Community Housing Innovations

“Green Jobs Now Rally”

Saturday, September 27, 2008 – 12 PM
Minerva Place Condominiums in White Plains
Free Refreshments

White Plains, NY: On Saturday, September 27th, 2008, Community Housing Innovations (CHI), along with New York State Senator Suzi Oppenheimer, will join low-income workers and local residents for a Green Jobs Now Rally, calling for “More Green Jobs” in Westchester County. The event will be held at 12 PM outside the Minerva Place Condominiums (5 Minerva Place) construction site in White Plains, which has been praised as the most energy-efficient residence in White Plains. This Green Jobs Now Event is being held in conjunction with Service Nation’s National Day of Action, in which citizens are voicing their opinions on topics that matter, as a response to the Presidential debate held the night before. There will be free refreshments.

The Green Jobs Now movement was developed by Green For All, a national organization dedicated to building an inclusive green economy strong enough to lift people out of poverty. The initiative recognizes the fact that a sustainable economy and a sustainable ecosystem go together and that the greatest growth should promote the conservation of existing energy sources and the development of alternative energy sources. The key areas in which job growth is expected are: building retrofitting, mass transit, energy-efficient automobiles, wind power, solar power and cellulosic bio-fuels. Westchester County needs to develop a local workforce and an infrastructure to grow in these areas.

Community Housing Innovations is working to help develop a local workforce in Westchester. The nonprofit’s Career Services Program currently offers free courses in Medical Billing and Microsoft Applications to over 200 students. Local unemployed residents develop skills to meet the needs of local employers, creating a working relationship that meets local job market demands and enables individuals to achieve self-sufficiency. CHI is currently developing a curriculum on building science that will train low income people on the science behind energy efficiency in buildings. They will also work at a call center, providing free energy audits for homeowners, and referring certified contractors who will do the work.

“By developing Green Jobs in Westchester County and training local residents for those jobs, we will build the infrastructure of our country in a new direction,” stated Alexander Roberts, Executive Director of Community Housing Innovations. “We must recognize how important this is for our economy, for our country and for our planet.”

Minerva Place Condominiums was selected to host this event because it successfully combines affordable housing and energy efficiency, illustrating the connection between a sustainable economy and a sustainable ecosystem. Minerva Place has been praised as the most energy-efficient residence in White Plains and features the city’s first GeoExchange system for heating and cooling. Patick Fitzgerald, Project Manager for the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA), noted that Minerva Place is one of the first low rise projects in New York State to exceed the New York Energy $mart Multifamily Performance Program guidelines. In addition to geothermal heat pumps that use the constant temperature of the earth to heat and cool the building, Minerva Place Condominiums feature energy-efficient construction techniques, insulation, plumbing and lighting upgrades that are projected to save homebuyers about 30% on energy costs, compared to a typical new development.

All of the units are affordable to families with incomes between 80% and 100% of Westchester County’s Area Median Income, which is between $73,000 and $91,000 for a family of three. The one-bedroom units are priced from $225,000, and the two-bedroom units are priced from $265,000. However, for families who qualify, Community Housing Innovations may provide up to $30,000 in down payment assistance from the New York State Housing Trust Fund.

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CHI Lottery in Philipstown Insures First Responders Will Remain

On September 12th,Philipstown Town Hall was filled with hopeful homebuyers as Supervisor Bill Mazzuca drew names to determine the winners of a housing lottery conducted by the non-profit group Community Housing Innovations. The lottery participants were competing for ten townhouse condominiums at the Quarry Pond development in Cold Spring, to be sold to the winners at prices more than $100,000 below-market. While the market-rate for these condominiums is in excess of $400,000 and other units under development next door will start in the low $500,000 range, the town asked developer Wilder Balter Partners to reserve ten two-bedroom units to be sold through this lottery for $285,000.

The town utilized a preference point system which favored volunteer firefighters, police officers, and Haldane and Garrison district teachers, so they could have the opportunity to live within the community they serve. Nearly 70 applied, and 58 prospective homebuyers were eligible to qualify for the lottery. Each name was placed in an envelope, drawn from separate boxes determined by the order of preference, and was assigned a number by town officials.

Nick Budney, a New York City police officer and volunteer firefighter in Cold Spring, was anxiously waiting with his fiancé, Claudia Dellarmi, a local hotel manager. His name was drawn in the number eight position, which means that he will have the opportunity to buy an affordable unit as well.

Ms. Dellarmi, who met Officer Budney back in high school in Cold Spring, said, “I’m so excited that we’ll be able to stay in the community.”

Community Housing Innovations will now assist the winners in qualifying for mortgages and purchasing their new homes. As part of this free homebuyer counseling, the winners will learn how to structure their finances and make responsible decisions in order to keep their investments secure.

Click Here for the story in The Journal News.
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CHI Closes Construction Financing and
Begins First Geothermal Project in White Plains

CHI has been working with Long Island Cares, Inc. since 2002. The initial food pantry was located at the Southampton Waterview Cottages, in which CHI operated 23 transitional units for homeless families. When the program disbanded, so did the pantry until it re-emerged at CHI’s homeless singles shelter in Riverhead, called River House. It has been extremely successful, servicing not only the men’s residence, but the local community, as well. Sensing a strong demand for homeless families further west, Case Manager Christine Boudreau took the initiative and opened our newest pantry at one of our Supervised Family Residences in Brookhaven last month. Since 2002 CHI has assisted over 300 families and individuals and the agency anticipates serving an average of 50 individuals and/or families monthly for the upcoming fiscal year. Long Island Cares represents one of CHI’s vital partners in addressing the homeless crisis in Suffolk County.

Several homeless children in CHI’s programs were treated to a pirate trip on Long Island at which they received free back packs.