WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass. - More than 15 years after the Berkshire Housing Development Corporation proposed the project, the site of the old Williamstown Manufacturing Company is now an affordable housing complex.

“It’s just such a reward,” said President and CEO Elton Ogden, who is retiring now the project is completed. “You know, it’s one of the wonderful things about this work. It’s tough work, you know? I have the satisfaction of knowing that this is going to house a lot of people for a long time.”

The site features three new townhouse buildings and the renovated mill building, known as ‘the cube,’ for a total of 42 units.

“It’s a mix of one, two and three bedrooms,” said incoming President and CEO Eileen Peltier. “Often, our apartments are a mix of ones and twos, but we’ve added more threes and twos to this project in order to encourage families.”

The project had to deal with several COVID-related issues during the final construction phases, which delayed the opening by a couple of months.

“Early on, there was a crew that tested positive here, so they had to pull off the job,” said Ogden. “And it’s been a lot of material supply issues.”

Residents will begin moving in next week. The entire complex will be filled by the end of October.

Peltier said the project comes at the perfect time, with an increased need for affordable housing in the wake of the pandemic.

“The spotlight is really on the need for affordable housing,” said Peltier. “The need has always been there, but I think communities are really recognizing this need, and it’s wonderful to see a community like Williamstown embrace a project like this.”