HDC Board Approves $462.2 Million Bond Issuance $288.04 Million will Fund 15 Affordable Housing Developments
Affordable Units to be Created and/or Preserved in the Bronx, Staten Island, Queens and Manhattan
69-Unit Bronx Development to be named for Long-Time HPD Employee Rubin Wolf
New York, NY – June 26, 2013 – (RealEstateRama) — The New York City Housing Development Corporation (HDC) Board of Directors have approved issuing $462.2 million in Multi-Family Housing Revenue Bonds to advance HDC’s affordable housing lending activities under Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg’s New Housing Marketplace Plan.
$288.04 million in tax-exempt bonds has been authorized by the Board to fund the new construction or preservation and renovation of 15 developments located throughout New York City. These 15 developments containing 2,219 affordable units will be financed through the use of $270 million in private activity bond volume cap and $18 million recycled tax-exempt bonds. HDC received $180 million allocation of private activity volume cap from the New York City Industrial Development Agency (IDA) and $90 million from the State of New York. $120 million in taxable bonds will be issued to purchase and finance certain loans from the corporation and refund certain outstanding bonds within the Open Resolution. $54.2 million in tax-exempt bonds will be a recycled bond issuance that will provide financing for projects that will anticipate closing in 2015 or 2016.
Eight of the developments containing 710 apartments will be new construction and seven containing 1,509 apartments will be preservation deals. Three developments containing 316 units entail the preservation and rehabilitation of housing for the elderly. Along with the proceeds of the sale of the bonds, HDC will allocate over $36 million in corporate subsidy to these developments.
The projects approved by the Board are part of the New Housing Marketplace Plan (NHMP), a multibillion dollar initiative to finance 165,000 units of affordable housing for half a million New Yorkers by the close of the 2014 fiscal year. For every dollar invested by the City, the Plan has leveraged $3.43 in additional funding for a total commitment of more than $21 billion. To date, the NHMP has funded the creation or preservation of more than 147,893 units of affordable housing across the five boroughs.
“HDC’s capacity and role have grown to the point where they are an indispensable part of the equation that makes the preservation and development of affordable housing possible,” said NYC Department of Housing Preservation and Development Commissioner Mathew M. Wambua, who also serves as the HDC Board Chair. “Bringing the 15 projects approved today to completion would be unthinkable without HDC bonds and subsidy.”
“HDC’s programs make the creation and preservation of affordable housing achievable,” said HDC President Marc Jahr. “The Board’s approval of these bond issuances paves the way for us to complete each transaction. Our staff, along with their counterparts at HPD, works extremely hard to bring these projects to fruition and we are grateful for the support not only of our Board of Directors, but also the City’s Industrial Development Agency, as well the State of New York, including the Governor and his staff, and the staffs of the Division of Budget and Homes and Community Renewal, which generously allocate bonding authority through us. This makes it possible for our financial partners…and makes these carefully crafted deals workable and affordable over the long term.”
The proposed 69-unit Rubin Wolf Residences is named after long-time HPD employee Rubin Wolf, who died in late 2011, just months after his retirement after 48 years at HPD. “Rubin, with his wry sense of humor and self-deprecating style, was an influential and passionate advocate for strong, involved communities and for his fellow New Yorkers” said HDC President Marc Jahr. Mr. Wolf held a number of different positions at HPD, but is best known as the principal creator of the affordable housing lottery—still in use since 1988. The newly constructed six-story elevator building that bears Rubin Wolf’s name will have 69 rental units for low-income families. The project site is located in the Williamsbridge section of the Bronx at 3629-3645 White Plains Road at 214th Street. All the units will be occupied by households with incomes at or below 60% Area Median Income, equivalent to an annual income of $51,540 for a family of four. The developer is The Arker Companies.
In addition to the Rubin Wolf Residences, some other developments to be financed are:
1016 Washington Avenue is a 10-story mixed-use new construction building located in the Morrisania section of the Bronx. The building will be comprised of 65 residential units with rents set at 55% of AMI (currently $47,245 for a family of four). The developer is Joy Construction Corp.
Carmel Apartments is an occupied 100-unit HUD 202 senior citizen apartment complex located at Carmel Court, south of Old Town Road in the Old Town section of Staten Island. The project site includes 10 two-story walkup brick and masonry garden style apartment buildings containing 10 apartments each as well as a single-story community center building. The development will serve individuals earning at or below 60% of the Area Median Income (equivalent to an annual income of no more than $36,120 for an individual). The developer is the Institute for Human Development (IHD).
The Centerlight Scheuer Plaza project involves the rehabilitation of a multifamily apartment complex located in the Bronxdale section of the Bronx. The building is a 100 unit, seven-story, age restricted building first constructed in 1989. All of the project’s units, except for the superintendent’s unit, will be reserved for tenants 62 years and older. Existing tenants will remain in place. The developer is Centerlight Health Systems, Inc.
