Douglaston Development to Add Bronx Affordable Housing
This is the $190 million second phase of a mixed-use project.
Douglaston Development has secured construction financing for the $190 million second phase of its mixed-use project providing 277 units of multifamily affordable housing next to the New York Botanical Garden in the Bronx, N.Y.
The 12-story, 250,000-square-foot building at 2868 Webster Ave. in the Bedford Park neighborhood is the second phase of an affordable housing development that also includes 188 units of senior housing at 2850 Webster Ave. That 12-story building, developed for $93.5 million, opened in October after a July 2022 topping out. Both phases of the development are located on a more than 1-acre parcel of land owned by the NYBG. Douglaston Development was selected by the NYBG following a request for proposals process to build the affordable housing properties. Affiliates of the New York-based development company entered into a 99-year ground lease with the NYBG in August 2020.
Construction on 2868 Webster Ave. will be performed by Levine Builders, the general contracting and construction management affiliate of Douglaston Development. Completion is expected in 2027.
The project will be funded by $83.4 million in tax-exempt bond financing and $17.4 million in subsidies allocated by the New York City Housing Development Corp. The New York City Department of Housing Preservation and Development is providing a $52.6 million subsidy under its Extremely Low- and Low-Income Affordability Program. Wells Fargo is providing Low-Income Housing Tax Credits, as well as a letter of credit for the project.
Property details
The building will have a mix of studios, one-, two- and three-bedroom apartments available to those earning up to 70 percent of the Area Median Income. Sixty of the residences will be designated as supportive units with on-site services provided by the Jericho Project.
Resident amenities will also include laundry facilities, a fitness center, green roofs and on-site resident and retail parking. The property includes approximately 8,000 square feet of ground-floor retail space leased by Cherry Valley Marketplace, a longtime neighborhood grocery store. Once the project is completed, Cherry Valley Marketplace will expand its current 12,000-square-foot store at 2852 Webster Ave. to create a combined 20,000-square-foot grocery store for the community. The project benefits from NYC DCP’s FRESH (Fresh Retail Expansion to Support Health) program, which provides zoning and tax benefits for the creation or renovation of supermarkets in certain areas throughout New York City.
Manhattan project underway
Earlier this year, a joint venture between Douglaston Development and the Entertainment Community Fund secured $106 million in senior recycled tax-exempt bond funded loans and subsidy loans to begin construction of Rialto West, an eight-story, 158-unit affordable housing property at 509 W. 48th St. in Manhattan. Rialto West will be across the street from an approximately 25,000-square-foot public plaza at 705 10th Ave. that Douglaston is also developing. A mixed-use property, Rialto West will feature more than 5,500 square feet of cultural ground floor that may be used for artists’ rehearsal and coworking spaces. The residential building will have studio, one-, two- and three bedroom layouts with 15 percent reserved for formerly homeless individuals. The property is expected to be completed in 2026.
