Jericho Project Veterans Residence to Generate Jobs in the Bronx With New Federal Stimulus Funds

NEW YORK, March 16 /PRNewswire/ -- The Jericho Project, the nationally-acclaimed nonprofit ending homelessness at its roots, has received Federal stimulus funding towards the construction of its landmark Veterans Residence providing supportive housing and state of the art counseling for veterans at Kingsbridge Terrance in the Bronx, New York.

The new construction project received $10.6-million from the Tax Credit Assistance Program (TCAP) administered by the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).  Constructed over the next 18 months, the program will generate immediate jobs for dozens of construction workers, 15 professional staff and counselors once the Veterans Residence is completed and a cascade of spending capacity supporting local retail establishments in the community. The full economic impact -- jobs and a stronger local economy -- will be felt in 2010 and 2011.

HUD provides grant funding for capital investment in Low Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) projects.  It is part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, known as the Federal stimulus project.

"This funding enables us to help our veterans rebuild their lives with dignity and compassion -- and also contribute to the economic well being of the community," said Tori Lyon, Executive Director of the Jericho Project, which began plans to help veterans returning from Iraq and Afghanistan back in 2006.  Jericho's Veterans Residences are the first dedicated residences for homeless veterans to be built in New York in over 15 years. 

At each of Jericho's two Veterans Residences in the Bronx, veterans will receive professional counseling towards employment, family reunification and mental health, including state-of-the-art programs addressing the invisible wounds of modern war, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and Traumatic Brain Injury.  Scheduled for completion in 2010 and 2011, the two new buildings will be environmentally sustainable and create a sense of community among veterans of all eras with common rooms, gardens, gyms and computer labs.

The new Residence at Kingsbridge will include 76 units and will include green design features such as a green roof, energy efficient systems and appliances and other features that will enable the building to achieve LEED certification. 

The Residence is also being funded by the New York City Department of Housing Preservation and Development (HPD), a $1-million dollar grant from the Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz Jr., and private donations.  Services funding is coming from The New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene.

The need is great: unemployment among veterans returning from Iraq and Afghanistan is exceeding 11 percent.  Some 150,000 veterans are homeless on any one night across America; and an estimated 3,500 veterans are homeless in New York City.

With five residences in Harlem and the Bronx, Jericho's model of supportive housing and counseling services that has resulted in 95 percent of its graduates to achieve independent living.

www.jerichoproject.org

SOURCE The Jericho Project