Sara Santor, Author at Evernorth

Community, Development, Press Releases | 10/23/23

New Housing Construction Still Not Enough – Building Homes Together Campaign Issues Annual Report Card

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
October 23, 2023

Williston, Vermont – At a press conference at a newly-converted motel into housing, leaders of the Building Homes Together campaign issued its annual report card on progress towards reaching housing production and affordability goals for Chittenden County. As housing costs continue to escalate and rental vacancy rates consistently failing to exceed even 1%, falling short of housing and affordability goals means the region’s economy and people will continue to struggle.

Community, Development, Press Releases | 10/18/23

Construction Underway in Hinesburg on 24 New Apartments for Older Adults

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 18, 2023

[Hinesburg, Vermont] – Cathedral Square and Evernorth are pleased to announce construction is underway on Kelley’s Field II, 24 new energy-efficient affordable apartments for adults 55 and older in Hinesburg.

Situated next to Kelley’s Field I, Kelley’s Field II is the second phase in the larger Kelley’s Field development project and will offer 24 energy-efficient apartments – 23 one-bedrooms and 1 two-bedroom apartment with a mix of affordable and market-rate rents.

Community, Development, Press Releases | 10/12/23

Bristol Celebrates the Grand Opening of 20 New Affordable Apartments near Downtown

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 11, 2023

[Bristol, VT] Today, the Bristol community celebrated the official grand opening of Firehouse Apartments with a ribbon cutting and an apartment tour. Co-owners and co-developers, Addison Housing Works and Evernorth partnered to develop Firehouse Apartments which will serve 20 low- and moderate-income households in downtown Bristol, close to amenities, recreational opportunities and community services.

Community, Development, Press Releases | 9/28/23

Evernorth Rural Ventures Awarded $60 Million in New Markets Tax Credits from U.S. Treasury Department

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 27, 2023

On Friday, September 22, 2023, the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Community Development Financial Institutions Fund (CDFI) announced Evernorth Rural Ventures, a subsidiary of Evernorth, was awarded a $60 million allocation of New Markets Tax Credits (NMTC) to continue its successful economic and community development work in low-income areas. This is Evernorth Rural Ventures’ 7th award.

Community, Development, Press Releases | 8/14/23

$11.4 Million in New Markets Tax Credit Allocation Secured for the Redevelopment of the Iconic “Yellow Barn” in Hardwick, VT

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
August 14, 2023

[Hardwick, VT] – Evernorth Rural Ventures and Massachusetts Housing Investment Corporation (MHIC) are pleased to announce the closing of $11.4 million in New Markets Tax Credit (NMTC) allocation for the redevelopment of the iconic “Yellow Barn” in Hardwick, Vermont. The NMTC funding supports the construction of a new 25,137 square foot food business accelerator building and the adaptive reuse of the vacant, historic 4,762 square foot yellow dairy barn for use as a retail shop, collectively called the Yellow Barn Business Accelerator.

Community, Development, Press Releases | 7/17/23

Evernorth Rural Ventures Closes $7.1 million New Markets Tax Credit Investment to Expand Hundred Nights Emergency Shelter and Resource Center

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
July 14, 2023

[Keene, NH] Evernorth Rural Ventures, a subsidiary of Evernorth, is pleased to announce the closing of a $7.1 million New Markets Tax Credit (NMTC) investment to construct a 15,180 square foot, modern, 48-bed emergency shelter and resource center in Keene, New Hampshire. The new facility, is nearing completion and will allow the nonprofit Hundred Nights, Inc. (HN) to centralize, consolidate, and increase their shelter and resource center to better serve low-income individuals and families experiencing or at risk of homelessness.

