Mill Community Record New Haven
FIND ‘MILL COMMUNITIES’- Community Name (Common)
- West Hills – Federal Defense Worker Housing
- Address or Location
- 136 Rock Creek Road, Westville, New Haven
- Specific Location
- In the vicinity of Valley Street’s intersection with Victory Drive and roughly bounded by Valley Street to the west, Mountain Road to the north, Rock Creek Road to the east, and Valley Place South to the south.
- County
- New Haven
- Historic Designation
-
n/a
- Associated Mill Complexes
- n/a
- Architectural and Historical Information
Number of Existing Buildings
Roughly 300.
Dates of Construction
1942
Housing Types
Brief Description
Known as West Hills, this development was built as defense worker housing by the United States Government during the Second World War. The development was designed by the office of the prominent New Haven architect Douglas Orr and was comprised of 300 wood-frame or wood-frame and red brick one- and two-family residences that included several standardized Colonial Revival and simplified Modernist designs, as well as a maintenance and administration building. Rents in the development ranged from $35 per month for a one-bedroom apartment to $44.50 for a four-bedroom unit, including utilities. Eligible occupants had to be employed in an approved war industry and must be a current commuter or have moved to New Haven within the previous year. Like similar developments in other Connecticut cities, the units were sold to private owners after the war’s conclusion.
