AvalonBay Huntington Station applications being accepted
An artist's rendering illustrates the proposed AvalonBay affordable housing project in Huntington Station. Credit: Handout
Applications are being accepted for a lottery for one of the 43 affordable rental units being offered in the new AvalonBay Huntington Station development, town officials announced Thursday.
Monthly rents for an affordable apartment -- part of the 379-unit community under construction on East Fifth Street -- will start at $932 for a one-bedroom, $1,148 for a two-bedroom and $1,646 for a three-bedroom unit.
"This is a fantastic opportunity for people to become part of what will become a signature community in Huntington Station," Town Supervisor Frank Petrone said in a news release. "I encourage interested persons to apply now to be part of the lottery that will be held to determine who will become the first tenants."
Jennifer Appel, general counsel and program adviser for the Long Island Housing partnership, said interested parties should contact the Partnership -- which is administering the program -- to have an application sent to them. Would-be tenants have until Dec. 16 to submit the application to her office.
"We're planning to hold the lottery sometime in early January, but we don't have a final date," Appel said.
Matt Whalen, a vice president with AvalonBay Communities, said he is excited to see the project nearing completion. "We have a lot of interest, and we are just thrilled with how the property has come together," Whelan said. "We're excited to work with the town on the affordable units, which we know are very much needed."
He said market rate units will also soon be available with a grand opening of the community expected in January.
The community, a mix of rentals and for-sale units, is being built on a 26.6-acre site a half-mile east of the LIRR stop in Huntington Station.
The development includes a total of 303 rental apartments and 76 for-sale town houses. Of those, 43 of the rentals and 11 of the for-sale units will be affordable. The remaining 260 apartments and 65 town houses will be offered at market rates.
The development came to widespread community attention in March 2010, when it was introduced as part of a transit-oriented district zone-change proposal that quickly met with opposition from area residents.
The proposal was voted down in September 2010, and the town board approved the scaled-down version that surfaced a few months later in June 2011.
