Yonkers Housing Authority Seeks Development Partner for Affordable Homeownership Initiative
The Municipal Housing Authority for the City of Yonkers (MHACY) is seeking a development team to help launch a new affordable homeownership initiative aimed at expanding economic mobility and creating opportunities for generational wealth in Yonkers.
MHACY issued a Request for Qualifications (RFQ) on September 15 seeking development teams, nonprofit housing organizations, architects, contractors and financial partners to propose innovative approaches to developing affordable homes on seven properties throughout the city. Proposals are due October 30.
The initiative is being developed in partnership with the City of Yonkers. MHACY acquired seven parcels from the Yonkers Industrial Development Agency specifically for the development of affordable homeownership opportunities.
“This program is designed to provide economic mobility for current residents of the housing authority and others through the transformative power of homeownership,” said Wilson Kimball, President and CEO of MHACY.
The program comes at a time when higher housing costs, interest rates and stagnant salaries have made achieving homeownership increasingly difficult for many households. Yonkers Mayor Mike Spano said the initiative complements the city’s market-rate housing development by creating additional housing opportunities for residents with modest incomes.
MHACY also sees the program as a way to address persistent disparities in homeownership. Citing data from the Joint Center for Housing Studies of Harvard University, the authority noted a significant homeownership gap between white non-Hispanic households and ethnic minority households.
The seven development sites include two parcels on Herriott Street, three on Byron Avenue and individual parcels on Ridgeview Avenue and Ash Street. The selected development partner will be expected to have the capacity to plan, finance, design, construct and market high-quality, durable and energy-efficient homeownership units.
A pre-submittal Zoom conference is scheduled for September 30. Questions are due October 7, and proposals must be submitted by 3 p.m. on October 30.
