The mayor invited the press to Bedford Avenue to celebrate 2016’s affordable housing boom.
Mayor Bill de Blasio visited Monsignor Alexius Jarka Hall (268 Bedford Avenue) to announce that more affordable housing was financed in 2016 than in any time in the past 25 years. Jarka Hall is an apt example of affordable housing as it will keep all 63 senior apartments affordable for another 35 years. It is quite an achievement that no unit at Jarka Hall charges more than $1,000 in a prime area of Williamsburg of where the average rents for a one-bedroom apartment are $3,000 per month.
In an effort to maintain affordability to the elderly residents of Monsignor Alexius Jarka Hall, the People’s Firehouse reached out to St. Nicks Alliance to refinance and renovate the property. This $19-million preservation project will improve conditions for residents and insure the property will maintain its long term affordability. It will continue to provide housing for the most at risk population: very low income elderly.
“It is good to know that in this crisis of affordability, there are political leaders who are willing to step forward to protect low-income housing in our communities, particularly that of some of our most vulnerable residents,” said Daniel Rivera, Executive Director, The People’s Firehouse, Inc.
