Seniors
snatch up new Carmel apartments
More than half
of the 94 apartments in a new affordable senior housing complex are
rented, and full occupancy is expected by the end of the summer.
Hughson Commons
is a joint project of Wilder-Balter Partners of Elmsford, a commercial
builder, and the Housing Action Council of Tarrytown, a nonprofit
group.
Construction of
the $11.7 million housing project began in May 2001.
Residents moved
into the first block of the horseshoe-shaped complex in late March.
The final phase — the third wing — is expected to be finished
early next month, allowing the last group of residents to move in
by mid-September, management agent Dorothy Ryan said.
"All the
apartments are spoken for, and we are taking applications for a waiting
list," Ryan said. "There is clearly a need here, but these
are so sought-after because they are really nice.
" The apartments
have patios and air-conditioning and are built around what will be
a landscaped courtyard, she said.
The co-partners
received $778,000 from the Federal Home Loan Bank of New York and
$867,600 from the state Housing Trust Fund Corp., with the rest of
the funding from private investors.
Rents range from
$501 to $616 a month for one-bedroom units and from $601 to $734 a
month for two-bedrooms. The rent is determined by annual income, which
must fall between $13,530 and $26,400 for one person and between $16,110
and $30,120 for two people.
"I like it.
It's very nice, and the people are friendly," said John Gallucci,
who moved into a one-bedroom apartment in March.
A regular at senior
citizen programs, he said he likes how close his apartment is to the
county offices off Old Route 6, where he participates in social programs
and shares meals with friends. The complex is on Hughson Road between
Brewster and Kelly roads.
"The close
proximity is a real plus," said William Huestis, executive director
of the Putnam County Office for the Aging, adding that attendance
at senior programs has increased since residents moved into the nearby
development. "We are beginning to look at how we can widen our
facility."
A walking path
from the Commons to the county office building, a distance of less
than 200 feet, is planned.
Huestis said that
within five years, there may be 500 new units for senior citizens
in Carmel, Mahopac and Brewster, based on proposals before the towns.
"We know
there is a need. Seniors need affordable options and want to remain
in the county or move here to be near their families," he said.
Gallucci, a retired
postal worker for the area around Manhattan's Grand Central Terminal,
lived most of his life in the Bronx. Five years ago, he moved to an
apartment in Brewster, but said he had few neighbors. He moved to
Hughson Commons to live among other senior citizens and be close to
his three grown daughters who live nearby.
Most of the renters
were already local residents, while the others have family connections
to the area, Ryan said.
The project's
owners said they are pleased with the outcome. "It went forward
quite quickly," Rosemarie Noonan, executive director the Housing
Action Council, said. "There seems to be an unlimited need. We
are glad to make even a small dent."
