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12.19.2019
Westhab breaks ground on Dayspring Commons and Community Center.
On December 11th members of the Yonkers and Westchester community gathered next to a dilapidated church for Westhab’s Dayspring Commons groundbreaking.
Located in Nodine Hill in Yonkers, Dayspring Commons will create 63 apartments including 37 supportive and will be connected to a newly rehabilitated Community Center. The Commons will provide housing and services to a mix of individuals, including young adults with children.
Westhab is rehabilitating, renovating and modernizing the 140-year-old church into a full-service Community Center complete with a brand new basketball court, performing arts stage and playground. The center will have robust community programming for families and children, including vocational trainings and the church will remain a sanctuary for religious services on Sunday.
Rich Nightingale, Westhab’s President & CEO, started the program off saying, “Our vision was for the Dayspring Campus -- the Community Center together with the Commons -- to become a real anchor for this community as well as a real catalyst. ”
Mayor Mike Spano followed: “Westhab provides a chance for us to keep people [in the community] who may be struggling a bit and need a little extra hand, or who just want to stay in a community they were born and raised in.”
NYS Homes and Community Renewal Commissioner and CEO RuthAnne Visnauskas also spoke. “Not only will the building be beautiful and have full services, but it will be near a really exciting and beautiful transformation of the community center that will also be accessible to kids and teens, will have continuing adult education and employment centers, things that are critical to allow people to stay and grow.”
Deputy County Executive Ken Jenkins spoke about the housing affordability crisis in Westchester and the importance of building state and local partnerships to solve it. “The need in Westchester for housing construction from the housing needs assessment was 11,000 units. We need to continue this work, we’ve got to do more groundbreakings and continue these partnerships.”
Yonkers City Council President Mike Khader, Gloribel Cruz of TD Bank, Ken Hanau, the Chair of Dayspring Committee also spoke. Westhab’s board chair Jesse Krasnow was also credited as a major partner in the project.
Dayspring Commons will include a community room, exercise room, outdoor landscaped seating area, laundry room, security office and a covered garage. Comprehensive services will be provided by Westhab and funded by the New York State Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance under the Empire State Supportive Housing Initiative.
The project was financed by early seed money from the JPMorgan Chase Foundation and received financial support from the City of Yonkers and Westchester County. Capital funding in the form of 4% LIHTCs, Tax-Exempt Bonds and subsidy loans were provided by NYS HCR and Tax Credit Equity and Credit Enhancement were provided by a combination of Raymond James and TD Bank.
The architect on the projects is Aufgang Architects the contractor is J. Pilla Group.