Astorino Encourages Non-Profits to Seek Assistance from New Local Development Corporation

Westchester County Executive Robert P. Astorino this morning urged the county's non-profit organizations and social services providers to seek help from the county's new Local Development Corporation in growing their operations.

Astorino made the invitation as leaders of non-profit groups met in Tarrytown for the United Way of Westchester and Putnam's 2013 Leadership Summit. In addressing the gathering, Astorino called the non-profit groups and the services they provide keys to community improvement and job growth in Westchester County.

He encouraged the diverse organizations to reach out to the new Local Development Corporation - known as a LDC — to determine whether the new corporation can connect them with low-cost and tax-exempt financing.

In April, four Westchester non-profits won approval for help on projects from the LDC.

"The LDC can save non-profits a great deal of money in financing costs, and it can do so at no risk, and at no cost, to taxpayers," Astorino said. "By any measure, this is a win-win for Westchester and judging by the four projects approved today, there is a great and growing demand for this tremendous resource."

The four projects approved in April were:

• Kendal on Hudson, a continuing care facility, in Sleepy Hollow – $64,330,000 to refinance existing debt and use some of the savings to make capital improvements to the existing facility. This transaction will result in $100,000 annual savings for the next 30 years.
• Northern Westchester Hospital in Mt. Kisco – $43,000,000 in low-cost financing to design, construct and equip the expansion of a surgical suite. Improvements include six new state-of-the-art operating suites and 13 pre/post anesthesia care unit beds.
• Phelps Memorial Hospital in Sleepy Hollow – $16,000,000 in low-cost financing for the  construction, renovation and equipping of an approximately 20,000 square-foot surgical suite on the third floor of the existing Medical Services Building.  The financing will also be used for the acquisition, construction and equipping of a 200-foot long by 9-foot wide enclosed corridor constructed as a bridge connecting the surgical suite to the third floor of the main hospital building.
• Iona College in New Rochelle –$5,000,000 in low-cost financing to pay down existing debt that was used for the acquisition and improvements to five faculty residences.

Astorino said Westchester County has also been continuing its efforts to streamline the process in which non-profits that provide publicly-backed services to the community obtain and manage their government contracts.