Vose Farm Residences breaks ground in Peterborough
Catholic Charities NH, in partnership with Evernorth and other community partners, broke ground Oct. 2 for Vose Farm Residences, a 96-unit mixed-income housing development intended to address the need for affordable housing in the Monadnock region.
The first phase will consist of 64 one- and two-bedroom apartments reserved for households earning 30% to 60% of the area median income. A second phase, beginning next year, will add 32 units.
Vose Farm Residences will include walking paths along the Contoocook River and outdoor recreation areas. Residents will also have access to supportive services such as case management, financial literacy programs, and life skills training.
“This project will provide critical relief for vulnerable populations, helping individuals and families build stable lives while also stimulating the local economy,” said Tom Blonski, president and CEO of Catholic Charities NH.
Evernorth, which is providing equity investment through Low-Income Housing Tax Credits, praised the project’s range of affordable housing options.
“Vose Farm Residences meets the needs of a broad range of renters in our community,” stated Cynthia Lacasse, Evernorth’s senior vice president and chief program officer.
Occupancy for the first phase is expected in fall 2026. Catholic Charities NH is the project developer, with New Hampshire Housing coordinating tax-exempt bond financing. Market Square Architects is the project architect, and Hutter Construction is the construction manager. — Monadnock Ledger-Transcript staff
A rendering of the new Hitchiner facility in Milford, designed to expand the company’s aerospace division services. (Courtesy photo)
Hitchiner and PROCON break ground on new 57,000-square-foot facility in Milford
Hitchiner, in partnership with PROCON’s design and construction team, has broken ground on a new 57,000-square-foot shared services operations facility at its Elm Street Campus in Milford. This state-of-the-art building will house operations for Hitchiner’s growing aerospace division, including casting-based aerospace components such as blades, vanes and combustor panels.
“We are thrilled to partner with PROCON on this significant expansion,” said John Morison, CEO and president of Hitchiner. “This facility is a testament to our commitment to manufacturing world-class products, while also contributing to the growth and success of both our employees and the community we call home.”
This new facility is part of Hitchiner’s broader strategy to support its customers across the aerospace, automotive and commercial sectors by investing in cutting-edge technology and infrastructure. Once completed, it’s expected that the new facility will create new job opportunities and foster professional growth for existing employees.
“We are proud to collaborate with Hitchiner on this important project,” said John Stebbins, CEO of PROCON. “Our partnership is rooted in a shared dedication to innovation and quality, and we are excited to design and build a facility that will help Hitchiner continue its legacy of excellence.”
With nearly 50 job openings across the organization, Hitchiner is currently hiring and looking to grow its workforce. The openings range from part-time to full-time, salaried and hourly positions. Learn more at www.hitchiner.com/join-the-hitchiner-team.
More federal money slated for affordable housing at former Keene school site
An additional $2 million in congressionally directed spending is slated to help fund the second phase of an affordable housing project at the old Roosevelt School on Washington Street in Keene. One million dollars has already been granted by the federal government.
“The $2 million is critically important because it fills a $2 million hole in the budget that we’ve penciled out so far,” said Josh Meehan, executive director of Keene Housing, which is spearheading the project. The organization began working on the initiative about two years ago.
One million dollars in federal money already went toward the first round of construction, which broke ground just over a month ago and is on track to add 30 apartments to Keene’s housing stock by the end of next summer. The $2 million set to be appropriated in the federal government’s 2025 budget, which still must be passed, would help pay for phase two, adding another 30 apartments at the same site. Plans call for the 60 apartments to have one and two bedrooms.
“We’re incredibly grateful to [U.S. Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, D-N.H.] for helping to find funds that we are going to need to bring Roosevelt School West to fruition,” Meehan said of the project’s second phase.
His organization, which works to bolster affordable housing and support area residents of low and moderate income, is applying for other government money in the coming months to cover the rest of the roughly $6 million that phase two is expected to cost. In addition to the $1 million from Congress that U.S. Rep. Annie Kuster, D-N.H., secured for phase one (Roosevelt School East), other federal and state monies are helping to cover the $8 million cost of this first round of construction. Meehan hopes to break ground on the second round next summer.
People making a maximum of 60 percent of the area median income are eligible to live in the new Roosevelt School apartments. The area median income in Cheshire County for an individual is $71,050, and it is $81,200 for a family of two and $101,500 for a family of four. Some units will be reserved for households that make up to 30 and 50 percent of the area median income. According to Meehan, most of the individuals and families on the extensive waitlist for one of the 590 units Keene Housing manages in the Elm City and Swanzey make below 50 percent of the area median.
Vouchers will reduce rental costs for tenants.
A subset of the Roosevelt units will be set aside for people experiencing homelessness or immediately at risk of it. People in these circumstances will have priority for five apartments in Roosevelt School East, and six in Roosevelt School West.
A low housing stock and high costs to rent or own residential properties are affecting people throughout the Granite State. The vacancy rate in two-bedroom apartments in New Hampshire was only 0.6 percent in 2023, according to a report from N.H. Housing, a statewide public corporation dedicated to developing housing solutions.
As in elsewhere in New Hampshire, renting an apartment or owning a home in Keene isn’t affordable for many residents, per a housing needs assessment conducted for the city. Median-priced homes are out of the price range for median-income households, and median-priced apartments are too expensive for people making below an hourly rate of $21.
Meehan, of Keene Housing, said phase one of the Roosevelt project is “going great … we remain on schedule.”
“And of course, we’re really looking forward to someday in the not too distant future having both of those phases completed,” he said, “and filled with folks who are on our waiting list, desperately waiting for an opportunity to have a nice new, high-quality place to call home.” — Sophia Keshmiri, Keene Sentinel