Creston Heights involves the moderate rehabilitation of four existing buildings in the Fordham neighborhood of the Bronx. Three of the buildings are part of HPD’s Third Party Transfer (TPT) program (2279 Tiebout Ave, 2414 Creston Ave, and 2333 Grand Ave), as well as 2600 Briggs Avenue, currently owned by New Briggs Avenue HDFC. The renovation will proceed with tenants in place. Vacant units (except the superintendents’ units) will be rented to household with incomes at or below 60% of the Area Median Income (equivalent to an annual income of $51,540 for a family of four). The developer is the not-for-profit Fordham Bedford Housing Corporation.
The Longwood Residences is a 361-unit scattered site development located in the Longwood neighborhood of the Bronx. The project is comprised of nine five and six-story elevator buildings all of which were built between 1908 and 1922. The overall unit mix consists of 58 one-bedrooms, 143 two-bedrooms, 131 three-bedrooms, and 27 four-bedroom units. The buildings will be renovated with existing tenants in place and where vacant, all units (except the superintendents’ units) will be rented to household with incomes at or below 60% of the Area Median Income – equivalent to an annual income of $51,540 for a family of four. The developer is Omni New York, LLC.
The Mother Arnetta Crawford Apartments will be a new eight-story elevator building with 84 rental units and 21 parking spaces for low-income families and people with special needs in the Crotona East section of the Bronx. The site is located at Hoe Avenue and East 172nd Street in Community District 3. All the units will be occupied by households with incomes at or below 60% Area Median Income, equivalent to an annual income of $51,540 for a family of four. The developer is Union Grove Associates II, LLC.
The PRC Shakespeare project involves the acquisition, financial restructuring, consolidation and rehabilitation of three HUD-insured developments known as Featherbed Lane, Mid-Bronx I (MBD I) and Mid-Bronx III (MBD III). Together there are a total of 10 six-story multi-family buildings in the Morris Heights (Featherbed) and Crotona Park East (MBD I and MBD III) neighborhoods of the Bronx. The combined scattered site project has 414 residential units. All the units will be occupied by households with incomes at or below 60% Area Median Income, equivalent to an annual income of $51,540 for a family of four. The developer is the not-for-profit Property Resources Corporation (PRC).
The Scheuer Gardens project involves the rehabilitation of a multifamily apartment complex located for senior residents in the Bronxdale section of the Bronx. The project is a 116 unit, seven-story, age-restricted building constructed in 1983. All of the project’s units, except for the superintendent’s unit, will be reserved for tenants 62 years and older. Tenants who are already in place will remain in their homes. The developer is Centerlight Health Systems, Inc.
Soundview Family, at 401 Bronx River Avenue will be a 120-unit residential rental building, with 24 one-bedroom, 78 two- bedroom and 17 three-bedroom apartments as well as one three-bedroom superintendent’s unit. The development will be located in the Soundview section of the Bronx on the grounds of NYCHA’s Soundview development. This new construction project will also add to our existing portfolio of developments developed in collaboration with NYCHA, which, not including the Federalization deal, currently stands at 16 deals, 2,355 apartments, and a total HDC commitment amounting to nearly $950 Million. Units will be reserved for households earning up to 60% Area Median Income (currently $51,540 per year for a family of four). This will be a joint venture between L+M Development, CPCR and Lemle & Wolff.
Webster Commons Building B will be one of four new construction, low- and mixed-income rental buildings that will form the Webster Commons Development. The project will be built in the Olinville section of the Bronx, located at 3356 Webster Avenue. Building B will be a single thirteen-story building. Twenty-four of the project’s units will be reserved for households earning up to 60% Area Median Income (currently $51,540 for a family of four). The remaining 70 units will have rents set at 80% AMI (equivalent to an annual income of $68,700 for a family of four), and will be reserved for households earning up to 110% AMI (currently $94,490 for a family of four). The developer is Joy Construction Corp.
About NYC Housing Development Corporation (HDC):
Since 2000, HDC has issued roughly 10% of all the multi-family housing revenue bonds in the U.S. and since 2003, when Mayor Bloomberg’s New Housing Marketplace Plan was launched, HDC has raised more than $6.7 billion in financing for affordable housing developments, including providing in excess of $1 billion in subsidy from corporate reserves. In Affordable Housing Finance magazine’s annual listing of the nation’s top ten funders of multifamily housing, HDC is the only municipal entity on the list. In 2013, HDC was the third largest affordable housing lender in the U.S. after Citi and Wells Fargo, beating out Bank of America, JPMorgan Chase and Capital One. To date, under the Mayor’s plan, HDC has financed the creation or preservation of more than 70,628 of the total 147,890 affordable units. Multifamily buildings financed by HDC contain more than 1.7 million square feet of commercial space. For additional information, visit: www.nychdc.com
