NEW YORK, NY – March 4, 2009 – (RealEstateRama) — The board of the New York State Housing Finance Agency (HFA) today approved $21.5 million in financing to renovate two low-income rental housing projects in Brooklyn with 160 units reserved for senior citizens and the disabled.
Both apartment houses were built originally in the early 1990s by the Ridgewood Bushwick Senior Citizens Council, Inc., a nonprofit social service agency in Brooklyn, under the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Section 202 Program.
“This financing will improve the lives of seniors in Brooklyn and demonstrates our commitment to improving the lives of New Yorkers despite our state’s economic difficulties,” said Governor David A. Paterson.
Assemblyman Vito Lopez, D-Brooklyn, Chairman of the Assembly Housing Committee, said, “I would like to commend Governor Paterson and President Almodovar for their continued commitment to preserving affordable housing units. Working together in partnership, the Ridgewood Bushwick Senior Citizens Council and the New York State Housing Finance Agency are making sure that seniors and the disabled will continue to have safe and affordable housing units right in their community.”
Senator Martin Malave Dilan, D-Brooklyn, said, “I want to commend HFA for approving this funding that will give senior citizens and my other constituents the opportunity to find safe and affordable housing. This is even more critical today due to the difficult financial times we are all facing.”
Priscilla Almodovar, HFA President and Chief Executive Officer, said, “This financing allows us to make improvements to provide low-income seniors with the highest quality services and housing they can afford. By doing so, we both enhance their quality of life and help keep them in their neighborhoods near their family and friends.”
The HFA financings will renovate a five-story building at 143 Himrod Street and a seven-story building at 55 Goodwin Place in Brooklyn. The 156 current tenants will not be displaced during the renovations. Tenants are required to have incomes at or below $36,840 for a two-person household. The renovations include new kitchens, a new roof, upgraded elevators, window replacements, and a new fire alarm and security system.
The total cost of the project is nearly $29.7 million. In addition to the HFA financing, the project will receive an annual allocation of $856,518 in federal low-income housing tax credits; a $212,000 grant from the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA); federal Section 8 Housing Assistance Payment contracts for all the tenants; and a real estate tax exemption or abatement from New York City.
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The NYS Housing Finance Agency was created in 1960 to sell bonds to finance the construction and rehabilitation of multifamily affordable rental housing in New York State.
Contact: Philip Lentz
Director of Communications
212-872-0679
plentz (at) nyhomes (dot) org
