HARLEM — The city plans to transform an East Harlem city block into a 400-home affordable housing development.
The site, bordered by Madison and Park Avenues and East 111th and 112th streets, will become an affordable housing development with residents earning as little as $24,000 for a family of three, according to a request for proposals issued by the city.
The development will also include community and retail space as well as community gardens.
The city also plans to make the building eco-friendly by making it a "Passive House," which is a building standard that reduces energy consumption by as much as 75 percent, officials said. It would make it the largest Passive House in the country.
"The East 111th Street project will bring badly-needed affordable housing and incorporate community gardens, making this a place that will improve the lives of both its residents and the surrounding community,” said Mayor Bill de Blasio.
The city worked with local residents and the community board through workshops to include their recommendations in the plan for the site.
"The East 111th Street site will provide El Barrio/East Harlem with a unique opportunity to enrich our vibrant neighborhood," said Council Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito.
"Following input from the Council's East Harlem Neighborhood Plan, this project will address a variety of needs identified by our community."
The site will be developed under de Blasio’s 10-year housing plan to finance the creation and preservation of 200,000 affordable units in the city.
Bidders would be required to design, construct and manage the development.
