SALISBURY — Housing affordability is a daunting challenge throughout the Northwest Corner, but a coordinated, regional response is reportedly making strides, one new housing unit at a time.
The past year’s success stories were front and center during the Litchfield County Center for Housing Opportunity’s (LCCHO) Annual Housing Affordability Summit held on Sept. 20 at the Salisbury Town Grove Community Center.
Guests included state Housing Commissioner Seila Mosquera-Bruno, members of local housing nonprofits, area legislators, first selectmen, town housing committees and others passionate about create housing opportunities for those who live and work in the community.
“Housing is not just a roof over our heads. It is the foundation of our lives, yet the cost of housing is a growing concern,” Mosquera-Bruno told the crowd that surpassed 100 attendees. “When families can afford housing, they are investing in their future.”
Millions in state, federal funding in 2023
Jocelyn Ayer, LCCHO’s director, pointed to a “doubling of the number of affordable housing units in the pipeline since we got started a few years ago.”
She recited her organization’s impact by the numbers: 15 local housing nonprofits being provided with day-to-day project management support; 323 affordable housing units being supported to move forward as part of 18 developments in 13 towns; a 100% increase in the number of affordable housing units in the development pipeline (increase of 160 to 323 since 2022, and $4.8 million in state funding accessed by local nonprofits to construct and/or renovate housing in 2023.
Also, Ayer pointed to $4.25 million in federal funding accessed by local nonprofits for affordable housing in 2023 units and $176,000 in pre-development seed funding committed to support six developments.
She said $33,800 in pass-through funding was provided for community engagement projects in Barkhamsted, Canaan, Cornwall, Goshen, Kent, Litchfield, Morris, Norfolk, Salisbury, Sharon, Warren and Winchester, the Litchfield Hills Greenprint Collaborative and Kent Affordable Housing.
Mosquero-Bruno offered suggestions on how towns could add to their affordable housing stock, including the revision of zoning laws to allow for duplexes and townhouses and the promotion of public-private partnerships.
“Don’t just think about building, but also acquiring. It’s not just about construction it’s about engaging community members” through education and advocacy, she noted.
A team of stakeholders cut the ribbon on 10 new affordable housing units in Salisbury, From left, Peter Halle, president of the Salisbury Housing Committee, Inc.; Jocelyn Ayer, vice-president, SHC; U.S. Senator Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.); State Representative Maria Horn (D-64); Marcus Smith, Connecticut Housing Finance Authority; Seila Mosquera-Bruno, Commissioner, Connecticut Department of Housing; T.J. Magnoli, Community Relations, Eversource; and Curtis Rand, Salisbury First Selectman.
Patrick L. Sullivan
Sharing successes and challenges
The evening included a brief update on Litchfield County success stories, including the ribbon cutting earlier in the day for 10 new units at Salisbury’s Sarum Village III.
“Unfortunately, we don’t get to do that every day,” said Ayer of the newly christened rental units. “So we need to celebrate the little wins.”
One by one, updates on various stages of housing projects, from rental units to single-family homes, unfolded from representatives of the Barkhamsted Housing Trust, Cornwall Housing Corporation, Falls Village Housing Trust, Goshen Housing Trust, Kent Affordable Housing, Litchfield Housing Trust, Litchfield/Morris Housing Authorities and the Foundation for Norfolk Living.
Also represented was the Salisbury Housing Committee, Salisbury Housing Trust, Sharon Housing Trust, Warren Affordable Housing Corporation, Washington Community Housing Trust and the Winchester Housing Partnership.
Peter Halle, president of the Salisbury Housing Committee, explained that in addition to the 10 new units at Sarum Village, projects in the pipeline include Dresser Woods, a 20-unit affordable housing project and the long-awaited Holley Place. “NIMBY is a reality, but it’s moving ahead,” he reported.
Earlier in the day, attendees were encouraged to take a self-guided tour of current/planned housing developments in Salisbury. In addition to Sarum Village, Dresser Woods and Holley Place, other sites on the tour included the Pope Property, two affordable homes by the Salisbury Housing Trust and Lakeview Apartments.
“We really have an embarrassment of riches in Salisbury when it comes to working on affordable housing projects,” noted Jennifer Kronholm Clark, vice president of the Salisbury Housing Trust.
‘The real success stories are our tenants’
Chris Sanders, president of the Goshen Housing Trust, said he was happy to report that 13 out of 18 rental units in his town have undergone major renovation since May of 2021 and are occupied, despite the fact that “Goshen, Connecticut is not necessarily a friend to affordable housing.”
He said “the real success stories are our tenants.”
Sanders spoke of the single mom with an infant who was a tenant for 15 years and recently purchased a home in Winsted. He recalled the long-time senior who lost his home due to healthcare costs and “didn’t know where to go next but wanted to live close by and has been with us for two years.”
Sanders recalled the professional couple who are employed locally, and the mom with three kids who was a victim of domestic violence “and found a safe home with us.”
