Carteret, NJ – On Wednesday, April 23rd,, Mayor Daniel J. Reiman joined Raia and Sirignano, L.L.C., to break ground for 10 planned units of affordable senior housing to be built on Fitch Street.
Fitch Street Commons will be built adjacent to Roosevelt Commons, which was first welcomed to the Roosevelt Avenue “Hill District” in December 2006, and currently hosts 16 existing units of senior housing. Formerly an abandoned bowling alley, the property was rehabilitated with $736,000 in D.C.A. funding.
Financing for Fitch Street Commons has been made available through the C.O.A.H’s (Council On Affordable Housing) R.C.A. program, which offers subsidies to developers of affordable rental housing throughout New Jersey. $200,000 has been approved by the H.M.F.A. (New Jersey Housing and Mortgage Finance Agency).
“As with many American communities,” Mayor Reiman commented, “A good portion of our residents are seniors and veterans, who in spite of having lived and retired here, are finding it increasingly difficult to keep up with the cost of living in New Jersey. Affordable senior housing projects such as Fitch Street Commons allow these residents the ability to continue to live comfortably in their home town at reasonable cost.”
“I would like to recognize and thank the partnership,” the Mayor added, “who have made significant investments in Carteret over the past 20 years.”
“I prefer to refer to these units as affordable luxury housing” said developer Frank Raia. “They are as comfortable as what could be built in the private sector, while we have maintained their accessibility to those Carteret residents who are often hit hardest by our economy.”
