BINGHAMTON, N.Y. — Town and Country Apartments will be renovated in a $94 million project that includes full electrification of the 22-building, 256-unit housing development, Gov. Kathy Hochul recently announced.
Work, which has already begun, includes upgraded flooring, windows, appliances, and electrical fixtures in each unit along with new roofs, repaired concrete and asphalt, updated landscaping, and environmental remediation. The complex’s heating, cooling, and hot water will be fully converted to electric, reducing Town and Country’s total energy use by 20 percent across all buildings.
“By renovating Town and Country Apartments, we are creating quality, sustainable, modern homes across the Southern Tier and demonstrating how we are utilizing every tool in our toolbox to address our housing crises,” Hochul said in a release. “We are grateful to our partners in Binghamton, one of New York’s first Pro-Housing Certified municipalities, for their continued commitment to growing and improving the supply of housing throughout the city.”
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“Projects like this ensure that families have access to safe, affordable, and quality homes,” Broome County Executive Jason Garnar added.
Vesta Corporation, which acquired the complex at construction closing, is the developer. Tax credit equity was syndicated by U.S. Bancorp Impact Finance, a subsidiary of U.S. Bank.
“Vesta’s roots are in the preservation of affordable housing, which we have participated in for more than 40 years,” Joshua Greenblatt, Vesta executive VP, said. “We are thankful for the eager participation of all of the stakeholders to provide the resources necessary to accomplish this ambitious rehabilitation.”
The project is supported by $70.9 million from New York State Homes and Community Renewal’s (HCR) Multi-family Preservation Program, and its State Low Income Housing Tax Credit Program is expected to generate $16 million in equity. The development also received an estimated $3.2 million subsidy loan through HCR’s Clean Energy Initiative program.
The City of Binghamton provided $3 million in American Rescue Plan Act funding. The project is also expected to receive a Payment in Lieu of Taxes (PILOT) agreement with the Broome County Industrial Development Agency.
All the apartments will be reserved for households earning 60 percent or less of the area median income. The U.S. Department of Housing & Urban Development’s project-based Section 8 Housing Assistance Program is expected to provide rental assistance for 98 of the units.
Binghamton Mayor Jared M. Kraham had the following comment about the Town and Country Apartments apartment: “This project represents the single most important housing investment in recent memory, transforming one of our area’s most neglected and troubled apartment complexes into safe, quality affordable housing for hundreds of families. It will revitalize Binghamton’s North Side and improve quality of life for not only those who live here but also the thousands of residents who call the surrounding neighborhoods home. Getting this project off the ground has been one of my top priorities as mayor because it delivers the vital improvements residents deserve.”
In the fiscal year 2025 enacted budget, Hochul included support to increase the state’s housing supply — including a $500 million capital fund to build up to 15,000 new homes on state-owned property, $600 million to support a variety of housing developments statewide, and new protections for renters and homeowners.
Launched in 2023, the Pro-Housing Community Program provides certification to upstate communities that saw their housing stock increase by 0.33 percent in the last year or 1 percent over the previous three years and downstate communities that saw growth of 1 percent over one year or 3 percent over three years. Communities without growth can achieve the designation by passing a resolution stating their commitment to pro-housing principles.