HUD, NYS Tour Sustainable Senior Housing Complex in Yonkers

YONKERS—Officials from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and the NYS Office of Housing and Community Renewal were among those who toured a unique senior housing complex in Southwest Yonkers earlier this month that is being built by the Yonkers Housing Authority and the non-profit Mulford Corporation.

The LaMora Senior Housing complex in the Hollow neighborhood of South Yonkers is one of the few affordable housing projects in the country that uses energy-saving Passive House design in a modular construction format. Passive House is a voluntary standard for energy efficiency which results in ultra-low-energy buildings that require little energy for space heating or cooling. It is estimated to achieve 40%-60% energy savings over a conventional building design, according to the Yonkers Housing Authority.

The $44-million, four-story building has 60 energy-efficient, affordable apartments for seniors and is expected to open in July.

“The La Mora Senior Apartments is an example of what can be done nationally to incorporate sustainable features into affordable housing, said Yonkers Housing Authority President and CEO Wilson Kimball. “Not only is this important for energy savings and reduction of carbon footprint, but for the protection it provides to our seniors. With on-site emergency power generation, the building will be self-contained and less vulnerable to flooding, power outages and other weather-related disruptions.’’

Among those touring the site on May 20 were Richard Monocchio, Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for Public and Indian Housing; RuthAnne Visnauskas, Commissioner & CEO, NYS HCR; Wilson Kimball, CEO of the Yonkers Housing Authority; as well as state, county and Yonkers elected officials and representatives of project lead architects Perkins Eastman.

Stuart Lachs of Perkins Eastman also gave a presentation on the features of Passive House construction which focuses on minimizing heat transfer through insulation, air tightness and proper ventilation.

All apartments include low-flow plumbing fixtures, Energy Star appliances, individual high-efficiency electric heat and cooling, and LED lighting. The building has a high-efficiency envelope, dual-pane insulated windows, and a central hot water heating and distribution system. An emergency generator will ensure that the building systems remain operable in the event of a blackout.

In addition to the energy-saving features, other amenities include a community room with kitchen, two business rooms, fitness center, central laundry, building-wide WIFI, storage units, landscaped courtyard and roof deck.

The project will be included in a national panel discussion in Washington D.C. on June 7 to raise awareness of innovative and affordable housing designs and technologies. More than 4,000 people, including policymakers, housing industry representatives, media, and the public, are expected to attend.