Ithacating in Cornell Heights

Normally construction sites get updates every two months. But at the INHS Hancock project site, things are getting really interesting in a short time.

First, the main apartment building. In just the past month, section “A”, the southernmost wing, has been wrapped in Blueskin, roofed, and the windows have been fitted. Answering a question from a few months back, it looks like the Blueskin’s purpose is to be the water/vapor membrane under the brick. The section of “A” under the weatherproof plastic tenting is being bricked – a few loose bricks can be seen in the last photos through holes in the plastic. Not only do the workers appreciate some protection from the elements, brickwork requires temperatures to be kept above freezing so that the water in the mortar doesn’t freeze out, so not only is there plastic wrap, Lecesse has also deployed portable heaters. Section “B” will follow with the Blueskin sheathing, roofing and window-fitting, and then “C” and “D”, which host the indoor garage (hence the CMUs) and are still being framed out.

The five rental townhouses have a typical wood-frame build-out – first comes wood framing and roofing, then tar papered and shingling, housewrapping and window fitting. Interestingly, the seven for-sale townhouses (collectively referred to as “202 Hancock”) are using Huber ZIP sheathing panels, which the rentals did not. The Hancock street trio of homes have been framed but not roofed, while the Lake Avenue quartet are still being framed out, awaiting the rest of their roof trusses. The insides of the for-sale homes are still just bare stud walls at this point, while the rentals are probably far enough along that most utility rough ins have been completed, and sheetrock is being hung in the units. All in all, Lecesse Construction and their subcontractors have been moving at a very good clip over the past month or so.

A construction loan filing on January 23rd states Tompkins Trust lent INHS $1,581,796 to finance the 202 Hancock units. The total cost (hard and soft) of the seven for-sale units is estimated at $2.36 million. The five two bedroom units (1,147 SF) will be sold for about $114,000, and two three-bedroom units (1,364 SF) for $136,000, to qualified applicants making 60-80% of local AMI, or $37,000-$49,000/year.

For the sake of comparison, the apartment building and for-sale units are partially financed with a $7,790,511 loan from a Citibank fund – through an LLC, Citibank bought the low-income housing tax credits (LIHTCs) awarded to the project by New York State. The apartment building’s total cost comes to $13.8 million, with the rest financed through INHS’s money, federal tax credits, housing grants and a low-interest loan from the state’s housing division (NYSHCR).

Renters or homeowners interested in obtaining a unit can fill out an inquiry form here. The rentals will be ready for occupancy by August 1st, 2017, and the for-sale units are looking at a November 2017 completion.