 |
|
|
About COC
Through visionary leadership, creative financing arrangements, astute human relations and comprehensive partnerships with local, state and Federal government and the private sector, COC is changing Stamford's landscape - literally as well as figuratively - by replacing the aged models of public housing that often became a blight on cities and unsafe pogroms for the poor with appealing communities that are welcome additions to their residents, neighbors and neighborhoods.
The best example of COC's success is to examine the work underway to complete the revitalization of Stamford's Vidal Court, an obsolete, state-assisted moderate-income residential housing complex on Stamford's West Side.
COC has long sought to replace the outdated Vidal Court housing, built in 1955, with smaller, mixed-income communities that provide a better quality of life for residents, fit comfortably in Stamford's existing infrastructure, and complement the development pattern and architecture of surrounding neighborhoods.
COC's commitment to its residents and to Stamford includes a complete replacement of Vidal Court's 216 below-market units, along with about 134 market-rate units. The replacement of the Vidal Court housing units has been distributed over several nearby locations: Westwood, located on Progress Drive (scheduled to open by summer 2011); Palmer Square (groundbreaking took place December 2010, with apartments to open by summer 2012); and other sites now in pre-development stages.
Most recently, COC successfully converted the former Fairfield Court housing complex into a new community called Fairgate, featuring architecturally appealing, mixed-income townhouses. This was accomplished through a blend of assisted-housing subsidies and market-rate approaches. Through creative financial partnerships with Housing and Urban Development (HUD), the City of Stamford, and the State of Connecticut -- and utilizing federal Hope VI program funding and private investment -- COC has built new townhouse communities at several locations (see Branching Out for more specific details on each community). These new one-, two- and three-bedroom townhouses offer a variety of attractive amenities, varying from location to location. These include shared community centers, computer labs, on-site after-school programs, private entrances and more.
COC residences offer private parking, "green" construction, energy-efficient appliances and heating/cooling, quality landscaping, good lighting and other security considerations that enhance living for all residents and for each neighborhood. Additionally, COC provides on-site case-management services through outside services that help residents manage financial, personal and educational challenges, and better prepare them for increased self sufficiency and, in many cases, eventual private home ownership.
This leadership also is creating hundreds of construction and permanent jobs, investments in sustainable technology and much-needed housing. These investments are stimulating private, collateral investment and boosting ongoing efforts to revitalize the City's West Side, which benefits the entire community.
Charter Oak Communities has set new benchmarks in public-assisted housing, creating housing that is an asset to the Stamford community, and maintaining the integrity of neighborhoods. We are making Stamford a national leader in providing innovative, safe and affordable housing for its working residents and lower-income populations.
|
|
