NEW YORK – The New York City Department of Housing Preservation and Development (HPD) and the New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA) announced today the selection of Xenolith Partners, The Kretchmer Companies, ELH Mgmt., and the Jewish Association Serving the Aging (JASA) for a 100 percent senior affordable housing project in the Bronx, and Blue Sea Development Company and Gilbane Development Company’s for 100 percent senior affordable housing in Brooklyn.
The new senior affordable housing buildings, located in the Soundview section of the Bronx and the Bushwick section of Brooklyn, will also provide on-site social support, health services and cultural programming for seniors and the community.
As part of the de Blasio Administration’s commitment to ensure safe and affordable housing for the City’s increasing senior population, HPD launched Seniors First, a three-pronged strategy including Aging in Place, an initiative to make more homes accessible to seniors and people with disabilities; developing new senior housing on NYCHA and other land; and preserving more of the senior housing originally developed through federal housing plans.
“Through Housing New York, we continue to put our seniors first, seizing every opportunity to create more affordable housing on public sites,” said HPD Commissioner Maria Torres-Springer. “The selected proposals will create hundreds of new homes for seniors on underused NYCHA land, providing an anchor of affordability to both individuals and communities. I want to congratulate the development teams and thank our partners at NYCHA and HDC for their commitment to creating a fairer and more equitable city for generations to come."
“To protect more of our city’s seniors, this Administration is working across agencies to identify available public land for affordable housing development,” said HDC President Eric Enderlin. “I’d like to recognize the teams at HPD, HDC, and NYCHA for their efforts to advance these critical projects and look forward to partnering with the selected development teams to bring their proposals over the finish line so that the New Yorkers who helped build this great city have the affordable homes they need and deserve.”
“NYCHA and HPD are ensuring affordable housing and essential social support services are provided to one of the City’s most vulnerable populations, our seniors,” said NYCHA Interim Chair and CEO Kathryn Garcia. “With our newly selected development partners, these new projects will provide approximately 350 senior families with the safe and affordable housing they need. We are also excited this effort will focus on supporting the community, where our social service partners will offer on-site social, health and wellness, and cultural and art programming for residents and NYCHA families.”
“All of us at Blue Sea Development and Gilbane Development are extremely grateful for the opportunity to provide healthy and energy-efficient homes in Bushwick for seniors who need them most, but can least afford them,” said Blue Sea Development Company Principal Les Bluestone. “The variety of services and programming provided by JASA and the Brooklyn Arts Council will further enhance healthy living and cultural opportunities at Linden Court, through seniors’ fitness areas, spaces for art and social gatherings, and healthy food options through rooftop community gardening, to name but a few.”
“Raised at the NYCHA complex that now bears her name, Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor has credited her mother, Celina Baez, with being her ‘life inspiration.’ The Development Team is pleased to honor that inspiration with the residences at Casa Celina. Designed by Magnusson Architecture and Planning, the building will feature generous shared spaces, innovative features and gracious apartments and will connect physically, visually and socially to the surrounding campus. JASA will keep seniors living safely in their own homes with independence, dignity, and joy through case management, in-home care and community-wide programming,” said Xenolith Partners Principal Andrea Kretchmer. “Casa Celina will bring healing, home, and what Justice Sotomayor called ‘magic’ to the community’s seniors. Our team, a true joint venture among pre-qualified developers, a WBE developer and a non-profit, is excited to work with and for the residents of Soundview, the Bronx, and the City of New York.”
Casa Celina will be a 16-story building comprised of 200 senior units at Sotomayor Houses in the Bronx, developed by Xenolith Partners, The Kretchmer Companies, ELH Mgmt. and JASA. Also, approximately 3,350 square feet of community space will be accessible to NYCHA residents and the surrounding community. Amenities will include an exercise/fitness room, laundry room, lounge spaces on every floor, a second-floor community space, and a landscaped rooftop terrace. Also, the JASA East Bronx Case Management Program will provide social support service and senior health and wellness programming on-site thanks to funding by the NYC Department for the Aging (DFTA). This team includes MWBE certified developers.
Linden Court, developed by Blue Sea Development Company and Gilbane Development Company, will be a 13-story building comprised of 154 senior units at Bushwick II (Group E) Houses in Brooklyn. This will include approximately 3,000 square feet of community facility and senior social services run by JASA, with additional programming provided by Brooklyn Arts Council. Designed to serve building residents and older adults from NYCHA and the surrounding area, Linden Court will include a senior center with an art gallery and café, warming kitchen, bathrooms, and two large multi-program rooms which can be divided to accommodate small classes and events.
Casa Celina and Linden Court will both serve residents age 62 years and older, where 25 percent of the units will be set aside for NYCHA residents and 30 percent of the apartments will be reserved for homeless seniors. NYCHA will maintain ownership of the land, ensuring long-term affordability.
The Authority will work with the development teams of Casa Celina and Linden Court to ensure an extensive community engagement process. Resident engagement meetings will allow the community to stay informed throughout the duration of the project, up to and through construction, while providing critical feedback on how to best create benefits for both NYCHA residents and the community at large.
NYCHA’s Sotomayor Houses was built in 1955 and consists of 28, 7-story buildings containing 1,497 apartments. Casa Celina will be constructed at the corner of Watson and Thieriot Avenues.
The Authority’s Bushwick II (Group E) buildings were built in 1986 and consist of five, 3-story buildings containing 276 apartments. Linden Court will be constructed on Linden Street, between Knickerbocker and Wilson Avenues.
Brooklyn Borough President Eric L. Adams said, “Linden Court will bring more than 150 units of affordable senior housing to the Bushwick community, integrating social programming from trusted partners like BAC and JASA that facilitates healthy living. I commend HPD and NYCHA for their progress on this project, including its commitment to helping seniors with housing challenges to age in place.”
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