The non-profit Kimmel Foundation and the Town of North Hempstead recently joined in unveiling plans for a new, affordable senior housing development in New Cassel.

On Friday, Oct. 26, the foundation and the town announced plans for the 38-unit structure, known as Apex, which will replace a set of abandoned buildings on the Union Avenue corridor. According to the Kimmel Foundation, Apex will house 50 frail and well seniors on a site that formerly housed 40 people in 5 units of unsanitary, unsafe, overpriced housing. Although it will not be a health-related facility, the accommodations will include social services provided by social workers and an emergency calling system within the apartments. It will also feature a room reserved for visiting doctors, nurses and another reserved for the social workers.

The development will also have rooftop community rooms, an elevator, a basement laundry room, individual heat controls in each apartment, and a security system including video surveillance. The building will include a mix of single and shared apartments. While rents have not yet been determined, income-qualified tenants are expected to pay an estimated $539 to $684 per month, while those in shared units may pay an estimated $378 per month.

Town Supervisor May W. Newburger and the town's Community Development Agency (CDA) have supported the project with the commitment of substantial start-up funds. The CDA obtained $275,000 of its $450,000 start-up share through Nassau County Housing and Intergovernmental Affairs' Home Fund. Additional funding has been provided by the New York State Housing Trust Program and Low Income Housing Credit Program.

"Truly affordable housing in neighborhoods that need them most. That has always been my goal, and to finally see quality, innovative construction that will enhance the quality of life not only for its residents but for the entire community is very rewarding," Newburger commented.

In addition, pending town board approval, the town may grant Apex $30,000 annually for three years to pay for social services to be provided by the nonprofit Family and Children's Association of Nassau and Suffolk counties, according to Howard Kimmel, president and CEO of the Great Neck-based Kimmel Foundation.

"We are very excited," said Kimmel, who has 53 years of private and public experience in affordable housing. Expressing gratitude for the town's support of the project, he added, "May Newburger has given this a lot of impetus." According to Kimmel, the buildings which are being replaced have been abandoned for at least si months.

Many at the unveiling described the new development as part of an ongoing revitalization of New Cassel, and the Union Avenue corridor in particular.

"This is part of the Union Street rehabilitation," said Rev. John Mulryan, executive director of the foundation and Rector of St. Paul's Episcopal Church in Great Neck. "It's the first large-scale development here in a long time. In general, it kind of brings hope to the community, about rebuilding, and about making an impact."

He also credited the town supervisor and CDA with facilitating the project. "Without their help this project would not have been able to get off the ground," he said.

Lloyd Goldfarb, the project's architect, said that the site is located on a major artery of New Cassel, close to the railroad, and "will add to the growth and vitality of the Westbury community."

"The project is within the renewal of the Union Avenue corridor," commented Neville Mullings, acting executive director of the CDA. "We will continue to give it our support, because it is certainly a development that we welcome in the corridor."

The mission of the Kimmel Foundation is to build affordable housing for the well and frail aged, handicapped and others. The organization boasts being called an "Incubator for New Ideas" in terms of architecture and personal living styles.

The benefits to future APEX senior residents, as described by the Kimmel Foundation, include a major improvement in the quality of their lives. "They will have companions and friends surrounding them to replace their former loneliness; recreation and comradeship will be fostered in a rooftop community room," the foundation stated.

In addition, the foundation believes that the development will save the town, state and federal government money, because the institutionalization of tenants will be delayed or avoided. They estimate that APEX will bring $7 million to New Cassel and the town, plus an estimated $23 million in business, tenant and other economic multipliers.