A promising proposal to rebuild the WestHELP homeless complex for affordable housing emerged Tuesday as Alec Roberts, of the White Plains-based Community Housing Innovations detailed his plan to invest up to $3 million to create 108 units for senior citizens.
It’s the kind of plan contemplated by county and town leaders more than 20 years ago when the deal was struck to construct the complex on six acres of county land at Westchester Community College’s Knollwood Gate.
Roberts’ non-profit company would also make the complex’s administration building, with its eight classrooms, several offices and multi-purpose room, available to community groups, such as the Lois Bronz Childrens Center, for $1 a year. He would pay the town $350,000 a year.
Roberts, whose company is the leading provider of housing to the homeless in Long Island, and the second-largest provider in Westchester, told the Greenburgh Town Board that it would be folly to raze the apartments, which were built just two decades ago, and worth $20 million.
Roberts said his plan would make the one-bedroom apartments available for $895 a month, with new kitchens and bathrooms.
“It would be crazy to get rid of $20 million in affordable housing,” he told the board. “The county pays $200,000 a unit to build affordable housing. It’s not fiscally responsible to destroy it.”
Roberts made his comments as the Town Board reviews six proposals for the complex, which is under the town’s control until 2031 if the apartments are rented to low- and moderate-income tenants. Town Supervisor Paul Feiner, meanwhile, continued his campaign to tear down the apartments so a Yonkers agency, Ferncliff Manor, can build a residential community for 64 severe disabled children and young adults.
Richard Hyman, the former Mount Vernon planning commissioner who worked for nine years at WestHELP, reminded the board that the units were only 20 years old, and built to last. They are about 450 square feet, which would be adequate for two adults, he said. He said the first-floor apartments were handicapped accessible, and several have kitchens set up for disabled tenants. The lack of elevators, he said, wouldn’t hurt marketing to healthy seniors who don’t have a problem walking up one flight of stairs.
“It’s a facility worth keeping,” he told the panel.
Feiner has argued that the town has fulfilled its commitment to provide affordable housing, so it would be acceptable to raze 108 units. He has noted that the town was not among 31 communities required to build housing under the federal fair-housing settlement that has mandated construction of 750 affordable units.
But Hyman told me that the town of Greenburgh has failed to live up to its obligations under Westchester’s Housing Allocation Plan, which was issued by the Westchester Housing Implementation Commission in 2004, and covered the years 2000- 2015.
The plan’s most-recent revision calls for 10,768 affordable units by 2015. By November, 2012, the county was still short of its goal by 7,005 units, according to a copy of the report submitted to the federal housing monitor that was obtained by Tax Watch. Greenburgh’s allocation was for 701 affordable units. The town has constructed 209 units, which leaves the town 492 units short of the county’s goal.
“They are still more than 7,000 units short of the county goal,” Hymen said.
The Greenburgh Town Board, meanwhile, still seemed intent on supporting the Ferncliff Manor plan, which offered the town $500,000 a year. The for-profit agency, which will form a non-profit to run the Greenburgh site, has mounted a lobbying campaign at the county Board of Legislators, appearing every two weeks at meetings to voice their support for moving their campus from Yonkers to Greenburgh.
I spoke with Feiner after the meeting, and he was insisting upon another meeting with the county Board of Legislators, to determine if the opposition had been softened up by the emotional pleas. The Legislature’s Democratic majority has been unequivocal in its opposition to the Ferncliff plan, which has picked up County Executive Rob Astorino’s endorsement.
Feiner had invited legislative leaders and Greenburgh legislators to the meeting, but only County Legislator Michael Smith, R-Greenburgh, who supports the Ferncliff plan, attended. Feiner was peeved that the Democratic legislators shunned his invitation.
“I don’t think the Town Board wants to back off Ferncliff unless the county tells us it won’t happen,” Feiner said. “I don’t understand why they won’t meet. It’s very frustrating. I’ve never dealt with Legislature that won’t even talk to you.”
Feiner’s last appearance before the Legislature ended in a shouting match between Feiner and legislators.
