma’s Court_Impact Statement E+F_Civil Infrastructure Narrative
Emma’s Court_Impact Statement L_LEED Narrative & Scorecard
Emma’s Court_Stormwater Management Narrative
Emma’s Court_Summary of Neighborhood Outreach
Emma’s Court_Transportation Management Plan
HOW TO SUPPORT THE PROJECT
We encourage supporters to send letters of support to the Arlington Redevelopment Board and their staff at Town Hall. This will be useful anytime during January, February, and early March of 2026, but earlier is better! You can email:
Rzsembery@town.arlington.ma.us
Skorman-houston@town.
Please also copy: eschwarz@housingcorparlington.
PROJECT STATUS UPDATES
March 2026
The next zoning hearing for Emma’s Court will be on Monday, March 9th at 7 pm at 27 Maple Street (Arlington Community Center).
February 2026
Thank you to the many people who sent comments in support of our Emma’s Court project and/or who attended our first zoning hearing on February 2nd!
We got a lot of positive feedback from the Arlington Redevelopment Board (ARB), as well as many recommendations. There are also some updates and additional pieces of data that we were asked to provide for the next hearing.
January 2026
The public hearing for HCA’s Emma’s Court zoning request with the Arlington Redevelopment Board has been RESCHEDULED DUE TO SNOW. It is now scheduled for Monday February 2nd at 7:00 pm. The meeting will be held in person at the Arlington Community Center main meeting room, 27 Maple Street.
It may be a late night, as our agenda item may not start until 7:30 or 8:00 pm. We will have snacks and childcare! We will also have stickers to hand out so you can show your support from your seat if you can’t stay late enough to share public comments.
Emmas Court_Whats Great Overview
December 2025
HCA submitted a zoning application to the Arlington Redevelopment Board in mid-December. We will soon post all of the project details here, as well as the date of our first ARB project hearing, which is expected to be on January 26th.
Fall 2025
In November, we hosted a meeting just for tenants who live at the properties now, and another meeting for the community at large. We are finalizing our plans in order to submit them to the Town and request a zoning approval under Arlington’s MBTA Communities multi-family zone.
PROJECT TEAM
Architect: Utile
Real Estate Development Consultant: David Levy of Community Square Associates