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21-Story Tower In Development As Part Of Downtown Revisioning In Mount Vernon, Westchester County

Thu, 10 Jul 2025 17:29:05 GMT

Alexander Development Group recently received approval on the site plan resolution for 140 East Prospect Avenue, a 21-story mixed-use tower in Mount Vernon, Westchester County. Perkins Eastman is responsible for the design of the transit-oriented construction, located one block north from the Mount Vernon East train station. Components of the 302,000-square-foot development include 350 rental units, 6,200 square feet of retail space with street frontage, and a garage with 226 parking spaces.

The approval by the planning board on June 4 was preceded by a city council approval in February 2025. The project is part of the Downtown Vision Plan, which was adopted by the City Council in January 2024 with the aim of revitalizing the downtown and updating zoning. Alexander Development Group is also responsible for the 42 Broad Fleetwood development in Mount Vernon, a 16-story, Passive House tower with 249 units that is more than 90 percent leased.

140 East Prospect Avenue will be built to the National Green Building Standard with the goal of a Gold designation. Passive House features include an airtight panelized exterior envelope system, electric recovery ventilation units working with air-sourced heat pumps to provide clean filtered and tempered air to each residence, Energy Star appliances, low VOC finishes, low flow fixtures, LED lighting, and electric vehicle charging stations.

Amenities will span 23,000 square feet and include multiple landscaped gardens and roof decks, a pub room with sun deck on the 21st floor, fitness center, library and business center, pool, pet spa, grooming station, package room, valet parking, and 24-hour concierge.

Renderings show the design of 140 East Prospect Avenue with brick, metal, and glass elements. The façade will consist of a modern panelized wall system, while still paying homage to the historic brick buildings in Downtown Mount Vernon.

Building design development is underway and construction is projected to begin in the second quarter of 2026.

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Plan for 350-unit 21-story building activated in Mount Vernon

Thu, 07 Nov 2024 02:06:11 GMT

Rendering of 140 E. Prospect Ave., Mount Vernon.

After a plan languished for a couple of years while the City of Mount Vernon worked on its new vision for the downtown, Manhattan-based Alexander Development Group now is actively pursuing a plan to build a 21-story mixed-use building at 140 E. Prospect Ave. that would have 350 apartments and approximately 7,000 square feet of retail space. There would be 201 parking spaces. All of the apartments in the building would be priced at market rate. The developer is not asking for a PILOT agreement to lower its property taxes.

Alexander Development is asking the city to create a new Mount Vernon East TOD (transit-oriented development) High Density District for the property at 140, 146 and 152 E. Prospect Ave. The three lots comprise approximately 0.828 acre. In addition to a zoning petition, the developer has submitted a new environmental assessment form, conceptual site plans and related architectural documents.

In 2018, the developer floated a plan for a 30-story building at the site. In 2021, a modified plan with a 26-story building was prepared. Nicholas Alexander of the development firm said that after the City Council adopted the Downtown Vision Plan the application that had previously been presented to the city was modified to be in conformance with the Vision Plan. He described the site as being one-half block north of the Mount Vernon East train station.

According to developer Marc Alexander, “We’ll bring a dynamic to downtown Mount Vernon that doesn’t exist right now. Not a single unit is set aside for affordable housing. Why is that a good thing for Mount Vernon? Because the city has for 50 years pretty much only built affordable housing as multifamily housing.”

Marc Alexander said that Alexander Development’s recently opened multifamily building at 42 Broad St. W. in Mount Vernon was the first large scale market-rate project to have been approved recently in Mount Vernon and is now 75% rented.

Rendering of aerial view of 140 E. Prospect Ave., Mount Vernon.

“We want to pay full freight,” Alexander said. “Why do we want to pay full freight? Because the city needs the funds. The city’s got to operate somehow. The taxpayers of the city, the homeowners of the city, have experienced many, many years of significant increases in their taxes.”

Attorney Steven Wrabel of the White Plains-based law firm McCullough, Goldberger & Staudt LLP said the plan calls for providing 0.5 parking space for each studio and one-bedroom apartment and 0.75 parking space for each two-bedroom or larger unit. He explained that while the requested zoning would allow 18 stories, a height bonus is available that would allow the building to go up to 21 stories.

Marc Alexander said that the completed building would produce about $1 million a year in real estate taxes for Mount Vernon. He said that during the construction period, an estimated $5 million in fees and sales taxes would be produced for the city. He said that during the construction period they would try to purchase about $30 million in goods and services from local businesses and contractors. He said that the projected median income of residents at the building would be $125,000 a year and the residents would generate increased sales taxes for the city and new revenues for businesses in Mount Vernon’s downtown.

World’s Largest Market-Rate Multifamily High-Rise to Achieve Passive House Design Certification

Mon, 31 Jul 2023 15:07:27 GMT

Today, Alexander Development Group, The Bluestone Organization and J.P. Morgan Global Alternatives celebrate the launch of leasing for 42 Broad, the world’s largest market-rate multifamily high-rise to achieve Phius Passive House Design Certification. Built to meet the highest standard of sustainable design, 42 Broad is one of the nation’s most energy-efficient residential buildings, bringing a collection of 249 modern residences and an amenity-driven lifestyle to Mount Vernon’s Fleetwood neighborhood.

Located just 30 minutes from Midtown Manhattan via Metro-North Railroad, the 16-story building’s unparalleled eco-friendly lifestyle, spacious homes and best-in-class amenities and concierge services together provide an unprecedented living experience in Mount Vernon that is on par with upscale residential buildings in New York City.

“Fleetwood is one of the most attractive living destinations in Westchester County, and yet, there is a lack of for-rent luxury housing options that offer an expansive amenities package,” said Mark Alexander, co-founder and principal of Alexander Development Group. “With 42 Broad, we saw an incredible opportunity to address this demand. We believe the homes will appeal to renters from all walks of life, including empty nesters looking to downsize and young professionals seeking more living space in close proximity to Manhattan.”

