Date: 10/18/2005 9:38:33 PM Eastern Daylight Time
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October 18, 2005
This is the NYC.gov News You Requested For: "HPD Press Releases"
The New York City Department of Housing Preservation and Development (HPD) has issued the following three press releases:
HOUSING COMMISSIONER DETAILS PROGRESS ON MAYOR'S HOUSING PLAN
MAYOR BLOOMBERG ANNOUNCES INNOVATIVE INITIATIVE TO COMBAT PREDATORY LENDING AND PREVENT MORTGAGE FORECLOSURES
MAYOR BLOOMBERG ANNOUNCES HISTORIC COLLABORATION WITH NATIONAL CHARITIES AND FINANCIAL INSTITUTIONS FOR THE BUILDING AND PRESERVATION OF AFFORDABLE HOUSING
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HOUSING COMMISSIONER DETAILS PROGRESS ON MAYOR'S HOUSING PLAN
42% of the Way to Mayor Bloomberg's Goal of Creating and Preserving 68,000 Homes and Apartments
Housing Commissioner Shaun Donovan released a Progress Report on the first two years of Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg's $3 billion New Housing Marketplace plan to fund the creation and preservation of more than 68,000 homes and apartments over five years. The Progress Report shows that at the end of the second year of the plan, 28,550 units have been completed or funded. Even with a recent increase in the plan to 68,000 units (from the original goal of 65,000) the Bloomberg Administration is ahead of target, 42 percent of the way to reaching the five-year goal. Seventy six percent of the units created and preserved are expected to go to families with incomes under $50,240 per year for a family of four.
To read the complete press release, visit HPD's website at www.nyc.gov/hpd
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 18, 2005
Press contact: Carol Abrams (212) 863-5176
HOUSING COMMISSIONER DETAILS PROGRESS ON MAYOR'S HOUSING PLAN
42% of the Way to Mayor Bloomberg's Goal of Creating and Preserving 68,000 Homes and Apartments
Housing Commissioner Shaun Donovan today released a Progress Report on the first two years of Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg's $3 billion New Housing Marketplace plan to fund the creation and preservation of more than 68,000 homes and apartments over five years. The Progress Report shows that at the end of the second year of the plan, 28,550 units have been completed or funded. Even with a recent increase in the plan to 68,000 units (from the original goal of 65,000) the Bloomberg Administration is ahead of target, 42 percent of the way to reaching the five-year goal. Seventy six percent of the units created and preserved are expected to go to families with incomes under $50,240 per year for a family of four.
Mayor Bloomberg said, " We have made enormous progress towards our goal of providing affordable homes for 200,000 New Yorkers. By fostering the conditions that encourage a robust housing market, we have convinced housing developers that this is a city with a boundless future - one where businesses want to locate and expand, and where people want to live and raise their families. Last year, new housing construction in New York reached a 32-year high, and continues to climb. This new construction is crucial to the City's future because it provides homes for the 840,000 new residents New York has added since 1990.
The construction boom will help to relieve the housing shortage that is driving rents and prices beyond what many can afford. But a housing boom alone will not meet all our needs - we must also ensure that a large share of the new housing is affordable to low- and middle-income New Yorkers. Even before the announcement of the New Housing Marketplace plan my Administration had already completed 18,550 units of affordable housing. The 68,000 units of housing being created and preserved through the plan brings us that much closer to fulfilling the great promise of New York as a city of opportunity for all."
The Mayor's plan addresses New York City's changing housing marketplace. In the 1970s and 1980s, the City became the "landlord of last resort", eventually assuming ownership of more than 100,000 units of housing and thousands of vacant lots surrendered in tax foreclosure following the widespread arson and abandonment of neighborhoods primarily in Brooklyn, the Bronx, and northern Manhattan. Today, the City's centrally managed stock has shrunk to fewer than 2,400 units. This represents a dramatic decrease of 95 percent of the in rem stock since 1994. With a dwindling supply of city-owned properties, the City has to find new ways to create affordable housing.
