New York, N.Y., June 11th, 2008 – The New York City Housing Development Corporation (“HDC”) today approved up to $45 million in tax-exempt bonds for the newly proposed middle income development in East Harlem.
The Project consists of the new development of a 12-story building to be located at 245 East 124th Street between Park Avenue and Second Avenue in the East Harlem section of Manhattan. The Project will contain 185 rental units (21 studio units, 101 one-bedroom units, 56 two-bedroom units and 7 three- bedroom units) financed under the Corporation’s Mixed Income Program. Thirty-seven of the units will be reserved for tenants earning no more than 50% of Area Median Income which is currently $38,400 for a family of four. Fifty-five units will be reserved for middle-income households in accordance with the Corporation’s Middle Income Program area median income (“AMI”) limits and marketing guidelines. The remaining ninety units will not have income restrictions and will be rented at market rents. The project is also expected to contain 8,338 square feet of commercial space and 120 parking spaces. Following initial occupancy, rents on the Project will be subject to Rent Stabilization.
In addition to providing the bond financing to fund the first mortgage, the Corporation anticipates making a second mortgage loan from the Corporation’s unrestricted reserves in an estimated amount of $6,045,000. The second mortgage is being made in accordance with the Mixed Income Program guidelines, for an amount of $65,000 per unit for the 93 low and middle-income units in the Project. This development will also receive an additional loan from Department of Housing Preservation and Development (HPD) in an amount of $3,700,000. Finally, The Project will also benefit from the tax credit equity generated by the sale of Low Income Housing Tax Credits.
The site is a composite of privately held and city-owned lots. The project is also part of the 125th Street river to river rezoning (a multi-city agency rezoning effort to infuse the area with cultural, retail, entertainment, and residential uses) and is taking part in the inclusionary housing program.
East 124th Street, LLC is made up of the principals of Jonathan Rose Companies and Lettire Construction. Jonathan Rose Companies has a particular focus towards environmentally friendly construction and development. They are a repeat borrower of HDC and most recently closed on 265 West 153rd Street, an 83-unit LAMP in July 2006. Lettire Construction is an East Harlem based construction management and general contracting firm.
The loan furthers HDC’s mission of creating affordable housing and provides the creation of 37 low-income units and 55 middle income units under the New Housing Marketplace Plan, which will be available to tenants earning up to 50% of AMI and 175% of AMI respectively.
The New York City Housing Development Corporation (HDC) provides a variety of financing programs for the creation and preservation of multi-family affordable housing throughout the five boroughs of New York City. HDC is implementing Mayor Bloomberg’s New Housing Marketplace Plan to build and preserve 165,000 units of affordable housing over ten years. The New Housing Marketplace Plan is the largest municipal affordable housing effort in the nation’s history. Our programs are designed to meet the wide-range of affordable housing needs of the City’s economically diverse population.
