HARTFORD, CT - Governor Ned Lamont and Connecticut Housing Commissioner Seila Mosquera-Bruno today announced that the Connecticut Department of Housing is awarding $12.8 million in grants to eight municipalities for infrastructure upgrades that will modernize and rehabilitate housing for low and moderate-income residents.

The grants are being awarded as part of the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) Small Cities program, which is administered by the Connecticut Department of Housing with funding from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. Eligible projects are required to be in a municipality with a population of fewer than 50,000 residents.

“These housing grants go a long way to improving neighborhoods so that we can make our communities more attractive and encourage continued growth for the benefit of all our residents,” Governor Lamont said.

“Connecticut has both large and small cities that contribute to its unique culture and quality of life,” Commissioner Mosquera-Bruno said. “Whether it’s helping families make essential renovations to their homes, ensuring senior living facilities are ADA compliant, or providing a fire truck for increased services, these grants are essential to upgrade and enhance our smaller towns. We’re aware that this funding is crucial and improves the day-to-day-lives of our residents.”

The grants are being awarded to the following recipients:

• Ashford - Pompey Hollow Senior Housing ($2,000,000): The Town of Ashford will use funds to renovate Pompey Hollow Senior Housing, a 32-unit low and moderate-income housing complex for elderly and disabled individuals. The proposed scope of work includes interior renovations replacing all common doors and hardware, installing automatic entry doors, full kitchen and bathroom upgrades, installing new mailboxes for the tenants, adding blown-in insulation, elevator upgrades, installing LED lighting, updates to the attic sprinklers, updates to emergency lighting, and replacement of all smoke detectors with hardwired combination smoke/carbon monoxide systems. All interior upgrades will focus on ADA compliance, where applicable. The exterior renovations include replacing the existing vinyl siding, replacing AC condensers, roof and chimney repairs, pathway and driveway repairs, sloping the existing patio for better drainage, installing a handrail at the front sidewalk, and installing new fuel tanks for the existing generator. Additionally, there will be mechanical upgrades including a new fire pump with transfer switch, new hot water circulating pumps, new expansion tanks, a new furnace air handler, and changing the heating system from oil to propane.
• Canton - 21 Dowd Avenue ($2,000,000): The Town of Canton will use the funds to rehabilitate an SSHP property located at 40 Dowd Avenue in Canton. The property was built in 1979 with 40 residential units and a community building. The renovations include replacing roofing materials, installing new doors and windows, and replacing siding. ADA compliance improvements will be made to four residential units and the community building. The fire alarm and call-for-aid systems will be upgraded and replaced. Asphalt roofing systems will be installed in four of the six buildings. All windows will be replaced with Energy Star-rated windows. Improvements will include sidewalks, site railings, and parking areas.
• East Windsor - Park Hill ($2,000,000): The Town of East Windsor will use the funds for capital improvements to the existing affordable housing development located at Park Hill, an 84-unit affordable housing development located at 1A Park Hill in Broad Brook. This phase will prioritize the oldest buildings, which include five buildings totaling 30 units. The remaining nine buildings (54 Units) will be addressed with SSHP funds to complete a similar scope. The improvements included in the proposed scope are energy efficiency upgrades through new heat pump heating systems (mini-splits); improved envelope with new siding, insulation, windows, and doors; and new kitchens, stoves, and flooring throughout units (excluding bathrooms). Additionally, handicapped accessibility upgrades to bathrooms through tub to shower conversions for elderly and disabled residents will be made.
• Southington - General Pulaski Terrace ($2,000,000): General Pulaski Terrace consists of eleven buildings, including ten residential buildings with a total of 40 units and a community building. The project aims to modernize the property by replacing roofing materials, installing seamless aluminum gutters and leaf screens, replacing the existing heat pumps, and installing a monitored fire alarm system (call-for-aid) including a closed-circuit television system and the replacement of inefficient heat pumps with more energy-efficient units.
• Stonington - Housing Rehabilitation Program ($400,000): The Town of Stonington will use the funds to complete up to 10 housing units, and the future use of any program income to be used to continue the Stonington Housing Rehabilitation Program (SHRP) into the future. It is the town’s goal to establish SHRP as a continuous town service for its residents and serve as a catalyst to improve the properties and the living conditions of the residents.
• Tolland - Old Post Village ($2,000,000): Old Post Village was constructed in 1977, before the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990. Currently, the housing complex does not have any fully ADA accessible units available for its residents. The scope of this project proposes to achieve full ADA compliance on three units. This conversion will not only benefit the tenants who need it most, it will also make the property fully compliant by meeting the minimum 10% “Type A” barrier-free handicapped- accessible units’ requirements. The proposed scope of work focuses on ADA improvements, energy efficiency, and safety. This will be achieved through renovations to the exterior building envelope, which includes replacing the roof, gutters, windows, entry and storm doors, as well as the entry door stoops; interior kitchen, bathroom and community room renovations, including ADA accessibility; new interior doors, water closets, sinks, showers, and flooring; blown-in attic insulation; replacement of all mini split units throughout the complex; electrical upgrades, including interior and exterior lighting, emergency lighting, smoke/carbon monoxide detectors, as well as building service panels and meter cans; and site work, including improving drainage, parking lot repairs and expansion, as well as ADA ramp additions and improvements.
• Watertown - Country Ridge ($2,000,000): The proposed renovations for the complex include replacement of roofing materials, installation of new Energy Star-rated triple pane windows, and installation of new entry doors and storm doors. These renovations aim to improve the long-term sustainability and independence of the property.
• Windsor - Housing Rehabilitation Program ($400,000): The Town of Windsor will use the funding to continue its Housing Rehabilitation Loan Program to help low and moderate-income homeowners rehabilitate their homes. Ten housing units are expected to be rehabilitated. Upgrades will include roof replacement, heating systems, window replacement, lead paint and asbestos removal, and electrical and code upgrades.

For more information about the CDBG Small Cities program, visit portal.ct.gov/doh/doh/programs/small-cities-program.