Just last week, he said, one of our tenants gave birth to a baby girl. “It was the first tenant who snuck in!” he said, eliciting laughter from the crowd. “These are really the success stories affordable housing is about.”
Deidre DiCara, representing the Winchester Housing Partnership, spoke of the planned renovation of the vacant Batcheller school building on Pratt Street into 35 rental units. The vote to sell the school to the nonprofit Northwest Senior Housing, she said, “squeaked through” by a heart-stopping four votes.
The summit, sponsored this year by National Iron Bank, concluded with panel sessions on the upcoming Legislative session, and financing resources for affordable housing.
Attendees were treated to the debut of a short film screening showcasing the region’s collaborative effort and the strategies that have come out of it.
“I am truly grateful and committed to our shared vision,” the state housing commissioner told those in attendance. “Despite these challenges there is hope.”
Contemporary chamber musicians, HUB, performing at The Clark.
MASS MoCA is known for its 20th-century holdings spread throughout a sprawling complex of industrial brick buildings. Installations by Sol LeWitt and James Turrell have permanent homes there. Just down the road in Williamstown, the Clark features masterworks by Winslow Homer, Frederic Remington, John Singer Sargent and Claude Monet.
But what visitors might not immediately associate with those established names is how deeply both institutions invest in art happening right now.
On Saturday afternoon, a panel of young artists discussed their relationships with art, identity and technology as part of MASS MoCA’s “Technologies of Relation” exhibition, which opened that evening. The artists represented a broad range of cultural backgrounds, drawing on ancestry while exploring the future of art and technology.
The work itself ran the gamut: wax relief paintings, stained glass, interactive video and sculptural installations. One immersive piece automated the traditional Armenian practice of reading fortunes from coffee grounds. Particularly striking were Roopa Vasudevan’s hand-drawn QR codes and Taeyoon Choi’s large-scale weavings of binary code.
Opening the same night was Zora J. Murff’s “RACE/HUSTLE.” Through photographs, paintings and installations, Murff explores the wide-ranging and sometimes violent implications of being Black in America today. Each piece — whether confronting the rise of white supremacy or examining stereotypes imposed on Black communities — carries razor-sharp visual commentary designed to unsettle.
Pelenakeke Brown’s “Reverb” (detail) at Mass MoCA. D.H. Callahan
On Sunday, the Clark continued the contemporary thread. A small exhibition of work by Raffaella della Olga, titled “Typescript,” features intricate patterns created using a typewriter on varied paper surfaces. The effect seems almost impossible until viewers watch a video of della Olga loading her typewriter with 140-grit sandpaper and typing in a hypnotic rhythm. Though the typewriter is considered obsolete technology, she continues to find new applications for it, completing some of the works in recent months.
Next door in the Clark auditorium, HUB New Music performed works written specifically for its unusual instrumentation: violin, cello, clarinet and flute. While that combination may not stand out to casual listeners, relatively little classical repertoire exists for it. The ensemble regularly commissions composers to expand the possibilities.
The results were striking. From the opening notes of Francisco del Pino’s “Passacaglia,” the quartet’s command and layered repetition pulled unexpected emotion from the audience.
After three pieces came the world premiere of Daniel Wohl’s “Mirage,” a roughly 25-minute work accompanied by digital blips, static and electronic textures evoking radio transmissions and UFO lore. Hearing four virtuoso musicians extract entirely new sounds from traditional instruments echoed the weekend’s larger theme: old tools made new again.
Like della Olga’s typewriter, Vasudevan’s QR codes or Murff’s charged imagery, the performances demonstrated that contemporary art often grows from familiar materials — reimagined.
The old masters will always draw visitors to these institutions. But when living artists command equal attention, this quiet corner of the Berkshires feels less like the middle of nowhere and more like a creative epicenter.
D.H. Callahan is a voice actor, creative director and trail steward. He lives with his artist wife in West Cornwall, Connecticut.
Want more of our stories on Google? Click here to make us a Preferred Source.
Impressive dance moves were displayed by Village Trustee Shannon Mawson who added a visual flair of fabric in motion at Club Friendly, a community dance at Village Hall on Friday, Feb. 27.
Young children also got into the spirit, tossing countless balloons that were scattered throughout the hall.
Young dancers surveyed the scene at Club Friendly, a community dance at Village Hall on Friday, Feb. 27.Leila Hawken
Pizza and light refreshments were served in the Village Hall meeting room, offering a place for attendees to recharge between songs.
The event was organized by the Millbrook Library and the Millbrook Arts Group, and was used as a pilot program to gauge interest in hosting future community dance nights.
“It could continue with different themes,” said library director Courtney Tsahalis, adding that participation by other sponsoring organizations would be welcome.
Tsahalis said the turnout shows there’s interest in holding more dances.
Want more of our stories on Google? Click here to make us a Preferred Source.
