Sennett Meadows Senior Apartments, a new $15 million affordable housing development in Sennett, is now available for occupancy. The development includes 60 energy-efficient homes designed for people aged 55 and older, 18 of which are reserved for seniors and veterans with physical disabilities, and will include supportive services for the residents.
The two-story building contains 56 one-bedroom and four two-bedroom apartments, designed to be affordable for those aged 55 and older with incomes at or below 60% of the Area Median Income. The development is located on a previously vacant parcel on East Genesee Street Road.
According to a news release, the service provider for the 18 Empire State Supportive Housing Initiative (ESSHI) apartments is ARISE, with access to rental subsidies and services funded through the initiative. Support services include peer counseling, employment services, care coordination, financial and benefits advisors, crisis management, and technological literacy support.
The development meets the criteria for the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority New Construction – Housing Program and was constructed using green building practices, according to Governor Kathy Hochul’s office. The project is seeking certification paths through LEED and ENERGY STAR Multifamily New Construction.
Residents of Sennett Meadows Senior Apartments will have access to community gardens, a media room, laundry facilities, and a common balcony. The development has also been added to the Central New York Regional Transportation Authority bus lines.
Sennett Meadows Senior Apartments was co-developed by Rochester’s Cornerstone Group, Ltd. and Genesis Housing Development Corporation. The project received state financing, including federal and state Low-Income Housing Tax Credits, which generated $10.4 million in equity and $3.6 million in subsidy from New York State Homes and Community Renewal. NYSERDA provided $60,000 in support, and the Federal Home Loan Bank provided $571,000.
Over the last five years, New York State Homes and Community Renewal has invested nearly $30 million to create or preserve over 400 affordable apartments in multifamily buildings in Cayuga County, according to Governor Hochul’s office.
Sennett Town Supervisor Tom Blair stated that the town is pleased to have attracted a high-quality affordable senior housing project like Sennett Meadows. “The number of town’s citizens 55 and older has grown substantially in recent years, and residents of the town, as well as surrounding communities, will realize the immediate benefits of having this quality house option available to them, especially when there is such a lack of safe, well-constructed senior housing in Central New York,” Blair said in a statement.
The project complements Governor Hochul’s Housing Compact, a strategy designed to address New York’s historic housing shortage by building 800,000 new homes over the next decade, according to the governor’s office.
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