PITTSFIELD, Mass. — The goal of Pittsfield’s Affordable Housing Trust is to allow the city to address affordable housing in a more efficient way. Board member Justine Dodds said a big issue Pittsfield faces is an aging housing-stock.

“The trust is kind of started to think more about how do we preserve the units that we have,” Dodds said. “That’s probably a more cost-effective way than, you know, new construction.”

The trust has a number of sources to lean on for funding and is able to focus on creative solutions like preservation because a large part of Pittsfield’s ARPA funds will be used for new housing.

“The city is putting some of their ARPA funds, a significant portion of their ARPA funds into infrastructure, like creating new housing units,” Dodds said. “And we project that there will be 77 units of new affordable housing within the next three to four years.”

Mayor Linda Tyer announced in 2022 more than $8 million of the city’s ARPA funds will be going toward housing initiatives.

The affordable housing trust will receive $500,000.

Dodds said she is familiar with these types of projects through her current role as director of community development for Pittsfield.

“We run rehab programs. We also have a city program that came in a couple of years ago to help with the people address exterior rehab,” Dodds said. “We want to continue to focus on the things that we know work and then use something like this trust to try to, you know, come in to play.”

The seven member trust also receives input from housing developers, city health leaders, and others to get a wide perspective.

Pittsfield’s Affordable Housing Trust met for the first time in October 2022, after a vote was cast to approve the entity.

The city joins Williamstown, Great Barrington and Lenox for Berkshire County communities with affordable housing trusts; there are more than 120 in Massachusetts.