Naugatuck Valley Project

Thankful for being able to share our model of permanently affordable housing of community land trust-supported housing cooperatives at the Partnership for Strong Communities "CT Affordable Housing Conference. See the linked video from #CAHC

We are presenting at the CT Affordable Housing Conference from the Partnership for Strong Communities on our urban-suburban-rural housing organizing framework in the form of All In, as well as in community land trust-supported limited equity housing cooperatives. #CAHC2024

Earlier this year we received a grant from the Cooperative Development Foundation to tune-up, update and advance our internal training & capacity building program for resident leaders of the housing cooperatives we steward and support. We look forward to the relaunch of our trainings later this year and thank CDF for their significant support. The Cooperative Development Fund supports the needs of seniors, affordable housing, and international cooperative development. The Fund provides about $70,000 in grants annually. The Fund is a project of the Cooperative Development Foundation (CDF), a public charity headquartered in Washington, DC that promotes and develops cooperatives to improve economic opportunities for all.?

We are seeking to raise $4,000 with Give Local contributions this year to develop and launch a Cooperative Homeownership Education Program. Based on NVP's long-standing Brookside Housing Cooperatives the Cooperative Homeownership Education Program will focus on internal and external capacity building for utilizing cooperatives as a means to address the housing crisis. Comprised of 102 units, Brookside has operated since 1991, providing among the most affordable homes in the state of Connecticut, with monthly maintenance fees (the equivalent of monthly rent) ranging between $500 and $785 per month for 2- to 4-bedroom apartments. NVP's Cooperative Homeownership Education Program will be two-pronged. First, the program will focus on building capacity among current Brookside residents for ensuring another 33 years of successful cooperative homeownership. Second, this program will be focused on low and moderate income families across the Naugatuck Valley, presenting cooperative homeownership as a key tool for addressing the housing crisis in Connecticut.

Over 30 people today attended a tour of the Brookside Housing Cooperatives, meet with co-op leaders, learn about the cooperative housing model, and begin to think about how we can grow cooperative housing in the Valley! Wonderful participation from All In For Oxford, All in For Milford, All In for Seymour and TEAM, Inc.!

Our Director Alexander Kolokotronis wrote this policy brief for A Better Connecticut Institute(ABCI) on the promise of housing cooperatives and community land trusts as a means to address the housing crisis in CT, with our own Brookside Housing Cooperatives as an example to replicate.

We have supported and stewarded the Brookside Housing Cooperatives for over three decades: “I don’t think I would want to live somewhere else, as a single person,” [Sonjia] Gomes said. “I wouldn’t want to live in a house, I would feel uncomfortable. I feel like I’m surrounded by people that care.” "It was and remains a unique structure to guarantee housing affordability. Brookside has 102 units that operate under six co-ops. They’re self-governed and self-managed. Tenants meet monthly to discuss operations and vote on major property management decisions."