Staff from VHFA put down their pencils and picked up their hammers yesterday, repairing two Waterbury homes damaged by Tropical Storm Irene.  Both homes had been completely gutted and are now being rebuilt after the Winooski River surged through town when the storm hit. 

Vermonters who experienced damage or losses as the result of Tropical Storm Irene have until Tuesday, November 15 to register for assistance with the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and to apply for low-interest loans from the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA).

Vermont homeowners, renters, businesses and non-profit organizations have only seven days left to apply for aid for damage caused by the heavy rains and flooding that occurred between August 27 and September 2.

Senator Bernie Sanders joined the Champlain Housing Trust (CHT) and Housing Vermont yesterday to celebrate the completion of thirty apartments in a single building located off Susie Wilson Road in the Town of Essex. Cedar’s Edge Apartments offers a mix of 24 two-bedroom and six one-bedroom apartments.

Senator Bernie Sanders noted that “at a time when many Vermonters are struggling economically, when affordable housing is very hard to come by in many Chittenden County towns, and when many families are spending fifty percent or more of their limited income on housing, this project is sorely needed."

VHFA recently completed an assessment of the demographics, housing stock, and affordability challenges of residents in Burlington's downtown and waterfront neighborhoods.   

This area experienced a much higher rate of population growth during the past decade than the city as a whole.  It's primarily renter population has lower incomes on average, with a third spending more than half of their incomes for housing.