Bayshore Village Get Federally Backed Funding For Redevelopment

Middletown Public Information;
May 26, 2015

Middletown Senior Community Ravaged by Sandy Receives Federally Backed Funding for Redevelopment

Lawrenceville-based Community Investment Strategies (CIS) was recently awarded funding from the Board of the New Jersey Housing and Mortgage Finance Agency (HMFA) as part of its $180 million in federal Sandy recovery funds. CIS was awarded with the largest grant in Monmouth County and the second largest on a per-unit basis overall for its Bayshore Village community in Middletown – a proposed 110-apartment community for seniors.

HMFA awards were granted to support the creation of 1,500 housing units in the nine New Jersey counties designated as the most impacted by Superstorm Sandy. According to HMFA, funding is made possible with federal Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) Disaster Recovery dollars through the Fund for Restoration of Multifamily Housing (FRM) Program, which was created following Superstorm Sandy to provide qualified housing developers with subsidies to finance affordable housing.

Before Supertstorm Sandy, Bayshore Village, owned by Middletown Senior Citizens Housing Corp., consisted of 96 one-bedroom apartments in 12 buildings. Located in one of the hardest hit areas in the region affected by Superstorm Sandy, five buildings were rendered a total loss by the storm. CIS is redeveloping the community in collaboration with the Middletown Senior Housing Corporation to rebuild 110 one- and two-bedroom senior housing units to address area market demands.

“Bayshore Village is the only low-income community in Monmouth County impacted by Sandy to such a large extent,” said Christiana Foglio, founder and CEO, CIS. “Our goal is to help rehouse seniors who lost their homes and give them a chance to thrive in a state-of-the-art, thoughtfully designed, energy-efficient community that offers all the modern amenities while being a safe and comfortable place to call home.”

According to project manager Barbara Schoor, vice president of CIS, the extent of the damage to Bayshore Village, particularly its location within the flood plain, contributed to receiving such a significant HMFA award – and served as the foundation of CIS’ redevelopment plans for the property.

“We will rebuild Bayshore Village several feet above flood elevation regulations,” said Schoor. “We also plan to incorporate various resiliency features into the design – something CIS has been at the forefront of since our involvement in the Enterprise Community Partners’ program aimed at recovering, rebuilding and reforming the way builders plan post-Sandy.”

“Superstorm Sandy devastated Bayshore Village, leaving seniors with limited incomes in great need of affordable housing,” said Middletown Mayor Stephanie C. Murray. “We’re looking forward to having Bayshore Village restored so that it can continue to be one of many housing opportunities available in Middletown Township.”

PRC Management Group is currently managing the property as it exists and, according to Schoor, will work with residents currently living there to assist them with the relocation process prior to construction, which is expected to begin in late summer.

Monmouth County to receive $1.2 million in federal stimulus money

In a press release just issued, the Monmouth County Freeholders have announced that the county will be recieveing $1.2 million from President Obama's economic stimulus package and is to be used for the prevention of homelessness in the county. The money will be dispersed through the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) under the emergency shelter grants program.

Deputy Freeholder Director John D'Amico, is expecting the the county will collect more funds from the stimulus package in the coming months based on the following qoute from the release.

"The county stands to benefit from President Obama’s economic stimulus package in many ways, not only are we in line for stimulus money to help prevent homelessness, but the county has a number of shovel-ready construction projects that are awaiting approval. These include bridge replacement and road resurfacing projects.”



Below is the text of the press release:

FREEHOLD – The Monmouth County Board of Chosen Freeholders received confirmation today from Sen. Frank Lautenberg’s office that it will receive $1.2 million from President Obama’s economic stimulus package for the prevention of homelessness in the county.

The money will be dispersed through the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development under the emergency shelter grants program. Typically, money from this fund is used to keep people in their homes by assisting with rent, relocation and utility bills.

“This is good news for Monmouth County, where despite our relative affluence we have a great many people who struggle on a daily basis just to get by,” Freeholder Director Barbara J. McMorrow said. “That situation is only compounded by the economic downturn, placing additional pressure on our many nonprofit agencies that help prevent homelessness. This will be welcome news.”

“Just last month the county, in partners with our nonprofit agencies, conducted a program to help those who are homeless or who are facing homelessness,” said Freeholder Amy H. Mallet, liaison to the Department of Human Services. “The problem is very real for many county residents, and this money will go a long way toward helping those among us who are in need of assistance.”

News of the grant comes just days after the county received word that it would receive $810,000 from the Economic Recovery Act of 2009 for Community Development Block Grants. These grants will be dispersed among municipalities and nonprofits that do public services. Typically, they are dispersed among municipalities and nonprofits on a competitive basis.

Details of how the stimulus money in each of these grants can be appropriated has not yet been finalized and, therefore, exact use of the funds is still to be determined.

“The county stands to benefit from President Obama’s economic stimulus package in many ways,” Freeholder Deputy Director John D’Amico said. “Not only are we in line for stimulus money to help prevent homelessness, but the county has a number of shovel-ready construction projects that are awaiting approval. These include bridge replacement and road resurfacing projects.”