Heritage Housing's new residential projects continue to move forward. Our Jasmine Court rehabilitation project in the Bronx completed construction and went into occupancy in April, 2003. The residence contains 114 completely renovated and furnished studio apartments plus a live-in superintendent’s unit. Due to extensive pre-occupancy outreach and screening, the support staff was able to lease up the building in just six weeks, an outstanding accomplishment. Jasmine Court was a cooperative effort with SoBRO, which operates the building while Heritage provides the tenant social services. Jasmine is distinguished by the quality of the finishes which include an attractive exterior stainless steel canopy, cherry wood paneling and granite floors in the lobby, chair rails in all the hallways, solid oak furniture in the apartments and a state-of-the-art security system. The building contains a resident TV lounge, a library, community room, commercial kitchen and congregate dining room. Program funding is provided by the NYC Departments of Mental Health and of Homeless Services, and by the NYC HIV/AIDS Services Administration.
Our 73-unit Morris Avenue Residence (Harmony Court) in the Bronx was occupied in November of 2004. This building houses both low income and special needs residents. Preference for the 29 low- income units went to local community residents. All of the 72 rental units are studio apartments, and there is also a one-bedroom superintendent's apartment. The building features an attractive entrance lounge, a communal meeting/dining room with a full commercial kitchen, a laundry room, counseling offices and storage in the basement, a large landscaped rear yard and a small lounge and elevator lobby with a view at every floor. Heritage is now in the process of constructing offices for our new SAMHSA program in the basement of the building.
The project was designed by Urban Architectural Initiatives (UAI) and built by Lettire Construction. Financing came from the City Department of Housing Preservation and Development (HPD), funds from the sale of low-income housing tax credits and an Affordable Housing Program grant from the Federal Home Loan Bank in cooperation with HSBC Bank. All tenants must be at or below 50% of median income (currently $22,000 a year for a one-person household). Program funds for the 43 special needs units are provided by the NYC Departments of Mental Health and of Homeless Services.
At our 140-bed Simmons Residence, $600,000 in funds provided by the NYS Office of Mental Health (OMH) have allowed for extensive improvements to the MICA (Mentally Ill Chemical Abusers) program areas, as well as the common areas of the building. Improvements, completed in the Spring of 2007, include four completely renovated bathrooms and renovation of the kitchen and flooring in the MICA portion of the building, as well as installation of a completely new commercial kitchen and dining area and reconstruction of the structure housing the hot water boiler for the overall building. Heritage also received a grant from the NYC Landmarks Commission for work on the portico and entrance to the building. Staff is now preparing a HPD Article 8A Loan application to finance needed facade improvements, as well other work needed to keep the building in top repair.
Repair work has also been occurring at our Council House residence. A matching Weatherization Assistance Program grant provided through the Northern Manhattan Improvement Corporation allowed us to make a number of energy-savings upgrades to the building, including all new windows, added insulation, boiler upgrades, new lighting fixtures, new energy saving refrigerators and water conserving plumbing fixtures. A total of $80,000 was expended, at an agency cost of only $22,000. A Section 8 rent increase approved in the Fall of 2006 will allow Heritage to substantially increase building reserves in preparation for undertaking further needed renovation work outlined in an engineering study of the building undertaken in 2005.
No substantial renovations are yet required at our other two buildings. Our Morningside Life low income tax credit building completed in 1997 on Columbus Avenue has 14 one-bedroom and 4 studio apartments. Developed for Heritage by Millennium Partners, the building is seen as a resource for clients graduating from our various programs. Like our Simmons project, the building also contains ground floor commercial space.
Our new 8,200 square foot headquarters office building on West 127th Street has won a trio of prestigious design awards since its completion in 2001. Designed by Caples-Jefferson Architects and renovated by Harlem contractor E.J.Peters Construction with funds from the Upper Manhattan Empowerment Zone and the Non-Profit Facilities Fund, the building also features a mosaic facade designed and installed by artist Nathan Slate Joseph.
In addition to our existing buildings, Heritage has three new residential projects underway. Our Weiher Court project in the Bronx, now known as Ana’s House, is also being funded by OMH and is being built on a turnkey basis by Great American Construction, the contractor for Jasmine Court. Designed by GF55 Partners, the building is being developed as a two-unit condominium, with the ground floor commercial spaces owned by the developer, and 60 studio apartments owned and managed by Heritage. The residential portion will also include furnished lounges on every floor, a cozy community room complete with fireplace, a laundry room, program offices and a landscaped roof garden. The building is now basically complete and should move to initial occupancy by November, 2008.
Funded by OMH and the low income housing tax credit program as a CR-SRO community residence, our new Convent Avenue project in Upper Manhattan is now well into construction. Designed by UAI, the project will house 42 special needs residents in a combination of studio and two-bedroom units. As in our other housing, the project will include a kitchen and communal dining room, as well as counseling offices and community spaces including an attractively landscaped rear yard. Completion is scheduled for the Spring of 2009.