Politics & Government
County Funding Approved for Affordable Housing in Katonah
As apartment units become available on the property, they may count toward the 750 units the county is required to build under a housing settlement reached in 2009.
A home converted into a seven-unit apartment building in Katonah was approved this week to receive $1 million in county funds for purchase and rehabilitation of the property on Wildwood Road.
The purchase, made for A-HOME (Apropos-Housing Opportunities and Management), a nonprofit organization that provides affordable housing and case management services to individuals who can’t afford market rents, will enable the existing tenants to pay more affordable rents, said Joan Arnold, the nonprofit’s executive director.
“This property is workforce housing. The people who live here—a teacher’s aide, nursing assistant, people who work—will benefit from this for years to come. The county really worked hard together to make this happen.”
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The three-story house on 2.5 acres of property became available in 2009, when Westchester had just reached a stipulating the county provide at least 750 new residential units at below prevailing market prices in a number of specified communities, including Bedford.
Because the house had pre-existing tenants, it was on the “not eligible” list—meaning it was not eligible for federal funds available through the settlement and could not be counted toward the total number of required units, said Arnold.
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“So A-HOME purchased the house in 2009 for $1.1 million with a bridge loan, and the county funds, $1 million in New Homes Land Acquisition money, allows us to pay down the bridge loan, save on mortgage fees and lower the rent to below 60 percent of Westchester’s AMI—area median income,” she said.
County Legislator Peter Harckham (D-Katonah), who announced the funding approvals on Wednesday, said as units become available in the house, they may be counted toward the settlement.
“The good news is that we are ahead of schedule in terms of implementing the settlement—we will have over 200 affordable housing projects in the pipeline by the end of this year. I’m delighted we could make this project happen,” he said.
To read more about Bedford’s involvement in developing affordable housing,
To read about the latest developments in the county's housing settlement,
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