Designed by global architecture firm Perkins Eastman to appeal to a wide range of renters seeking sustainable luxury in a vibrant community, 42 Broad provides a diverse selection of studio, one- and two-bedroom residences. The apartments offer nine-foot ceilings with seven-foot panoramic windows, as well as Manhattan skyline views from select residences. Each apartment features stainless steel Energy Star appliances; top-of-the-line washers and dryers; and warm, modern wood-style flooring. Spa-inspired bathrooms are outfitted with Italian porcelain and walk-in showers, while bedrooms include expansive walk-in closets. The building also features a collection of penthouse residences, which offer panoramic views stretching more than 180 degrees, from the Long Island Sound to the Manhattan skyline and up the Hudson Valley to White Plains. These spectacular homes also feature 10-foot ceilings and sprawling wrap-around terraces. All homes include filtered air ventilation and highly efficient HVAC systems with smart thermostats.

Residents will have access to more than 20,000 square feet of programmed amenities, including a fully-equipped fitness center with a Pilates/exercise room; a heated, three-season pool with shaded pergolas; and a 17th-floor roof deck with outdoor kitchens, dining area and a dramatic fireplace. There is also a lobby lounge; a lively pub room with billiards and an entertaining kitchen; a library with a fireplace; a courtyard zen garden and a large community room. Hybrid employees will have no trouble working from home within 42 Broad’s on-site coworking spaces and conference rooms, offering an efficient work environment steps from their front doors.

A valet parking garage with covered parking, secured package room, pet grooming station, electric vehicle charging stations and bike storage are also available to residents.

Built to the standards set forth by Phius (Passive House Institute US), 42 Broad will use up to 80 percent less energy for heating and cooling than existing buildings through the use of high performance windows, extensive insulation, mechanical ventilation and high-tech building systems that drastically reduce the heating and cooling loads. In addition to creating more efficient homes, the Phius Passive House standards will ensure a better living experience for occupants by continuously providing filtered and tempered fresh air; dramatically lower utility bills and reduced sound transmission.

“With 42 Broad we have created a collection of forward-thinking residences that reflect our dedication to sustainable living and represents a truly unique offering in today’s crowded multifamily real estate market,” said Eric Bluestone of The Bluestone Organization. “The upscale building’s combination of sustainable features and vast array of amenities sets it apart from other luxury properties in the area.”

Ideally situated for commuters, 42 Broad is located just three blocks from the Metro-North Railroad Harlem Line. Residents are only a 30-minute train ride away from Manhattan, a 15-minute drive to White Plains and a six-minute commute to the Lawrence Hospital in Bronxville — convenient for medical workers. Living in Mount Vernon’s popular Fleetwood neighborhood puts the best of Westchester County within easy reach, including a Trader Joe’s at Vernon Hills Shopping Center and Whole Foods at Ridge Hill Mall, along with a plethora of dining options, walkable streets and eclectic boutiques.

42 Broad’s world-class concierge services are managed by Bozzuto’s award-winning, nationally-recognized property management division and include a 24-hour concierge; valet for parking and dry cleaning; a coffee bar, loaner bikes, curated resident events and more. Ground-floor retail offerings will also be coming to 42 Broad later this year.

42 Broad was developed by Alexander Development Group, The Bluestone Organization and institutional investors advised by J.P. Morgan Global Alternatives.

Pricing begins at $2,100 for a studio apartment at 42 Broad. For leasing inquiries or additional information, please visit www.live42broad.com or call 914-712-6010.

Developers Reveal Completed 249-Unit Passive House Building at 42 West Broad Street in Mount Vernon

Wed, 19 Jul 2023 14:06:50 GMT

Alexander Development Group and The Bluestone Organization have just completed one of the world’s largest Passive House multifamily rental properties at 42 West Broad Street i n Mount Vernon , New York. Known simply as 42 Broad, the property is designed by Perkins Eastman and comprises 249 market-rate apartments, more than 20,000 square feet of amenities, a parking garage, and high-efficiency mechanicals that significantly limit the structure’s energy use and carbon emissions.

To celebrate the milestone, the project team, which includes an advisory group from J.P. Morgan Global Alternatives, has revealed a first look inside the building, which will soon open for occupancy.

“With 42 Broad we have created a collection of forward-thinking residences that reflect our dedication to sustainable living and represents a truly unique offering in today’s crowded multifamily real estate market,” said Eric Bluestone of The Bluestone Organization. “The upscale building’s combination of sustainable features and vast array of amenities sets it apart from other luxury properties in the area.”

View inside a penthouse at 42 Broad Street

The mix of units includes studios and one- and two-bedroom residences, all equipped with nine-foot ceiling spans, Energy Star appliances, laundry machines, and hardwood flooring. The penthouse units also include wraparound terraces and 10-foot ceiling spans.

Amenity spaces include a fitness center, a heated pool with shaded pergolas, and a 17th-floor roof deck with outdoor kitchens, dining area, and a fireplace. There is also an upper level lounge with billiards and an entertaining kitchen, co-working spaces and private conference rooms, a library with another fireplace, a courtyard zen garden, and a large community room.

Additional services include a valet attended parking garage, on-site concierge service, electric vehicle charging stations, and bike storage.

Pricing begins at $2,100 for a studio apartment. Leasing launched earlier this month.

Interview with Mark Alexander, Principal at Alexander Development Group

Thu, 13 Jul 2023 01:20:42 GMT

Mark Alexander is a seasoned real estate professional with over 30 years of experience in building attractive and thriving residential and mixed-use communities. Mr. Alexander has developed 3,000 units of housing, 75,000 square feet of neighborhood retail and office space, and numerous gardens and public art installations with a cumulative value of $500 Million Dollars. He is a founding member of Alexander Development Group.

Prior to forming Alexander Development Group, Mr. Alexander was a founding member and President of Urban Builders Collaborative LLC (UBC) where he created a development pipeline of 550 apartments and 30,000 square feet of retail and community facility space. Mr. Alexander started his career at Hope Community, Inc. (Hope) in Harlem, where he forged it into a leading not-for-profit community-based developer, with almost 100 staff members, a diverse real estate portfolio, and highly regarded social programs.

Mr. Alexander serves on the board of directors of several civic organizations including CIVITAS. He is a past President of ANHD and board member of The New York Housing Conference and Citizens Housing and Planning Council. He has received several honors, including the Citizens Housing and Planning Council’s Community Service Award and Boys and Girls Harbor Salute to Achievement Award. He received his undergraduate degree from New York University and is a graduate of the Not-for-Profit Executive Management Program at Columbia University.

