In Westbrook, $21M Stroudwater complex opens with 55 apartments
Photo / Courtesy, Westbrook Development Corp.
Stroudwater Apartments is for residents age 55-plus with household incomes at or below 60% of the area median income.
The Westbrook Housing Authority and Westbrook Development Corp. have opened the Stroudwater Apartments, an affordable rental complex at 160 Stroudwater St. in the city.
The Stroudwater Apartments are for adults age 55-plus with household incomes at or below 60% of the area median income.
Stroudwater consists of 55 one-bedroom apartments with onsite amenities including parking, security, laundry, a community room and walking trails. The building was constructed with “smart growth” principles, designed to exceed energy efficiency standards, and is located within walking distance to recreation, shopping and public transportation, according to a news release.
AlliedCook Construction, of Scarborough, managed the build.
The project cost was approximately $21 million. Funding came from 4% low-income tax credit funds from MaineHousing, the federal solar energy tax credit program, Maine State Housing Authority’s loans and affordable housing bond program, Evernorth equity investment and Westbrook Development Corp. and federal American Rescue Plan Act funds awarded by Cumberland County. The project also used tax increment financing from the city of Westbrook and was built on city-owned land.
Residents started moving in last month, Tyler Norod, Westbrook Development Corp.’s development director and the project lead, told Mainebiz.
A grand opening event was held Friday. Speakers at the event included U.S. Rep. Chellie Pingree, D-Maine 1st District, acting Mayor David Morse, Westbrook Housing Vice-Chair Lynda Adams and Maine Housing Executive Director Dan Brennan.
More in store
Another Westbrook apartment complex is also soon to be completed. Westbrook Development Corp.'s Stacy M. Symbol Apartments, at 68 Nicklaus Lane, is also geared toward tenants 55 years old or older.
The $15 million complex will have 60 units, of which seven will be ADA-accessible and three will be for hearing-impaired residents. The general contractor is Gorham-based Great Falls Construction.
Amenities will include a community room, fitness room, library, bike storage, on-site laundry room and energy-efficient design with solar panels affixed on roof. There's also access to 40 acres of new conservation land trails along the Presumpscot River, which were placed in conservation are part of the project.
The Symbol Apartments are almost complete.
“We hope to have our certificate of occupancy by the end of October with residents beginning to move in by November,” said Norod.
The need for affordable housing in Westbrook and across Maine has never been greater, he said.
“With rising housing costs and an increasing number of families struggling to find stable homes, we simply can't build housing fast enough to meet demand,” Norod said. “More funding is crucial to address this urgent crisis and ensure that every resident has access to safe, affordable housing.”
Westbrook Development Corp. said it has other affordable housing projects in the pipeline, too.
“We are currently developing two 36-unit affordable apartment buildings off East Bridge Street in Westbrook, which will provide 72 new affordable homes for seniors,” Norod said.
Additionally, the corporation is partnering with Portland-based real estate developer J.B. Brown & Sons on a mixed-income project off Stroudwater Street, which will include 100 affordable units for families and several hundred market-rate units.
In Windham, the corporation is in the permitting phase for 18 affordable one-bedroom apartments. In Biddeford, it has four projects in the works: a 36-unit affordable apartment building for seniors and a 40-unit affordable building for families on city-owned land off Barra Road, which has received municipal approvals and is now applying for funding.
It’s also partnering with the Fathom Cos. and the city of Biddeford to deliver 90 affordable senior housing units across two buildings on the former Maine Energy Recovery Co. site in downtown Biddeford.
“Altogether, our current pipeline includes 471 units, including our newest developments at Stroudwater and Symbol Apartments,” Norod said.
Westbrook Development Corp. is a nonprofit specializing in affordable housing.
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So what is 60% of the median area income?
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