Op-Ed Building opportunity and serving
community through affordable housing
By Yvonne Stennett
and Jeremy Christopher
Kohomban, Ph.D.
In recent years, “development”
has become a dirty word.
And while much of the discourse
around development has been
driven by individuals advancing
bad faith arguments, some of
the criticism is valid. Too often,
developers have failed to honor
their commitments, leaving
communities feeling cheated.
These bad actors have fostered
a legitimate skepticism toward
development in communities
across the five boroughs that
hurts sincere efforts to solve
growing challenges like our city’s
housing crisis.
Moving forward in a way that
truly helps people is going to
require earning trust, and that
starts by offering a new approach.
As a collective of mission-driven
partners, we’ve advanced efforts
that do just that: designing
projects that generate beautiful
housing that’s deeply affordable
and provide community benefits
that are meaningful.
One community in which
we’ve been working for decades
and where we plan to bring 174
high-quality units of deeply
affordable housing is Inwood,
where housing is desperately
needed. From 2010 to 2020, the
total number of housing units
across Manhattan increased by
7.9 percent. In Inwood – during
that same period – the number
of new apartments increased by
a mere 2 percent, significantly
less than almost every other
neighborhood across the five
boroughs.
Photo via Getty Images
As a coalition of partners
– made up of the Community
League of the Heights, The
Children’s Village, Housing
Workshop, Alembic Community
Development, and Ranger Properties
Contributing Writers: Azad Ali, Tangerine Clarke,
Nelson King, Vinette K. Pryce, Bert Wilkinson
GENERAL INFORMATION (718) 260-2500
Caribbean L 10 ife, OCTOBER 1-7, 2021
– we are excited to play a
small part in changing the tides
in Inwood.
Coined The Eliza at the
Inwood Library, the project will
build housing above a community
treasure: The Inwood branch
of the New York Public Library
(NYPL), which after serving the
Northern Manhattan community
for decades is getting an
upgrade that is designed to meet
the evolving needs of Inwood’s
families and children. The Eliza
brings 174 deeply affordable housing
units that area residents can
be proud to call home – homes
that any one of us would be
proud to live in. The project also
brings a broad array of meaningful
community benefits.
The NYPL began serving the
Northern Manhattan neighborhood
of Inwood in 1902. Since
then, however, Inwood has
evolved with the world around
it, and the needs of local families
and children have evolved too —
particularly during the last 18
months. We live differently, we
learn differently, and the community
gathers differently.
To design a community-centered
plan that brings new affordable
units to the area, we knew
that this shifting terrain needed
to be taken into account.
So, we’re working with the
New York Public Library, city
agencies, and non-profit organizations
to build The Eliza, bringing
a 20,000-square-foot, twostory
modern library, a STEM
Learning Center, new technology,
internet and WiFi access,
a 6,800 square foot universal
Pre-K facility, and a community
center with a teaching kitchen.
The community center will
offer programs that reach children,
youth and adults of all
ages, bringing the synergy of
a modern public library team
and a community center staff
focused on one mission: the people
in our community.
These project benefits, among
various others, will allow this
longtime community resource
to continue to serve its Inwood
neighbors in a way that supports,
nourishes, and benefits
our community in a meaningful
way.
It’s often said that quality
affordable housing isn’t just
about putting a roof over someone’s
head; it’s about something
far greater – honoring an individual’s
dignity, offering a solid
foundation to lead a positive life,
creating a safe, healthy place to
raise a family and cultivating a
neighborhood that one can be
proud of, the list is endless. So,
why shouldn’t the way we build
affordable housing reflect these
factors as well?
The Eliza at the Inwood
Library offers a model for that
creative and holistic approach
– building beautiful affordable
housing that we would want for
our children and families in a
way that enhances already existing
neighborhood resources.
From our perspective — after
nearly a combined century of
working in the Inwood community
— this project represents
public-private partnership at its
best. We can’t wait to bring this
project to fruition, and we feel
blessed to have the opportunity
to continue to serve, support,
and learn from the residents
who call Inwood home.
Inwood deserves beautiful
and affordable housing. Anything
less would be an unnecessary
compromise.
Stennett is the executive
director of Community League
of the Heights and Kohomban,
Ph.D, is the president and CEO
of The Children’s Village
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