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NJHMFA Marks Grand Opening of Affordable Rental Community for Family, Seniors in Monmouth County Financed With Sandy Recovery Funding

Published on October 17, 2018 by New Jersey Housing and Mortgage Finance Agency
NJHMFA Marks Grand Opening of Affordable Rental Community for Family, Seniors in Monmouth County Financed With Sandy Recovery Funding

ABERDEEN, NJ – State and local officials, and representatives of RPM Development Group celebrated the grand opening Wednesday of a 145-unit affordable rental development with both family and senior apartments on a long-vacant former industrial site.

Hudson Ridge Residences and Hudson Ridge Senior Residences are located in a redevelopment area on the site of a former steel and plating company, which underwent a significant environmental cleanup. The former smelting and metalworks plant turned furniture warehouse at 100 Church St. had been abandoned for more than 20 years.

As a result of the exacerbated need for affordable housing after Superstorm Sandy, Hudson Ridge developments received approximately $25.8 million in federal Community Development Block Grant Disaster Recovery financing through the Fund for Restoration of Multifamily Housing (FRM). The FRM program, created following Superstorm Sandy, provides for-profit and nonprofit housing developers an opportunity to secure zero-interest and low-interest loans to finance the development of affordable housing in the nine counties most impacted by the storm. Since 2012, 16 projects with over 1,000 affordable apartments have been created in Monmouth County.

In addition to the FRM funding, the New Jersey Housing and Mortgage Finance Agency (NJHMFA) provided $11 million in permanent and construction funding for Hudson Ridge Residences, and $11.7 million for Hudson River Senior. NJHMFA also awarded both projects 4 percent Low Income Housing Tax Credits, which generated a total of $13.4 million in private equity.

“This outstanding redevelopment project will provide high quality housing that is affordable for residents while simultaneously uplifting a neighborhood badly in need of restoration,” said Acting Governor Sheila Y. Oliver, Commissioner of the Department of Community Affairs and chairwoman of the NJHMFA board.  “With access to local amenities and supportive services, this new residence will provide mixed income households as well as seniors and disabled persons a new lease on life.”

The Hudson Ridge Residences community consists of two four-story buildings with one- to three-bedroom apartments for very low- to moderate-income families and seniors age 55 and over. Rents on one-bedroom units at Hudson Ridge Residences range from $834-$1,024; $1,002-$1,217 for two-bedroom apartments; and $423-$1,410 for three-bedroom units.  As for Hudson Ridge Senior Residences, rents for one-bedroom apartments range from $840-$1,025, and $560-$1,230 for two-bedroom units. Ten units in each development have vouchers where the tenant portion of the rent will be income based.

“The Hudson Ridge development not only provides vital housing that is affordable but reinvests in an area which has been in dire need of redevelopment for some time,” said NJHMFA Executive Director Charles A. Richman. “At the same time, as the six-year anniversary of Superstorm Sandy approaches, we are pleased to see another development come to fruition that has helped rebuild and restore a community that was terribly affected.”

The community, adjacent to the Monmouth County Park System’s Henry Hudson Trail, and close to Aberdeen’s downtown area and Route 34, provides easy access to shopping, dining and other amenities.

Both developments accept U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Section 811 Project Rental Assistance, which is awarded through NJHMFA and provides subsidies to provide rental assistance for extremely low-income persons with disabilities and extremely low-income households with at least one person with a disability. In addition, Hudson Ridge Senior Residences is participating in NJHMFA’s Services for Independent Living program, which works to enhance the quality of life for residents living in Agency-financed senior housing developments.

Hudson Ridge Residences has 49 occupied units with all other units spoken for, while residents are expected to start moving into Hudson Ridge Senior Residences within the next two weeks, with over half the building pre-leased. Rental information for both buildings is available at hudsonridgenj.com.

Sandy Recovery Funding
To date, 76 projects have been awarded FRM funding to create nearly 6,050 rental housing opportunities, 90 percent of which are affordable to low- and moderate-income households.

During the first 90 days of lease up, in any project that has received FRM funding, priority for residency will be given to individuals who were displaced by or experienced major storm damage from Superstorm Sandy.

Storm-impacted residents can learn more about affordable housing projects funded with FRM dollars by visiting the New Jersey Housing Resource Center at www.njhrc.gov and clicking on “Priority Housing for Sandy-Impacted Residents,” which will take you to a website listing flyers on available housing by county.

RPM Development Group, based in Montclair, is one of the leading developers of affordable housing in New Jersey, with a goal to provide quality housing while aiming to improve neighborhoods.

For more information on NJHMFA programs, visit www.njhousing.gov.