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News & Events > New York: Hudson Valley Non-Profit Secures Financing to Preserve Affordable Housing Project

Wappingers Falls, NY, July 17, 2008 – Critical pieces of financing were awarded recently for a housing project in Orange County, which will prevent the displacement of over 30 families and preserve an essential cluster of affordable housing in the area.

The Green Meadows Apartments, located in the Village of Chester, is one of nine projects included in the $137 million funding award announced earlier this month by Governor David A. Paterson. Green Meadows was recently acquired by the nonprofit, Hudson Valley Housing Development Fund, Inc. (HVH), which is proposing extensive renovations and upgrades to the 25 year old building that is currently home to 36 very low income families.

The state’s award, in the form of $357,876 in Low Income Housing Tax Credits, is expected to leverage over $3 million in private equity toward the project’s $6 million development cost. HVH recently secured an additional source of financing for its affordable housing work in the Hudson Valley from the nonprofit community loan fund, Leviticus 25:23 Alternative Fund Inc. Leviticus’ $525,000 pre-development loan, to cover architect and engineering-related costs prior to a project’s construction phase, is being split between Green Meadows and a second, pending development effort in Ulster County for 60-units of affordable senior housing.

“Chester has seen great growth and it would be all but impossible to reproduce affordable units in this area, which is just 60 miles north of New York City,” explained Margaret T. O’Leary, Chief Executive Officer for both HVH and its parent corporation, Community Services Programs, Inc. (CSP). “We are trying to reach out to the neediest of households. That is a key component to our mission.”

Given rising costs in the area, tenants at Green Meadows Apartments may well have faced formidable challenges for housing if not for the effort of HVH and CSP.

“If Hudson Valley Housing was not acquiring the Green Meadows apartments, the owner would be able to pre-pay the balance on the one-percent, 50-year mortgage with the U.S.

Department of Agriculture Rural Development,” explained Ms. O’Leary. “The result would be that 36 very low income households would be displaced in a community that statistically has no housing units affordable to very low income households.”

“The Leviticus Fund is very pleased to support HVH and CSP’s efforts to preserve Green Meadows as affordable housing,” said David C. Raynor, Executive Director for the Leviticus Fund. “We recognize the importance that predevelopment financing has in the early stages of a project to ensure it moves forward to the next phase.”

Beyond Green Meadows, HVH and CSP are also moving ahead on a second project, specifically the Kingston Meadows Senior Residence in Kingston, which will create 60 units of affordable rental housing for senior citizens earning less that 50% of Ulster County’s median income. Twenty-five percent of the proposed units will be set aside for senior households earning less than 30% median income given the tremendous need for this type of housing in the area.

Projected at $12 million in total development costs, the Kingston Meadows project would signal the first new construction of affordable, senior housing in over a decade in the city of Kingston.

The efforts of CSP and HVH to address the housing needs of low-income residents in their area have also caught the attention of affordable housing advocates. The two nonprofits were recently presented the “Project of the Year” award for upstate New York from the New York State Association for Affordable Housing.

The award is in recognition of CSP and HVH’s joint work with the Meadow Ridge II Senior Residence in Dutchess County, the first housing project in rural New York to be funded exclusively with state low-income housing tax credits. The Meadow Ridge project is a 52-unit, newly constructed senior citizen complex in Beacon, which celebrated its grand opening on May 30th. The project includes 20 one-bedroom and 32 two-bedroom apartments, with all units fully handicapped accessible. Meadow Ridge II serves residents earning at or below 80% of the county’s median income, which in Dutchess translates to $44,160 for a single-person household and $50,480 for a two-person household.

Meadow Ridge II overlooks Meadow Ridge I, which is a similarly designed, 52-unit affordable housing project for working families earning at the 60% of area median income level.

CSP, founded over 30 years ago to provide social services in the southern area of Dutchess County, now focuses exclusively on the development of affordable housing in the mid-Hudson region. The agency is credited with securing $58 million in funding and financing from public and private sources to develop over 300 units of rental and homeownership housing.

The Leviticus Fund is a $12.2 million community development loan fund that has provided a total of $23 million in lending focused on affordable housing and community facilities in low-income neighborhoods. Founded 25 years ago, Leviticus focuses its work exclusively in New York, New Jersey and Connecticut.