Rendering of 42 Broad, the world’s largest market-rate multifamily high-rise to achieve Phius passive house Design Certification. The building will bring a collection of 249 modern residences and an amenity-driven lifestyle to Mount Vernon, N.Y.’s Fleetwood neighborhood following the launch of leasing

Interview questions:

Career | From 1977 to 2004, you were Executive Director of Hope Community; from 2004 to 2008, CEO of Urban Builders Collaborative. In 2004, you started Alexander Development Group. Please provide an overview of your career and the decision to start Alexander Development Group.

Introduction | Please provide a snapshot of Alexander Development Group and the services provided.

Projects | Please provide an overview of the major projects of Alexander Development Group. https://adgny.com/projects

Latest Project | Your latest project is 42 Broad a multi-family highrise in Mount Vernon New York. Share the origins of this project – its design, and sustainability. What role did local contractors and the workforce play?

Team | How did the development team form? https://www.live42broad.com/team/

Affordable Housing | Can you provide an overview of the state of affordable housing (in New York)? Do you have any solutions that could have an impact?

Case Studies | Are there any case studies that you would like to share?

Sculpture in honor of rapper Heavy D unveiled in Mount Vernon

Wed, 03 May 2023 20:17:56 GMT

Mount Vernon Mayor Shawyn Patterson-Howard, ArtsWestchester and the family of the influential hip-hop artist Heavy D joined the development team behind 42 Broad — a joint venture of Alexander Development Group, The Bluestone Organization and institutional investors advised by J.P. Morgan Global Alternatives — for the unveiling of Brooklyn-based artist Eto Otitigbe’s Peaceful Journey, a monumental public art installation that celebrates the rapper’s music and legacy in Mount Vernon.

“I wanted to pay homage to the Mount Vernon community that had such an important place in hip-hop with this work of art,” says Eto Otitigbe of Peaceful Journey. The artist explains that the Heavy D song the sculpture is named after “offers a thoughtful and complex picture of the lives of Black and Brown people [living] in places like Mount Vernon, the Bronx or Los Angeles” and that the Mount Vernon native’s music was transformative for him growing up.

Inspired by various points of interest including architecture, physics and hip-hop, Otitigbe won a commission for a site-specific installation within the plaza at 42 Broad, a striking high-rise that will be one of the nation’s most energy-efficient residential buildings when it opens this spring. Situated at the corner of Broad Street and Fleetwood Avenue, Peaceful Journey will be on view for pedestrians, as well as drivers exiting and entering the Cross County Parkway. The sculpture, which was selected through an open competitive process managed by ArtsWestchester, a leading public art proponent, offers the hope of tranquility through turbulent times and represents how harmony and balance can be achieved even during times of change.

“Otitigbe’s abstract artwork will add a spectacular focal point to a gateway to the City of Mount Vernon,” says Mayor Shawyn Patterson-Howard. “Not only my friend and a son of Mount Vernon, but Heavy D was also an integral part of making Mount Vernon the Jewel of Westchester; his influence in the creation of this sculpture makes it more meaningful. Although Heavy D has begun his ‘peaceful journey,’ Mr. Otitigbe’s sculptural arch is a true testament to the pride, resilience, and transformation of ‘Money Earnin Mount Vernon.’ I am sure this warms the heart of the Myers family and all Heavy D touched as not only an artist but a resident of Mount Vernon.”

“We are grateful and honored to the City of Mount Vernon, ArtsWestchester, and the 42 Broad development team of Mark Alexander, Nicholas Alexander and the Bluestone Organization for commemorating the legacy of the groundbreaking album ‘Peaceful Journey’ by Heavy D & the Boyz during the 50th Anniversary of Hip Hop music and culture,” says Floyd Myers, brother of Heavy D. “Today’s sculpture unveiling is a testament to the impact of this album and the artistry of Dwight Myers (Heavy D), Troy Dixon (Trouble T-Roy), Eddie Ferrell (Eddie F.) and Glen Parrish (G-Wiz) had on the music industry. We hope this statue will inspire future generations to tap into their creativity as a means of expression and expanding the message of love, peace, and unity as voiced in the music of Heavy D & the Boyz.”

Otitigbe worked with the architect Michael DiCarlo to design Peaceful Journey. The archway offers an invitation for people to pass through its portal, which serves as a waymarker for a peaceful journey — whether for those leaving the building or the community, or for those returning home. The sculpture is made of Vermont Fantastico Marble, Stainless Steel and COR-TEN steel. The form cycles between stone and metal and appears to continue its path through the concrete. The hive-like steel structure references pointed archways from South East Asian and Islamic architecture, and were later made popular in Gothic architecture throughout Europe.

“The hexagon is a signifier for strength and harmony,” explains Otitigbe. “As one passes under the archway and looks up the view of the sky is pixelated by a hexagonal grid. Even the surface of the metal will transform over time as the COR‐TEN steel weathers and changes color. The stone monolith also conveys a sense of balance and affirmation while its surface carries an organic fluid pattern; evidence of the stone’s transformation over time.”

Designed by global architecture firm Perkins Eastman and built to meet the highest standard of sustainable design, 42 Broad is the world’s largest market-rate multifamily high-rise to achieve Phius passive house Design Certification. The building includes a collection of 249 modern residences and access to more than 20,000 square feet of programmed amenities.

“Public art is integral to our development philosophy,” says Mark Alexander, co-founder and principal of Alexander Development Group. “At 42 Broad, we are allocating a sizeable budget for highly visible art to create a memorable place, promote community pride, and to raise the level of aesthetics and energy in the city. Great public art should be transformational, and that is our intent with Otitigbe’s monumental sculpture. Peaceful Journey compliments the metalwork and brick masonry of the building, while inviting the public to walk through its dappled lit archway.”

Janet T. Langsam, CEO of ArtsWestchester and public art partner to the project explains, “Public art like Eto Otitigbe’s sculpture will enhance the downtown offering a bit of the unexpected, a bit of the extraordinary into everyday life. Investment in public art is investment in a community because signature artwork like this helps create more livable, more creative communities and more enjoyable communities.”

Developer to add more than 1,000 Units to Mount Vernon

Sun, 25 Jun 2017 19:20:50 GMT

MOUNT VERNON, NY—Multifamily development, which has spread to many suburban locations outside of Manhattan, has finally reached the long-ignored City of Mount Vernon in Westchester County. At present, major development projects have broken ground or are in the pipeline in Westchester cities such as Yonkers, New Rochelle and White Plains. However, for the most part multifamily developers have not invested in the City of Mount Vernon, despite its location bordering the Bronx and its three Metro North train stations. However, 2017 may be the crossroads of a new era in this city.

