Valley Cares (West River Valley Senior Housing & Assisted Living) has won a Charles L. Edson Tax Credit Excellence Award from the Affordable Housing Tax Credit Coalition (AHTCC) in Washington, D.C.

AHTCC presents the awards each year to the most outstanding Housing Credit properties in six categories, celebrating the best in affordable rental housing development.

The West Townshend property won in the Senior Housing category.

This past weekend's COTS Walk raised $143,000 to benefit the Committee on Temporary Shelter (COTS) in Burlington.

The annual 3-mile walk around downtown Burlington raises money and awareness to benefit COTS's mission to provide emergency shelter, services, and housing for the homeless.

Mark your calendar: Next year's COTS Walk is set for Sunday, May 3.

VHFA held its second annual Kids Craft Day yesterday, to benefit the United Way.

Children aged 3-12 participated by making a variety of craft projects and a Mother's Day card in the VHFA Board Room.

By charging each child's parent/guardian a participation fee, the event raised $200 for the United Way of Chittenden County.

The John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation has named Vermont a finalist in a competition for up to $5 million to help preserve and improve affordable housing.

The state's proposal, submitted by Vermont Housing Finance Agency (VHFA) and the Vermont Housing & Conservation Board (VHCB), is one of 21 finalists selected from more than 80 submissions.