Cuomo: renovated Liberty Garden Apartments in Rome reopen

ROME — Liberty Garden Apartments in the city of Rome have reopened following the first “substantial” renovation in the complex’s 62-year history.

Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced the reopening in a news release on Oct. 21.

Public and private partners gathered at the complex to acknowledge the redevelopment of a “distressed” public-housing project into 180 “affordable” homes for working families. 

The improvements also included a new, 6,000-square-foot facility that can host educational programs and events, and includes a computer lab.

The structure, originally constructed in 1952 under the New York State Public Housing Program, includes eight brick buildings constructed in a garden-apartment configuration. 

The heating system, insulation, kitchens, and baths within the apartments had become “functionally obsolete,” over the years, Cuomo’s office said.

For Rome Mayor Joseph Fusco, Jr., the project represented “the transformation of my old neighborhood.” 

“It is very exciting to see the remarkable changes that the Omni Housing Development has given us. I look forward to the long-awaited completion of the project. 

This project signifies a stepping stone in the right direction for housing development,” Fusco said.

Equity from federal and state low-income housing tax credits generated more than $33 million that partially funded the Liberty Garden Apartments project. New York State Homes and Community Renewal administers those low-income housing tax credits.

The Community Preservation Corporation, Federal Home Loan Bank, and the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) also supported the project. 

Omni Housing Development and the Rome Housing Authority developed the project.

Transforming neighborhoods with new “affordable” housing is a “significant” step in economic revitalization, Anthony Picente, Jr., Oneida County Executive, said in the governor’s news release.

“It was no small task to revitalize 180 housing units and create a new community center and landscaping while at the same time reinventing this property into a premiere 7-acre site in the city of Rome,” Picente said.

He also acknowledged the work of Cuomo, HCR, the Rome Housing Authority, and Omni Housing Development.

Crews started phase I of the reconstruction work in 2012 and completed the job in 2013. Phase I rehabilitated three buildings, constructed six new buildings to create 78 family apartments, and constructed the 6,000-square-foot Edward Core Community Center. 

The Mohawk Valley Regional Economic Development Council (REDC) supported the phase II as part of Cuomo’s efforts to engage regional stakeholders in projects that address local needs and grow the economy. 

The Mohawk Valley REDC awarded more than a $1 million in funding to support the rehabilitation of three existing buildings to create 50 apartment units. 

Phase III includes the rehabilitation of two buildings and the new construction of three buildings to create 52 apartments. 

The third phase is more than 75 percent complete and is scheduled to be finished this winter. 

New York State Homes and Community Renewal includes all of the state’s major housing and community-renewal agencies. They include the Affordable Housing Corporation; the Division of Housing and Community Renewal; the Housing Finance Agency; State of New York Mortgage Agency; and the Housing Trust Fund Corporation.

Homes and Community Renewal is in the second year of the $1 billion House New York program, which creates thousands of new units over five years, and is the largest investment in affordable housing in at least 15 years, Cuomo’s office said.       

Contact Reinhardt at ereinhardt@cnybj.com