June 18, 2007

County Board Approves Two Affordable Housing Projects
---Stunning Reversal Of Last Week’s Vote On
New Rochelle Housing---

Contact: Betsy DeSoye, Director of Communications, (914) 995-3277

In a stunning reversal of last week’s defeat, the County Board of Legislators approved 25 new affordable housing units in New Rochelle. It also approved 12 new units in Pound Ridge, the first ever for that community.

Last week, in a special meeting of the legislature, the New Rochelle “Clinton Place” project failed to muster the 12-vote supermajority needed to approve $1,925,000 in bonding needed to build the housing.
In tonight’s action, the measure was approved by a vote of 15-1, with Board Minority Leader George Oros voting in opposition.

The “Clinton Place” project includes 25 rental units targeted for school district, public agency and municipal workers with incomes ranging from $28,950 to $67,550. In a compromise making tonight’s vote possible, there will be more senior and veterans’ units, a neighborhood advisory board and 50-year affordability on the apartments.

The Board’s approval tonight means that Westhab, the housing developer, will meet a tight deadline for over $4 million in federal and state tax credits, an important component of the project’s financing.

“We need more decent affordable housing in Westchester County,” said Bill Ryan (D-I-WF, White Plains), Chairman of the Westchester Legislature. “This is a good project and it deserved the support of the full Board. I urged the two sides to work together to reach a compromise to salvage the project. Legislator Jim Maisano, who led the original opposition to the project, and Westhab did a good job in a short period of time to resolve their differences. They worked through the weekend and all day today to have an amended version of the proposal ready for our consideration tonight. Their efforts paid off.”

County Legislator Lois Bronz (D, WF, Greenburgh), Chair of the Housing, Planning and Government Operations Committee, had previously noted the merits of the project and Westhab’s long track record of success building quality affordable housing.