City seeks partners to create affordable housing for families and seniors on the grounds of NYCHA’s Harborview Terrace, Sumner Houses, Morrisania Air Rights and Twin Parks West
NYCHA’s 100% Affordable Housing Program will create approximately 700 desperately needed new apartments
NEW YORK –- (RealEstateRama) — The New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA) and the New York City Department of Housing Preservation and Development (HPD) today released a Request for Proposals (RFP) for the development of 100 percent affordable housing apartments for seniors and families on the grounds of four NYCHA developments: Harborview Terrace in midtown Manhattan, Sumner Houses in Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn, and Morrisania Air Rights and Twin Parks West, located in Morrisania and Fordham Heights in the Bronx.
At a time when New York City is facing a critical shortage of housing, especially affordable options, NYCHA is striving to provide more housing to the City’s low-income residents.
Since the 2015 launch of NextGeneration NYCHA, a ten-year strategic plan to improve the Authority’s finances, offer better customer services and increase affordable housing, NYCHA has identified underutilized plots on NYCHA land to build new affordable housing across the City. Currently, NYCHA has close to 1,400 apartments in development under the 100% Affordable Housing Program.
“NYCHA is committed to creating new housing options for working families, seniors and all low-income New Yorkers,” said NYCHA Chair and CEO Shola Olatoye. “Our 100% Affordable Housing Program brings residents and community partners together to keep our city diverse and affordable.”
“Creative partnerships are key to our efforts to create more affordable housing opportunities for New Yorkers. HPD is proud to partner with NYCHA to harness these underused sites to create up to 800 affordable homes for Seniors and very low income families in these Brooklyn, Bronx, and Manhattan communities,” said HPD Commissioner Maria Torres-Springer.
The RFP for these projects was developed after a series of meetings and community visioning workshops were held with NYCHA residents to identify their top priorities. NYCHA and HPD received input on the housing type (senior or family), the potential look and feel of the buildings, possible site improvements, and potential community uses (senior or community centers) that could benefit residents and the entire neighborhood. As a result of these conversations, the RFP suggests that proposals for each building should include a community center, or retail center in one case, on the ground floor. The resulting ‘Community Visioning’ documents from these sessions will also be included as attachments to the RFP.
Through the RFP, which is only open to those pre-selected through a previous Request for Qualifications (RFQ), the City invites proposals for the design, financing, construction, and operations of 100 percent affordable new housing at Harborview Terrace, Sumner Houses, Morrisania Air Rights, and Twin Parks West. The pre-qualification process was undertaken to encourage more participation from all developers, including nonprofits and minority and/or woman owned business enterprises (MWBE). Preference will be given to proposals with deep affordability levels and a range of incomes.
Harborview Terrace, Manhattan:
- The Harborview Terrace site is located on West 55th Street between 10th and 11th Avenue. The site includes an underutilized parking lot and recreational area. Parking spaces will be relocated.
- The new building will be a multi-family development with 200-250 apartments of 100 percent affordable housing.
- The plan should include a ground floor community facility.
Sumner Houses, Brooklyn:
- The Sumner Houses site is located on Marcus Garvey Boulevard between Park and Myrtle Avenue.
- This project will be a senior building with 120-200 apartments of 100 percent affordable housing.
- The plan should include a ground floor community facility.
Morrisania Air Rights, Bronx:
- The Morrisania Air Rights site is located on East 162nd Street between Courtlandt and Park Avenue.
- The development plan will include 100-200 apartments of affordable housing with a supportive housing component.
- The plan should include a ground floor community facility.
Twin Parks West, Bronx:
- The Twin Parks West site is located on Webster Avenue between E 183rd and E 184th Streets. The site includes a parking lot. Residents’ parking spaces will be relocated to other NYCHA parking lots.
- This new family-housing building will have 200 apartments of 100 percent affordable housing.
- The plan should include a ground floor community facility or retail space.
NYCHA will retain rights to the land developed through a long-term ground lease. Respondents will be required to train and hire NYCHA residents, and proactively engage residents on a regular basis as the project moves forward. Rents will remain affordable through regulatory agreements requiring long-term affordability.
The RFP submission period will run from June 1 through August 10, 2017. Proposals are due by hand on August 10, 2017 no later than 4 p.m. The RFP can be accessed at the NYCHA and HPD websites.
This RFP advances the goals of Mayor Bill de Blasio’s Housing New York: A Five-Borough, Ten-Year Housing Plan to create and preserve 200,000 affordable housing units over the next 10 years. The most comprehensive affordable housing plan in the City’s history and largest municipal housing plan in the nation, its goal is to help address New York City’s affordability crisis by housing more than half a million New Yorkers, ranging from those with very low incomes to the middle class – all of whom face increased pressures due to ever-rising rents. It also helps achieve NYCHA’s commitment to contribute 10,000 of those affordable units as part of NextGeneration NYCHA.
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About the New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA):
NYCHA’s mission is to increase opportunities for low- and moderate-income New Yorkers by providing safe, affordable housing and facilitating access to social and community services. More than 400,000 New Yorkers reside in NYCHA’s 326 public housing developments around the five boroughs, and another 235,000 receive subsidized rental assistance in private homes through the NYCHA-administered Section 8 Leased Housing Program. For more information, visit www.nyc.gov/nycha and for regular updates on NYCHA news and services, connect with us via www.facebook.com/NYCHA and www.twitter.com/NYCHA.
About the New York City Department of Housing Preservation and Development (HPD):
HPD is the nation’s largest municipal housing preservation and development agency. Its mission is to promote quality housing and diverse, thriving neighborhoods for New Yorkers through loan and development programs for new affordable housing, preservation of the affordability of the existing housing stock, enforcement of housing quality standards, and educational programs for tenants and building owners. HPD is tasked with fulfilling Mayor de Blasio’s Housing New York: A Five-Borough Ten-Year Plan to create and preserve 200,000 affordable units for New Yorkers at the very lowest incomes to those in the middle class. For more information visit www.nyc.gov/hpd and for regular updates on HPD news and services, connect with us via www.facebook.com/nychousing and www.twitter.com/nychousing.
CONTACT: media (at) nycha.nyc (dot) gov | (212) 306-3322
Juliet Pierre-Antoine (HPD), morrisj (at) hpd.nyc (dot) gov
