Village at Arlington replaces the last section of Westlake Terrace

Village at Arlington replaces the last section of Westlake Terrace

YOUNGSTOWN

City and county leaders and state legislators gathered this morning to celebrate the completion of a new mixed-income affordable housing community that has replaced one of the nation’s oldest public housing projects.

The occasion was the dedication of the Village at Arlington, which replaced the last remaining section of Westlake Terrace.

The 120-apartment village, whose clubhouse is at 516 Griffith St., replaced the final 218 apartments in the 1938-vintage Westlake.

The keynote speaker for the ribbon-cutting event was former Mayor Jay Williams, who is now White House deputy director of intergovernmental affairs.

“What has been undertaken here is nothing short of remarkable,” Williams said, calling the new village “a transformational project that is being discussed around the country.”

Noting that Westlake had developed a reputation for “crime, drugs, disenfranchisement, despair and hopelessness,” Williams said the new village “absolutely is making a difference in the impression that people have of this city.”