Leviticus provided a $752,625 predevelopment loan to the Bridge to support the construction of Bishop House, a new affordable and supportive housing facility in New York City. It is the latest step in a productive partnership that we are building with the highly experienced supportive housing provider.
The Bridge was established in 1954 as a self-help organization for adults suffering from mental illness. Today, the agency operates more than 40 programs in the Bronx, Brooklyn, and Manhattan that provide affordable housing, mental health services, substance abuse treatment, and vocational training and job placement to nearly 3,000 people each year.
The Bridge acquired the site for Bishop House when it formed a strategic alliance in 2016 with Weston United, a Harlem-based nonprofit housing and social services provider. The Bridge plans to demolish the existing building on the property and create an 88-unit facility to serve homeless adults with serious mental illness, individuals returning to the community from incarceration, and low-income seniors.
The new Bishop House will provide 71 supportive studio apartments, 16 one-bedroom apartments for seniors with incomes at or below 60 percent of the area median income, and a superintendent’s apartment.
In addition, Bishop House will have a community room, an office suite for supportive services staff, a computer lab and library, a laundry room, and an outdoor deck for recreational and social activities. The building will also include a variety of green features, such as high efficiency HVAC systems, Energy Star appliances, solar panels, and a green roof covered with vegetation.
Bishop House will offer its residents the opportunity to live in safe, affordable housing for as long as they wish. Our predevelopment financing for this project was the third loan we have made to The Bridge. We are proud to partner with them on this very important project and to help them advance their mission of providing essential services to some of New York City’s most vulnerable residents.
