Construction has begun on side-by-side affordable housing developments with 237 apartments for families and seniors in the Fruit Belt area of East Buffalo, N.Y.
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The $58 million Pilgrim Village Family and the $35 million Pilgrim Village Senior will be highly energy-efficient buildings designed to achieve net-zero energy standards.
Forty-nine apartments will be set aside for vulnerable seniors who need on-site support services to live independently.
The new Pilgrim Village complex replaces the existing Pilgrim Village, which was constructed in 1979 and has fallen into disrepair. The original garden-style apartment buildings are being demolished to make way for the two new multifamily buildings.
Pilgrim Village Senior will have 105 apartments for individuals aged 55 and older. Forty-nine apartments will be reserved for seniors in need of supportive services to live independently. On-site services that promote emotional, mental, and physical health will be funded through the Empire State Supportive Housing Initiative and administered by the New York State Department of Health and provided by Catholic Charities of Buffalo.
Pilgrim Village Family, which is located adjacent to Pilgrim Village Senior, will be home to 132 apartments with a ground floor community facility space and approximately 5,000 square-feet of commercial space.
All 237 apartments at the two developments will be set aside for households with income at or below 60 percent of Area Median Income. Additionally, 89 of the apartments will benefit from existing HUD Project-Based Section 8 rental assistance vouchers.
Amenities will include spacious indoor community space, green space, walking paths, gardens, sitting areas, a pergola, ground-level parking spots, a large playground, a computer lab, a gym, a library and in-unit washer/dryers and dishwashers.
The new Pilgrim Village development will be 100 percent electric, designed to achieve net-zero energy standards. Rooftop solar arrays will help offset the buildings' energy loads. Both buildings are designed to meet the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority's Low-Rise New Construction Tier III program standards.
The development site is adjacent to the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus, home of the Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center, and within one of five Strategic Investment Areas in Buffalo's strategic plan for urban development.
Residents will be within walking distance of the nearby rail station and less than a block away from the top-ranked City Honors School.
State funding for Pilgrim Village Family includes $5 million in permanent tax-exempt bonds, Federal Low-Income Housing Tax Credits that will generate $24.9 million in equity, and $5 million in subsidy from New York State Homes and Community Renewal.
NYSERDA's New Construction-Housing Program provided $528,000.
Additionally, the site participated in the Department of Environmental Conservation's successful Brownfield Cleanup Program, which is expected to result $5.7 million in tax credits upon the project's completion.
State funding for Pilgrim Village Senior includes $4.1 million in permanent tax-exempt bonds, Federal Low-Income Housing Tax Credits that will generate $15 million in equity, and $9.3 million in subsidy from HCR.
NYSERDA's New Construction-Housing Program provided $420,000. Additionally, the site participated in the Department of Environmental Conservation's successful Brownfield Cleanup Program and which is expected to result in $4.1 million in tax credits upon the project's completion. ■