ITHACA, N.Y. — Several downtown Ithaca revitalization plans have been brought forward by developers looking for a sponsored slice of the state’s economic development pie.
The program, called “Restore NY“, is a funding project of the state’s economic development wing, Empire State Development. According to its website, “{t}he Restore New York Communities Initiative provides municipalities with financial assistance for revitalization of commercial and residential properties. The program encourages community development and neighborhood growth through the elimination and redevelopment of blighted structures.”
Since the program’s post-recession reintroduction in 2016, there are three basic rules for submissions – they must come via municipalities (meaning they’re vetted), they must demonstrate at least a 10% cash match, and they must hold a public hearing. Projects are graded based on their ability to revitalize urban areas, induce commercial investment, and improve local housing stock. This year, the cash allotment for mid-size cities like Ithaca was doubled, from $500,000 to $ 1 million. Formal project submissions were due by the first week of this month.
There are a couple of quirks to the grant rules. Apart from being located in a targeted density area (downtowns, and in Ithaca’s case, the State Street Corridor and West End), new construction on a vacant lot is not eligible for funding, and there’s a much lower funding limit for projects that are more than 85% residential by size – $100,000, instead of the usual $1,000,000 for a city of Ithaca’s size. The intent is rehabs, renovations/additions, and if need be, demolitions.
Last year, the city designated a $3.9 million pair of renovation/additions by developer Ed Cope as the preferred application for the city of Ithaca. The submission was awarded funds by the state in January. Sources familiar with the project say that the renovation of Wyllie Dry Cleaners at 109 North Corn Street, and of Ithaca Glass at 413 West Seneca Street are aiming for municipal review and approval this fall.
“The 2016 Restore NY project funding have not been disbursed yet. The sponsor is conducting subsurface conditions at 413 W. Seneca {Ithaca Glass} to finalize the foundation system required for the overbuild, and then will advance the projects for municipal approval. If a new foundation system is required, the sponsor may seek to increase the number of housing units to be constructed, which would modify the proposed project,” said Nels Bohn, Director of the Ithaca Urban Renewal Agency (IURA). The IURA is the city department in charge Ithaca’s Restore NY application.
This year, the city received four formal proposals for the Restore NY program:
The 100 Block of West State Street
Building off of their initial success with Press Bay Alley, local businessmen John Guttridge and David Kuckuk of Urban Core LLC are seeking $1 million towards a $2.5 million expansion on the 100 Block of West State Street. This is on top of their already in-progress renovation to create additional micro-retail space out of 108-114 West Green Street.
The additional funds would be used to fit out the basement of The Watershed Building at 121 West State for a new restaurant by the Bickering Twins, and renovation of former Ithaca Journal space (123 West State) to connect it to Press Bay Alley. The Journal renovation would add an elevator and create 5,000 SF of first-floor retail as well as 10,000 SF of second-floor flex office space. The building Urban Core purchased at 108-114 West Green would not only be renovated for the aforementioned micro-retail on the first floor, but also include four below-market rate one-bedroom apartments on the second floor.
On the outside, new sidewalks, curbing, bike infrastructure, street furniture and “parklets” would be built to allow for a lively pedestrian space. The new plaza, called “Press Bay Court”, would have flexible outdoor seating for outdoor festivals and performances. Basically, take all the unconventional but interesting parts of Press Bay Alley and The Watershed, and quadruple it as part of a rehab to create additional, interconnected small-scale mixed uses.
The IURA’s initial rating of the submission was quite positive – experienced local developer, good track record, applied for additional funding opportunities (such as PACE funding for energy efficiency), and it’s all fully taxable.
143 East State Street (The Andrus Block, a.k.a. Home Dairy Building)
Over on the Commons, Jonathan Jedd and Robert Masse, members of the Twelve Tribes religious group that ran the Maté Factor restaurant, have submitted a proposal to rehab ca. 1871 143 East State Street for a 6,288 SF bakery/restaurant on the lower two floors (possibly Yellow Deli, but not stated in the document) and 3,888 SF for unaffiliated office tenants on the upper floors. The work would involve exterior masonry cleaning/re-pointing, window and roof replacement, and interior rehab to connect upper floor space and install a freight elevator. $795,000 of the $884,000 project would be covered by the Restore NY grant, with the Twelve Tribes putting up roughly the bare minimum required by the program.
While the IURA likes the site’s visibility and the rehab of a historic building, the agency noted it was unclear if it would result in new tenants or job creation, and they dinged the project for the low funding match.
120 East Green Street (Green Street Garage Redevelopment
We’ve tapped some keys about this comparative mega-project already, but this application offers additional information. The Green Street Garage redevelopment technically counts since it involved a rehab of the garage. The gist of the project is the same as previously reported, although a few details have been clarified or released for the first time. The number of apartments has been revised to 365 units, and the estimated project cost is $118.8 million, which would make it either the first or second-most expensive non-Cornell project in the city’s history, depending on the final cost for Collegetown Terrace. The project includes 524,000 SF of residential space, the 30,000 SF conference center, 3,700 SF of Green Street retail and 180,000 SF for the rehabbed parking garage.
Unsurprisingly, the project is seeking the maximum $1 million that can be funded – Ithaca Associates estimates their equity investment of $41.58 million. A real estate equity investment is a lot being a stock shareholder in a company; in this case, Ithaca Associates would own about 35% of the project, and the rest will be offered to and funded by interested investors, like wealthy private individuals or Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs).
The IURA likes this project quite a bit, but given the request for proposals and all the legal and bureaucratic work yet to be done, they felt it was a little early in the game to recommend this project, when other applications were further along and more likely to commence construction next spring. They would also like it if they could see some numbers/percentages for affordable housing units in the multi-building complex.
310 West State Street
310 West State Street is a 4,500 SF historic house that has unfortunately fallen on hard times. It was once owned by the Salvation Army next door, but it was not taken care of and fell into disrepair. The current owner, a downstate businessman, bought it from the Salvation Army without realizing just how bad the deterioration is, and is now trying to sell it. Some city officials have expressed concern that, like the carriage house that once existed at the rear of the property, if the building gets mothballed again, its structural integrity may be at risk.
A newly established non-profit called “The Reach Project Inc.” is seeking to buy the building, describing it as “an ideal location for expanding harm reduction services for individuals that use drugs.” If anyone was wondering where that safe injection facility for heroin was going to go, The Reach Facility would eventually like to build that on the footprint of the former carriage house behind the building. In the short term, 310 West State itself would be used for medication assisted treatment, Hepatitis C treatment, PrEP and 9 bedrooms / 2,000 SF of inclusive housing.
All exterior renovation plans, including the safe injection facility, would have to be approved the the Ithaca Landmarks Preservation Commission. The Reach Project’s backers write “{t}his project represents an unprecedented opportunity to reduce the incidence of overdoses in Tompkins County by offering a comprehensive array of harm reduction services in a single location.”
“Reach on State Street” is seeking $750,000 in Restore NY grant funds, with a $250,000 match on their end for a $1 million renovation/reconstruction project. The IURA noted that’s too big of a request, because funding is limited for projects with small square footage – the maximum allowed for a 4,500 SF building in the Southern Tier is $590,000. While the agency values the potential renovation and finds the proposed use fitting with the city’s public health goals, Reach is a first-time developer, the project would be tax-exempt, and it might get dinged because Reach doesn’t own the building yet.
And the selected applicants are…
After review of the four submissions on Tuesday, the IURA’s Economic Development Committee (IURA EDC) nominated two plans to draw up final submissions by December. Those are Urban Core LLC’s plan for the 100 Block of West State Street, and The Reach Project for 310 West State Street.