A once-blighted area in the middle of West Rutland village center has been transformed into 24 permanently affordable housing units.
A ribbon cutting for the new Marble Village Apartments on Monday brought out a cast of organizational partners, state and local political leaders and community members to celebrate.
Mary Cohen, executive director of Cornerstone Housing Partners, said the idea had been in the works for more than four years, but was time consuming because of funding requirements and an environmental cleanup through the state’s Brownfield Revitalization Fund. The remnants of burned down buildings on the site had been long buried under ground, contaminating the soil, Cohen said.
The dual housing developers — Cornerstone Housing Partners and Evernorth — broke ground on Marble Village in November 2024, Cohen said, and finalized the project a year later with the help of over $13 million worth of public and private investment.
Cornerstone Housing Partners and Evernorth have joined forces as co-owners and developers on a growing number of affordable housing projects in Rutland County. The developers broke ground on a similar 30-unit affordable housing project near Rutland City’s downtown in May.
Kathy Beyer, senior vice president of real estate development for Evernorth, said she recognized the environmental cleanup and location posed challenges but that the project’s completion is a testament to the work of housing nonprofit developments, private investment and state and local support.
Cohen pointed to a “success” involving one of the apartments which will house a family previously living in the Bridge House — transitional housing in Rutland City for individuals experiencing homelessness.
Seniors plan to move into the affordable apartment complex so that their housing situation is more “manageable and affordable,” Cohen said. That also “frees up” real estate, which helps mitigate the varied housing needs in the state.
The Marble Village apartments are close to the West Rutland School, the post office, library, public transportation and other community resources in West Rutland.
The housing project — with an electric heating and cooling system and solar panels on the roof — is projected to decrease its carbon impact by 71 tons per year, according to Beyer. The energy efficiency of the Marble Village apartments demonstrates the developers’ aim to mitigate both the state’s housing crisis and the impacts of climate change, she said.
“This is a forever asset for the West Rutland community,” Beyer said.
