Location
Project Overview
Owned and managed by Housing and Services, Inc. (HSI), Kenmore Hall provides permanent supportive housing for very low-income individuals coming out of the New York City homeless shelter system, people living with HIV/AIDS, and homeless veterans. HSI’s mission is to end chronic homelessness, prevent displacement for those at risk, and improve housing conditions for the marginalized. It does this through the development and management of permanent supportive housing, collaborations with other community groups, and affordable housing preservation initiatives. Kenmore Hall was built in 1928.
Recognized by HUD for its best practices, Kenmore Hall received financing from NYCEEC to install a cogeneration system that would provide resiliency benefits, including electric power during a grid failure. This new system ensures that the building is better equipped to handle future events like Superstorm Sandy, providing a safer and more secure home for vulnerable communities. Operation of the highly-efficient system is also expected to reduce greenhouse gas emissions versus procuring 100% of the building’s energy needs through the grid.
NYCEEC financing enabled HSI and their partners Department of Housing Preservation and Development (HPD) and New York State Homeless Housing and Assistance Corporation (HHAC) to provide resiliency benefits and hence increased stability for this vulnerable community, while helping to reduce building greenhouse gas emissions consistent with city and state policy goals.
NYCEEC spent significant time working with HSI, HPD and HHAC understanding the borrower’s revenues and capital sources, which are boosted by federal and state homelessness and supportive housing programs. NYCEEC worked through this complexity and structured an equipment loan that worked within the existing mortgages from HPD and HHAC.
