BY GRANT LANCASTER
New York City Housing Authority officials have given a developer rights to build on a property in East Harlem in exchange for $2.6 million that will go to repairs for a nearby NYCHA property.
The developer, who was not identified because the deal is not closed yet, plans to build a mixture of apartments and commercial space at the Hobbs Court location, with 30% of that being affordable housing under the Affordable New York Housing Program, according to a Thursday press release. NYCHA board members approved the transaction in January and construction is scheduled to start this year.
NYCHA officials plan to work with the nearest of their public housing developments, Metro North Plaza, to decide how best to spend the money from the deal, said Jonathan Gouveia, NYCHA Real Estate senior vice president.
“This deal is a great example of how NYCHA is leveraging a range of underutilized assets to support needed repairs for our residents living in public housing,” Gouveia said.
NYCHA has owned the rights to the approximately 9,000 square feet at Hobbs Court, which included a 259-unit affordable housing development, since the 1980s.
