A developer is hoping to bring more than 200 units of affordable housing to Community Board 4 with a massive rezoning project.
According to recent filings, Webster 1099 Realty LLC has applied to build two new mixed-use buildings on the west side of Webster Avenue at its intersection with East 166th Street in Morrisania. The project will require the area to be rezoned from a manufacturing area to a residential zone.
The buildings will be at 80 percent AMI (Average Median Income) or lower, offer 15 percent of its housing to the formerly homeless, feature ground floor commercial space and will have 238 residential units available.
The current use of the site is a parking lot, an auto repair shop and a small warehouse.
On Nov. 24, they presented their plans to Community Board 4, which supported them but with several stipulations. The board approved a letter of support for the project if it meets the following requirements:
- creating residential units that meet a wide range of AMI incomes;
- a commitment to hiring CB 4 residents for jobs pre- and post-construction;
- working with Housing Preservation and Development (HPD) and the Department of Homeless Services (DHS) to get families that are in shelters into this permanent housing;
- creating a community center and youth center, a health care facility and a day care center;
- hosting a training session to help residents prepare for the housing lottery.
“If we can take people from existing shelters and relocate them, I think that it would be a win-win for us,” said CB 4 District Manager Paul Philips.
There will be one 9-story mixed-use building, with 10,690 square feet of commercial use, 72,889 square feet of residential use and 90 apartments. The other will be an 11-story mixed-use building with 19,298 square feet of commercial use, 117, 963 square feet of residential use and 148 units.
Additionally, the plans call for 73 underground parking spaces and a recreation area.
The project will create approximately 350 construction jobs over a 30 to 36 month period and will meet or exceed HPD requirement for local hiring through HIreNYC and the MWBE Build Up Program.
Also, there are estimated to be 75 to 80 permanent jobs for employees who will work in the ground floor retail space and community facility space as well as the building service workers.
The next step in the process is a City Planning commission review and then a Council and mayoral review. Construction is planned to tentatively begin in 2022.
