#Middlebury #WoodsideHeights #SeniorHousing
By MARJORIE NEEDHAM
Members of Middlebury Senior Housing Associates, the board of directors for the town’s Woodside Heights Senior Housing, told the Board of Selectmen (BoS) on May 21 that Middlebury needs additional affordable senior housing. Board President Virginia Grandell was accompanied to the meeting by members Ron Vitarelli, Gail Seymour and Bill Fairbairn.
Grandell read aloud a letter to the BoS from Middlebury Senior Housing Associates saying their experience at Woodside Heights has made it obvious to them that additional low- to moderate-income senior housing is needed in Middlebury. This has been caused in part by cuts to federal funding. The letter said the board of directors wished to go on record as standing for the establishment of additional elderly housing in Middlebury.
Currently, the town has 70 one-bedroom apartments at Woodside Heights. Middlebury Senior Services Director JoAnn Cappelletti, a housing board member who did not attend the May 21 meeting, said in a telephone interview May 29, “There definitely is a need for more senior housing in Middlebury. I get phone calls weekly from people inquiring about senior housing. The waiting list is now two years.”
Seymour said the housing board has had to cap the waiting list for Woodside Heights at 100. She said the median age of residents there is 85.
Fairbairn, president of New Samaritan, said his company is the largest provider of low-income housing in Connecticut. It also manages Woodside Heights. He said the need for senior housing is just going to get worse. “Eight to 10,000 Baby Boomers turn 65 each day,” he said. “People are living in their cars in parking lots.”
He said he’d love to know if the town had a piece of land available on which to put housing to compliment that already at Woodside Heights. He said if there were a piece of land contiguous to Woodside Height available, he’d like to have an option to purchase it.
First Selectman Edward St. John asked how many units he was talking about, and Fairbairn said 35 to 40 units. As for the design of the building, Fairbairn said, “I would replicate what is already there.” He said Woodside Heights is a very attractive structure.
St. John, describing himself as the oldest member and chief orchestrator of the Woodside Heights project, told the group that project was not well received at first. “It has not been an easy road to venture into senior housing in Middlebury,” he said.
Fairbairn said federal funding for this type of housing will be available in about six months and to apply for funding he would need to show he at least had an option on some land. He said his organization is trying to get some sites in Connecticut to work on.
St. John said the BoS supports senior housing and would consider making land available. He added the selectmen would have to make a decision on the matter, but first it would be important to determine if the town supports the housing. If the town does, selectmen would discuss making land available. He did say the infrastructure to accommodate more housing is already in place at Woodside.
Seymour said some new units should accommodate couples. The Woodside units are 700 square feet, which isn’t a lot of space for a couple.
Following the BoS meeting, the Housing Associates continued an informal discussion with St. John. One topic discussed was that Woodside Heights provides only independent living. A new structure might provide some assisted-living units and possibly some memory-care units. Fairbairn said Connecticut seniors often have to go from independent living straight to a nursing home because there aren’t enough affordable assisted-living units available.
