By Carol Tannenhauser
A lottery for a new, fully affordable senior housing development at the former Park 79 Hotel, on West 79th Street between Columbus and Amsterdam Avenues, was launched on Friday by Fairstead, the developer; the New York City Department of Housing Preservation and Development (HPD); and Project Find, the nonprofit that will provide onsite social services, including two social workers.
The lottery will run through August 5, 2022, and can be accessed on the City’s NYC Housing Connect website. The building is expected to be completed this summer.
“Once operated as an illegal hotel, Park 79 will now house seniors and formerly homeless New Yorkers who would otherwise be priced out of the city, according to a press release.
“Through HPD’s Senior Affordable Rental Apartments (SARA) program, the 100% affordable housing development will provide 77 residences to seniors earning at or below 50% area median income (AMI), including 24 homes for formerly homeless individuals. All of the homes will be supported by a project-based Section 8 contract, under which residents pay only 30% of their income in rent.”
Qualified applicants will be required to meet additional selection criteria. At least one household member must be 62+ to qualify. Utilities are included with the rent.
The building will feature amenities including: shared laundry room; high-end kitchen appliances; high-end countertops and finishes; energy-efficient appliances; hardwood floors; common area Wifi; high-speed internet; online options for leasing, paying rent, and making maintenance requests; community center; community events and classes; jogging/walking/bike path or access to one nearby; security cameras; security guard; on-site resident manager; green space; intercommunication device; elevator; accessible entrance; smoke-free.
All the apartments are electric-powered. Residents will also have access to programming at Project FIND’s Hamilton Senior Center on West 73rd Street.
Seniors can apply for Park 79 on the Housing Connect website or request a paper application by sending a self-addressed envelope to: Fairstead Management c/o: Park 79, 560 Lenox Avenue, New York, NY 10037. Those in need of application assistance can work with HPD’s Housing Ambassadors, community-based service providers in New York City who help people prepare and apply for Housing Connect affordable housing lotteries.
One of the amenities listed is “accessible entrance.” The photograph shows 4 steps and no ramp. Where is the accessible entrance?
it’s a wonderful idea, but if they are going to cater to seniors, they’re going to need a handicap-accessible ramp into that building….. hope they are working on that.
I have two problems with Park 79:
1) “Fully affordable”!!! Why don’t you mention in this article that homeless people will be moved into the apartment building.
2) I personally know people who, because of unusual circumstances in 2021, made several dollars above the maximum income allowed ($53,400), meaning they will NOT be eligible to move in.
At first glance, NY’s housing lotteries seem wonderful. A closer look reveals that, due to rising costs, senior citizens, having lived in the UWS for years, are forced to move far away from friends and family, to live in tiny apartments, all because of several dollars of income too much.
Do you really believe folks in Park 79 neighborhood are going to welcome homeless people and those barely making enough to survive, as their neighbors?