Dayspring Commons, a building providing affordable and supportive housing units at 227 Elm St. in the Nodine Hill section of Yonkers, has been opened.
Elected officials and members of the community attended a ribbon-cutting ceremony to mark the opening.
The six-story structure has 63 residential units, made up of a mix of one-, two- and three-bedroom units. Thirty-seven of the apartments are reserved for formerly homeless families as well as families with special needs.
The residential building is part of the Dayspring Campus complex, which also features a 27,400-square-foot community center created from the former Good Shepherd Community Church at 300 Walnut St.
The campus has been developed by Westhab, the nonprofit that reports having created more than 900 units of affordable housing in Westchester and New York City since its founding in 1981.
To be eligible to rent at Dayspring, a family or individual’s household income must be at or below 50 percent of the area median income for Westchester County, which varies by household size. Currently, the limit is $44,650 for one person or $63,750 for a family of four.
More than $20.6 million in financing for the $46 million project came from New York”™s Homes and Community Renewal (HCR), the state’s affordable housing agency.
The Westchester County New Homes Land Acquisition contributed more than $1.7 million to the project.
Yonkers provided $160,000 in predevelopment funds as well as $1 million for the renovation of the Dayspring Community Center. The Yonkers Industrial Development Agency provided financial incentives.
Operation of the 37 supportive housing units in Dayspring Commons will be funded by the Empire State Supportive Housing Initiative through the state”™s Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance. Westhab is to provide supportive services, including individual case management, employment counseling and mental health services.
“The Covid pandemic has demonstrated how crucial safe and affordable homes are to helping young families succeed,” said RuthAnne Visnauskas, commissioner of Homes and Community Renewal. “We hope the 63 households that now call Dayspring Commons home will thrive in these beautiful and sustainable homes with easy access to life-enhancing services at the adjacent Dayspring Community Center.”
According to Richard Nightingale, president and CEO of Westhab, “We envision the Dayspring Campus as an anchor institution for the community and a catalyst for additional community development investment. We are deeply grateful to the community, our partners, and the entire Dayspring village that helped this vision become a reality.”
Yonkers Mayor Mike Spano greeted the development as “a win-win for both the residents of Dayspring Commons and the Nodine Hill neighborhood. Dayspring is providing much-needed affordable and supportive housing for a mix of individuals in Yonkers. It is also a significant asset to all area residents with its brand-new, state-of-the-art community center with a wide range of programming.”
“We desperately need more affordable housing so that low- and moderate-income families have a quality and safe place to call home,” said State Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins, who represents Yonkers. “I have always made this issue a top priority by providing funding so that the New York State Homes and Community Renewal and the state Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance can help developments like Dayspring become a reality.”
Westchester County Executive George Latimer also had praise for the project.
“Affordable housing opportunities across Westchester is something we strongly believe in ”” we want to see these projects come to fruition in all of our communities,” Latimer said. “Every resident deserves to have a safe, affordable place they can call home with the amenities they need to live a full and happy life here in Westchester.”