Commissioner Donovan said, "The New York City success story of revitalizing neighborhoods through City-owned land is admired around the world. Now in the new housing marketplace we are making use of new tools to ensure that affordable housing continues to be built and preserved in every borough. We are working with other government agencies and our private and non-profit affordable housing partners to create new homes and new opportunities for thousands of New Yorkers."
The report details progress on the two areas of focus that make up the 68,000 unit goal: creating new affordable housing, and preserving existing housing as affordable.
Creating New Affordable Housing
In the first two years of the New Housing Marketplace plan, the Department of Housing Preservation and Development (HPD) and the Housing Development Corporation (HDC) have started new construction of 12,229 affordable units, more than 40% of the five-year target of 28,500 new units. The Progress Report charts substantial progress on creating affordable housing:
In 2005, three major rezonings proposed by the Bloomberg Administration in Hudson Yards, Greenpoint-Williamsburg and West Chelsea were adopted. Changes to the use and density of previously under-utilized land should result in the creation of approximately 30,000 new housing units. Thanks to an aggressive inclusionary zoning policy that gives developers a density bonus in exchange for constructing affordable housing, 8,500 of those units will be affordable.
In August 2005, HPD announced four Requests for Proposals (RFPs) for private and non-profit housing developers to create more than 3,200 units of mixed-income housing in all five boroughs, the last major RFPs HPD will conduct on city-owned land taken in rem through tax foreclosure.
HPD is collaborating with the New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA) to create additional affordable housing on NYCHA land. Nine initial projects will result in up to 1,800 new affordable units - with additional projects already in the planning stages.
In April 2005, HPD's existing budget for supportive housing was increased by 65%. The new Ten-Year Capital Plan includes $472 million in funding. This increase and other new resources will make good on the Mayor's commitment to create 12,000 units of supportive housing with our state and federal partners as part of a sweeping strategy to re-direct the City's response to homelessness.
In April 2005, Mayor Bloomberg and New York City Comptroller William C. Thompson, Jr. proposed the creation of the New York City Housing Trust Fund, which will be funded by $130 million in Battery Park City Authority revenues. The Fund would be used to create or preserve 4,500 affordable housing units over the next four years.
Preserving Affordable Housing
HPD and HDC have started the preservation of 16,321 units, more than 40% of the five-year target of 39,500 rehabilitated units. The Progress Report highlights that:
Through its refinancing and repair loan programs, in the first two years of the plan HDC funded the rehabilitation of 6,501 units in Mitchell-Lama developments across New York City and extended their affordability for at least ten years. An additional 558 units in Mitchell-Lama developments, whose owners participated only in HDC's refinancing program, have been preserved for an additional 15 years.
With support from the MacArthur Foundation, HPD held a national preservation symposium in June 2005 to develop strategies for preserving 250,000 assisted housing units in New York City, including HUD properties, Low-Income Housing Tax Credit developments, and Mitchell-Lama developments.
In Fiscal Year 2005, over 25,000 people enrolled in HPD education classes such as Lead Awareness, Safe Work Practices, Building Finance, Fair Housing and Advanced Property Management for Owners.
HPD has been implementing the new lead law, Local Law 1. 298 new personnel have been hired to implement the law, including 108 lead inspectors. In Fiscal Year 2005 HPD issued 35,729 lead violations, a dramatic increase from the 20,068 violations issued in Fiscal Year 2004.
HPD kicked off the Bushwick Initiative, where HPD staff went door-to-door in a 23-square block area in Bushwick, Brooklyn and assessed conditions in 757 residential and mixed-use properties. These assessments are the first step in a comprehensive effort to improve housing conditions in the area.
The Bloomberg Administration and the City Council signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) in July 2005 to conduct building-wide inspections in buildings where extensive housing code violations persist to ensure that all New Yorkers live in safe and decent housing. The MOU targets approximately 7,000 units per year.
