Town Finalizes Purchase & Sale for Housatonic School

The town has finalized its purchase and sale agreement with the developer of the former Housatonic School.

The developer, WDM Properties LLC, will pay $1,000 for the building. WDM has 120 days to close the deal, and another six months to begin construction on eight two-bedroom apartments.

Town Manager Mark Pruhenski noted that finalization of the purchase and sale is a major milestone for the town and for the village of Housatonic. The school has stood vacant for 18 years, perched above the village common and playground. This year, many broken windows were transformed with the work of local artists.

“This is a huge win for the town – we are saving a historic building and creating housing,” said Pruhenski. “We believe we have the ideal plan for the Housatonic village, and the developer is nearly ready to launch.”

Pruhenski commended Chris Rembold, assistant town manager and director of planning and community development, for shepherding the RFP process, purchase and sale plan and development agreement. A special permit for the housing development has already been approved by the town.

The town has also committed $650,000 toward the cost of replacing the roof and some other improvements. The bulk of the development cost will be absorbed by the developer, who has agreed to cap rents at 100 percent of the median ncome for the area.