Harvard To Pay for Elderly Care Services at Cambridge Apartment Complex

Harvard University has decided to fund elderly care services for the next 10 years for residents of the Putnam Square apartment complex, an affordable housing building in Cambridge formerly owned by the University.

Harvard sold the apartment complex, located on 2 Mt. Auburn Street, to the Homeowners Rehab Inc. in August. HRI, a non-profit organization, has pledged to keep the cost of living affordable for apartment residents for the next 30 years.

Payment for “aging in place” services will commence on November 1, although the exact cost of these services to Harvard is unknown. The Center for Disease Control defines “aging in place” as "the ability to live in one's own home and community safely, independently, and comfortably, regardless of age, income, or ability level."

According to University spokesperson Lauren M. Marshall, Harvard’s services will include assistance with daily activities such as bathing and getting dressed, access to health insurance specialists, and various wellness programs—all “intended to help elderly residents maximize their independence and fill potential gaps with assistance in basic activities,” she wrote in an emailed statement.

“Harvard works with Cambridge in a variety of ways to support quality of life for residents, including programs in the public schools, housing, and supporting senior citizens,” Marshall wrote in an emailed statement. “As part of the transfer of the property to HRI, over the next ten years the university is providing wrap-around supportive living services for residents of 2 Mt. Auburn Street.”

Harvard will be providing elderly care services through local non-profit organization Somerville-Cambridge Elder Services, whose stated mission is to provide the elderly with the  “information, services and support needed to make choices which enhance health, well being and independence.”

Marshall said that Harvard’s sale of the building to HRI was also structured in a way to allow ”timely capital improvements to the building,” The Putnam Square apartment complex is almost 40 years old, and several residents have complained to the Cambridge City Council about the decline of the building’s heating and elevator systems.

According to Cambridge City Councilor Kenneth E. Reeves ’72, who assisted in the sales negotiations between Harvard and HRI, residents were initially wary of Harvard’s decision to sell the complex because of the uncertainty surrounding continued elderly assistance after the sale.

Now, Reeves explained, “Tenants are quite pleased to know who will own the building and what services will be available to them.”