The report includes examples of New Yorkers who have realized the American Dream through tools provided by the New Housing Marketplace Plan. For example, Lucesita Collado who has moved into a new house in Rheingold Gardens, Brooklyn says of her search for a home, "I looked for almost four years but everything was so small and so expensive. Then I found out about Rheingold Gardens." The Collados applied successfully to the lottery and are now delighted to own an affordable, spacious two-family house in a new neighborhood created through city-sponsored programs on the former site of the Rheingold Brewery in Bushwick, Brooklyn. The Rheingold development site includes 61 two- and three-family homes, thirty cooperative and rental units, commercial development and open space. Ms. Collado is pleased with her three bedrooms, multiple closets, private backyard, and easy commute to her job. She is also excited to be a part of building a new community. "We already know our neighbors; it's terrific to be part of something new-this is a great place to live."
The Progress Report is available by clicking here.
# # #
HPD's mission is to promote quality housing and viable neighborhoods for New Yorkers. The department is the nation's largest municipal housing development agency. Since Fiscal Year 1987, the agency has completed the construction or rehabilitation of over 229,000 units of affordable housing. To request a Homeownership Kit or for information abut affordable rental housing, call 311 or log on to www.nyc.gov/hpd
Last Updated: October 18, 2005
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MAYOR BLOOMBERG ANNOUNCES INNOVATIVE INITIATIVE TO COMBAT PREDATORY LENDING AND PREVENT MORTGAGE FORECLOSURES
Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg and Department of Housing Preservation and Development (HPD) Commissioner Shaun Donovan launched a new $1.35 million initiative to combat predatory lending, one of the most daunting challenges facing elderly home homeowners, first-time home buyers, fixed-income homeowners, and minority and immigrant homeowners.
To read the complete press release, visit HPD's website at www.nyc.gov/hpd
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 18, 2005
MAYOR BLOOMBERG ANNOUNCES INNOVATIVE INITIATIVE TO COMBATPREDATORY LENDING AND PREVENT MORTGAGE FORECLOSURES
Partnership to Provide Intensive Education, Financial Counseling and Legal Assistance for First-Time Homebuyers and Low-Income, Senior Citizen, Minority and Immigrant Homeowners
Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg and Department of Housing Preservation and Development (HPD) Commissioner Shaun Donovan today launched a new $1.35 million initiative to combat predatory lending, one of the most daunting challenges facing elderly home homeowners, first-time home buyers, fixed-income homeowners, and minority and immigrant homeowners.
"Preserve Assets and Community Equity" (PACE) is a comprehensive new program that includes outreach, education, financial assistance and legal strategies to current homeowners and new home buyers who are a part of groups and neighborhoods historically targeted by predatory lenders. Irresponsible lending practices and risky mortgages can result in homeowners losing their homes, which is the most traditional vehicle for asset building and wealth creation.
This new financial education, legal and credit assistance measure will focus first on reaching residents in the communities of Southeast Queens, Bedford-Stuyvesant and Bushwick, which are neighborhoods that have experienced high rates of predatory lending. Mayor Bloomberg and Commissioner Donovan visited the Queens Village home of Leonard and Irene Richards, past victims of a predatory loan that nearly cost them their house, and the Mayor announced his initiative to combat predatory lending and prevent mortgage foreclosures at Wayanda Park.
Mayor Bloomberg, Queens Borough President Helen Marshall and City Council member Leroy Comrie were joined by representatives of participating non-profits as well as banks and foundations that are providing financial support for PACE.
"In Southeast Queens, Bedford-Stuyvesant and Bushwick we have seen the result of lenders who prey on vulnerable homeowners," said Mayor Bloomberg. "We know that families have been uprooted and communities have been hurt as a result of high interest rate mortgages, undisclosed rates and fees and other unethical gimmicks practiced in the name of making a quick buck. By educating homeowners and those who aspire to own their own home about the dangers of high-risk lending, we are working hard to make sure people aren't taken advantage of.
In addition, we will work with our partners in the private sector, charitable organizations and community based organizations to help resolve the legal and financial problems of those who have already fallen victim to predatory lending practices. Through our efforts, New Yorkers who work and save to own a home should be able to do so."
