Senator Bernie Sanders headlined a ribbon cutting event marking the completion of 38 permanently affordable apartments, a new Veterans’ Center, and space for the Chittenden County Community Justice Center. The Howard Plant VFW Post 782 sold the building to the Champlain Housing Trust to make way for the new development and will operate out of the building. Evernorth was a co-developer of the building.
[Extra: time lapse video of the construction]
“Throughout our state, too many Vermonters are being squeezed between stagnating wages and the skyrocketing cost of housing,” said Senator Sanders. “That is why I fought to secure $1 million in Congressionally Directed Spending to help create this permanently affordable housing, which includes apartments reserved for veterans and a veteran’s service center. Decent and affordable housing is a human right. Period.”
Post Apartments includes 38 apartments with nine set aside for people experiencing homelessness – and four of the apartments are occupied by Veterans. Champlain Housing Trust’s resident services team will support tenants and connect them to other resources in the community. The building is fully occupied.
The Howard Plant VFW Post 782 approached the Champlain Housing Trust and the City five years ago to discuss how to redevelop the property while preserving access to a center for Veterans. That initial vision developed into what is here today. Post Apartments includes eight efficiencies, 26 one-bedroom apartments, and four with two-bedrooms. The VFW and Chittenden County Community Justice Center occupy a combined 6,800 square feet of space on the first floor.
“Redeveloping a small site in the middle of Burlington doesn’t come without it’s challenges and costs,” said Michael Monte, CHT’s CEO. “But it’s the perfect place for housing and the VFW Post 782 had a vision and determination that was contagious. Many of the people who have moved in work for downtown businesses and local nonprofits, serving the community. We’re proud to serve them in return.”
The rents for the apartments are affordable for single person households that earn up to $62,400, and include all utilities, including heating and cooling. The building is fully electric and has solar panels on the roof. Rents start at $1,160.
The site is next to a gas station and adjacent to where the City decommissioned an old sewer in a ravine that runs through the neighborhood, leading to significant environmental remediation and additional engineering costs. About $1.6 million in financing through the Brownfields program was dedicated to the site cleanup. The location is ideal: with all the shops and stores downtown accessible right out the front door.
“When communities like the City of Burlington say ‘yes’ to housing, the outcome is Post Apartments,” added Kathy Beyer, Evernorth’s Senior Vice President for Real Estate Development. “We are thrilled to be opening the doors to 38 new homes right in downtown Burlington.”
The redevelopment of the property was financed by more than 20 funding sources adding up to about $24 million, including the first floor commercial space, with $1 million through U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Community Project support secured by Senator Sanders. The City allocated roughly $3 million from various local and federal funding sources, including a $1 million grant award from federal American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds. NeighborWorks America made a $365,000 grant.
The Vermont Housing & Conservation Board awarded approximately $9 million from state and federal sources, including $6.9 million from ARPA-State Fiscal Recovery funds, $1.4 million from an appropriation through the State of Vermont’s budget, and $595,000 from the National Housing Trust Fund – a program originally sponsored by Senator Sanders. Federal Tax Credit Equity administered by the Vermont Housing Finance Agency (VHFA) and provided by Evernorth’s 481 Fund II contributed by TD Bank, totaled over $6.4 million, and Vermont’s Affordable Housing Tax Credit added another $463,500.