Last year, MHACY and Westhab announced a partnership aimed at providing subsidies to affordable housing residents by awarding Westhab Section 8 housing vouchers supported by the Department of Housing and Urban Development. Section 8 vouchers provide critical rental subsidies to income-qualifying tenants, allowing residents to remain in their homes and increasing the stock of crucial affordable housing in the Yonkers community.
MHACY and Westhab are excited to share that as of March of this year, 67 households began receiving this critical subsidy. MHACY and Westhab plan to add an additional 33 vouchers to the program, preserving a total of 100 units of quality housing for low-income residents in Yonkers, including families with children, the elderly, and the disabled.
“The goal is to preserve affordable housing for people who may be at risk of losing their homes because their incomes are too low to afford housing in our area,’’ said Wilson Kimball, President and CEO of MHACY. “Our partnership with Westhab makes sense on so many levels. It helps support low-income residents as well as a non-profit organization that does such valuable work in our community.”
“We truly appreciate this opportunity to better serve our community. These vouchers greatly benefit our tenants and will help preserve and improve Westhab’s quality, affordable housing stock in Yonkers for the long-term,” says Westhab President & CEO Richard Nightingale.
Andrew Germansky, Senior Vice President of Real Estate for Westhab, shared that many residents living in Westhab’s affordable housing are not currently receiving subsidies. The vouchers will provide another layer of much-needed support. The additional source of income will also mean greater resources for building improvements. The partnership is part of a larger effort by Westhab, MHACY and Yonkers Mayor Mike Spano to expand affordable housing opportunities in the city.
Marc S., a Westhab tenant living in Yonkers, explains how receiving a voucher has impacted his living situation, “Westhab employees have been so helpful and quick to get things moving in the right direction, but I still struggled to pay my rent at times, especially in recent years. These vouchers are helping me tremendously. I am so grateful because this is my home, and I want to stay here.”
“Housing is key to the vitality of any city. In addition to all the new market-rate housing that is going up, we have renovated our public housing stock and are now making more affordable housing available through the use of Section 8 vouchers in partnership with building owners,’’ said Kimball. “This three-prong approach ensures that we provide a full spectrum of housing, and renew our commitment to provide safe, affordable housing for working families.’’