Development, Press Releases | 6/28/23

Morrisville Celebrates the Opening of 24 New Affordable Apartments in the Heart of Downtown

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
June 27, 2023

[Morrisville, Vermont] – Today, the Morrisville community celebrated the official grand opening of Village Center Apartments with a ribbon cutting, apartment tours, ice-cream and face painting. Lamoille Housing Partnership (LHP) and Evernorth partnered to repurpose an infill lot and develop this highly energy efficient, multifamily apartment building in downtown Morrisville, close to amenities, recreational opportunities, and community services.

Village Center Apartments includes 24 new affordable homes for low- and moderate-income residents, including 6 apartments that are reserved for households facing homelessness, right in the heart of downtown Morrisville.

“Village Center Apartments will reinvigorate Morrisville’s downtown, supporting the community’s continued success and vibrancy into the future, remarked Jim Lovinsky, LHP’s Executive Director. “We believe that success starts at home, and Village Center Apartments creates opportunities for all community members to thrive.”

Press Releases | 6/26/23

Evernorth Closes Fourth Multi-Investor Fund

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
June 26, 2023

Evernorth closed its fourth multi-investor fund – Housing New England, Fund IV – on June 15, 2023. This fund will provide equity to finance affordable housing in Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont.

14 investors committed a total of $54,050,000 in equity making Housing New England, Fund IV (HNE Fund IV) a significant financial resource for the region’s critical affordable housing needs. HNE Fund IV’s investors include community, regional and national banks as well as one of the nation’s largest mortgage banking organizations.

“We raised capital from a wide-range of investors and new partners enabling us to expand our reach to preserve and create much-needed affordable housing in these unprecedented times,” said Nancy Owens, Co-President, Evernorth.

Development, Press Releases | 6/6/23

Morrisville Celebrates the Opening of 25 New Affordable Apartments Near Downtown

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
June 5, 2023

[Morrisville, Vermont] – On Monday afternoon residents, funders, community members, local legislators and two affordable housing organizations came together to celebrate the completion of Gordon Lane Apartments – 25 affordable homes in two new buildings, including 4 apartments that are reserved for households facing homelessness, within walking distance of downtown Morrisville.

Evernorth and Lamoille Housing Partnership (LHP) have a successful history of building affordable housing together – and the completion of Gordon Lane Apartments once again highlights the power of partnerships in creating transformative properties that positively impact communities.

Articles, Community | 4/28/23

Evernorth Welcomes Executive Vice President & Chief Program Officer

We are happy to announce that Cynthia (Cindee) Lacasse has accepted Evernorth’s newly created position of Executive Vice President and Chief Program Officer. Ms. Lacasse will be joining us beginning May 29th. Cindee is an affordable housing industry leader with deep transactional knowledge and a commitment to Evernorth’s mission. She will be based in Portland and serve a key, externally-facing role with Evernorth’s investors, developers, and funders.

Press Releases | 4/17/23

Evernorth Receives Two Prestigious Energy Efficiency Awards from U.S. Department of Energy, Including New Energy Equity Award

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 17, 2023

Evernorth was recently honored with two prestigious energy efficiency awards from the U.S. Department of Energy for exceeding the performance criteria for building envelope performance and for energy equity. Laurentide Apartments received both Building Envelope Campaign Awards – the Novel 40 award and the inaugural Energy Equity award – for the newly constructed building located in Burlington, Vermont. Champlain Housing Trust (CHT) co-developed and is a co-owner of Laurentide Apartments in partnership with Evernorth.

Community, Opinion | 3/28/23

Opinion: Nancy Owens: Vermont needs more housing for everyone. Here’s how to make progress

This commentary was written by Nancy Owens and originally published by VT Digger on March 28, 2023.

Today’s housing market is broken. A lack of housing limits people’s mobility. Seniors who are overhoused cannot move to a more appropriate home; workers who want to secure better jobs cannot find a home in strong employment centers; people who are ready to purchase homes cannot find one they can afford.

While reduced mobility is true for everyone, it really impacts people with less financial resources.

Why is there not enough housing here? Economists and others provide data and analysis about demographic and economic trends that impact housing supply and begin to explain some of the issues.

News & Ideas