by Thomas Breen
Mayor Justin Elicker, New Haven Land Bank Executive Director Serena Neal-Sanjurjo, and architect Paul Selnau at Thursday’s presser.
A local nonprofit that serves veterans of the U.S. military took a big step towards building five new affordable apartments in the Hill — after securing more than $1.8 million in federal funds for the project.
Hill community members gathered with several dozen city, state, and federal officials on Thursday morning to celebrate that news during a press conference held at 252 Davenport Ave.
That’s the 0.15-acre lot that the National Veterans Council for Legal Redress (NVCLR) acquired from the city for $4,000 in May 2024.
NVCLR Executive Director Garry Monk, Mayor Justin Elicker, and U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal, among others, announced at Thursday’s presser that NVCLR has secured a $1,862,000 federal grant for the new-construction project.
Blumenthal said that these funds are “congressionally directed spending” — formerly known as “earmarks” — that are included in the budget for the federal Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).
This grant will help NVCLR build five new one-bedroom apartments, along with office and community space, at 252 Davenport. Liz Torres, who has been helping NVCLR with this long-in-the-works project, said that the development should cost around $2.4 million to complete. The nonprofit has already lined up $500,000 from the Connecticut Housing Finance Authority (CHFA), as well.
All five apartments will be reserved for veterans, Torres said. She said that four of those apartments will be restricted for tenants who make no more than 50 percent of the area median income (AMI), which currently translates to $49,800 per year for a two-person family. The fifth apartment will have more “flexibility” for veterans of various income levels.
Torres said that, ideally, construction should begin in the summer and take roughly six months to complete. The lead contractor for the project is Seven Summit Construction Company.
Garry Monk said that the new residential building will be named for his father, Conley Monk Sr., a World War II veteran who served during the invasion of Normandy. “He loved this country. He served this country honorably,” Monk said about his father.
Garry Monk also praised his brother, Conley Monk Jr., who founded NVCLR four decades ago. NVCLR was the driving force behind the creation of the Vietnam memorial on Long Wharf; it’s also filed “landmark lawsuits” regarding PTSD and discharge upgrades, helping create “opportunities for veterans with less than dishonorable discharge” to test for PTSD and receive related benefits from the federal government.
“We’re looking at eradicating homelessness for veterans in Connecticut,” Garry Monk said. This project is a step in that direction.
“Your dad would be very proud of you,” Blumenthal said to Garry Monk during his time at the mic. He spoke about how Conley Monk received a less than honorable discharge from the military and then suffered through unemployment, addiction, and homelessness. Overcoming so many hardships in life — after serving in the U.S. military — and then going on to help veterans through the NVCLR makes Conley Monk Jr. “a profile in courage, an American profile in courage,” Blumenthal said.
Elicker said that, across the country, there are 32,500 homeless veterans. “That is a national shame.” He noted that the city contributed the vacant lot for this project. The New Haven Land Bank is also contributing some abutting land to allow for the project to have four on-site parking spaces.
“New Haven continues to become a city of hope for our veterans,” Hill Alder Evelyn Rodriguez said.
Miguel Pittman, the chair of the Hill North Community Management Team, similarly praised the project. These five new apartments to-be will represent “five opportunities for stability, five opportunities for dignity, and five opportunities for a fresh start.”
U.S. Sen. Blumenthal with NVCLR founder Conley Monk Jr.
Hill Alder Evelyn Rodriguez.
Hill North CMT Chair Miguel Pittman.
The proposed new housing.