Affordable homes opened in Brooklyn's Bed-Stuy.

First-time name owners, community leaders and a unique public/private partnership of lenders, developers and public officials today celebrated the completion of 58 new, affordable two-family homes in the Bedford-Stuyvesant section of Brooklyn. Named for a local community activist, the Charles T. Hamilton Homes are located on Sumpter, McDougal, Hull and Somers Streets between Rockaway Avenue and Thomas S. Boyland Street.

The $14.3 million development is a product of the New Homes Program, an innovative, affordable housing initiative jointly sponsored by the New York City Department of Housing Preservation and Development and the New York City Housing Partnership. The program provides affordable homeownership opportunities to low- and moderate-income New Yorkers, while boosting the local economy through strategic investment in bedrock New York City neighborhoods. Leewood Real Estate Group, a Staten Island-based development organization that specializes in affordable housing, served as developer of the project.

The Charles T. Hamilton Homes lie in an area that was dominated by vacant lots just 10 years ago. A succession of Partnership/HPD developments has transformed the area, however, creating 277 new homes - 600 units - in the immediate neighborhood, with another 50 homes in construction. The Partnership/HPD program also is responsible for the construction of an additional 304 homes in the larger Bedford-Stuyvesant community. Each two-story brick home includes a three-bedroom owner's unit with two bathrooms, wall-to-wall carpeting and a private rear yard, as well as a two-bedroom rental unit.

HPD Commissioner Jerilyn Perine said, "The Charles T. Hamilton Homes are yet another example of how the public sector can stimulate affordable and quality homeownership opportunities and encourage significant private investment in New York City neighborhoods."

Added Kathryn Wylde, president and CEO of the New York City Partnership and Chamber of Commerce, "Our partnership with the government, community and private business has helped reestablish Bedford-Stuyvesant as one of New York's strongest and most historic centers of homeownership. This project, and many others like it, demonstrate the important contribution that affordable, owner-occupied housing can have on the overall health of a community."

As the nonprofit sponsor for Hamilton Homes, the New York City Housing Partnership arranged financing for the project and coordinated the development process. Funds from the City and the New York State Affordable Housing Corporation (AHC) helped reduce the costs of the homes, which sold for an average of $199,963. The homes were affordable to buyers earning between $32,000 and $70,950. The project was sponsored locally by Northeast Brooklyn Housing Development Corporation. Federal Savings provided a $9.4 million construction loan.

"Quality affordable housing helps to build a strong economic future for New York City families," said R. Randy Lee, CEO of Leewood Real Estate Group. "At the same time, homeownership contributes to a stronger community." Under the direction of R. Randy Lee, Leewood has been involved in the development of more than 600 affordable housing units in Brooklyn over the past 15 years, including such neighborhoods as Crown Heights, East New York and Coney Island.

"The New York State Affordable Housing Corporation is always delighted when we can help bring affordable housing to the people of New York. We are especially proud of this project because it brings tangible results to the people of Bedford-Stuyvesant," said chairman Jerome M. Becker.

"Providing much needed affordable housing to the New York City community gives us great pride and satisfaction," said Astoria Federal vice president Joseph Santacroce. "The dedication of all parties resulted in a project that was a well-orchestrated union of financing, construction monitoring, and management."