On Friday, Mount Vernon Mayor Richard Thomas, who took office in January 2016 on a platform of reform, fixing the city’s aging infrastructure and bringing private investment back to the city, held a press conference to announce four major new rental housing projects in the city. In total, the four new developments total approximately $323 million in investment and will add 880 new housing units. All four of the projects have either been approved by the city or are in the approval process and could break ground within a year. Several proposals are close to beginning construction in the next three to four months, the mayor noted.

At the press conference, David Gentner, president and CEO of The Wartburg senior care services campus, announced that it is studying developing approximately 140 units of senior market rate rental housing on its campus. Gentner said that The Wartburg hopes to select a developer, close on financing and begin the estimated $65-million project by year’s end.

Mount Vernon Mayor Richard Thomas

The Wartburg project would bring the total number of units announced at the press briefing to 1,028 and the total development investment in the City of Mount Vernon to approximately $388 million. The mayor said the development wave taking hold in Mount Vernon is due in large part to investors trying to take advantage of Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s recent $2-billion initiative to build affordable housing in New York State. He also cited reforms in the approval process that have been implemented recently as well as rezoning of certain sections of the city in order to spur new development. “Mount Vernon is moving forward,” Mayor Thomas said. “This begins the next chapter of Mount Vernon’s story, which is ‘Mount Vernon Rising.’ There is a renaissance happening here.”

The new development projects coming to the city include:

Library Square —a $125 million, 320-unit high-rise project at 20 South Second Ave. to be developed by Direct Investment Development of New York City and partners. Construction on the project is expected to begin in the spring of 2018.

42 Broad St. —A $90-million, 249-unit tower project in the Fleetwood section of the city being developed by The Alexander Development Group. The firm is within weeks of closing on the financing for the market-rate rental development, according to Mark Alexander, principal with the Alexander Development Group.

He said the project will be the “first planned luxury rental development in Mount Vernon in over 50 years.” Alexander added that the project will also be built energy-efficient and will include co-generation as well as a host of high-end amenities.

7-11MacQuesten Parkway —a 140-unit twin-tower building project called “Q West Towers” to be developed by Simone Development Companies of the Bronx.

The $60-million project in Mount Vernon is expected to break ground by the beginning of 2018. Mayor Thomas noted that the Simone project being developed by the Mount Vernon West Metro North train station will look to benefit from Gov. Cuomo’s affordable housing fund as well as from the recent rezoning of the Mount Vernon West area around the station. The mayor noted that the Simone project, geared to providing workforce housing, will be the first development proposal to take advantage of the city’s new 45-day permit process.

525 and 645 MacQuesten Parkway —A 179 unit, $48-million apartment project being developed by Enclave Equities. Sam Mermelstein, vice president of development for Enclave Equities of Purchase, said he is hopeful to begin construction soon on the project geared to attracting young millennials to the City of Mount Vernon. Enclave previously redeveloped a former Verizon call center on South Fifth Ave. in Mount Vernon into the Enclave on Fifth, a senior affordable housing project with a 22,000-square-foot Westchester Community College extension center.

The Passive House in New York

Sat, 28 Mar 2015 01:34:29 GMT

It was less than a decade ago that a building design philosophy from Germany called “passive house” jumped the Atlantic Ocean and quietly took root in Brooklyn. Now, with a few dozen homes and small projects built or retrofitted to this still exotic standard, passive buildings appear poised to enter New York City’s housing market in a much bigger way. Large projects delivering hundreds of new passive units to market are in the works, and city officials are watching closely.

Passive buildings maintain a comfortable interior climate without active heating and cooling systems — that means no more radiators or air-conditioning units for people who live in environments more temperate than New York’s. This is done using, among other things, an airtight building envelope and a system that exchanges interior and exterior air, usuallly an energy recovery ventilator. In New York, small heating and cooling systems are generally included in passive homes.

A house built to passive standards uses less than a quarter of the energy of a traditionally powered home, according to the Passivhaus Institut, which developed the standard in Germany. Besides lower energy bills, benefits include quiet interiors because of thick, insulated walls, along with fresher, cleaner air, thanks to the filters in energy recovery ventilators. Builders and residents of passive houses say the filters can help eliminate allergies and asthmatic symptoms. With a small group of developers, builders and architects convinced that passive standards can now be achieved at little or no extra cost, proponents hope to see a revolution in how homes and other structures are built in the city.

"Building to passive-house standards just makes a lot of sense,” said Stephen Lynch, an architect and principal of Caliper Studio, who retrofitted his townhouse in South Slope, Brooklyn, using passive house principles two years ago. There are some cost hurdles and a learning curve, but those challenges can be overcome, he said, “and then you realize how amazing it is that we don’t already build to these standards.” Officials working to implement Mayor Bill de Blasio’s sweeping green-building initiative, which has a target of an 80 percent reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2050, are studying passive-house standards as they overhaul performance standards for new construction. Worldwide, buildings are responsible for about 40 percent of carbon
emissions, but in New York City, it’s closer to 71 percent. The Mayor’s Carbon Challenge Progress Report of 2013 found that residential buildings account for 37 percent of the city’s emissions.

“We’ll be looking to high-performance innovations, such as passive-house, carbon-neutral or zero net energy strategies, to inform the city’s standards to reduce energy use in both new construction and our older building stock,” said Amy Spitalnick, a spokeswoman for the mayor. Buildings constructed to passive standards aren’t widespread enough for consumers to inadvertently bump into them — they still have to be sought out. Among the small adherent developments is 255 Columbia Street, a 13-unit building in Brooklyn marketed in late 2013. And dozens of townhouses in Brooklyn and Manhattan are undergoing passive retrofits. The cost of creating a passive house has been much debated. A few years ago, the Passivhaus Institute put the additional cost in the United States at somewhere around 6 percent. But proponents say costs have come down as prices for materials dropped and contractors have become more familiar with passive-building methods. Triple-pane windows and added insulation may add costs upfront, but these expenses are offset by the smaller boilers and smaller heating and air-conditioning systems passive houses require.

