Soundview Landing

PROJECT BACKGROUND

Washington Village was a public housing development in South Norwalk, Connecticut, originally built in 1941. By 2016, Washington Village had reached the end of its useful life, and needed extensive updates and repairs to meet modern construction standards, code requirements, and other needs. Additionally, parts of the development were located below the 100-year floodplain. Portions of the property would experience minor flooding from the nearby Norwalk Harbor, and major flooding and damage occurred during Hurricane Irene in 2011 and Superstorm Sandy in 2012, with up to fifteen inches of water seeping into the first-floor units. To address the modernization issues and mitigate flooding, the only viable solution was to demolish the existing structures and construct a new community elevated above the floodplain.

Soundview Landing (formerly Washington Village)is the first LEED ND certified mixed-income neighborhood in Connecticut

The project Received a $30 million HUD Choice Neighborhood Initiative federal grant, and built 136 replacement public housing units, 67 workforce housing units, and 70 market rate homes. The project became the first LEED certified mixed-income neighborhood in CT, focusing on a walkable community with amenities and efficient, healthy buildings.

In order to achieve this, and to meet the additional goals of creating a walkable and bicycle-friendly neighborhood with access to amenities for locals with diverse socio-economic, racial, and ethnic backgrounds, The City of Norwalk and the Washington Village Redevelopment Agency partnered to combine the existing Washington Village property with two adjacent city-owned lots to create a larger and more income-diverse residential community, renamed Soundview Landing by residential vote.

SOLUTIONS AND FEATURES

Washington Village residents and the surrounding community were actively involved in the planning process for the new housing development.

A resident survey was conducted to gather feedback on design preferences, and the project team incorporated this information into the final plans.

Projected Savings

Construction of Soundview Landing was completed in three distinct phases. The first phase completed the construction and completion of 80 new housing units on one of the adjacent, formerly vacant lots. Phases two and three involved partial demolition of the existing Washington Village buildings and reconstruction of 193 housing units. Throughout the demolition and construction phases, current residents of the development were carefully relocated and always ensured that they had a home both during and after construction. The new development also includes a community room that is available for all residents.

The buildings in this project have a projected carbon emissions intensity of between 22-35% below the Connecticut Energy Code at the time of Construction Completion (2021).The projections were calculated using HERS models of the dwelling units in each building, compared to HERS models of a worst case (Building E) with IECC 2015 baseline characteristics (Connecticut’s Energy Code at the time of Soundview Landings Construction Completion).