Seniors enjoying new city housing: officials point to project as a model

SEN. BERNIE SANDERS chats with some of the residents of Vergennes Senior Housing before a ceremony Monday marking the completion of the affordable housing complex on Armory Lane. Independent photo/Trent Campbell

VERGENNES Larry Carlson was on the waiting list for an apartment in the Vergennes Senior Housing building for more than three years. Once construction began, he checked back every week to see if he would get in. Now a resident of the newly opened facility off Armory Lane, he is thrilled with his experience.

As soon as the architect first came out, I was over to the offices and signed up. I was here every single week to check and see how the progress was coming, said Carlson.

At an open house Monday morning, Addison County Community Trust (ACCT) Executive Director Terry McKnight said that Carlsons satisfaction with the project was typical.

You can look around and see the faces of the people that now live in that building. If you talk to any of them, theyre really enjoying it, McKnight said.

U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., joined McKnight and representatives of Housing Vermont, ACCT, and other project contributors to celebrate the opening of Vergennes Senior Housing. The $6.2 million facility will provide 25 affordable and energy-efficient apartments to seniors.

The facility was paid for through a mix of public and private funds, from Peoples United Bank, various Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) programs, Vermont Housing Finance Agency, Vermont Housing and Conservation Board, Vermont Community Development Program and Efficiency Vermont.

Sanders secured $380,000 for the project in a HUD grant.

This is exactly the kind of housing we should be building, Sanders said. Not only does it meet the significant need for quality and affordable senior housing , but it does it in a very energy-efficient manner.

Nancy Owens, president of Housing Vermont, acknowledged the importance of creating affordable housing.

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Seniors enjoying new city housing: officials point to project as a model