Dutchess County Housing Trust Fund

The awards announced in March 2023, for the first funding round of the HTF's Housing Creation and Preservation program, totaled $8,996,134 as follows:

• Wallace Campus, Main Street, City of Poughkeepsie ($2,200,000) – New construction, along with the historic renovation of the former Wallace Department Store, includes 187 affordable rentals in the historic downtown section of the City of Poughkeepsie. Units will range in size from studios to 3-bedrooms and will range in affordability from 30%-80% AMI. Land use approvals for this project have been secured. Construction is expected to begin this year with completion anticipated by the end of 2025.
• 9-13 Noxon Street, City of Poughkeepsie ($1,910,000) – Rehabilitation of an existing boardinghouse that provides 16 units of critically needed single-room-occupancy (SRO) housing for households at 30%-50% AMI.  This project is a rehabilitation of an existing structure requiring a building permit.  Work is expected to begin this summer, with completion anticipated by summer 2024.
• Two Cross Street, Main Street and Cross Street, City of Beacon ($1,575,000) – New construction, along with the rehabilitation of an existing building, to create 18 units in downtown Beacon, affordable to households at 60%-100% AMI (units above 80% AMI are not directly supported by HCP). A portion of the units will be targeted to house the frail elderly. Land use approvals for this project have been secured.  Construction is expected to begin this summer, with completion anticipated in 2024.
• Alpine Commons Apartments, Route 9, Town of Wappinger ($1,500,000) – New construction of 144 affordable units adjacent to the Alpine Commons shopping plaza and BJ’s Wholesale Club. Units will vary in size from 1- to 3-bedrooms and will range in affordability from 30%-90% AMI (units above 80% AMI are not directly supported by HCP). A subset of the units will be designed to be fully wheelchair accessible, and a separate subset will be designed for households needing hearing and/or visual accommodations. This project is currently before the Town of Wappinger Zoning Board of Appeals, and pending submittal to the town’s Planning Board for land use approvals. Construction could begin as early as 2024 and is expected to take two years.
• Schatz Redevelopment, Fairview Avenue, Town of Poughkeepsie ($1,465,000) – The environmental remediation of the former Schatz Bearing Company property to accommodate new construction, along with the rehabilitation of abandoned factory buildings, to include 250 1- and 2-bedroom units, ranging in affordability from 50%-110% AMI (units above 80% AMI are not directly supported by HCP). Submittal for land use approvals is pending for this project.  Construction could begin as early as 2024 and is expected to take two years.
• Smith Street Apartments, Smith Street, City of Poughkeepsie ($346,134) – New construction of a 3-unit home to include 2- and 3-bedroom units at an affordability level ranging from 60%-80% AMI. This new construction of a 3-family home in this municipality requires a building permit. Construction is expected to begin this summer, with completion slated for the end of 2024.

Goals of the Dutchess County Housing Trust Fund include:

• Provide financial support for the creation of affordable housing distributed throughout Dutchess County.
• Make affordable housing activities throughout the county more competitive for securing other funding sources.
• Support housing which is a priority for the county but for which other funding is unavailable or very limited.
• Prioritize projects that result in the creation of housing at higher levels of affordability.

The Housing Trust Fund's framework includes three overarching programs, each with a variety of potential eligible activities. For each funding round, the County will indicate which programs and activities are eligible for funding at that time. 

Housing Creation and Preservation (HCP) Program:

• New affordable rental housing via new construction, rehabilitation of existing housing stock, and adaptive reuse of non-residential structures. Funded projects may be fully affordable or mixed-income. Single-room occupancy (SRO) rental housing is eligible under this category.
• Acquisition-only for the creation of affordable rental housing (limited to projects by non-profit development entities).
• Acquisition and/or rehabilitation of occupied, naturally-occurring affordable rental housing with income-eligible tenants to secure long-term affordability with applicable compliance periods.
• Preservation/rehabilitation of existing affordable rental housing with expiring compliance periods.

Infrastructure and Pre-Development Support (IPDS) Program:

• Expand/extend water and/or sewer infrastructure for affordable and mixed-income housing developments.
• Development of generic environmental impact statements (GEIS) to streamline the development of affordable/mixed-income housing supported by the local municipality. GEIS must be supported by zoning to permit and streamline the creation of affordable housing via inclusionary zoning, density bonuses, or other strategies.
• Zoning revisions to permit and streamline the creation of affordable housing via inclusionary zoning policies, density bonuses, or other strategies. A municipal match will be required.
• Oversee administration of affordable units created via municipal inclusionary policies, density bonuses, or other strategies.

First-Time Homeownership (FTH) Program:

• Support a locally-sourced program for subordinate or “soft second” mortgages to provide down payment and closing cost assistance for low- and moderate-income first-time homebuyers who can afford a mortgage but lack savings to cover the down payment and/or closing costs.
• Support construction or rehabilitation to create affordable homeownership opportunities for first-time homebuyers undertaken by non-profit entities.

General Reference Materials:
Dutchess County Housing Trust Fund Framework (.pdf)
HCP Policies and Procedures (.pdf) - Revised 11/10/22
Background Information on HCP Policies and Procedures (.pdf)
Justification for Funding Units Affordable up to 80% AMI (.pdf)