Susan Stott, ACT Founder

We are losing our affordable housing in Andover and that’s a problem. I want to live in an economically balanced community and believe that children who are raised in a more diverse community go out into the world with a better understanding of what the world looks like.

In 1990 I attended the first national Community Land Trust (CLT) conference in Burlington, Vermont and thought this is a model that we need in Andover. So I worked to add the CLT model to the Andover housing master plan. 

From the start the hardest part of creating new permanently affordable homes has been finding land. Each home we have built has a personal story in who brought the land to our attention and the journey we took working with the Housing Partnership Committee, Select Board and Zoning Board of Appeals to create a new permanently affordable home.

Throughout those journeys, we have relied on strong volunteers who have offered professional services on a pro bono basis and neighbors who have participated on our homeowner selection committee. ACT creates a door into the Andover community and strives to offer a sincere welcome to all each of our homeowners. 

Beyond building permanently affordable homes, we want to be a voice and an advocate for anyone who needs affordable housing. To that end our work has recently expanded to be a monitoring and lottery agent for affordable housing in town. 

I hope Andover continues to be an advocate for affordable housing and enrich all of our residents as we get to know one another.