The transformation of the old high school building on Tyler Street into “The Tyler,” a 70-unit, age-restricted housing development, has begun.

On June 15 town officials and representatives from WinnCompanies, the corporation that purchased the front section of the high school from the town in December 2018, broke ground at 200 Tyler Street.

The project will be taken up by WinnDevelopment, an arm of WinnCompanies.

“The elephant in the room, the albatross that’s been around, is now officially over,” said Mayor Joseph Maturo, Jr. in remarks during the press event. “This project is a great way to show how government and private developers can work together to make a great community even greater.”

The building has not operated as a high school for 21 years, though it still served as storage space for the Board of Education and the headquarters for a few town departments. The rear section of the building containing the gymnasium and the pool also played host to the Sal Tinari Biddy Basketball recreational program and the teen center.

At a cost of $18.7 million, WinnDevelopment said the development of the old high school building will preserve its historical qualities and be environmentally responsible with solar panels installed on the roof and energy efficient appliances in the units, meeting the requirements of the Passive House Institute’s EnerPHit standards.

“This 83-year-old structure has a lot of fond memories from the thousands of students who graduated from these hallways,” Maturo said. “Most of those will be saved through the efforts of WinnDevelopment.”

As the building is now listed on the National Register of Historic Places, WinnDevelopment said it has committed to historical adaptive reuse.

“But for those programs, these resources, this building, would probably remain vacant,” said Adam Stein, senior vice-president of WinnDevelopment.

Upon its completion, the building will be renamed “The Tyler” and will hold 70 units of affordable elderly housing (for those aged 55 and older); 67 of the units will be single-bedroom and 19 will be handicap accessible. According to the Connecticut Housing Finance Authority, which afforded the proposal $1,424,468 in tax credits, 50 units will be for households with incomes of up to 60 percent of the area median income and the remaining 20 units are designated as market rate; 14 units will provide supportive services for chronically homeless families and individuals. One wing of the building will be demolished to accommodate the necessary parking spaces.

With construction already underway on the cupola, Stein said they hope the project will be completed by spring 2020.

The nature of the building as a senior living facility built to meet energy efficiency and historical standards helped to finance the project with state and federal tax credits from the Connecticut Housing Finance Authority, the Connecticut State Historic Preservation Office and others. Based on these credits, the town agreed to a reduced purchase price and a 10-year deferred property tax structure.

“On paper, this project doesn’t work,” said State Senator Len Fasano (R-34). “It doesn’t work unless you get the tax credits…and that’s what’s done here.”

The speakers gave much credit to East Haven Economic Development Director Sal Brancati, who took over the project following the passing of Arthur DeSorbo in 2014.

“Without Sal’s talents and knowledge of economic development and also knowing how government here in Connecticut works, we would not be here today with this great building to be developed by [WinnDevelopment],” Maturo said.

The back half of the building was retained by the town for redevelopment into a community center featuring a remodeled pool area, new town council chambers, space for the East Haven Historical Society, and an auditorium for arts and entertainment.

“There will also be plenty of room for other uses as designated in the future for other town uses with the remodeling of the second floor…and the addition of the elevator,” Maturo said.

Together with a bonding package, Maturo said the project will be paid for with the money earned from the $500,000 sale of the front half of the building and tax revenue generated by the new apartments.