Work begins on $13M housing project in Cicero

CICERO – Construction work has started on a $12.8 million affordable and supportive housing development at 8700 Knowledge Lane in the town of Cicero.

Developed by Webster, New York based CDS Housing, Spring Village will provide 50 energy-efficient apartments for adults 55 and over, New York State Homes and Community Renewal (HCR) announced in an Oct. 26 news release.

The project will include 10 apartments for individuals with developmental of intellectual disabilities.

Rochester-based Christa Construction, LLC, the general contractor on the project, is building the housing development on formerly vacant land at 8700 Knowledge Lane in Cicero. Crews will build the facility to meet the silver certification level of the U.S. Green Building Council LEED rating system, HCR said.

Christa Construction will work with between 10 and 15 subcontractors, Dave Mattucci, the firm’s VP, told CNYBJ in an interview after the ceremony.

They include DeWitt-based JK Tobin Construction, which is handling the site work; DeWitt-based Woodcock & Armani, which is providing the heating, ventilation, air conditioning, plumbing, and fire protection work; and Raulli & Sons of Syracuse, which is doing the steel work on the project.

The contractor should finish the project in October 2019, Mark Curletta, COO of Webster-based CDS Life Transitions, who also leads CDS Housing, told CNYBJ after the groundbreaking ceremony. CDS Life Transitions is the parent. company of CDS Housing.

“Our construction company will work through the winter,” Curletta noted.

It’s been about 10 years since crews have built affordable housing – “senior specific or otherwise” – in this area in Cicero, Sankar Sewnauth, president and CEO of CDS Life Transitions, said in remarks at the groundbreaking.

“There’s a great need to serve the increasingly aging population in Cicero and Onondaga County and the strong demand for senior housing that is both affordable and handicapped accessible,” said Sewnauth.

Funding

The state awarding the funding in May, Lenny Skrill, upstate development director at HCR, said in his remarks at the ceremony.

“If we make an award in May, it’s going to be in the ground by fall,” he added.

HCR’s funding for the $12.8 million project includes federal low-income housing tax credits that will generate $7.8 million in equity and an additional $3.4 million in subsidy.

The New York State Office for People With Developmental Disabilities (OPWDD) is providing more than $1.2 million in project financing, along with ongoing rental subsidies for the 10 designated units for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities.

“We also work with NYSERDA to basically try to create a green and energy-efficient property, and they contributed $50,000 to this project,” Skrill added in his remarks.

About the project

The two-story building includes 48 one-bedroom apartments and 2 two-bedroom apartments. The 10 supportive apartments will receive project-based rental assistance from OPWDD.

Cayuga Centers of Auburn will provide supportive services, per the release.

Spring Village amenities will include a community room, laundry rooms, sitting areas, and a computer room.