City Selects Nonprofit to Develop 100-Unit Building for Seniors in the Bronx

December 5, 2019

Press office: hpdmedia@hpd.nyc.gov

Bronx, NY – The New York City Department of Housing Preservation and Development (HPD) Commissioner Louise Carroll announces plans to develop 100 affordable homes for seniors in the Highbridge section of the Bronx to be built by a team led by the West Side Federation for Senior and Supportive Housing (WSFSSH), a nonprofit senior housing developer and service provider. WSFSSH successfully submitted development plans to the 97 West 169th Street RFP that HPD issued last year. The RFP sought plans to develop a 15,100 square foot site into affordable housing for seniors.

“We are following through on our promise to put seniors first by investing in high quality affordable housing for this growing population, so that New Yorkers who helped build this city can afford to stay. This development will create much needed affordable homes for low-income and formerly homeless seniors, along with the amenities and services they need to age with grace,” said HPD Commissioner Louise Carroll. “I congratulate WSFSSH for their stellar proposal and look forward to our continued partnership to bring this project to life.”

“It’s exciting to see a non-profit be selected to build a development that will create not only much needed affordable housing for seniors with wraparound services to help them age-in-place, but also a health clinic open to the public, with 30 percent of the units to be set aside for the formerly homeless. It’s organizations like WSFSSH who have become true partners in creating affordable housing that is inventive, sustainable, and encompasses the true meaning of home,” said Council Member Vanessa Gibson. “I thank HPD for their work to create more affordable housing for this City’s seniors and look forward to watching this project take shape.”

“WSFSSH is thrilled that our proposal to build new affordable senior housing enriched with on-site social services and a neighborhood health center has been selected to move forward. There is a tremendous need for quality housing opportunities for seniors feeling the effects of the affordability crisis, especially those who have been struggling with homelessness,” said Paul Freitag, WSFSSH Executive Director. “We have a deep commitment to serving older adults in the Bronx and look forward to our continued partnership with HPD in serving one of New York City’s most vulnerable populations.”

The 60,000 square-foot mixed-use building will feature a 2,700 square-foot federally-qualified health center (FQHC) on the ground floor that will be open to the public. WSFSSH is proposing providing innovative services for seniors who require more assistance than a typical resident, but do not need to be living in a nursing home, allowing for seniors to age-in-place and live independently. The homes built as a result of this RFP are expected to be financed through the Senior Affordable Rental Apartments (SARA) Program, and the Extremely Low & Low-Income Affordability (ELLA) Program, with 30 percent of the units set aside for formerly homeless seniors.

The building will be a mix of deeply affordable studio and one-bedroom units, and will be designed by Shakespeare, Gordon, Vlado and Architects (SGVA), a women-owned architectural firm. Its design includes sustainability features such as solar panels and greywater collection This project furthers the City’s commitment to creating more affordable housing for New York City seniors. Since 2014, HPD has financed more than 8,500 units of affordable senior housing.

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The New York City Department of Housing Preservation and Development (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 Plan which was recently expanded and accelerated through Housing New York 2.0 to complete the initial goal of 200,000 homes two years ahead of schedule—by 2022, and achieve an additional 100,000 homes over the following four years, for a total of 300,000 homes by 2026.  For full details visit www.nyc.gov/hpd and for regular updates on HPD news and services, connect with us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram @NYCHousing.