Tredway, an affordable and mixed-income real estate developer that builds and preserves high-quality, high-opportunity housing, and ELH Mgmt. LLC, announced the acquisition of a seven-building portfolio in Brooklyn’s Fort Greene neighborhood.
Concurrent with the acquisition, Tredway has extended the affordability of the properties for another 40 years, ensuring all 193 homes will serve low-income households earning no more than 50 percent of area median income. An additional 30 percent of the homes will be reserved for formerly homeless individuals and families.
“The tremendous changes we’ve seen in Fort Greene over the past decade have unfortunately made it difficult for longtime residents to remain in the community they pioneered,” said Will Blodgett, CEO & Founder of Tredway. “By locking in affordability for elderly and vulnerable residents, we hope the preservation of Greene Clermont Houses and Tri-Block Houses Apartments serves as a bulwark against displacement and an example of the socio-economic diversity that makes New York City so great.”
Tredway and ELH are investing upwards of $10 million to renovate the portfolio, which has been largely untouched since it was first built. The cornerstone of the preservation is a 97-unit, elderly-designated, mid-rise building located at 80 Greene Avenue. Constructed in 1982, Greene Clermont Houses is home to longtime residents of Fort Greene who will benefit from critical aging-in-place retrofits aimed at enhancing residents’ quality-of-life.
A redesigned indoor and outdoor community space and a new wellness center will allow for on-site vaccination and nursing services and include office space for a resident services coordinator. Jericho Project, a nationally-acclaimed nonprofit, has been retained to provide meaningful social services to residents with an emphasis on housing retention and stabilization, as well as age-appropriate programming.
Throughout the portfolio, the developers will focus on improving the properties’ energy-efficiency and Local Law 11 safety improvements. Apartments will receive new bathrooms, kitchens, lighting and flooring, while lobbies and commons areas will be refreshed for the first time in over 40 years.
The project is being financed with a $97 million Freddie Mac loan from Wells Fargo. The total development cost is estimated to be $110 million. The sale was brokered by Affordable Housing Advisors.
