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Haverstraw Town Supervisor Howard Phillips Continues To Rail Against Affordable Housing Project; Calls ESD’s Involvement a “Communist Takeover”
By Tina Traster
Once again, Haverstraw Town Supervisor Howard Phillips is hoping to derail a transformative waterfront redevelopment in the Village of Haverstraw but this time he doesn’t hold the levers of power.
That did not stop him from offering a fusillade of comments and complaints about the proposed Chair Factory development, a mixed-use affordable housing project, during a public hearing held Monday by Empire State Development via ZOOM. After years of frustrating the developers’ ability to get the Town of Haverstraw to agree to a PILOT (payment in lieu of taxes) program, the developers found a way around the obstacle. Empire State Development (ESD), an economic development arm of New York State, will acquire the 14-acre fallow property from the village and issued a ground lease to the development team.
ESD stepped in because Gov. Kathy Hochul has made the critical need for affordable housing a keystone issue.
Phillips, who dominated the two-hour hearing, complained falsely that the plan doesn’t have a cost analysis or a “structure,” and that the town hadn’t been given a chance to review the plan. He also claimed the school district is not on board with the PILOT program but at least two sources said the district is planning to vote on an agreed-upon PILOT plan at its Feb. 3 board meeting.
“I’d like someone to explain to us why you are usurping our home rule,” Phillips said, in the hearing. “We are at a very big disadvantage because we don’t know the financial structure.”
Phillips has tried to use the cudgel of his town power to frustrate MPact Collective LLC, of Huntington Station, Long Island, a co-developer with Penrose NY LLC, by withholding a PILOT, along with other developers of affordable housing in the village.
“It’s been a long time coming,” said Ryan Porter, a principal with MPact Collective, after the hearing. “We’re looking forward to working with great partners.” Porter said he expected construction would begin this summer.
Like a comment right out of the MAGA playbook, Phillips added, “This is something Communist governments do – they walk in and take over and decide what you’re going to receive.”
Nearly a dozen of the roughly 40 attendees at the two-hour hearing praised the proposal, which will transform the weed-choked rodent-infested Chair Factory site on the Hudson River into a 450-unit mixed-used development (70 percent of units will be affordable including set asides for veterans, seniors and those below an income threshold ). The project includes commercial space and a bi-level structured parking garage for the town’s workforce, veterans, and seniors. The plan also calls for floodplain mitigation, and four acres of public parkland.
“We have been proposing this for four plus years, “said Village of Haverstraw Mayor Michael Kohut. “Sure there are issues raised in any project with traffic and demand for services. But this project is transformative for the village and the greater area. It will bring high quality housing to the community. It will allow young people to remain in the community. It will provide ongoing jobs and expanded waterfront access on four acres of parkland.”
There is broad support in Rockland County and in the state for the The Chair Factory project, which would clean up riverfront property, provide affordable housing, and stimulate economic vitality in the village. Several proponents of the project spoke at the hearing.
“This area needs to be redeveloped; it’s a dump,” said Steve Medwin. “This will bring new people. And I’m looking forward to nice parkland.”
Lauren Schimko agreed.
“I’m in support of this endeavor,” she said. “The Chair Factory site has been rotting away for years,” saying it’s infested with rodents and attracts criminal activity. “There had been no viable plan before this one.”
Stephen Reich, the business manager for Laborers’ Local 754, spoke in favor the project but sought assurances that union members, especially younger ones, will have the opportunity to work on constructing the project.
Earlier this month, the village won a $10 million state economic development grant for its Chair Factory project to “support a public/private partnership for redevelopment for a shovel-ready project to transform a derelict industrial site into a community anchor.” Proponents of the project expect the development to catalyze economic revitalization, improve public access to the waterfront, and serve as a placemaking anchor for the downtown area.
“Empire State Development is working to keep the Chair Factory redevelopment on track and moving forward,” said an ESD spokesperson. “ESD will review the project and consider adoption of a General Project Plan to advance a long-planned, locally approved development that delivers much-needed housing and economic benefits to Rockland County. The project enjoys strong local support, and ESD will continue working with the community and all parties involved to help ensure this transformative project moves forward.”
The ESD will also declare itself lead agency for SEQRA (the State Environmental Quality Review Act) on the project this week, according to sources. Under its umbrella, the site will initially become tax exempt, facilitating the developers’ ability to secure financing.
The ESD will assume primary responsibility for coordinating and conducting the environmental review process under SEQRA. This designation grants ESD significant authority, allowing it to streamline approvals and potentially bypass certain local land-use and zoning laws. The project, as designed, is zoning compliant and has village approvals in place.
ESD can issue bonds, grant loans, and offer tax exemptions and abatements to finance the project, acting as a “one-stop shop” for development and funding. ESD centralizes control over the project’s development and environmental compliance, giving it maximum flexibility and minimal local regulatory interference.
Later, the developers and the Rockland IDA will implement the PILOT (payment in lieu of taxes) programs that the village, county and North Rockland Central School District have agreed to – and offer the same to the Town of Haverstraw.
Last January, the Rockland County Industrial Development Agency (IDA) authorized a raft of benefits for the $340 million project, including $1.65 million exemption from mortgage tax recording, an $18.5 million exemption from sales tax, and the approval to participate in a PILOT program.
PILOTs schedule payments to taxing jurisdictions over a long term. They provide certainty of revenue for the county, town, village, and school district, though the amounts are typically lower than assessments based on fair market value. The incentive is necessary to make a project financially feasible for project lenders, not to enhance the profitability to the developer.
Rockland County is in dire need of affordable housing. There is a deficit of 4,230 affordable units for those making under $60,000 annually, according to the Rockland County Housing Needs Assessment, prepared by Hudson Valley Pattern for Progress. The report says 57 percent of Rockland homes are single-family detached homes – unaffordable to the average resident. The single-family average sales price is $683,000. A median household income of nearly $100,000 can qualify for a $260,000 mortgage. And fewer than 2 percent of single-family homes sold are less than $300,000 according to the 2022 Multiple Listings Service.
In a letter sent to ESD, Magdalena Truchan wrote, “This project will enable many struggling families in New York to find affordable housing. Additionally, it will draw economic development, new businesses, jobs, and tourism. This project will be a wonderful addition to the North Rockland community. We can’t do it without Governor Hochul’s help.”
