New Rochelle Transitional Housing Project Secures $9 Million in Freddie Mac Funding

NEW ROCHELLE—A former student housing development redeveloped into a transitional supportive housing community has secured refinancing funding in the form of a $9-million Freddie Mac Optigo Targeted Affordable Housing loan.

The refinancing deal for 21 Fountain Place was announced on Jan. 29 by CPC Mortgage Company LLC, a subsidiary of The Community Preservation Corporation, Palladium Management and Westhab, a Yonkers-based affordable housing and social services provider.

The 52-unit, four-story walk up building will provide rental housing with coordinated social services that will help people transition out of homelessness to stable, permanent, affordable housing.

“The opportunity to access high quality housing with supportive services will help families transition to a permanent housing situation, give them the chance to build stability, and get back on their feet,” said John Cannon, president of CPC Mortgage Company. “We’re proud to have been able to partner with Westhab and Palladium to help meet the diverse housing needs of the Westchester community. As a lender, Freddie Mac’s TAH gives us a product with the terms and process that’s tailor-made for the unique requirements of affordable and supportive housing projects like 21 Fountain Place.”

“We’re thrilled to be partnered with Westhab and CPC Mortgage Company in providing safe, affordable housing to the residents of 21 Fountain Place. With the steady increase of new multifamily developments in the area, our company feels strongly that projects like 21 Fountain Place provide essential stability and economic diversity to the City of New Rochelle,” said David Roth, principal of Palladium Management.

The building, which formerly served as student housing for Monroe College, was recently renovated to include the replacement of apartment fixtures, appliances, and updated interior finishes. The building is being leased by Westhab from Palladium Management, with a contract from Westchester County to Westhab to provide on-site management and social services for the tenants. Half of the units will serve as permanent housing for formerly homeless residents and the other half will serve as transitional housing for homeless families.

Westhab officials announced earlier in the month that the newly renovated 21 Fountain Place property had reached full occupancy.

Richard Nightingale, president and CEO of Westhab, said, “It is exciting to get this building back online, fulfilling a need for affordable housing in our community. Our staff are actively engaging our new residents, as well as working to be great neighbors in the community.”

Westhab is Westchester’s largest provider of housing and services for the homeless and its largest nonprofit developer of affordable and supportive housing. Since Westhab’s founding in 1981, it has built 912 affordable housing units, moved 7,675 households from homelessness into affordable housing, placed 5,679 people into employment, and delivered services to more than 10,000 homeless and at-risk youth.

Westchester County recently released its Housing Needs Assessment, which showed a total demand for more than 82,000 affordable housing units. Projects like 21 Fountain Place help to create the sorely needed supply of affordable housing in our community, county officials noted.

Westchester County Executive George Latimer said of the project, “We are facing a crisis of affordability of housing here in Westchester. Partnering with organizations like Westhab and Palladium Management allows us to tackle this challenge and provide Westchester families with a sense of community in the process. 21 Fountain Place is a commendable project and this is news worth celebrating.”

Founded by David Roth in 2011, Palladium Management is a boutique full service investment, development, and management company based in New York City. Since its founding, Roth has focused on growing a portfolio of multifamily and mixed-use properties on behalf of his partners, and a stable of high net worth investors and has overseen the company’s development activities, including ground-up multifamily projects in several of New York City’s outer boroughs, Westchester County and New Jersey.

Palladium Management, through its affiliates has sourced and executed $45 million in real estate acquisitions, $30 million  in permanent and construction financing, and operates more than 250 multifamily units across Manhattan, The Bronx, Brooklyn, Staten Island and Westchester County. The firm recently expanded its operations to Jersey City, NJ.