SYRACUSE, N.Y. — The City of Syracuse has closed on financing with the Mulholland Group, LLC of New York City for a $40 million renovation of the Clinton Plaza Apartments in Syracuse.
The Mulholland Group is also acquiring the property, the office of Syracuse Mayor Stephanie Miner confirmed in an email response to a BJNN inquiry.
The 305-unit housing facility is located at 550 S. Clinton St. in Syracuse. The building includes government subsidized, assisted-living units.
The work will represent the first “significant investment” in the structure since crews first constructed the building in 1971, Miner’s office said in a news release.
The City of Syracuse HOME program is providing $675,000 in funding for the renovation project, using funding that the federal Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) awarded to the city, according to the release.
The Syracuse Industrial Development Agency also approved a property-tax exemption for the Clinton Plaza Apartments, the mayor’s office added.
“Developing high quality, affordable housing is crucial to building a greater city,” Syracuse Mayor Stephanie Miner said in the release. “We are committed to providing our citizens with excellent, accessible housing choices in downtown and throughout our city. This project is a significant step advancing that cause.”
The structure has 60 units that have been “completely offline” for more than 10 years due to “their deteriorating condition.”
At the same time, the property’s affordability covenants have expired, which could have forced the tenants to find alternative housing with the prospect of the building turning “market-rate,” according to Miner’s office.
HUD’s Rent Adjustment Demonstration (RAD) program will guarantee the affordability of the structure’s units, the mayor contended. The RAD guarantee will allow tenants to continue living in affordable housing while crews work on the upgrades.
The Mulholland Group will focus on the façade and other exterior improvements to “tie the property in to the overall motif of downtown Syracuse,” according to the mayor’s release.
Contact Reinhardt at ereinhardt@cnybj.com