Rob Quinn feels like he has his life back. After his mother’s passing during the pandemic and long months of isolation living in a high-rise in the South End of Boston, he felt adrift, just existing day to day. That changed when he moved into The Pryde, a 74-unit, LGBTQ-affirming senior housing community built in an empty, 123-year-old Boston school and completed in June 2024.
“This isn’t an apartment to me. It’s my home,” Rob said. “Here, I’m able to be who I am in my 60s with limited means but healthy and hopefully with many more years ahead of me."
Built in Boston’s diverse Hyde Park neighborhood, The Pryde is one of five school-to-housing conversions TD has supported across Massachusetts. Each project preserves community heritage while delivering the stability that comes with more housing affordability options and solutions:
- Elias Brookings Apartments: Home City Development is transforming the former Elias Brookings Elementary School in Springfield, damaged in a 2011 tornado, into 42 affordable apartments. It blends historic preservation with much-needed family housing.
- Julia Bancroft Apartments: Pennrose redeveloped the Julia Bancroft School in Auburn into 60 senior apartments. The LEED Silver-designed property combines a complete renovation with a new addition, offering a fitness center, community room, and outdoor patios.
- Hawthorne Lofts: North Shore CDC is repurposing two former schools into 61 affordable apartments in Salem. One will focus on providing housing for artists while the other will serve seniors.
- Henry T. Wing Residences: CG Development is redeveloping the Henry T. Wing School in Sandwich into senior housing. Phase I delivered 38 units for residents age 62 and older, with future phases expected to expand the campus to as many as 128 mixed-income apartments.
Meeting urgent housing needs
Rob’s journey shows how more affordable housing can restore dignity, belonging, and opportunity to individuals. That’s why TD Bank backs developments like The Pryde in Boston and across its entire geographic footprint. School renovations are an especially creative way to repurpose existing neighborhood structures that can help revitalize their surroundings.
Andrew Warren, Senior Vice President of Commercial Real Estate at TD Bank, sees address housing affordability as both sound business and a community obligation. “We know the consequences of housing costs rising faster than incomes,” he said. “Affordable housing provides stability for individuals while strengthening entire neighborhoods. Our role is to support developments that make a real difference in people’s lives and are inclusive, sustainable, and community-focused.”
The Pryde: the transformation from old school to housing
The Pryde is New England’s first affordable housing community for LGBTQ seniors developed by Pennrose and LGBTQ-affirming Senior Housing, Inc. TD Bank backed it with $22 million in construction financing and also bought federal and state low-income housing and historic tax credits for additional funding.
Pennrose, a long-time TD client, is one of the largest affordable housing developers in the U.S. with more than 27,000 housing units in 14 states and the District of Columbia. Working with a local architect, the firm transformed the former William Barton Rogers School into a mix of studio, one-, and two-bedroom apartments for low-income LGBTQ seniors.
The adaptive reuse preserved much of the 1902 building’s architecture — from its mosaic tiles to the auditorium stage — while adding modern amenities including a fitness center, a courtyard walking track, and 10,000 square feet of community space. Programs ranging from cultural events to classes on healthy living, digital skills, and many other topics help residents age in place and stay connected with others.
“The Pryde creates a safe and affirming community where seniors can be their authentic selves,” said Karmen Cheung, Regional Vice President at Pennrose. “That kind of support is life-changing. And while rehabbing schools to address the very real challenge of housing affordability often has many more challenges than new builds, they were originally anchors of community life and restoring them helps to protect the area’s architectural character.”
Building relationships
For TD, supporting meaningful housing affordability solutions means more than financing buildings. It’s about building relationships.
“Projects like The Pryde don’t happen without strong public–private partnerships,” said Sue Taylor, TD Vice President and Relationship Manager. “We work closely with developers, municipalities, and nonprofits to bring resources together and ensure these communities succeed.”
That philosophy is embedded in the bank’s broader strategy to create real and meaningful solutions to generate more stable housing affordable options. By combining construction loans, equity investments, and tax credit financing, TD helps developers navigate a project’s many complexities while staying true to their community-building missions.
More than housing
Back in Hyde Park, Rob sees The Pryde as proof that affordable housing can transform more than buildings — it can transform lives. Through a resident storytelling workshop, for example, he found the spark to finish his first book, one he had started but set aside 13 years earlier.
“I got motivated to complete and publish it,” he said. “If I wasn’t here at The Pryde, I’m sure that wouldn’t have happened. It’s just one of many ways living here has enriched my life and those of my neighbors, most who are now my friends, often having dinners and going out together.”
For TD Bank, Rob’s story is a reminder of why it continues to invest in inclusive, housing affordability solutions in all the communities it serves. “No matter who they are, when people have affordable, secure places to call home, the entire community benefits from revitalized neighborhoods with more sustainable, local economies,” said Andrew. “Those are the kinds of impacts we want to foster and do so in relationship with developers like Pennrose and community groups like LGBTQ Senior Housing.”
We hope you found this helpful. This article is for informational purposes only and is based on information available as of October 2025 and is subject to change. This content is not intended to be used or acted upon with respect to any client's specific circumstances. For specific advice about your unique circumstances, consider talking with your qualified professionals
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