February 17, 2011
By Staff Reporter
Residences in Brooklyn and Queens that were erected in the 1970s will be provided long-term financing that should sustain them for another 30 years.
According to Catholic Charities, the rents collected from tenants — who in many cases have been there since the beginning — finance current operating costs, but are not enough to fund renovations or new services.
“Seniors are great neighbors, they give a community a sense of stability,” said Margaret Keaveney, communication director for Catholic Charities.
“Most seniors don’t want to move into nursing homes or in with their family, they are accustomed to their parish. [They] value their independence along with their network,” she said.
This is the largest HDC and Catholic Charities collaborative project to date, Keaveney said, adding that she hoped there would be many more in the future.
“We are looking forward to our partnership with HDC,” she said. “It is great that the city has the same respect for senior citizens and low-income housing that Catholic Charities has always maintained.”
The financing is made possible through a new HDC program that rehabilitates housing originally created through a federal housing program known as the Section 202 Program.
HDC’s president, Emily Youssouf, said that the preservation of low-income housing is critical to city growth.
With bonds set to be proposed to the board in mid-November, HDC and Catholic Charities, she said, will together assure seniors of renovations that range from new kitchens to installed safety features.
“We were able to reach out and find a group project and Catholic Charities had 10 buildings,” Youssouf said.
“You often see projects that are one-off… we feel that group efforts are more efficient,” she said.
Youssouf said the initiative should be seen in the context of the Mayor Bloomberg’s housing policy.
“The mayor gave us a mandate goal at the beginning of the year and we have already surpassed it,” she said. “We are thrilled that we have a mayor who is concerned about seniors and affordable housing.”