Kurt Roeloffs renovated his townhouse on West 88th Street in Manhattan using passive systems that he says did not add any extra costs to the renovation. Since moving in this past November, he’s been nothing but satisfied living in his home, where the temperature is a constant 72 degrees, and he can walk around barefoot in a T-shirt in total comfort in the winter. “We were so impressed with how quiet it is, and how comfortable it is,” he said. “The air just smells fresh and sweet, even after we cook, because the filters get rid of it so quickly.” His house uses an energy recovery ventilator, which pushes out stale air while
drawing in fresh air, exchanging heat in the process. During the winter, heat from the exhausted air is transferred to the incoming cold air; and in summer, heat and humidity are drawn out of incoming air and transferred to the outgoing stale air.
David and Aliana Spungen have two-story windows in the kitchen of their Brooklyn Heights townhouse, recently retrofitted to passive house standards. “I remember thinking we’ll probably feel a lot of cold coming off those windows,” Ms. Spungen said. “But even with this brutal winter, we just don’t.” Mr. Lynch, the architect, said it now cost him about $323 a year to heat his
3,140-square-foot house with a gas boiler. “I’m really satisfied and interested in how to make this method of building more commonly used,” he said. Heating an ordinary townhouse of similar size with gas would cost about $2,500 a year, said Anthony DelleCave, a salesman at Citi Habitats who manages townhouses in Brooklyn and Manhattan.

Another passive apartment house in New York is an eight-unit building at 210 Pacific Street in Cobble Hill, Brooklyn, designed and developed by NAVA Companies. The building, which has half-floor and full-floor units of threeand four bedrooms, has many green elements, such as solar thermal hot water systems and induction cooktops. However, also of interest to potential buyers is that the building’s passive design should cut their energy consumption by 75 percent, according to marketers at Brown Harris Stevens, using data provided by the Passivhaus Institute. They note, however, that the actual energy savings depends on the individual apartment owner, with those who opt for 65-degree rooms during the summer or an 80-degree home during the winter saving less than those who aim for more moderate interior temperatures. Half-floor units start at $2.45 million and full-floor units start at $4.9 million.

Stewart Osborne, a partner in NAVA Companies, is an architect, as is David Ruff, another NAVA partner. Both saw passive construction as the best way to achieve a better designed energy-efficient building, Mr. Osborne said. They did not build a premium for passive construction into their pricing.

Passive-house design, Mr. Osborne said, “is something that is an extra added bonus for the buyer who’s thinking, ‘Oh, my energy bill is going to be a lot cheaper,’ or ‘Oh, I’m in a forward-thinking building that has a reduced footprint.’ ”Because relatively few consumers know what a passive house is and even fewer may be willing to pay more for it, lowering the cost of passive construction has become important to its proponents. Chris Benedict, an architect, has a long history of low-energy building and
designed some of the city’s first multifamily buildings constructed to passive standards, which she says can be done at no extra cost. Her buildings, at 803 Knickerbocker Avenue and 424 Melrose Street in Bushwick, Brooklyn, both have
24 apartments and are on the verge of receiving formal certification. “It wasn’t a huge leap for me personally to be doing passive house,” Ms. Benedict said, “because I’d already been looking at how to solve these energy issues in buildings, and how to do it for the same price as typical construction. So we were able to deliver these buildings without additional cost, and it was a big goal for us.” In Mayor de Blasio’s 111-page green buildings initiative, the building at 803 Knickerbocker is used as a case study. Ms. Benedict said she is now working on a project to retrofit several 40-unit apartment buildings in Brooklyn to passive standards. Another passive project she is designing is called Perch Harlem at 542 West 153rd Street, a 34-unit rental building with anticipated delivery in spring of next year.

(Perch Harlem is in a bit of an unofficial competition with a six-unit project at 11 West 126th Street, also in Harlem, to determine which will be the first multifamily building in Manhattan to receive passive certification.) Justin Palmer, the chief executive of Synapse Development Group, the developer of Perch Harlem with Taurus Investment Holdings, said he sees passive
construction as a way of delivering “luxury” through smart design. Mr. Palmer said that he expects to be able to charge more for the development’s passive design. “On the rental side, the value is you have all these comfort factors in a residential apartment in New York City,” he said, listing temperature, air quality and noise reduction. “And we’ve found through passive house design, you address all those issues.”

Since building to passive standards involves creating a virtually airtight building, often with thick insulated walls and triple-pane windows, not only is temperature regulated extremely well, but outside noise is almost eliminated. Another developer considering whether to charge a premium for passive construction is Steve Bluestone, a partner in the Bluestone Organization, which is
about to build a 249-unit rental development in Mount Vernon, N.Y. Mr. Bluestone said he can deliver the development with only 1 percent in additional costs tied to passive house standards. “One percent is not much, but it’s still money, and I’ve had many
conversations with marketing experts and builders about whether we can raise the rent right up front,” Mr. Bluestone said. The jury is still out.

Some naysayers believe it’s a mistake to incorporate possibly expensive and not strictly necessary standards into the building code. But with the cost of meeting passive-construction standards apparently dropping, passive-house proponents now see a role for the standards in the creation of affordable and low-cost housing. Mr. Bluestone is also working on Beach Green North, an eight-story affordable housing development with 101 apartments in Rockaway, Queens. Incorporating passive standards, it should be completed in the winter of 2016-17. Also, as part of the city’s Build It Back program, Mr. Bluestone will be rebuilding four Staten Island houses destroyed by Hurricane Sandy in 2012, all to passive standards. A social services organization, the Hellenic American Neighborhood Action Committee or Hanac, has also jumped on the passive-construction bandwagon for its eight-story 68-unit senior housing development, to be completed in Queens in summer 2017, said John Napolitano, Hanac’s director of community development and planning. Part of the allure of passive house is the ability to withstand some of the effects of power cuts, he said.

“We’ve had several blackouts, and keeping the seniors in their homes during those periods, in an environment where we can maintain thermal controls in the units for a period of at least five days without disturbance, resonates with us,” Mr.
Napolitano said. “We can do that with passive house.” Mr. Bluestone found the transition to passive construction fairly easy after
years of building low-energy structures. He said he was already using insulated concrete forms that conform well to passive-house models, and that he had an Ohio manufacturer design a small energy recovery ventilator that meets both his
budget goals and passive standards. “Budget numbers are saying where we’re going to be, and we hope we land
there,” Mr. Bluestone said. “Passive house is code in many European countries now for new construction, and we’re a little behind here, but I think it’s catching on.” Just this month, Passive House Institute US, which broke with the Passivhaus Institute in Germany several years ago, released new standards tailored to the varying climates found in the United States.

