JERSEY CITY, N.J. – Representatives of the New Jersey Housing and Mortgage Finance Agency (HMFA) today joined local officials to break ground on Glenview Townhouses, a 63-unit, mixed-income family apartment complex located adjacent to Barbara Place and Halladay, New, Van Horn, and Grand streets in Jersey City. The HMFA, an affiliate of the Department of Community Affairs (DCA), is providing mortgage funding and allocating federal Low Income Housing Tax Credits to the project.

“Glenview Townhouses will help redevelop Jersey City’s downtown and return a brownfields site to productive use,” said HMFA Executive Director Marge Della Vecchia. “The HMFA is proud to be a part of this project because it truly represents our mission of increasing the availability of affordable housing for families and developing housing that creates healthy, safe and vibrant communities.”

Glenview Townhouses is the sixth phase of the multi-phase Lafayette Gardens HOPE VI Revitalization Program. The 63-unit project will consist of six buildings, housing family apartments that range from one-bedroom to four-bedroom units. Fifty-five of the apartments will be affordable to tenants whose incomes are below 60 percent of area median income, and eight of the units will be rented at market rate. Also, 5 percent of the apartments will be handicapped accessible and an additional 2 percent will have amenities to assist the visually and hearing impaired.

The project, which is being constructed in a NJ Smart Growth area near Jersey City’s downtown, will meet Energy Star requirements resulting in energy savings of approximately 15 percent. The Energy Star features include high efficiency heating and cooling systems and energy saving lighting, appliances, and ventilation.

The HMFA will be providing approximately $1.2 million in mortgage financing for the project in addition to awarding $1.6 million in federal Low Income Housing Tax Credits (LIHTC). The tax credits will generate private equity of approximately $10.8 million. The Jersey City Housing Authority is providing in excess of $5 million in funding. The HMFA is also allocating $2.75 million in Tax Credit Assistance Program (TCAP) funds to the project. More than $61 million in TCAP funds are being provided to New Jersey under the federal American Reinvestment and Recovery Act of 2009. The TCAP Program, which the HMFA is administering, is aimed at jumpstarting affordable housing construction stalled by the economic recession.

Glenview Townhouses is being developed by Michaels Development Company, a New Jersey-based firm in partnership with the Jersey City Housing Authority. In addition to Glenview, the company and Jersey City Housing Authority have partnered on the development of 283 housing units.

The HMFA provided financing for three other mixed-income projects that are part of the Lafayette Gardens HOPE VI redevelopment. The projects include the Lafayette Senior Living Center, Woodward Terrace, and Barbara Place.

For more information on HMFA programs and mortgages, please call 1-800-NJHOUSE or 609-278-7400, or log on to www.nj-hmfa.com.