Vermont expands housing investment program

Vermont is adding $25 million in new low-interest financing for housing and economic development projects.

Vermont is adding $25 million in new low-interest financing for housing and economic development projects, a move state officials say should help increase supply, support jobs and improve affordability.

The money will be offered through Invest in Vermont, the treasurer’s program that uses 12.5 percent of the state’s average daily cash balance to back loans for projects without drawing on tax dollars. A request for proposals was released Tuesday, and submissions are due on Sept. 4.

The program was once known as 10% in VT, but lawmakers boosted its lending authority by 2.5 percent in this year’s major housing bill, S.328, and gave it the new name Invest in Vermont.

According to the state, the program has already directed more than $130 million into housing and related efforts around Vermont. Officials say that investment has attracted more than $600 million in outside funding, helped finance nearly 1,700 housing units and supported close to 200 permanent jobs.

State Treasurer Mike Pieciak said his office has focused on housing since he took the post three-and-a-half years ago, and he argued the state still needs far more tools to address the shortage. He also said the expanded financing helps projects move ahead at a lower cost. In March, he announced that The Village at Winston Prouty in Brattleboro would receive $4 million through the program.

Alex Farrell, commissioner of the Department of Housing, said the administration values the partnership with the treasurer’s office and its emphasis on directing money toward housing. He added that state officials will keep looking for ways to speed approvals for both large and small projects so residential construction can move more quickly, especially in rural parts of Vermont.