While this makes it easier and cheaper to achieve certification in some parts of the United States, the new standards for New York aren’t all that different from the original German standards, said Ms. Benedict, who sits on the board of Passive
House Institute US and seeks certification from both entities for her projects. The differing standards may bring about more passive certifications as intended, or they may unintentionally sow confusion. However, as many people involved in passive construction point out, a house that falls a bit short of the original Passivhaus Institute standards and fails to obtain certification is still a very low-energy house.

“Whether people get certified or not, they still get so far in terms of their ability to save energy that, for me, the exciting thing is, if everybody starts doing this, the effect on the environment will be just so significant,” said Michael Ingui of Baxt Ingui Architects, who has worked on retrofitting townhouses in Brooklyn and Manhattan with passive features. Other passive-building proponents see passive certification as only a step on the road toward developing net zero energy buildings — buildings that use no
energy or produce the energy they need — and even buildings that generate carbon credits to sell. “Many people are targeting zero energy, not passive house,” said Sam McAfee, a passive-building consultant and the founder of sg.Build who is working on many projects in New York. “Passive house is just a gateway to this. All the competing passive-house religions will achieve this goal ultimately.”

Correction: April 5, 2015
A cover article last Sunday about passive-house construction misstated the percentage of carbon emissions in New York City for which buildings are responsible. It is 71
percent, not 58 percent. And a picture caption with the article reversed the names of the wife and daughter of Stephen Lynch, an architect. His wife is named Hannah, and his daughter is Vera. For weekly email updates on residential real estate news, sign up here. Follow us on
Twitter: @nytrealestate.

Fleetwood tower project wins critical votes

Thu, 25 Dec 2014 02:34:29 GMT

MOUNT VERNON – An estimated $85 million apartment tower near the Fleetwood Station got two critical approvals Tuesday night from the City Council. Mount Vernon's leaders approved a special permit for the 249-unit complex at 42 Broad St. West near the Gramatan Avenue exit of the Cross County Parkway. They also decided that the market-rate housing will not have a significant adverse environmental impact on the surrounding neighborhood.

Many Fleetwood residents had expressed opposition to the tower, claiming that the increased density was inconsistent with the character of their neighborhood. They also claimed the development would create too much traffic congestion. The Alexander Development Group and its partner, the Bluestone Organization, will spend about $4 million to renovate an adjacent municipal parking lot and build an 16-story, L-shaped building. The apartments would range from studios to three-bedroom units with amenities such as an indoor swimming pool and valet parking.

The proposed complex's street level includes about 12,000 square feet of retail space. The property next to the Fleetwood garage currently has a supermarket and an empty drugstore formerly occupied by Duane Reade. The Alexander group's first project in Fleetwood was the Horizon on Locust Street, which Alexander and a co-developer rescued from foreclosure when it was under construction. The Horizon is fully rented and the average yearly household income is about $125,000 to $150,000.

The Fleetwood tower is part of a trend among developers, urban planners and transportation advocates to build high-density residential complexes near Westchester County's Metro-North train stations.

On Wednesday Mark Alexander, president of the group, said the building makes sense for the neighborhood and the region from sustainability, economic and congestion standpoints. "Not everybody wants or needs to have a 3,000-square-foot home on a 30,000-square-foot lot," said Alexander. "I think the planners all over the country, including Mount Vernon, have determined that building greater density at transit nodes is a smart plan."

The project must now get approvals from the city's Planning Board and the Architectural Review Board. The Planning Board's next meeting is Jan. 7. 2015

Twitter: @ErnieJourno

Developers eye Fleetwood for $90M apartment project

Fri, 06 Jun 2014 01:34:29 GMT

Looking to tap into the growing demand for transit-oriented development in Westchester County, two New York City developers hope to break ground within a year on an approximately $90 million, 249-unit luxury apartment towerwith streetfront retail space in the Fleetwood section of Mount Vernon.

The 18-story, approximately 269,000-square-foot building would rise at 42W. Broad Street, at the corner of Broad Street and
Fleetwood Avenue in the Fleetwood business district, on a commercial site currently occupied by a Metro Fresh Supermarket. The property to be demolished also includes vacant retail space formerly occupied by a Duane Reade drug store. The site of the proposed project, on which Alexander Development Group in Manhattan is partnering with The Bluestone Organization of Queens, is about 700 feet east of the Fleetwood Metro-North Railroad station. It adjoins a deteriorated four-story municipal parking
garage that the developers want to acquire from the city to extensively renovate and operate for both public use and apartment tenants.

The developers also want to add about 7,350 square feet of retail space along the garage’s Broad Street frontage, in addition to 12,330 square feet of ground-floor retail space in the apartment tower. A rendering of a proposed 18-story, approximately
269,000-square-foot building at 42 W. Broad Street in the Fleetwood section of Mount Vernon.

A rendering of a proposed 18-story, approximately 269,000-square-foot building at 42 W. Broad Street in the Fleetwood section of Mount Vernon. Mark Alexander, president of Alexander Development Group, said their proposal has been received “in general very positively” among city officials, business owners and residents in Mount Vernon. “Obviously in a complex approvals process of this nature, there’s a certain amount of back and forth,” he said. Alexander said parking and traffic have been predominant
concerns heard in Mount Vernon.

Kenneth Plummer, the developers’ project consultant at Kensworth Consulting in Mount Vernon, said a large majority of speakers at the Mount Vernon City Council’s recent public hearing on the project favored the proposal. The council earlier this year approved a zoning text amendment to allow high-rise, transit-oriented development in the city’s downtown business
zone, Plummer said.

A rendering of a proposed 18-story, approximately 269,000-square-foot building at 42 W. Broad Street in the Fleetwood section of Mount Vernon

Designed by Perkins Eastman Architects, the residential building would include 33 studios renting at $1,350 per month; 118 one-bedroom units renting at from $2,000 to $2,200 monthly; 82 two-bedroom apartments with rents ranging from $2,400 to $3,100; and 16 three-bedroom apartments renting at $3,300 a month. Banta Homes Corp., a Bluestone Organization affiliate in Queens, is the project’s general contractor. For Alexander, the Broad Street project would be his second luxury apartment venture in Mount Vernon’s Fleetwood neighborhood.