Predatory lending practices strip equity away from homeowners. A few examples include when a financial provider repeatedly refinances a loan within a short period of time and charges high points and fees with each refinance, when a financial provider packs a loan with single premium credit insurance products like credit life insurance and does not adequately disclose the inclusion, cost or any additional fees associated with the insurance, or when financial providers charge excessive rates and fees to a borrower who qualifies for lower rates and fees. Studies have shown that black and Hispanic homeowners are too often sold mortgages that require higher than normal interest rates.
In 2005, a Federal Reserve Bank study revealed that in 2004, regardless of income levels, blacks were about three times as likely as whites to borrow through mortgages with excessively high rates. The target neighborhoods in the PACE pilot have foreclosure action rates two to four times higher than other neighborhoods in the City. The foreclosure filing rates in the target neighborhoods run approximately 10% of the total residential 1-4 family homes there.
"We are extremely grateful to our partners and funders for contributing over $1 million," said HPD Commissioner Donovan. "This ground-breaking partnership between government, non-profits, banks and philanthropic institutions will protect homeowners and build stronger neighborhoods. Seniors, recent immigrants, first-time and minority homeowners and people on low-incomes are often the targets of scams and risky mortgages. PACE will help homeowners recognize when they have a bad loan and point them towards financial strategies to help get them back on their feet. A home is far too valuable an asset for people to lose because of unscrupulous lenders."
A targeted marketing initiative will focus first on homeowners who have taken predatory and high-risk loans, or are at risk of doing so. It will also target people who are planning to buy their first home. The public education outreach effort will include posters, brochures, postcards and targeted advertisements on bus shelters and in community newspapers with the slogan, "Don't Borrow Trouble." Over 30,000 postcards and 20,000 brochures will be distributed and phone kiosk and bus shelter ads will be placed.
The City's 311 citizen service center will be used to refer callers to community-based organizations whose staff will be given comprehensive legal and technical training, and ongoing back-up assistance. The initiative is expected to reach thousands of households in its target market and result in thousands receiving financial or legal counseling.
The initial participating community-based organizations are Margert Community Corporation (serving homeowners in Southeast Queens), Ridgewood Bushwick Senior Citizens Council (Bushwick), and Pratt Area Community Council (Bedford-Stuyvesant). In conjunction with South Brooklyn Legal Services and the Parodneck Foundation, the community-based organizations will provide legal assistance, counseling, and loan remediation to hundreds of homeowners at risk of foreclosure. These community based organizations will also help to arrange financing for rehabilitation loans, educate clients about credit repair, and improve their access to traditional credit.
HPD will work with the non-profit organizations South Brooklyn Legal Services (SBLS), the Neighborhood Economic Development Advocacy Project (NEDAP), and the Parodneck Foundation as well as the Queens Legal Aid Society to develop the PACE program. Implementation has begun in North Central Brooklyn and Southeast Queens to assess homeowners' complicated financial and legal situations and provide early intervention, followed by counseling and referrals for appropriate legal and financial assistance.
After assessing the pilot, the PACE program partners, in collaboration with private sector support, expand to the northeast Bronx and the north shore of Staten Island and then it will build a citywide network of organizations with these capabilities. PACE has been made possible due to the leadership and financial contributions of both local and national banks and foundations. To date foundations, banks, and the New York City Council have contributed $1.07 million of the $1.35 million operating budget. HPD is still soliciting the balance of the operating cost. Funding includes commitments from Astoria Bank, Bank of America, Citibank Foundation, Deutsche Bank, Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, HSBC, Independence Community Bank, JPMorgan Chase Foundation, M&T Bank, Northfork Bank, Washington Mutual, and the New York City Council as well as an in-kind contribution from the New York State Banking Department.
Before the press conference, the Mayor toured Leonard and Irene Richards' home in Queens Village. After nearly losing their home due to difficulty paying their mortgage and property taxes due to a high-interest loan, the Richards were helped by HPD's Owner Services Program and the Parodneck Foundation and were able to refinance their mortgage. The Richards took the high-interest loan when they refinanced their mortgage to cover medical and other expenses. The Parodneck Foundation also underwrote a Senior Citizens Home Assistance Program loan to redo the aluminum siding on the Richards' home.
