YONKERS, NY-After a 10-year review process, a $32-million, 12-story affordable housing tower at 49 N. Broadway near the Yonkers waterfront broke ground here on Tuesday, as city and state officials lauded its arrival to the neighborhood’s burgeoning downtown. In partnership with the Yonkers Industrial Development Agency and the local governing body, the 92-unit apartment complex will be developed by Warburton Riverview Owners LLC, a joint venture between L+M Development Partners Inc. and the Greyston Foundation.
Ron Moelis, CEO and co-founder of L+M Development Partners, describes the deal as an “excellent example” of public-private partnerships combining resources to benefit communities in need. “We are pleased to have the opportunity to work with Greyston Foundation to help realize the City of Yonkers’ vision to revitalize the area, provide comfortable, affordable living opportunities for families and spur economic growth Downtown,” he said in a statement.
The apartments will be available for Yonkers residents with no higher than 60% of the Westchester County area median income, which is $50,280 for a family of two, a spokesman from L+M Development tells GlobeSt.com. The county’s income and rent guide lists the AMI for a family of three as $56,580, and for a family of four as $62,820.
According to the Yonkers IDA, the project was awarded 4% low income housing tax credits from the state’s Homes and Community Renewal affiliate agency, the New York State Housing Finance Agency. The agency committed tax-exempt bonds toward construction of the site, which is expected to be completed by 2013. Goldman Sachs and Bank of America also provided additional financing for the project, though calls to the Yonkers IDA and L+M Development requesting the exact amounts were not provided in time for deadline.
On the municipal level, the Yonkers IDA provided several incentives for the apartment complex, including a sales and use tax exemption for materials and equipment used in construction; a mortgage recording tax exemption; and a structured property tax agreement, the IDA says in a statement. Sharon L. Ebert, deputy commissioner in the city’s Department of Planning and Development, tells GlobeSt.com that $1.5 million of subsidy financing went toward the tower through the state’s HOME program, a multifamily block grant program for state and local governments.
In addition to the new development, municipal officials have announced the city’s larger urban renewal effort to restore five historic buildings on Warburton Avenue. Once complete, the structures will provide new residential and retail space on the block, the Yonkers IDA says.
Ellen Lynch, president and CEO of the Yonkers IDA, tells GlobeSt.com that other city-wide projects are on the move. The master plan for the 51-acre Alexander Street portion of the Yonkers waterfront has been approved by the Yonkers City Council, which outlines development standards and parameters for the northern stretch along the Hudson River. “In the blocks between the waterfront and 49 N. Broadway, new retail business and restaurants are opening regularly and doing well, including a new restaurant on Main Street,” she says, commending the efforts of the Yonkers Downtown Business Improvement District.
Lynch also highlighted 49 N. Broadway’s close proximity to the 150,000-square-foot IPark commercial office complex located on Wells Avenue, as well as the Yonkers Metro-North train station. “This complex, formerly Otis Elevator factory buildings, has been renovated and includes fabulous industrial architecture with brick facades and high ceilings,” she says, describing the area as an emerging live/work community just north of New York City. “New high-tech businesses are coming and growing at IPark."
Off-site parking for 49 N. Broadway residents will be provided at a planned parking facility at 10 Woodworth Ave., the IDA says. Income-eligible families interested in applying for the units will be selected on a first-come, first-served basis, says a spokesman for L+M.
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