Affordable Community Opens in Buffalo
People Inc. and Sinatra & Co. Real Estate are the developers behind the $31 million mixed-use development.
Jefferson Avenue Apartments. Image via Google Street View
Co-developers People Inc. and Sinatra & Co. Real Estate have opened Jefferson Avenue Apartments, a 90-unit affordable housing community in Buffalo, N.Y.
Located at 1166 Jefferson Ave., the mixed-use community provides 71 one-bedroom and 19 two-bedroom units in two adjacent three-story buildings. Floorplans average 669 square feet.
Jefferson Avenue Apartments includes 16 apartments with supportive services reserved for residents with intellectual and developmental disabilities. People Inc. provides on-site support services and leases space in the 16,500-square-foot commercial component on the ground floor.
Belmont Housing Resources of Western New York, Say Yes Buffalo Scholarship Inc. and ABC Learn & Play 2 are also among the commercial tenants of the $31 million development.
Belmont runs the Belmont Financial Education Center, sponsored by Northwest Bank. The facility focuses on financial literacy and provides free coaching, counseling and workshops on the subject.
Financing specifics
The New York State Homes and Community Renewal provided $12.5 million in Low-Income Housing Tax Credits, $9.3 million in subsidy as well as $1.3 million in tax-exempt bonds.
Additional state financiers included The Department of Environmental Conservation and The Office for People with Developmental Disabilities allocating $2.9 million and $2.2 million, respectively. The co-developers also secured a $1.5 million loan funded by Empire State Development through its Better Buffalo Fund.
Amenities and location
The pet-friendly community features a community room, three laundry facilities and a playground. People Inc. has partnered with WNY-Urban Arts Collective to adorn the property with Historic Jefferson Avenue-themed outside murals as well as artwork for the interior.
Jefferson Avenue Apartments is within walking distance of Masten Park and The Foundry art center. The property is 3 miles northeast of downtown Buffalo, while the Buffalo General Medical Center and Jacobs School Of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences are less than 2 miles away. The Niagara Falls State Park is 22 miles northwest of the community.
Jefferson Avenue Apartments is part of the $20 billion, five-year Housing Plan launched in 2017. Another development that is part of the initiative opened last month in Brooklyn. The 125-unit affordable community is known as Edwin’s Place, located in the borough’s Brownsville neighborhood.