Tom Staudter, spokesman for the Legislature’s Democratic majority, said there was no reason for another meeting with Feiner.
“When the county granted control of WestHELP to the town, it was granted on one condition: that it be rented to low- and moderate-income tenants as provided in the original deed,” he said. “What else does he need to know?”
Smith was joined at the Town Board’s table by his wife, Marie, president of the Mayfair Knollwood Civic Association. She liked Ferncliff too.
Legislator Smith declared that WestHELP didn’t seem to be “state-of-the-art” for seniors and said the apartments, which are arrayed around a grassy courtyard, would not be appropriate for seniors because they would have to walk too far. He was also worried that 108 units of affordable housing would put a bigger strain on local emergency services than the Ferncliff plan.
“You need to look at the demand for municipal services,” he said. “Ferncliff wouldn’t require police, fire or emergency services.”
His wife said the neighborhood association, which has led the opposition to the project in the late 1980s, was concerned with property values, neighborhood safety, and its impact on the Valhalla school district. These were the same concerns raised in the late 1980s, which proved unfounded during WestHELP’s 20-year run as transitional housing for homeless families.
“We are concerned with the safety of our community,” she said. “You won’t be able to sell your homes. People won’t move into a neighborhood that’s not safe.”
She said Ferncliff’s clientele would not threaten the middle-class enclave of single-family homes. “Ferncliff would be perfect for us,” she said.
Roberts assured Mayfair Knollwood leader Smith that he would work with the neighborhood group, setting up an advisory committee and including the neighborhood organization in the planning process.
By meeting’s end, Marie Smith said she was open to Roberts’ senior housing proposal. “We’d rather have Ferncliff, but if it was seniors, we’d be fine with that,” she said. “We are open to talking.”
Photo: Affordable housing provider Alec Roberts, left, joins Greenburgh Supervisor Feiner, Mayfair Knowlwood Neighborhood Association Co-President Marie Smith, County Legislator Michael Smith, and Greenburgh Town Attorney Timothy Lewis at Greenburgh Town Hall. Housing consultant Richard Hyman, sits behind the Smiths. Photo/David McKay Wilson
5 Comments
Let’s go to the videotape was never popular with Feiner and his enablers because they subscribe to a flexible oral history vs. a documented record. WESTHelp was paying $1.2 million a year in rent when their lease expired in September 2011 and Feiner did nothing to assist in providing a renewal. This is fact. While in occupancy, Feiner diverted half of the revenue to the Town to the location’s School District, Valhalla—done to placate the neighbors which include Mr. and Mrs. Smith and Astorino’s majordomo, Ned McCormick. Don’t be lulled into thinking coincidence that it appears to be a faceoff between Republicans and the Democrat led County Board. This is pure NIMBYism at its worst and renewed by the voiding of the revenue gift which was struck down as illegal by the State Comptroller and the Court. So without the possibility of any further payoff, this clique set about finding new alternatives to avoid low income tenants who might pierce the barb wire fence built by Feiner at Greenburgh taxpayer expense. This is all about the money; don’t be fooled by the casting of innocent but politically naive Ferncliff College as the spear-carrier.
As for the money, replacing the lost $1.2 million has been a priority of Feiner ever since the Town lost the original lawsuit (lost again on Appeal) brought by the Fortress Bible Church against the Town.
Although the monetary award has not yet been determined, knowledgeable persons estimate it upwards of $5 million uninsured because it was a civil rights action. So with the ledger already indicating red ink, Feiner’s willful loss of $1.2 million was ominous as he faces re-election in 2013.
This commenced a series of controversial leases which if concluded still would not replace even the $1.2 million paid by WESTHelp. At $100,000 per WESTHelp month, the Town has already lost $1.5 million which will never be recovered, especially while Feiner keeps the deteriorating units vacant in the hope that he can force Ferncliff past the “portrayed indifference” of the County Board. FYI alert:
the County owns the land, paid for the 108 units and clubhouse and master leased it to Greenburgh for ”$1” with the sole condition that it be used for housing. The Ferncliff proposal requires the demolition of the 108 units.
