Maria Imperial, CEO of the YWCA of White Plains and Central Westchester, outside the organization”™s refurbished women”™s residence on North Broadway in White Plains. - Maria Imperial, CEO of the YWCA of White Plains and Central Westchester, outside the organization”™s refurbished women”™s residence on North Broadway in White Plains.
The YWCA women”™s residence in White Plains, a provider of shelter and services for women since the 1920s, was not aging well.
The complex”™s two buildings ”“ one a Tudor style from the early 1900s and the other a more contemporary one built in the late ”™60s ”“ had leaky roofs and rain-penetrating window frames. Appliances and facilities were becoming outdated.
About five years ago, said Lori Stanlick, associate executive director of the YWCA on North Broadway, “The place was showing its age and the damage was being done.”
But a $25 million renovation ”“ filled with green initiatives and completed ahead of schedule ”“ has changed all that. And when the YWCA hosts the ribbon-cutting ceremony June 11, Maria Imperial, CEO of the YWCA of White Plains and Central Westchester, said it will be a time to look back on a two-year project she always believed in.
“It”™s funny,” Imperial said. “I always felt we were going to do it. In some ways I compare it to ”˜The Little Engine That Could.”™”
The work, she said, is especially rewarding, considering the history. The original building began as a home run by the Presbyterian Church for New York City women who couldn”™t afford a fancy retreat.
“This was the home they could go to to re-energize,” she said. “It always had a history of being a respite for women.”
Miracles happen
The project, Imperial said, has helped the YWCA continue this work, though there were some early blips.
“We put together a patchwork of funding,” and were ready to start the project when “the economy tanked.”
But, there was hope.
“Sure enough, that”™s when the stimulus money came,” she said. “It really is a story of miracles.”
The funding for the renovation, a tax-credit project, came from sources that include the New York State Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance; the Federal Home Loan Bank; the City of White Plains; Westchester County; the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority; and the Enterprise Green Communities Grant.
The project”™s design, financing and construction was managed by Jonathan Rose Companies with Stephen Tilly, Architect, and Lasberg Construction Associates handling the project design and construction.
Work was done in phases, with residents moved around as it was completed.
Some of the improvements included the creation of a green roof and the installation of a sprinkler system. The project included renovation of all 185 units and the creation of eight more.
The residences and common areas now feature brand-new appliances, cabinetry, lighting and flooring. Another efficient aspect is the centralized system for heating and cooling. Attractive amenities also include balconies in the suites and lighting on sensors.
Aging-in-place concerns have also been addressed, for example, with accessible restrooms and Americans with Disabilities Act standards.
The population is skewing older with many residents aged 50 and up, many with medical concerns.
“Disability often doesn”™t cover market-rate apartments here in Westchester County,” Stanlick said, which leads them to the Y. “They just need a space where they can take care of their life, a safe haven, a home.”
History respected
There have been some changes, Stanlick said, due to new regulations. The Y can no longer house full-time students and must now offer housing to certain percentages of homeless women and people with disabilities.
Other features available to all residents include the Sisters Village, a lounge designated for leisure and education. Residents can take advantage of a DVD player, relax on couches, take classes and soon, use the computers (tech-savvy volunteers are always welcome). The popular destination hosts poetry workshops and is adjacent to the facility”™s emergency food pantry for residents and the Sisters Closet, which offers free clothing and accessories for those in need ”“ whether having limited clothes from being in a shelter or in preparation for a job interview.
Other changes included the installation of a new elevator and new laundries.
In the original building, known as the Kennedy Duncan Residence, work was done with an eye on history.
“This was all preservation work over here,” Stanlick said of the older building”™s upgrades. “We did it as unobtrusively as possible.”
Portions of the building were added to the National Register of Historic Places during the process, and it”™s easy to see why.
A community room is filled with rich woods and stained-glass accents. It”™s just steps away from a restaurant-quality kitchen, which residents may use. Two sitting rooms, complete with fireplaces, are used for meetings, events and family visits.
“We need two lovely paintings for over our mantels,” Stanlick hinted. “This would be a lovely place for a female artist to showcase her work.”
Chandeliers, molding, columns and other lovely old accents abound.
“This is”¦ this is us,” Stanlick said, noting the comforting, classic feel.
Through French doors is a promenade where barbecues are held.
Support services
Stanlick pointed to local companies such as Heineken USA as big supporters. The company sent over employees for a community volunteer day, helping the YWCA prepare for the construction. Another time, she said, the company was doing its own renovation and “they asked me if I needed anything so I went down and ”˜shopped.”™”
Because of the financing, Stanlick said, new tenant guidelines were implemented. Residents must earn 50 percent or less of the area median income, or a maximum of $37,800.
“That does not reflect reality here,” Stanlick said. She says nearly half of the “hard-working” residents are employed full- or part-time, with most making $7,000 to $15,000. “You can certainly work full-time retail and still be here.”
And it”™s a place to start over.
The residence provides social services related to disabilities, medical illness, a history of being battered and substance abuse. Also offered are employment counseling, referral services to job-training programs in the community, assistance with resume writing and preparing for interviews.
Taking a look at the way the renovation has brought a renewed sense of home to the surroundings, L. Danielle Cylich, director of development for the organization, said the work was reflective of its mission.
“There”™s a real sense of detail,” she said. “If you”™re coming from a place where there”™s no hope, there”™s hope. We care about the details.”
Visit our website, westfaironline.com, for a video essay of the YWCA by Olga Loginova.