"HPD urgently moved to secure a prime refinance of my mortgage," said Leonard Richards. "The expertise and urgency with which my case was handled in a very critical situation gave me a chance to stabilize my financial situation and keep my home. I wish to extend a thank you from my family and let others know of the services of protecting senior homeowners."
New York City's PACE program was developed in consultation with many of the participating non-profit organizations and program funders. Additionally, PACE is pleased to be a participant in the national "Don't Borrow Trouble" campaign. Pioneered in Boston by Mayor Thomas M. Menino and the Massachusetts Community Banking Council, Freddie Mac is the principal sponsor of the "Don't Borrow Trouble" program's expansion, which is now active in 36 locations throughout the United States.
"At a time when the focus has been on new development, it is equally critical to ensure that those who already have achieved homeownership, and built up equity, can preserve those hard-won gains," said Daniel Nissenbaum of HSBC Bank USA, N.A., representing the coalition of lenders supporting the program. "This program, combining the resources of HPD, community-based organizations and bank funders, will provide a three-pronged approach of legal assistance, homeownership counseling and loan remediation to combat predatory lending."
"Predatory lending remains a problem statewide," said New York State Banking Superintendent Diana L. Taylor. "We are all painfully aware that those most likely to be targeted by predators and unaffordable loans are also those with the lowest per capita income.
Thus, our least prosperous citizens are the ones who suffer the most at the hands of unscrupulous lenders. The Banking Department, as licenser and regulator for the mortgage industry, is proud to join with HPD, NEDAP, SBLS and the Parodneck Foundation in combating predatory lending. The PACE program is an elegant idea put into practice. I congratulate all of the participants -- particularly the banks that are helping to fund and develop this pilot effort -- for their vision and their determination. Providing direct aid and intervention in combination with strong consumer education programs can make all the difference. I look forward to seeing PACE expanded into every needy neighborhood and using it as a model for similar efforts statewide."
"Here in southeast Queens and elsewhere, predatory lending is a serious and growing problem that affects senior citizens, immigrants and many other innocent victims who have invested their life savings in buying a piece of the American Dream," said Queens Borough President Helen Marshall. "Unscrupulous lenders well-versed in the tricks of the trade create unnecessary misery and hardship in the wake of years of sacrifices and hard work by homeowners. I want to thank Mayor Bloomberg and HPD Commissioner Donovan for recognizing and responding to this mounting problem and continue to work with them to make the dream of owning a home a reality for many years."
"It's critical to coordinate the efforts of all entities involved in preventing predatory lending as more and more people are taking advantage of our growing elderly and new homeowner populations," said Council Member Leroy Comrie.
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Contact: Edward Skyler/Paul Elliott (212) 788-2958Carol Abrams (HPD) (212) 863-5176
Last Updated: October 18, 2005
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MAYOR BLOOMBERG ANNOUNCES HISTORIC COLLABORATION WITH NATIONAL CHARITIES AND FINANCIAL INSTITUTIONS FOR THE BUILDING AND PRESERVATION OF AFFORDABLE HOUSING
Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg announced that seven national philanthropies, the City's leading financial institutions and the City of New York will launch a $200 million initiative, the New York Acquisition Fund, to serve as catalyst for the construction and preservation of more than 30,000 units of affordable housing Citywide in the next 10 years. The Fund will provide local and not-for-profit developers with a financial mechanism to acquire private property for the construction and preservation of affordable housing. The affordable developments to be financed by the Fund include rental, homeownership, and supportive housing.
To read the complete press release, visit HPD's website at www.nyc.gov/hpd
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 14, 2005
MAYOR BLOOMBERG ANNOUNCES HISTORIC COLLABORATION WITH NATIONAL CHARITIES AND FINANCIAL INSTITUTIONS FOR THE BUILDING AND PRESERVATION OF AFFORDABLE HOUSING
$200 Million Fund Will Help Local and Not-for-Profit Developers Acquire Privately-owned Sites For the Construction and Preservation of Affordable Housing
Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg announced today that seven national philanthropies, the City's leading financial institutions and the City of New York will launch a $200 million initiative, the New York Acquisition Fund, to serve as catalyst for the construction and preservation of more than 30,000 units of affordable housing Citywide in the next 10 years. The Fund will provide local and not-for-profit developers with a financial mechanism to acquire private property for the construction and preservation of affordable housing. The affordable developments to be financed by the Fund include rental, homeownership, and supportive housing. Mayor Bloomberg, New York City Department of Housing Preservation Commissioner Shaun Donovan and the chief executives of the charities announced the New York Acquisition Fund at a 207-unit supportive housing residence on West 24th Street in Manhattan, the Christopher, which includes 167 permanent affordable apartments for low-income working adults and the formerly homeless.
