Joy Construction principal Eli Weiss, 375 West 207th Street in Inwood and Maddd Equities CEO Jorge Madruga (Getty, Maddd Equities)
Six years after purchasing the site, Maddd Equities has finally received approval from the Department of Buildings for a 611-unit affordable housing project in Inwood once jeopardized by the legal fight over the neighborhood’s rezoning.
After Maddd acquired the site for $4.25 million in 2015, plans for the project — made in conjunction with Joy Construction — were first filed three years ago. Controversy surrounding Inwood’s rezoning put the project in doubt prior to last week’s approval, first reported by Crain’s.
The plans call for two towers of completely affordable housing at 373 West 207th Street, along with 60,000 square feet of commercial space. Included in the towers would be laundry, a fitness center and outdoor recreation space.
The 686,000-square foot project was imperiled in 2019 after a judge overruled a rezoning plan in Inwood first approved by City Council the previous year. The city appealed, resulting in a reversal of the judge’s decision and reinstatement of the rezoning plan for Inwood, hampering the efforts of activists who believe minority residents could be displaced by new housing.
While approval on the project is a key step for Sherman Creek North Cove, as the building is dubbed, construction can’t begin quite yet. The Department of Housing Preservation and Development has yet to release $300 million in funding for the project, according to Crain’s.
Depending on when the financing is made available, the developers hope to begin construction by the end of the year. Under that timeline, construction would end by June 2024. Maddd Equities purchased the building in 2015 for $4.25 million.
Maddd Equities and Joy Construction, frequent partners, also recently filed plans on a mixed-use building in downtown Brooklyn at 202 Tillary Street. Those plans include 465 apartments in a structure spanning 436,600 square feet, as well as 4,000 square feet of retail space and 40 to 50 parking spots.
[Crain’s] — Holden Walter-Warner
