BUFFALO, N.Y. — Governor Hochul has been pushing for more affordable housing and she came to Buffalo Monday to spotlight one such project on the East Side.
With its 1940s-style design look, the Eckhardts Building was well known in its previous life as a department store, the site of other retail uses, and then the State Department of Labor office center. But now the hallways convey tenants to its new use as a residential building. There are 28 apartments ranging from studios to one and two-bedroom units. They are now already 60 percent occupied.
On Monday the politicians were on hand for the ribbon cutting as this project from Cedarland Development only came together with plenty of subsidies. Cedarland Development CEO Kevin Daghar said the initial estimated target of $8 Million climbed to over $13 Million with COVID-impacted building costs and inflation.
As he puts it "It was the cost of the construction and the financing...that was a challenge. Just putting all the pieces together to finance the project."
Much of that involved loans, grants, financing, and tax credits from various taxpayer-supported state agencies. Again it was - pushed now as part of Governor Hochul's affordable housing program and tenants must be at certain income eligibility limits.
But another $427,000 state grant covered another element of the building impressed Governor Hochul who said "I just walked past a room that is gonna be open to children who participate in the Head Start program. It was filled with toys and little books and crafts. And I said this is life-changing for the families that will be able to come to this place."
That is the 12,000-square-foot Eckhardts Academy which is a no-cost Head Start child education program with space for some 55 families. That includes some now living in the building. The early learning will be operated by the Community Action Organization. with federal funding. Dr. Marie Cannon who is the CEO of CAO says "That really would be ideal for the families to live upstairs and be able to come right downstairs. But it doesn't necessarily mean that every family - but we absolutely recruit for those families that are eligible - but it also mainly that we're going to recruit in this neighborhood."
One other interesting drawing card for the Eckhardts Lofts Building is the idea of using the basement as a hydroponic urban farm for those families. It may take a couple of years to set up first off as a pilot project. Urban farms located in basements of buildings is a concept that he has been used to produce herbs and vegetables in New York City and Europe.