"The New York Acquisition Fund is a wonderful example of the desire to improve the material, social and spiritual welfare of humanity through charitable activities - the very definition of philanthropy," said Mayor Bloomberg. "By joining resources to construct affordable housing on privately-owned property, the City of New York and these seven national philanthropies acknowledge that the quest for affordable and quality housing is the most complex and pressing challenge facing working New Yorkers and their families today."
The four national philanthropies that have committed $26.5 million to the New York Acquisition Fund are the Ford Foundation, the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, the Rockefeller Foundation, and the Starr Foundation. The Open Society Institute has committed operating support for the start up of the Fund. The Enterprise Foundation will serve as the managing general partner of the Fund, and the Local Initiatives Support Corporation will serve as the general partner. The City of New York will allocate $8 million from the corporate reserves of the New York City Housing Development Corporation (HDC) to the New York Acquisition Fund. Some of the City's major banks and financial institutions will provide $160 million for the fund.
The supply of City-owned land for affordable housing is nearly exhausted. In August, Mayor Bloomberg announced the issuance of the last citywide Requests for Proposals for 248 vacant HPD-owned sites suitable for residential development. While the redevelopment of the formerly City-owned portfolio of land and buildings has produced more than 229,000 apartments and houses since 1987, New York City continues to experience a shortage of affordable housing. Developers most interested in developing affordable housing are non-profit organizations and smaller local developers who typically do not have the financial resources to compete to acquire property in the private market. The Fund will give developers of affordable housing assistance in acquiring property to ensure that they can continue developing affordable housing and to ensure the preservation of affordable housing.
Financial Institutions will fund loans to affordable housing developers through non-profit lenders including the Enterprise Foundation, LISC, The Corporation for Supportive Housing and the Low Income Investment Fund. The $40 million provided by the Foundations will secure the loans being made by the financial institutions and the non-profit lenders should a developer default on a loan. Through this $40 million "guarantee pool," the Fund helps to minimize the risk taken by the financial institutions by providing security.
"New York City is renowned for our success story of revitalizing neighborhoods through using City-owned land for affordable housing, but that supply is nearly exhausted," said HPD Commissioner Shaun Donovan. "As HPD develops a new housing pipeline, the Acquisition Fund will create a new set of opportunities for affordable housing using land and buildings in the private market. Developers interested in building or acquiring affordable housing will now receive a helping hand when competing for privately-owned land or housing. We are extremely grateful to our partners for their generosity and commitment to creating and preserving affordable homes for thousands of New Yorkers."
"It is impossible for the city to remain diverse if large numbers of New Yorkers are effectively priced out of the local housing market," said Starr Foundation Chairman Maurice R. Greenberg. "That's why The Starr Foundation made the initial $12.5 million challenge grant that helped lead to the creation of the $200 million housing fund we are announcing today."
"Hurricane Katrina has underscored the vital importance of housing, and of doing everything we can to expand the supply of affordable housing, particularly for low-income families," said Rockefeller Foundation President Judith Rodin. "The New York Acquisition Fund is precisely the type of innovative approach these times demand. With aggressive strategies like these, we can help ensure that thousands of New Yorkers can make their dreams of living in a decent home a reality."
"The shortage of reasonably priced apartments is a national problem," said The John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation President Jonathan Fanton. "This new Fund will make it possible to build more affordable housing where there is vacant land and fresh opportunity. It also will provide funds to preserve and improve the existing homes of lower-income families and seniors across the city. This is a winning combination."
