Blighted and vacant properties: Their years are numbered! Updates on Way Finders’ City of Homes
Here’s a story about 67. Not the “6-7!” catchphrase your kids currently won’t stop shouting, but 67 years. That is how long the current number of Springfield properties in our City of Homes initiative have collectively sat vacant. Now, Way Finders is turning them into opportunities for first-time homebuyers.
Among the 7 current properties, the length of vacancy ranges from 5 years—191 Tyler Street—to 14 years—at 119 Melville Street and 26-28 Terrence Street.
This data point and other quick facts about the properties were compiled by Way Finders to better update neighbors and the greater community about this transformational work. A pilot turned multi-million-dollar program, City of Homes seeks to repurpose vacant, distressed properties into fully rehabilitated and affordable homes for first-time homebuyers—to drive the building of generational wealth while also helping to stabilize neighborhoods.
Blighted properties don’t exist in a vacuum. They are part of neighborhoods, with neighbors to the sides, to the front, and to the back. Who each day must walk by and see homes that aren’t cared for or lived in. Who may worry about crime or illicit activities taking place. Or worry about the impact on their own property values.
“We had been getting a couple of messages from the neighbors of 24-26 Los Angeles Street property, asking, ‘What’s going on over there? You’ve had this property for a while. What’s the hold up?’” said Director of Marketing and Communications Mark Lattanzi, who responded to all the concerned messages. “I realized there’s an information vacuum here, and we should fill it as best we can. What’s a strategy to keep everybody more in the loop?”
As of early November 2025, each of the City of Homes properties now features a sign out front that helps convey some key information to neighbors. The corresponding and scannable website (wayfinders.org/coh) shares additional property updates—including the expected completion date. There is also an interest form for people to complete, if they wish to receive future communications about the lottery process and deadlines for prospective first-time homebuyers.
“We’ve all seen things happening in the community and wondered, ‘What’s going on?’” said Lattanzi, who collaborated with the Real Estate Development team on the effort and will update the website as project milestones are completed. “I wanted to give as much information as I felt we could to help reduce the confusion. Especially because housing development takes a long time.”
City of Homes broke ground in October 2024 and development work is ongoing. Funded by the MassMutual Foundation, the City of Springfield, Baystate Health, and MassHousing, it will give qualified first-time homebuyers the chance to purchase—via a lottery—affordable, rehabilitated homes in six Springfield neighborhoods.
Vice President of Real Estate Development John Gilbert, who has been in ongoing contact with some neighbors of the City of Homes properties to address questions and concerns, was enthusiastic about Lattanzi’s idea to more proactively convey information to neighbors.
“In fall 2024, I got a call from a neighbor who lives across the street from the two properties on Tyler Street. She told me she’s tired of walking out of her house every single morning and seeing what she looks at across the street,” said Gilbert. “There’s a lot of support from neighboring homeowners here. Excitement about the work that is being done. There is some transformational work being done through City of Homes.”
The transformational vision was echoed by President and CEO Keith Fairey: “Our goal with City of Homes is to have a ripple effect throughout the neighborhood. To improve the outcomes not only for people who move into these homes, but to have a stabilizing and improving impact upon the surrounding neighbors as well. And to inspire more investment as we send the message that these are communities worth investing in.”