Our Town, Our Future

“I love, love, love it!” says Amy Hosier about living in an affordable apartment at Sharon Ridge. “The place is great. The apartments are beautiful.”

Amy and her husband Lloyd are longtime residents of the Northwest Corner. Amy’s journey took her from the Sharon Pharmacy to working at local hospitals as a certified phlebotomist. However, an injury forced her into early retirement, leaving her dependent on Social Security disability benefits.

Lloyd grew up in Sharon and worked as a custodian at Region 1 schools until his retirement at the age of 70. Several years ago the State dropped his pension plan and gave him a lump sum instead. The money soon ran out so he is now dependent upon Social Security and a small union pension.

For the Hosiers, as for many seniors, retirement has brought a double whammy: dwindling financial resources and skyrocketing housing costs. When a rent hike threatened to upend their lives, Sharon Ridge’s affordable housing offered a lifeline.

They were fortunate to apply in 2017 since today there are 161 people on the waitlist.

For just over $600 a month, Amy and Lloyd enjoy a comfortable two-bedroom apartment, complete with nearby laundry facilities and a sense of community they never expected to find.

They say, “We have really good neighbors. We’re a community. We like that it’s a diverse neighborhood with people of different ages and people with young children.

It’s nice to have little kids playing outside.” They know a number of their neighbors and say they would be there for them in a second if they needed anything. Their neighbors include a teacher, nurse, maintenance man, country club employee, retiree, and a young working couple. “We feel very safe here,” Amy says. “There are no problems, no issues with behavior or the police.”

The Hosiers are part of a growing trend. Approximately 50% of local affordable housing residents are retirees. As Amy and Lloyd’s story illustrates, affordable housing is more than just a roof — it’s a chance to age in place with dignity and remain part of the fabric of the community that has been their home for a lifetime.