"The limited availability of land for development of affordable housing has become a major issue in many cities," said Ford Foundation President Susan V. Berresford. "This unique partnership will provide much-needed capital to build and preserve affordable housing for tens of thousands of New Yorkers who otherwise might lack a secure home. It shows the power of collaborations that generate public and private investments to improve opportunities for low-income families.""This effort to bring affordable housing to thousands of New Yorkers reflects the mission of the Open Society Institute to foster vibrant civic life in our communities," said Open Society Institute US Programs Vice President Gara La Marche. "OSI created a similar program in South Africa, where it worked with the post-apartheid government to finance the construction of homes for low-income families. We are confident that this unprecedented alliance between foundations and the City will build stronger neighborhoods in New York."
"Enterprise is proud to have been a part of the remarkable evolution of this project," said Enterprise Foundation Board of Trustee Chairman and CEO Bart Harvey. "What started as collaboration with the Starr Foundation to advance our Billion Dollar Promise of affordable housing in New York has become a city-wide partnership of unprecedented scale. This kind of innovative thinking and public-private collaborations with the City of New York are a central force in all of our work to create and preserve affordable, quality homes here."
"For nearly twenty years, LISC has worked in close partnership with the City of New York to finance affordable housing sponsored by community-based groups throughout the city," said LISC President and Chief Executive Officer Michael Rubinger. "This acquisition fund will provide an important new resource to continue that effort, even in the face of escalating costs and property values. We are pleased to be part of this new initiative."
The New York Acquisition Fund was announced at The Christopher - a 207-unit supportive housing residence on West 24th Street in Manhattan that opened in September 2004. The Christopher, which is owned and operated by Common Ground Community, includes 167 permanent affordable apartments for low-income working adults and the formerly homeless, as well as New York's first Foyer Program, a forty-unit housing-based career development program for young adults who are aging out of foster or residential care, are homeless, or at risk of homelessness. On-site supportive services are provided by the Center for Urban Community Services and Good Shepherd Services. The Christopher is located in a former YMCA purchased from the prior owner with financing from government, foundation and private sources, and therefore represents the type of property that will be assisted by the Fund.
"In developing the Christopher, we had to manage the requirements and deadlines of 17 funding sources, a process that took four years," said Common Ground President Rosanne Haggerty. "The New York Acquisition Fund will streamline and accelerate the development of housing for homeless and low-income New Yorkers."
"In the first 18 months of our administration, we invested $750 million into building and rehabbing more than 18,500 units of housing throughout the City," said Mayor Bloomberg. "About 15,000 of them have already been completed. We have also launched a $3 billion initiative to build and renovate 68,000 units of affordable housing for 200,000 New Yorkers by the end of 2008. Since announcing our New Marketplace Housing Plan we have completed or started work on more than 28,500 units of affordable housing. In total, over the last four years we have committed to build or rehab 86,500 units of affordable housing for over 250,000 New Yorkers at the cost of almost $4 billion and today 47,000 units have either been completed or are in the pipeline. Only a public-private partnership of the magnitude of the New York Acquisition Fund can continue to stimulate large scale affordable housing for the New Yorkers who need it the most."
Mayor Bloomberg and Department of Housing Preservation and Development (HPD) Commissioner Shaun Donovan were joined in announcing the Fund by Starr Foundation President Florence Davis, Rockefeller Foundation President Dr. Judith Rodin, John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation President Jonathan Fanton, Open Society Institute Trustee Herbert Sturz, Ford Foundation Vice President for Asset Building and Community Development Pablo Farias, Enterprise Foundation Board of Trustee Chairman and CEO Bart Harvey, Local Initiatives Support Corporation President and CEO Michael Rubinger, New York City Housing Development Corporation President Emily Youssouf, Corporation for Supportive Housing Regional Director Connie Tempel, and Low Income Investment Fund Director Brian Segel.
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Contact: Edward Skyler / Paul Elliott (212) 788-2958 Neill Coleman (HPD) (212) 863-8076
Michael Gordon (Charities) (212) 780 1946 ext.601
Last Updated: October 14, 2005
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