WWW.QNS.COM RIDGEWOOD TIMES JULY 25, 2019 3
Con Ed out of reach for housing project
BY MARK HALLUM
MHALLUM@SCHNEPSMEDIA.COM
@MARKUUSAN
In building a new affordable housing
project in Forest Hills, Phipps Houses
is looking to Con Edison to provide the
infrastructure to power for their lives of
their future tenants.
But Con Edison is telling the developers
to dig up to 300 yards across a former
NYCHA complex in order to connect to the
nearest power source on the south side of
62nd Drive, according to Phipps and elected
offi cials who blasted the utilities provider
on Thursday.
Adam Weinstein, the president of
Phipps Houses, said they are looking build
442-units of aff ordable housing in three
separate buildings just south of Horace
Harding Expressway.
Between 62nd Drive and Forest Hills
Co-op 108-03 62nd Dr., Phipps would need
to dig a trench to another property in order
to make the development a reality and have
little cooperation from the ConEdison in
establishing better point-of-Access.
“It is a work of alchemy – it’s a small miracle
that we’re here building aff ordable housing
in a rapidly unaff ordable neighborhood in
New York,” Weinstein said. “And yet, the one
thing you should be able to count on, a utility
– a monopoly on power is getting in the way…
ConEd’s logic would be to have us connect to
a box that is two or three blocks away.”
Weinstein said they fi led a complaint
with the Public Service Commission, a form
of administrative litigation, to see that the
new point-of-access and Assemblyman
Daniel Rosenthal issued a letter in April to
ConEdison which was not responded to.
Weinstein argued that although they
manage the co-op, the property does not
belong to them and that they do not have
a right trench through what is currently
green, community space.
“ConEd gets paid a lot of money to provide
that power,” Weinstein said. “If you consider
their capital investment in infrastructure,
which btw can serve other developments
as well not just ours – but just taking the
revenue from our development pays them
more than just their 9 percent return
on capital. So in fact, this development is
subsidizing other rate payers. It pays about
a 15 percent return on capital.”
Apart from the letter, Rosenthal said there
have been email exchanges with Con Edison
but no progress.
“Con Edison believes that a brand new
442-unit aff ordable housing development
does not constitute a new point-of-access to
accommodate three buildings. Rather they
are demanding Phipps Housing pay for the
power line,” Rosenthal said. “Our city is
in dire need of aff ordable housing and we
don’t want Con Edison to be the reason that
stops this.”
Here is a pricing breakdown for the
development:
Phipps plans to make all the 442 units
available to low income tenants, but says
half those will be available to tenants who
meet less than 60 percent of the area median
income (AMI) as well as a small formerly
homeless component.
City-wide AMI for New York City for
three person is about $96,100 which went
up from about $84,000 the year before.
“I get emails three or four times a day from
Con Ed, but we sent them a letter in April and
they haven’t responded,” state Senator Toby
Stavisky said. “ConEdison has to understand
that there are people involved in addition to
properties. They have to make it easier for
people to cope with the problems of living
in New York City.”
ConEdison did return a request for
comment before press time.
As of Tuesday, the utilities company
was working to restore power to much
Kew Gardens aft er residents of 118th Street
between Curzon Road and Metropolitan
Avenue. Residents reported not have A/C,
or running water for over 36 hours.
Assemblyman Daniel Rosenthal and state Senator Toby Stavisky.
Photo: Mark Hallum/QNS
/WWW.QNS.COM
link
