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Date: 4/17/2015
CHICOPEE – The project to convert the former Chapin School into housing for veterans is moving forward.
John Downing, the CEO of Soldier On, the veterans’ housing program based in Leeds, told Reminder Publications the closing on the property will take place in two to four weeks.
“We’re in the midst of that right now,” he said.
The financing of the conversion of the school was complicated, Downing said, as it involved several lending sources, as well as the use of tax credits.
Solider On has partnered with O’Connell Construction as the developer.
Downing said the construction will begin about two weeks after the closing and should be completed in “not more than a year.”
He added, “We’re in good shape.”
When finished there will be 44 condo units available for eligible vets, he said. Unlike other condominiums, the apartments are legally “limited equity cooperatives,” Downing explained.
Unlike condo in which the resident owns a unit, the veterans living there will own 1/44th of the project. They buy a share for $2,500. When they pass, Soldier On buys back the share for that price. The model allows a greater cost control on utilities and other costs.
“We’ve found this model works extremely well with the people we serve,” he said. Downing added the approach has been seen to work in developments in New York City and in Minnesota.
The Chapin Street housing will have its own board to assist in running the complex, Downing said.
For the vets, these housing complexes can provide something they may not have: a family and a community.
“The vets we serve have lost an awful lot,” Downing said. “They don’t have ties to families.”
This style of housing allows for the vets to watch out for themselves, Downing added.
The housing won’t be specifically reserved for just male vets, but Downing said the women veterans Soldier On serves generally do not want to live with men.
He explained that 100 percent of them has suffered military trauma and 70 percent of them are victims of sexual trauma.
Downing said of the Soldier On model, “We try not to push things. There is not cookie cutter approach. We listen to their needs. We have 300 clients and 300 programs.”