As a principal in Glenmark Partners L.L.C. in Manhattan, he formed a joint venture with Petro Real Estate Development Corp. in Mamaroneck to acquire a partially completed eight-story condominium building at 550 Locust St. at a bankruptcy auction in 2010. Completed in 2011 and marketed as rental apartments in the post-recession economy, The Horizon at Fleetwood is fully
occupied, he said. “We see a demand throughout southern Westchester for well-sited luxury residential
communities,” Alexander said. “The Horizon demonstrated that there is deep demand and we should try to meet the demand.”
Alexander said the West Broad Street project has been strongly supported by Fleetwood merchants who expect a boost in business from an influx of downtown tenants with annual incomes over $100,000. “Something like $30 million of household income is going to be added to the community with this project,” he said. Alexander said the developers hope to complete the municipal approval process and begin construction “within the next 12 months.” Construction is expected to be completed in 18
to 24 months, he said.

Luxury building proposed for Mount Vernon

Fri, 23 May 2014 00:51:24 GMT

MOUNT VERNON – Developers want to build an $85 million, 249-unit residential-retail tower next to a municipal parking complex near the Fleetwood Metro-North train station. The Alexander Development Group and its partner The Bluestone Organization want to buy the city’s Fleetwood garage, renovate it and build an 18-story, L-shaped building at 42 West Broad St. The
market-rate apartments would range from studios to three-bedroom residences with amenities like an indoor swimming pool and
valet parking.

The proposed complex’s street level includes 12,330 square feet of retail space. The property next to the Fleetwood garage currently has supermarket and an empty drugstore formerly occupied by Duane Reade. In plans filed with the city, the developers argue that Mount Vernon should sell the 434-car parking garage because it is a financial burden on taxpayers. At daily peak
hours only about 130 cars use the garage; the city loses 95 cents per spot daily when maintenance, security, meter collection and parking enforcement costs are considered, the developers argue.

The parking lot needs about $2.2 million in rehabilitation. The Alexander Development Group’s first project in Fleetwood was the Horizon on Locust Street, which Alexander and a co-developer rescued from foreclosure when it was under construction. The Horizon is fully rented and the average yearly household income of about $125,000 to $150,000. Mark Alexander, president
of the Alexander Development Group, said the building will draw tenants with annual household incomes above $100,000 who will expand the tax base and reinvigorate Fleetwood’s shopping district. Mount Vernon officials will hold a public hearing May 28 at 7p.m. in the City Council chambers to receive public comment regarding the proposal and the developer’s request for a special permit that must be approved by the City Council.

Art helped fill Horizon at Fleetwood in Mount Vernon

Thu, 20 Feb 2014 00:52:03 GMT

Representatives from Petro Real Estate Development Corp. and Glenmark Partners gave a testimonial about the power of the arts on Tuesday at ArtsWestchester's launch of an arts-business partnership initiative that seeks to recruit 50 businesses.

ArtsWestchester's goal with the initiative is to promote innovative thinking in workplaces, strengthen community engagement and increase the vibrancy of places to live and work.

Mark Alexander of Glenmark and Michael V. Petrillo of Petro said their partnership with ArtsWestchester delivered rotating art exhibitions to the complex's walls and helped create a sense of community.

Monthly rents at the 11-story Horizon, located at 550 Locust St., range from $1,950 for a one-bedroom to $2,650 for a two-bedroom unit.

Robert Lynch of Americans for the Arts leads the national movement to recruit businesses to partner with arts councils. Lynch said an arts partnership is a competitive advantage for businesses.

"In any town, you'll see at the airports and ports of entry, are animated and branded and made unque by art and made competitive by public art," he said at ArtsWestchester's breakfast in the Ritz-Carlton in White Plains. "You go to downtowns, like this downtown, and you'll see the development of downtown anchored by art institutions and arts facilities....You'll see neighborhoods revitalized."

Drawing in Renters

Fri, 24 Aug 2012 00:04:05 GMT

Mark Alexander of 550 Locust Development Partners highlights the impact of art in attracting tenants. The Horizon at Fleetwood, a luxury residential building in Mount Vernon, was struggling with occupancy until an art exhibit, Contemporary Rhythms, helped fully lease the units.

Agents chase affordable market

Mon, 01 Jun 2009 23:42:02 GMT

Selling middle-income units offers new business but poses challenges

Stung by a wave of condominium defaults and the collapse of the credit market for jumbo loans, some real estate brokers are channeling their energies into a different area: affordable housing developments with government-backed financing for first-time buyers.

For some brokers these offer a stable alternative to market-rate condominiums and co-ops. In recent years, firms like Halstead Property and Fillmore Real Estate have expanded their presence in affordable housing or mixed-income projects. And, in recent months, as the recession has made market-rate sales more difficult, competition among brokers has intensified because more buyers are turning to affordable units.

“We are seeing people who will come to our sales showrooms now who can’t quite afford the market-rate units,” said Stephen Kliegerman, executive director of development marketing at Halstead Property. “These are affordable housing [units] but they are open to free-market [buyers] under restricted income [guidelines].”

The Bloomberg administration is largely responsible for many of these new developments through its $7.5 billion program to build or renovate 165,000 units of affordable housing. A wide range of tax incentives, low-cost loans, zoning changes and the sale of city-owned land has paved the way for developers to renovate or build thousands of new apartments in low-income areas.

Developer Mark Alexander, the former president of the Urban Builders Collaborative, said that in many mixed-income buildings, specialized companies or non-profit groups are hired to sell and to screen affordable housing applications. Larger residential brokerages are then brought on to rent or sell market-rate units.

“Traditionally in 80/20 buildings [where 20 percent of rental units are affordable], owners would use Citi Habitats or Prudential Douglas Elliman or one of the other big brokers for the market-rate units and run very sophisticated marketing campaigns to maximize profit,” said Alexander, who now leads the Alexander Development Group, a newly formed affordable housing development firm.

In late 2007, Alexander hired Elliman to help sell the DeWitt Condominiums, a 16-unit mixed-income project at 483 Washington Avenue in Brooklyn, where market-rate units are being offered at $630 a square foot, or $850,000 for a roughly 1,350-square-foot, two-bedroom unit. Brooklyn-based Pratt Area Community Council, a non-profit developer and property manager, marketed the affordable units, which sold out immediately. The market-rate units have, however, taken much longer to move because of the recession.

Elliman officials did not immediately return calls for comment.

