Rockland Looks to Spark Affordable Housing Development

"We are asking the Rockland County Legislature and the New York Legislature to give us permission to become the first county in the state to extend incentives currently offered to businesses to developers of affordable housing," Vanderhoef said. "This is an innovative, creative way to encourage the development of more affordable housing in Rockland County." He said that if the proposal is enacted, it could serve as a model for other counties throughout the state. County officials said that Rockland would be the first county in New York State to specifically amend its IDA laws to cover affordable housing ventures.

Under the proposal, the IDA could offer sales tax incentives on construction materials, an exemption on the mortgage recording tax and the right to allow the developer to negotiate a Payment in Lieu of Taxes agreement with municipalities.

Holly Freedman, executive director of the IDA, said that the shortage of affordable housing is a critical issue in Rockland County, as it is in many other regions in the New York metro area. "We are certainly not facing this issue alone," she said.

The median single-family home price in Rockland County was $366,750 for February 2004. In the past two years, the median price for a home in Rockland has skyrocketed 30.3%, according to figures released recently by the New York State Association of Realtors.

Freedman, who also serves as president of the Rockland Economic Development Corp., added that by offering the same incentives to developers of affordable housing as those who are proposing commercial ventures, the county would be helping businesses attract and retain qualified workers.

IDA chairman Eric Dranoff said that if the home rule proposal is approved by the Rockland County Legislature and adopted by the New York State Legislature, the IDA would then hold public hearings and seek input from every taxing jurisdiction to ascertain the guidelines for eligibility as well as the definition of what affordable housing price limitations might be. In addition, under the proposed rule, mixed-use projects could also be eligible as well as housing developments that contain only a percentage of affordable units.

"This new affordable housing initiative is a first step and hopefully a catalyst for the development of additional initiatives from other interested parties," Dranoff said.