New Affordable Housing Units To Be Built On Stamford's West Side
STAMFORD, CT — Two broken down buildings will be demolished to make room for 39 new affordable housing units on Stamford’s West Side, a project that advocates hope will deter chronic homelessness in and around the city.
Gov. Ned Lamont and other local elected officials gathered at 41 Stillwater Ave., Monday morning to highlight a $2.45 million grant from the state’s Community Investment Fund (CIF) to Pacific House, the Stamford-based organization which offers emergency shelter and deeply affordable housing for homeless people in the community.
Pacific House will knock down the structures at 41 and 45 Stillwater Ave., and build a mixture of one, two and three-bedroom units in a nearly 40,000 square-foot development.
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Pacific House’s headquarters will be moved to the ground floor of the new building, as will case management services.
During a brief news conference, Lamont spoke of the housing growth in Stamford recently.
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“I love what’s going on in Stamford. I think it’s a template I’d love to see around the rest of the state,” Lamont said. “This is housing for folks with special needs, getting folks [housing] who deserve a break, folks who have gotten a bad break, folks who maybe are homeless. It’s the type of smart, inclusive, compassionate growth that I think represents the best of Stamford and the best of Connecticut. I’m really proud of what we’re doing here today together.”
Mayor Caroline Simmons said there’s been an uptick in Stamford’s homeless population since the COVID-19 pandemic began. She stressed that affordable housing remains a top priority of her administration.
“My goal is to build an inclusive, equitable, vibrant city where everyone can thrive, and that starts with making sure we’ve got safe affordable housing in our city. I believe we not only have a moral imperative to do this, to make sure everyone has a roof over their head and a safe place to sleep at night, but also we have an economic imperative to do this,” Simmons said. “We are the economic engine of the state, but as we grow we need to make sure our workforce can live here, and that as we attract businesses and jobs here, we need to make sure people that serve our city every day can afford to live in our city.”
Pacific House Executive Director Rafael Pagan estimated that it could take two years before the project is complete.
The affordable housing units will help serve three groups of constituents for Pacific House, Pagan said: homeless families, seniors who are aging in place and people with disabilities.
“Our core mission is really to end homelessness. To that end, many years ago, we figured out that the way to end homelessness is through housing. Since then, we’ve been in the business of housing development,” Pagan said.
Pacific House is also currently undertaking housing projects in Norwalk, Danbury and another smaller project in Stamford on Ann Street, Pagan said.
The money for the project is coming from round two of the CIF, which aims to target and unlock “economic development potential of historically underserved communities” in Connecticut, according to Rob Hotaling, deputy commissioner of the Department of Economic and Community Development.
Round one featured $76.5 million for 26 projects in 15 municipalities across Connecticut, and was approved last December by Lamont and the state bond commission.
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Round two includes nearly $100 million for 28 projects.
Hotaling said Pacific House has a “long, rich history” in Stamford as an anchor for the community to end homelessness through housing.
“I can’t imagine a better way to continue building inclusive growth and opportunity than by supporting an organization in one of our state’s fastest growing urban and economic centers, that not only puts an affordable house over a family’s head, but also lays the foundation to help them live a better life,” Hotaling said.
He stressed that the project is about more than just affordable units.
“They’re homes for families to feel safe and to be part of this community. It’s a moral imperative we do this for our state,” Hotaling said.
State Sen. Ceci Maher (D-26); and state Reps. Rachel Khanna (D-149); Anabel Figueroa (D-148); and Hubert Delany (D-144) were also in attendance to lend support to the project and Pacific House.
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