Add them up for yourself. Ferncliff’s ”$500,000” in quotes because Ferncliff has neither the $500,000 nor the construction funding in hand or even on paper commitment, the $175,000 of base rent from the GameOn sports bubble (zoning, soil contamination mitigation and a Court-filed lawsuit as hurdles in the way) and the urgency of leasing some of the Town tennis courts to a cold weather operator which hasn’t happened yet, but say, $250,000 and what have you got but $925,000 only starting with the certificates of occupancy which are years away. $1.2 million or $925,000 and you can see why Feiner needs to cloak the financial/Nimby elements in an undisputed good purpose (Ferncliff) drapings.
As for Ferncliff, it is hard to believe that after their self-proclaimed exhaustive search conducted during one of the worst real estate markets in recent years, say since 1990, with not only foreclosures but the lenders themselves closing shop, that they were unable to find any suitable site other than the WESTHelp location which requires demolition. Currently situated in Yonkers, it is impossible to believe that there is not nearby usable alternative in Yonkers, the north Bronx, Mount Vernon or New Rochelle. Were they intending to use the 108 units for housing, I would be willing to concede that they find this location the best but the units are to be torn down to make way for new construction: something that would be a provocation to the County which is hard pressed to fulfill low income housing goals especially at a time when housing money for such is scarce.
What we do have is Feiner starting fires over trivialities: “I invited them to my house and they didn’t come.” Well Mr. Feiner it is time to rethink the golden rule: he who has the gold rules. The County owns the land; the County paid for the structures on the land; the County gave you the right to pass go and collect $1.2 million (on one condition—low income housing) and if anyone should go aknockin’ on someone’s door, it should be you. Oh, I forgot you did since last Spring and they said peddle your act elsewhere. On multiple occasions and you still did nothing to cure the problem.
Oddly enough at yesterday’s Work Session, it was Mr. Smith who expressed dismay that anyone would use disabled children as chips in a high stakes game. The facts however say that in the game of politics, it is just Feiner and Smith who are “all-in”.
80% of Ferncliff’s students are from families that qualify for low-moderate income housing and the school is a residential facility. The argument that the County’s lease does not allow the site to be used for a facility like Ferncliff is nonsense. Plus, as the lease holder, the county can modify the language in anyway it deems appropriate.
Matt,
Yesterday they said that 70 percent were from low or moderate income families. The county certainly could modify the lease to allow the destruction of 108 units of affordable housing. But that seems like such a waste of public resources. I’m surprised that conservative Republicans like Michael Smith and Rob Astorino wouldn’t want to conserve this public asset that’s so needed in Westchester. The value on the property yesterday was placed at $20 million
Hips don’t lie says Shakira nor do numbers.
The 70% figure (witnessed by both Mr. Wilson and myself when seated next to each other at a Summer meeting of the County Board’s GO (Government Operations) Committee and independently studied a promotional handout provided by Ferncliff. My recall is that we are talking about a universe of 56-60 on-campus residents. WESTHelp’s 108 units provide shelter for more than 108 persons (not every unit is a studio). Furthermore since they already exist (albeit allowed by Feiner to fall into disrepair), there would no new construction cost other than repairs and restoration.
So, does it make sense to demolish 108 units already paid for by taxpayers so that 60 children can take up residence while, say 150, could be accommodated in their stead?
This kind of thinking plays into Feiner’s trap which deliberately adds the element of confusion and frustration to the equation (pitting one good cause against the other) so that his own mismanagement blunders will be lost in the smoke. Meanwhile the villains, Mayfair-Knollwood, having lost their payday through action by the Court and State Comptroller in finding that the gift to them (Valhalla School District) of about half of the $1.2 million annual rent was illegal. Without that swag as comfort, hark the return of NIMBYism which is what it is really all about. Feiner and Smith are doing the hokey-pokey but they are the poster boys for those who would pit disabled children against the poor and then blame it on the County Board, who in just doing their job, have become the whipping boys for those born lacking the shame gene.
With no “social dividend” in sight, the fears have arisen once more…