Westchester LDC backs up to $75M in refinancing for Kendal on Hudson

Westchester County has approved issuing from $54.8 million to $75 million in tax-exempt bonds on behalf of Kendal on Hudson in Sleepy Hollow.

Two series of bonds approved by the county’s Local Development Corp. (LDC) on Feb. 16 will refinance previous bonds the agency issued and enable the nonprofit retirement community to save about $100,000 annually on debt payments for 30 years.

The LDC, a government agency that supports nonprofit organizations, has backed Kendal since its beginning, with tax-exempt bond issued in 2003, 2013 and 2014.

Kendal on Hudson traces its origin to 2005, when local members of The Religious Society of Friends, the Quakers, began studying retirement options for older people. They affiliated with the Kendal Corp., a Pennsylvania nonprofit organization that develops retirement communities and programs.

Kendal on Hudson opened in 2005 next to Phelps Hospital on a 21-acre parcel owned by Phelps Memorial Hospital Association. It has 222 independent living apartments, 24 “enriched housing” units, and 42 beds in a  skilled nursing facility.

Jean Eccleston, Kendal on Hudson’s chief financial officer, told the LDC board in December that the retirement community has about 300 residents, a 94% occupancy rate, and 200 employees.