Bristal assisted living facility in Westbury would make 20% of its units 'affordable' in return for tax breaks

The Bristal Assisted Living facility in Westbury would designate 20% of its apartments as “affordable” for 15 years in return for tax breaks from Nassau County during the period, officials said.

The senior-citizen care facility, at 117 Post Ave., has 180 units. It was constructed in 2001 with tax aid and bond financing from the county’s Industrial Development Agency.

The tax incentives ended in 2017, and now B2K Development is asking the IDA for more support to purchase the Westbury Bristal for $44 million. B2K, when it was called the Engel Burman Group, built the facility, but it has changed hands several times. 

Under the proposal submitted to the IDA, the Westbury Bristal’s affordable units would be reserved for seniors with income of not more than 50% of the Area Median Income or $53,900 per person, based on the AMI for this year, according to Peter L. Curry, a real estate attorney for Jericho-based B2K.

“We ensure that the real estate portion of a resident’s monthly fee is not more than 30% of the annual AMI level,” he told Newsday. “The other portion of their monthly fee includes non-real estate related quality-of-life amenities, such as housekeeping, meals, recreation opportunities and related services.”

B2K did not provide a projection of what the total monthly charges would be for the proposed affordable units.

Overall rents at the Westbury Bristal, under the current owner, are between $2,495 and $13,117 per month, with the average being $10,068 before discounts are applied, according to estimates from ElderLife Financial Lending LLC, a Tennessee-based financial services firm.

In the metropolitan area, the average rent for a private, one-bedroom apartment in an assisted living center is $6,508 a month, based on a 2023 survey by Genworth Financial Inc. in Virginia. 

B2K hopes that by offering affordable units in the Westbury Bristal, it can raise the occupancy level from 70% to more than 80%, which is the average among the 16 Bristal locations on Long Island, according to Curry, the company’s attorney.

If the requested tax breaks are approved, the Westbury Bristal would become the sixth Bristal locally to offer affordable units. The others are in Bethpage, East Northport, Holtsville, Lake Grove and Sayville, he said.

A B2K subsidiary manages all the Bristals on the Island, but the Westbury Bristal would become the first to be 100% owned by B2K. Most of the properties are jointly owned with the investment firm Harrison Street Real Estate.

Besides the affordable units, B2K plans to make more than $3.3 million in improvements to the Westbury Bristal and add eight jobs, paying an average $51,000 per year, to the workforce of 67 people.

A decade ago, the facility had about 100 employees, based on state records.

B2K has applied to the IDA for a sales-tax exemption of up to $215,933 on the purchase of construction materials and furnishings, up to $330,600 off the mortgage-recording tax, and more than $40 million in tax-exempt bond financing.

The developer also wants 15 years of property-tax savings; taxes are now $887,127 per year after a reduction in the assessed value for the 2024-25 tax year, according to the application for IDA aid.

On March 27, B2K principal Steven Krieger told the IDA meeting that without the agency’s assistance “we’re not going to purchase” the Westbury Bristal.

Minutes later, the IDA board voted unanimously to begin negotiations with B2K.

In 2013, B2K’s predecessor dropped its request for 10 additional years of IDA tax breaks as part of a plan to purchase the Westbury Bristal and create three jobs.

The move came after the IDA declined to vote on the request, which had been denounced by a bipartisan group of politicians, school officials and Village of Westbury residents. Nearly 100 people turned out to a November 2012 public hearing, where some said the village couldn’t forgo more than $2 million in tax revenue.

“This is not the intention of what the IDA is supposed to do,” Westbury Mayor Peter Cavallaro said at the time.

By James T. Madore

james.madore@newsday.comJamesTMadore

James T. Madore writes about Long Island business news including the economy, development, and the relationship between government and business. He previously served as Albany bureau chief.