AFFORDABLE HOUSING COMING TO ONEONTA 

By Zach Vaccaro

ONEONTA NY— In a town where most properties only house students for a part of the year it’s easy to see how properties are quickly rented out and turned over.  “Its hard to find a place to live”, says Adrian Martinez of Oneonta. “All of the rentals are taken up by students, so for us locals it’s hard to find an affordable apartment” he also stated.  With prices sky high not many can afford a one-bedroom apartment.  Well someone hears you Adrian.

           

Housing Visions was granted $6.85 million by NY States Office of Homes & Community Renewal.  “This Housing Visions project will address critical needs in Oneonta,” said Gary Herzig, COO of Opportunities for Otsego. “We have a severe shortage of affordable housing for working families and a list of abandoned properties that grows longer every year. Throughout the planning process, I have found Housing Visions to be a reliable partner with a genuine interest in the future of the Oneonta community.”

Construction has begun all over town on 7 properties all over Oneonta, thanks to Opportunities for Otsego and Housing Visions Unlimited , INC. , of Syracuse. On track to being completed by spring 2017,the project includes houses and an apartment complex.  Oneonta Heights will feature (42) one-bedroom units; (8) two-bedroom units and (10) three-bedroom units. All units will have washer/dryer hookups.

Finding a decent place for a decent price is near impossible.  With the proximity of two colleges comes the price gauging.  Apartments that would normally be rented to locals for affordable rates are about double the monthly rate for students. Could this be due to the town zoning laws that are harbored to benefit the many large rental companies in town? Or is New York just an expensive place to live? 

The answer is both.  New York, having some of the highest property taxes in the country, has some of the highest rental rates per square foot as well. Housing Visions is doing their part to combat the sky high rental prices.