Carol Griffin, founder of the Griffin Real Estate Group, which is based in Harlem, said selling affordable housing is a difficult and time-consuming task for many large firms and may not be profitable if a firm does not have the ability to market in low-income communities.

“My history and education in housing allows me to sell both,” said Griffin, who previously served as marketing director at the Harlem Community Development Corp. “It’s a very administrative-laden process to sell affordable housing.”

While larger firms often focus on the market-rate units in a mixed-income building, those units can offer a new avenue of business in a down market and can give brokerages a toehold in emerging neighborhoods. But they are often more challenging to sell because buyers may be reluctant to purchase in a property with low-income residents.

Halstead, for example, launched sales for market-rate units at a new co-op development called Beacon Towers, a 73-unit building at 29 West 138th Street in Harlem, and is now working on selling out the remaining affordable units.

The building includes 19 market-rate and 54 income-restricted apartments ranging from $282,000 for one-bedroom units to $649,000 for two-bedroom apartments. The project is a joint venture between the Strategic Development and Construction Group and Lemle & Wolf, a pair of developers with vast experience in the affordable housing arena.

Beacon Towers, which just completed construction this year, was developed in partnership with the Cornerstone Program, which allows developers to buy city-owned lots for a nominal price in return for building affordable housing.

More than 2,000 applicants, making up to $192,000 per household, applied last summer for the apartments through a lottery system. However, some units remain empty because not all the buyers passed the program’s strict underwriting guidelines. Halstead is marketing the affordable units to the general public under those guidelines now.

The firm also recently took over sales at the Kalahari at 40 West 116th Street, a 249-unit mixed-income condominium. As The Real Deal previously reported, Halstead replaced the Marketing Directors as sales agent for the Kalahari in December 2008.

About half of the project was set aside for affordable housing.Nearly all of those units have been assigned through a lottery system. But the developers were forced by the downturn to cut prices and offer a mortgage contingency on market-rate units. Prices of market-rate units were cut to about $700 per square foot and have helped the building sign eight new contracts in the last few weeks.

Judy Calogero, chief executive of the New York Housing Conference, said it makes sense for certain brokers to gravitate toward affordable housing projects, given the inability of middle-class New Yorkers to qualify for mortgages for market-rate apartments these days.

“There will always be a very strong demand for affordable,” she said. “I can see where brokers might be trying to make the shift.”

However, marketing affordable housing is not easy, and brokerages without experience and expertise will often find themselves boxed out of the market, experts say.

Indeed, in the East New York section of Brooklyn, Fillmore Real Estate is marketing the MeadowWood at Gateway, the borough’s largest converted condominium. The 1,142 units are targeted at moderate-income buyers, like teachers and firefighters.

Jean Paul Ho, vice president and director of sales at Fillmore, said the project is attracting buyers who may or may not be able to afford purchases in market-rate buildings but are seeking the assurance of a stable condominium.

“The people we’re selling to have been looking and the [lending] guidelines for getting financing are stricter,” said Ho. “If you are buying into this complex, you know that your neighbor is not going to go into foreclosure.”

MeadowWood is one of several affordable housing developments that operates under a partnership between HPD and an organization called Neighborhood Housing Services.

The program offers consumer loans through the State of New York Mortgage Agency program, which offers 30-year fixed-rate loans for up to 97 percent of the property’s value, based on strict income and credit guidelines.

MeadowWood has one-, two- and three-bedroom apartments ranging from $110,000 to $349,000.

Ho said that selling affordable projects like MeadowWood and Lafayette Estates, a 1,865-unit converted Mitchell Lama affordable project in the Bronx, is much more complicated than selling market-rate units, and notes that many large Manhattan brokers fail at these projects because they don’t have the proper training or community connections.

“It’s much more complicated because all the agents that I hire have to go through stringent and continuous training,” said Ho.

He said a rival brokerage from Manhattan previously marketed the Lafayette Estates conversion and failed to close a single deal in more than a year.

“I have over 150 agents at this office,” Ho said, referring to his Avenue L offices in Brooklyn. “If I put any other agents on this site, they would not know what to do.”

MetroGreen Expert Q&A

Sat, 15 Mar 2008 00:57:23 GMT

To save the Projects, think Big

Fri, 09 Nov 2007 02:05:20 GMT

The Housing Authority announced plans to lease 17 NYCHA tenements in East Harlem to two developers, creating 339 units of subsidized housing. This move aims to address a $200 million annual budget shortfall without cutting services. Despite the political backlash against privatizing public housing, the initiative represents a creative solution to maintain services for NYCHA’s 409,000 residents.

Affordable Housing Without Subsidies

Mon, 25 Dec 2006 00:28:01 GMT

BUILDING affordable housing in New York has always been a challenge; rarely, if ever, has it been achieved without government subsidies. But with a new mixed-income condominium building going up in Clinton Hill in Brooklyn, that might be about to change.

The Pratt Area Community Council, a nonprofit affordable-housing organization, bought a dilapidated Washington Avenue building from the city with the intention of renovating it into rental apartments, but it turned out to be beyond repair. The city declined to offer any subsidies for a new building, and the council had never done market-rate development before.

So council members sought help from the developer Mark Alexander, who had worked in the affordable-housing market for the better part of 25 years before founding Urban Builders Collaborative, a for-profit company.

The council and Mr. Alexander became partners in a joint venture to construct a mixed-income condo building, the DeWitt, now being built at 483 Washington Avenue. It is to have 16 one- and two-bedroom units, with eight being sold at market rate in order to subsidize the other eight — to be sold through a council-administered lottery system to households earning less than $88,625 for a family of four.

Mr. Alexander said that while most nonprofit affordable-housing developers tend to do cookie-cutter buildings, to keep costs to a minimum, he sought to produce affordable units that were also well designed.

Image

To that end, he hired the architects Curtis & Ginsberg to design a building to befit its charming Clinton Hill neighborhood while also using newer finishes and modern technology.

The result is a seven-story brick-and-stone building with contemporary touches like a glass-and-metal canopy and metal grillwork that masks heating and cooling units underneath the windows.

Mark Ginsberg, founding partner of the firm, also incorporated energy-efficient technology: an insulated cavity wall to reduce heating and cooling costs; and motion-detector lights in the hallway that run at 30 percent illumination until someone moves through the space. In addition to Shaker-style cabinetry and slate-tile foyers, the project will mostly have bamboo flooring, a very popular material because it is durable and versatile, as well as environmentally friendly.