David & Joyce Dinkins Gardens: First Green Exclusively Affordable Housing Development in Harlem

On Monday, Jonathan Rose Companies and the Harlem Congregations for Community Improvement (“HCCI”), co-developers of David & Joyce Dinkins Gardens, opened the $19.5 million, 85-unit green building at 263 West 153rd Street, just across the Harlem River from Yankee Stadium between Frederick Douglass Boulevard and Macomb Place. The project is named for former New York City Mayor David Dinkins and his wife- Mr. Dinkins is the only African-American to serve as mayor in Gotham’s history- and the development is part of Mayor Bloomberg’s plan to build 165,000 units of affordable housing for 500,000 New Yorkers over the next ten years.

Designed by Dattner Architects (one of the designers on another green affordable Jonathan Rose development, Via Verde in the Bronx), green features at Dinkins Gardens include south-facing solar shades, a Home Depot Foundation-funded green roof, individually ventilated apartments, Energy Star-rated appliances and lighting, and a graywater system that will irrigate landscaping and a community garden. 26 of the units at Dinkins Gardens are reserved for young people who are aging out of foster care. The remainder are set aside for low-income residents earning less than local median income. HCCI is a non-profit interfaith consortium of over 90 congregations that will own and manage the building, which will also include space for the HCCI Construction Trades Academy, a program that trains Harlem residents for careers in the construction industry.

“Dinkins Gardens is the new model for affordable housing,” said Jonathan Rose. “Green projects like these are tremendous investments in the future of the community. By integrating social services, job training, affordable housing and green design, we’re modeling what the future of Harlem and New York City – in fact, cities nationwide – can be.” The city sold the land for the project for $7, and construction financing came from $13 million in bond proceeds and a low-interest mortgage from the New York City Housing Development Corporation. JPMorgan Chase underwrote the bonds with a $10,000,000 Letter of Credit. Other financing came from Enterprise, with $9 million in tax credit equity and a $50,000 Green Communities grant, and $2.5 million in gap financing from the New York City Department of Housing Preservation and Development.

• Affordable Green Housing in Harlem (PR)
• First Black Mayor Commemorated at Groundbreaking for Dinkins Garden (NYC.gov)
• Via Verde (gbNYC)