NEW YORK, N.Y, September 21, 2007 — Governor Eliot Spitzer today announced more than $45 million in financing for affordable housing projects in New York City, Monroe County and Onondaga County.
The boards of three state housing agencies, the Housing Finance Agency (HFA), the Affordable Housing Corporation (AHC) and the State of New York Mortgage Agency (SONYMA), met yesterday and approved loans, grants and mortgage commitments for projects that will build or improve more than 750 affordable housing units.
“These projects will help hundreds of families achieve economic security by providing housing that is both affordable and livable,” said Governor Spitzer. “It is critical that we work toward improving access to and increasing affordable housing in an effort to revitalize our struggling communities.”
Priscilla Almodovar, President and CEO of HFA, SONYMA and AHC, said: “Our actions today demonstrate the administration’s commitment to preserving and building affordable housing throughout New York State. We are also pleased that one of our projects, Remeeder Houses in Brooklyn, was eligible for NYSERDA grants that will help save energy and reduce long-term costs. We hope this will be a model for all of our preservation financings in the future.”
The projects are as follows:
New York City: Approximately $39.6 million in grants and financing was approved by HFA and AHC to finance the construction and renovation of 609 housing units in New York City. Specifically, HFA approved financing totaling $36.2 million for major capital improvements at Tri-Senior Housing in the Borough Park and Flatbush sections of Brooklyn and at the Remeeder House in the East New York section of Brooklyn.
AHC approved more than $3.4 million in grants to finance construction of new housing units at St. Phillips Homes and the Halsey Street and Marcus Garvey Boulevard Project in the Bedford-Stuyvesant neighborhood of Brooklyn; lofts at West 115th Street in Manhattan; and two-family homes in the Far Rockaway section of Queens.
Onondaga : A total of $5.35 million in grants and mortgage insurance commitments was approved by SONYMA and AHC to renovate the Spaghetti Warehouse Building in Syracuse and for the Onondaga County Community Development Division.
Specifically, SONYMA approved funding for $5.05 million to insure a mortgage for the Spaghetti Warehouse, a three-story former handbag factor in Franklin Square area of Syracuse. When complete, the project will have 50 residential units and 30,210 square feet of retail and commercial space.
The AHC approved a $300,000 grant to help fund the Onondaga County Home Improvement Program to low-income families seeking to make improvements to their homes such as lead paid removal and bringing homes into compliance with existing building codes.
Monroe County: A total of $600,000 in grants was approved by AHC to renovate 90 homes in the City of Rochester. The grants were awarded to two non-profit organizations: the Coalition of Northeast Association, Inc. (CONEA); and NeighborhoodWorks Rochester, Inc.
Specifically, CONEA will receive $300,000 for renovations on 52 single-family homes in the Upper Falls section of Rochester. The funds will be used to make individual grants for home improvements that will include structural, safety and code upgrades for roofs, windows, heating systems, plumbing, exterior repairs and emergency repairs.
A second $300,000 grant will be used by NeighborhoodWorks to renovate 38 single-family homes in the City of Rochester. The funds will be used to provide loans to homeowners to correct structural defects, repair building systems that threaten the health and safety of the occupants and to make repairs to prolong the lives of the homes.
Additional information on these financing approvals is available at www.nyhomes.org.
