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PROJECT PROFILE:
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Waterfront Housing, Burlington
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Sheila Gorsky and her daughter on the balcony of their apartment
overlooking Burlington's Lake Champlain. Bob Eddy photo.
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At one point in the 1980s, it appeared that Burlington’s entire Lake Champlain waterfront would be developed for high end condominiums—selling for half a million dollars or more. Burlington voters rejected that idea. Many urged that affordable housing be built on lakeside land owned by the city. Champlain Housing Trust and Housing Vermont rose to the challenge. Using funding from VHCB and the federal HOME Program, and from low-income housing tax credits, the nonprofits built a handsome, four-story, 40-apartment complex that contains 28 apartments for renters earning up to 60 percent of median income, and 6 apartments for households at 100 percent of median income.
Not only that, the building was designed to qualify for LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certification. The complex features a high efficiency building envelope, hardwood flooring cut and manufactured within 500 miles, state-of-the-art stormwater runoff treatment systems, advanced heating and cooling systems, and direct line of sight to daylight for over 90 percent of occupied space. As a result, Waterfront Housing won a national Award of Excellence for Affordable Housing Built Responsibly.
“We were a little bit concerned about meeting the higher efficiency requirements,” said Champlain Housing Trust’s Amy Demetrowitz. “But it was worth it. There are many benefits, to the project and to the tenants.”
- adapted by Ethan Parke from an article written by Doug Wilhelm
Sheila Gorsky and her daughter on the balcony of their apartmentoverlooking Burlington's
