PHOTOS: Officials Gather at Greenwich Communities “Welcome Home” Key Ceremony at Armstrong Court

Greenwich Communities hosted a  “Welcome Home” key ceremony in Armstrong Court on Saturday where the latest group of families to move into newly modernized residences received fruit baskets and keys to their new apartments.

The event, which was attended by US Congressman Jim Himes, the Board of Selectmen and most of the Greenwich delegation, was held in the Winston Robinson Community Room. Speakers from Greenwich Communities, (formerly known as the Housing Authority for the Town of Greenwich) included the head of the board of directors, Sam Romeo and executive director, Tony Johnson.

Greenwich Communities operations are entirely self-sufficient and the Town does not fund operations, though it does administer federal Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funds.

Projects rely instead on federal HUD funds, state financing through CHFA and rental income.

While Mr. Johnson said six new families were being welcomed to the Greenwich Communities “family.” 

He noted that building 5 was previously comprised of one- and two-bedroom units, they were combined to form affordable three-bedroom, two-bathroom apartments to better serve families.

Mr. Johnson said Armstrong Court offered beautiful, affordable units and that Greenwich offered opportunity in the form of employment, education and safety.

Sam Romeo said Greenwich Community has about 1,235 units in its stock.

“I drive around the state a lot and when we talk about affordable housing, they raise their eyebrows and say, ‘oh, Greenwich is the gold coast and everybody is rich,'” he said. “Not everyone in Greenwich is wealthy….I explain to them we have 1,235 units of affordable housing and they can’t believe it.”

Mr. Romeo added that Greenwich Communities has 350 units of housing on their drawing boards, including 52 units at McKinney Terrace, another 52 units planned for the back side of the Armstrong Court property, and approximately another 250 units at Quarry Knoll.

Greenwich First Selectman Fred Camillo recalled Sunday family gatherings at his relative’s apartment in building 5 when he was growing up.

“They were tiny apartments,” he recalled. “That’s what the units were like in the 50s, 60s and 70s.”

He talked about the importance of local control and how he and members of the Greenwich delegation had all testified at last week’s Housing Committee hearing in Hartford against proposed legislation (SB 151) intended to make it easier to build townhouses and “starter homes.” 

Congressman Himes recalled that his first public service job was to be appointed to the board of commissioners of the Greenwich housing authority.

“One of the things that is so exciting is how capable the development arm – and the adding of units has become – in a place that really needs it,” he said. “To the new families, welcome. This is about as wonderful a community as you can get.”

Himes outlined a cooperative effort that made the renovations possible.

“There’s state money. There’s some federal tax credits. And commitment at the local level,” he said. “Let’s do a lot more of these. We have a housing crisis.”

State Rep Steve Meskers (D-150) said he was proud of the state and federal efforts to make funding of the renovations possible, including support from Congressman Himes.

Meskers, a 20-year RTM member in his 8th year as state representative, said, “All of this is only fund-able and do-able with tax credits – with subsidized loans from HUD, with the state’s involvement, that we lend and benefit the community here with affordable housing.”

State Rep Hector Arzeno (D-151), said when he joined the RTM in 2019, he toured Armstrong Court and saw the need for renovations.

“It’s a work in progress,” Arzeno said. “You can see what can be done when we all get together.”

Selectwoman Rachel Khanna said Mr. Romeo and Mr. Johnson had done tremendous work and that the newly renovated units were beautiful. “Welcome to all the new families. Enjoy.”

“This is a great place to grow up,” said Selectwoman Lauren Rabin. “This is a wonderful opportunity for our neighbors to have quality housing they can afford and live in a town that gives many advantages to every citizen.”

State Rep Courpas (R-149), who is a member of the CT General Assembly’s housing committee said, “Sometimes in the legislature we have theoretical debates about state control – local control, but here it is, a tangible result of our efforts.”

 

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Back on Sept 8, 2020, amid the pandemic, officials marked the completion of phase 1 with a celebration that also marked the name change to Greenwich Communities. In a message from Seila Mosquera-Bruno at the time, she noted the project utilized State funds through the Dept of Housing in the amount of $3.4 million, as well as low income housing tax credit and tax exempt bonds administered by the Connecticut Housing Finance Authority “CHFA” to keep rents at a reasonable level for working families and individuals. Once all phases of Armstrong Court are completed, the State will have invested $42 million: $12 million through the Dept of Housing, $16 million in tax exempt bonds and$18 million in through CHFA.  

During a 2022 ribbon-cutting, a crowd gathered to mark Phase 2 of renovations to the 1950’s era housing development. At the time, Mr. Johnson pointed to one of the unrenovated buildings, noting that in winter the building looked “red hot” through a thermal imaging camera because of its energy inefficiency.