LEED-H Works at Affordable Morrisania Homes in the Bronx

The February issue of Affordable Housing Finance magazine has a detailed article about the Morrisania Homes, certified Silver under the new LEED for Homes (”LEED-H”) standard. As gbNYC reported back in August, Morrisania is the first community in New York State certified under LEED-H. Made up of twenty-eight townhouses, the community’s developer, Blue Sea Development Company, signed on to use LEED for Homes during the standard’s Pilot Program phase (which is now closed). The project also checked in at #3 on gbNYC’s list of the top 5 New York City green buildings from 2007.

Morrisania Homes is designated an “affordable” community, meaning the homes were priced for buyers earning up to 80 percent of the area median income. The article points out that meeting tough LEED standards helps affordable housing projects stand out in the competition for subsidized grants and loans. Living in a green building can also save low-income folks some money. Blue Sea principal Les Bluestone told Affordable Housing Finance that utility costs at Morrisania are expected to be 30 percent lower than at comparable developments. These savings, which lenders took into account when making loans, helped the homebuyers qualify for their Fannie Mae home mortgages.

Blue Sea is already applying for low income housing tax credits for its next LEED-H project, Melrose Commons Site Five, a 5-story, 63-unit project also in the Bronx.

• Planting New LEED Seeds (AHF)
• NY’s First Affordable LEED-H Rating (gbNYC)
• Top 5 NYC Green Buildings (gbNYC)