Shovels were in the air Dec. 11 at the ground-breaking ceremony for the Artsbridge senior housing project in the Highbridge section of the Bronx. Joining Cardinal Dolan and New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio were, from left, Holly Leicht, regional administrator of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development; Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz Jr.; and City Council Member Vanessa Gibson.
CHRIS SHERIDAN
Posted Tuesday, December 23, 2014 4:48 pm
JOHN WOODS
At a ground-breaking ceremony for a housing development project for low-income seniors in the Highbridge section of the Bronx, Cardinal Dolan said the Church’s commitment to work on behalf of decent and affordable housing comes straight from the top. Citing the narrative of Jesus’ birth from the Gospel of St. Luke that will be read in churches in New York and across the nation and the world on Christmas, the cardinal said, “We have to be here, because our boss…was born homeless. He told us that the salvation of our soul was going to depend on how we took care of those without a home.” The cardinal called such work “a noble endeavor, a sacred endeavor.” On Dec. 11, Cardinal Dolan and other archdiocesan officials and local clergy members joined Mayor de Bill Blasio, Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz Jr. and a host of local, state and federal elected officials and representatives of governmental agencies in pledging their support for the 61-unit, seven-story Artsbridge senior housing complex. The complex, to be built on city-owned land at 172nd Street and Plimpton Avenue, will include a 19,000-square-foot community center that will be the permanent home of Highbridge Voices, a 70-member choir of students from Sacred Heart Elementary School and area public and charter schools. The choir performed a selection of seasonal and patriotic songs to the delight of community residents and others gathered under a tent to hear the remarks of the officials at the ground-breaking. Artsbridge is one step in Mayor de Blasio’s broader plan for New York City to build or preserve 200,000 affordable housing units throughout the next 10 years, an initiative expected to house more than 500,000 New Yorkers. By the end of this month, the mayor said, financing would be secure for more than 16,000 such units. Never before has a city or state attempted such an extensive affordable housing program, but the mayor said he considered the initiative a “necessity” at a time when many New Yorkers “are clinging to their housing.” To achieve such a vision requires the cooperation and participation of many partnering agencies and organizations, he noted. Financing for the Artsbridge project alone has come from a number of sources, including the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, the State of New York, the City of New York and private investors. All of Artsbridge’s units will be classified as affordable, with residents, all 62 and over and eligible for Section 8 housing, required to pay no more 30 percent of their income for rent on the one-bedroom apartments. As the various speakers detailed the project, they were cognizant of the role the Highbridge Community Development Corp. (HCDC) has played in turning around the neighborhood. Artsbridge is expected to literally build upon the successes forged by HCDC, a nonprofit organization that owns and manages 48 separately incorporated buildings and more than 2,100 units in the area, said Msgr. Donald Sakano, president and chairman of HCDC. When it opens in early 2016, Artsbridge will be HCDC’s seventh building for senior citizens. That kind of track record, along with the ability to utilize the services of the archdiocese, such as those offered by ArchCare, the health care ministry, facilitates a smooth, supportive environment for residents. Msgr. Sakano, who previously headed the archdiocesan Catholic Charities Office of Neighborhood Housing, is now pastor of the Basilica of St. Patrick’s Old Cathedral in lower Manhattan. The mayor and other speakers cited Msgr. Sakano for his labor and vision at a time when few others believed the Highbridge neighborhood held realistic potential. “It took champions like Msgr. Sakano believing that there could be a comeback. A lot of the credit around here goes to the man who saw the possibilities and fought for it,” Mayor de Blasio said.
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