Up to 250 units planned to help address Middlebury’s affordable housing shortage
While housing shortages are common across Vermont, Addison County is particularly strapped. According to research done by Rights and Democracy, the Addison County housing vacancy rate was 2.4% in 2021; a 6% to 8% rate is considered healthy.
In an effort to combat that problem, South Burlington-based Summit Properties has partnered with Middlebury College to build 150 to 250 units of affordable and market-rate housing in downtown Middlebury. The development will include a mix of apartments, multifamily homes and single-family homes.
The project is Middlebury’s largest affordable housing development in years, according to Brian Carpenter, chair of the town’s selectboard.
Construction is planned on a 35-acre plot of land on Seminary Street Extension that the college bought from Marjorie Mooney for $1.5 million in April 2022. As it begins construction, Summit Properties will pay the college back over time for each housing unit; the project is expected to cost about $40 million in total.