To learn more about the work of Community Services Programs, Inc. and the Hudson Valley Housing Development Company, Inc., call 845-297-2004. To learn more about the work of the Leviticus Fund, visit www.leviticusfund.org


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About Us Who We Help Ways to Invest Ways to Borrow Make a Gift News & Events Advocacy	News & Events > New York: Hudson Valley Non-Profit Secures Financing to Preserve Affordable Housing Project Wappingers Falls, NY, July 17, 2008 – Critical pieces of financing were awarded recently for a housing project in Orange County, which will prevent the displacement of over 30 families and preserve an essential cluster of affordable housing in the area. The Green Meadows Apartments, located in the Village of Chester, is one of nine projects included in the $137 million funding award announced earlier this month by Governor David A. Paterson. Green Meadows was recently acquired by the nonprofit, Hudson Valley Housing Development Fund, Inc. (HVH), which is proposing extensive renovations and upgrades to the 25 year old building that is currently home to 36 very low income families. The state’s award, in the form of $357,876 in Low Income Housing Tax Credits, is expected to leverage over $3 million in private equity toward the project’s $6 million development cost. HVH recently secured an additional source of financing for its affordable housing work in the Hudson Valley from the nonprofit community loan fund, Leviticus 25:23 Alternative Fund Inc. Leviticus’ $525,000 pre-development loan, to cover architect and engineering-related costs prior to a project’s construction phase, is being split between Green Meadows and a second, pending development effort in Ulster County for 60-units of affordable senior housing. “Chester has seen great growth and it would be all but impossible to reproduce affordable units in this area, which is just 60 miles north of New York City,” explained Margaret T. O’Leary, Chief Executive Officer for both HVH and its parent corporation, Community Services Programs, Inc. (CSP). “We are trying to reach out to the neediest of households. That is a key component to our mission.” Given rising costs in the area, tenants at Green Meadows Apartments may well have faced formidable challenges for housing if not for the effort of HVH and CSP. “If Hudson Valley Housing was not acquiring the Green Meadows apartments, the owner would be able to pre-pay the balance on the one-percent, 50-year mortgage with the U.S. Department of Agriculture Rural Development,” explained Ms. O’Leary. “The result would be that 36 very low income households would be displaced in a community that statistically has no housing units affordable to very low income households.” “The Leviticus Fund is very pleased to support HVH and CSP’s efforts to preserve Green Meadows as affordable housing,” said David C. Raynor, Executive Director for the Leviticus Fund. “We recognize the importance that predevelopment financing has in the early stages of a project to ensure it moves forward to the next phase.” Beyond Green Meadows, HVH and CSP are also moving ahead on a second project, specifically the Kingston Meadows Senior Residence in Kingston, which will create 60 units of affordable rental housing for senior citizens earning less that 50% of Ulster County’s median income. Twenty-five percent of the proposed units will be set aside for senior households earning less than 30% median income given the tremendous need for this type of housing in the area. Projected at $12 million in total development costs, the Kingston Meadows project would signal the first new construction of affordable, senior housing in over a decade in the city of Kingston. The efforts of CSP and HVH to address the housing needs of low-income residents in their area have also caught the attention of affordable housing advocates. The two nonprofits were recently presented the “Project of the Year” award for upstate New York from the New York State Association for Affordable Housing. The award is in recognition of CSP and HVH’s joint work with the Meadow Ridge II Senior Residence in Dutchess County, the first housing project in rural New York to be funded exclusively with state low-income housing tax credits. The Meadow Ridge project is a 52-unit, newly constructed senior citizen complex in Beacon, which celebrated its grand opening on May 30th. The project includes 20 one-bedroom and 32 two-bedroom apartments, with all units fully handicapped accessible. Meadow Ridge II serves residents earning at or below 80% of the county’s median income, which in Dutchess translates to $44,160 for a single-person household and $50,480 for a two-person household. Meadow Ridge II overlooks Meadow Ridge I, which is a similarly designed, 52-unit affordable housing project for working families earning at the 60% of area median income level. CSP, founded over 30 years ago to provide social services in the southern area of Dutchess County, now focuses exclusively on the development of affordable housing in the mid-Hudson region. The agency is credited with securing $58 million in funding and financing from public and private sources to develop over 300 units of rental and homeownership housing. The Leviticus Fund is a $12.2 million community development loan fund that has provided a total of $23 million in lending focused on affordable housing and community facilities in low-income neighborhoods. Founded 25 years ago, Leviticus focuses its work exclusively in New York, New Jersey and Connecticut. To learn more about the work of Community Services Programs, Inc. and the Hudson Valley Housing Development Company, Inc., call 845-297-2004. To learn more about the work of the Leviticus Fund, visit www.leviticusfund.org