Boston Store Place in downtown Erie is receiving $1 million in funding for rehabilitation.

The money from the Pennsylvania Housing Finance Agency (PHFA)'s ReCLAIM program was approved Thursday by its board of directors.

The funding will help the building's owner, Housing and Development Neighborhood Service (HANDS), make improvements to the structure to preserve the affordable housing it offers. The building has 125 rental units and four, first-floor commercial units.

"Boston Store Place is special because of its location in the city of Erie and because of the large amount of affordable housing it contains," said Brian A. Hudson Sr., PHFA Executive Director and CEO. "When revitalized, this building will play a key role in Erie's ongoing economic revitalization."

The Erie Community Foundation and other public and private funders in Erie County will use PHFA's funding to leverage additional investments in Boston Store Place.

PHFA works to provide affordable home and rental options for older adults, low- and moderate-income families, and people with special housing needs. The agency's Revised Community Leveraging Assistance Initiative (ReCLAIM) brings together community partners to identify buildings positioned for adaptive reuse with housing and commercial space that support community revitalization.

Boston Store Place was built in 1931 and was a retail center until 1979. It was vacant until 1998 when it was converted for mixed-use. HANDS purchased the building in April 2019.