Phase II Construction Begins at White Plains Winbrook Housing Campus
The White Plains Housing Authority with co-developer Trinity Financial broke ground Nov. 15 on The Overture at Brookfield Commons, the second phase of the redevelopment of the existing Winbrook Housing campus.
The Overture at Brookfield Commons will consist of a nine-story, 146,115 square foot mixed use building with 129 apartments and 2,074 square feet of community facility space. The project will also include 77 at-grade parking spaces (75 for residents and two for the community facility space).
The residential portion of the building will have 40 one-bedroom apartments, 63 two-bedroom apartments, 23 three-bedroom apartments, two four-bedroom apartments and one superintendent’s unit. The building will also include a fitness room, children’s playroom, and tenant lounge with outdoor terrace.
When constructed, the building will include 90 apartments set aside for existing Winbrook residents. The remaining apartments will be available for affordable to low- or moderate-income households.
A vacant existing building on the Winbrook campus (located at 135 South Lexington Avenue) will be demolished, clearing the way for the construction of The Overture building. There will be no displacement of existing Winbrook residents as part of the Brookfield Commons development, according to the White Plains Housing Authority.
New York State Homes and Community Renewal (HCR) is providing $15.3 million in permanent tax-exempt bonds, federal and state Low-Income Housing Tax Credits that will generate $26.3 million in equity and an additional $16.6 million in subsidy. Additional financing for the project is being provided by the City of White Plains, the County of Westchester and the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA). Capital One Bank and Chase provided the Letter of Credit. Capital One Bank and RBC Capital Markets are the tax credit investors and RBC Capital Markets is the tax credit syndicator.
At Friday’s groundbreaking ceremony, Mack Carter, Executive Director of the White Plains Housing Authority said, “Our master plan is active and alive. The new Overture is a much larger replacement building with 129 units (25 more units than the first replacement building on the campus, The Prelude, which has 104 units).”
“All residents who qualify from our existing resident pool will be able to move into this new, modern, and environmentally friendly building,” Carter said. “Each successive building phase will bring another new building with exciting amenities. It gives me great pride and joy to deliver this new building. We have just begun our quest to replace the old Winbrook community with the new Brookfield Commons.”
In 2009, the White Plains Housing Authority completed the initial master plan work for the transformation of Winbrook Houses, a 450-unit public housing development built in 1949. In the first phase of the redevelopment, the White Plains Housing Authority partnered to construct The Prelude. Built in 2014-15 on the corner of South Lexington Avenue and Quarropas Street, The Prelude includes 104 affordable housing apartments and the 13,500 square foot White Plains Education and Training Center.
HCR Commissioner RuthAnne Visnauskas, who was present at the groundbreaking with other local government officials from White Plains and Westchester County said, “The multi-phase redevelopment of the outdated Winbrook Houses will transform downtown White Plains by breaking up the public housing superblock and reconnecting residents to the surrounding community. When complete, The Overture at Brookfield Commons will offer 129 families the opportunity to live in a beautiful, modern, energy-efficient building with great amenities in a more inclusive and vibrant neighborhood.
The entire project will be built to achieve Enterprise Green Communities designation for energy-efficiency and healthy environments and will participate in NYSERDA’s Multifamily New Construction Program. The building will reduce its residents’ projected energy use by 15 percent and conserve water through the use of low flow plumbing fixtures.
Operational funding (in the form of Tenant Protection Vouchers and Project Based Vouchers) was provided by the US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).
