Crews finish work on $13.7M Champlain Commons in Scriba

“Increasing access to affordable housing is one of our top priorities, and this critical investment in the town of Scriba is building on that goal,”Cuomo said in the news release. “The completion of Champlain Commons will not only provide more New Yorkers with a safe, affordable place to call home, it will also help build stronger and better neighborhoods for Oswego County residents for generations to come.”  

Champlain Commons consists of seven two-story apartment buildings and a separate community building with a kitchen, meeting space, offices, computer room, laundry facilities and a fenced-in playground. The complex has 24 one-bedroom, 16 two-bedroom, and 16 three-bedroom units, which are “affordable to households earning at or below 30, 50 and 60 percent of the area median income,” per Cuomo’s news release.

New York State Homes and Community Renewal financing for the $13.7 million project includes low-income housing tax credits that generated $9.5 million in equity and $500,000 through the supportive housing opportunity program. In addition, the Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance (OTDA) awarded $3.1 million from the homeless housing and assistance program and the Federal Home Loan Bank provided $500,000.

Champlain Commons meets energy and green building construction standards, Cuomo’s office said. All buildings will have Energy Star-rated central air conditioning, heating with sealed combustion chambers, lighting, fans and appliances.

Rents for the supportive apartments are subsidized through the Empire State Supportive Housing Initiative (ESSHI). New York State Energy Research and Development Authority also provided additional funding.

Eligible residents placed in the 17 apartments linked to supportive care will receive onsite services funded by the OTDA through the governor’s ESSHI. Supportive services are provided by Oswego County Opportunities, which co-developed the property along with Rochester’s Cornerstone Group. One additional apartment is set aside for physically disabled tenants referred by ARISE Child and Family Service, Inc.

“Safe, affordable housing is a fundamental foundation necessary for individuals and families to overcome their obstacles to success so they can build and maintain a self-sufficient lifestyle,” Diane Cooper-Currier, executive director of Oswego County Opportunities, Inc. (OCO), said in Cuomo’s news release. “OCO serves hundreds of families a year that are unable to find or afford such housing as a result of limited incomes and high costs in the local rental market. In OCO’s 53 years of providing health and human services to those who are struggling to make ends meet, Champlain Commons represents our greatest leap forward in addressing these housing needs in Oswego County. Through our partnership with Rochester’s Cornerstone Group, the many funders who have invested in Champlain Commons, and community partners who have supported this project, we are grateful that we have played an integral role in making safe, affordable housing a reality for 56 families.”

Contact Reinhardt at ereinhardt@cnybj.com