Affordable housing lottery open for new Westbury complex

Long Islanders now can apply to be considered for one of 18 affordable rental units at a new Westbury apartment complex that is set to open the first of its two buildings this fall. 

The Long Island Housing Partnership, which is handling the lottery application process for The Cornerstone Westbury, is accepting submissions until July 24. Priority will go to honorably discharged veterans, according to village policy.

The 130-unit project is the first development under the village’s transit-oriented development zoning, which was adopted in 2019 and designed to attract new housing at every price point to the area. The complex is under construction next to Westbury’s Long Island Rail Road station and the buildings will have the addresses 425 and 461 Railroad Ave.

For the lottery, the developers will offer eight studios, nine one-bedroom units and a single two-bedroom apartment at a lower rental rate. Those rents will range from $2,021 for a studio to $2,152 for a one-bedroom and up to $2,567 for the two-bedroom.

The first building will have 72 units. The second building will have 58 units and is slated to open early next year, according to the developer. 

The lottery will be used to find tenants for the first building's 10 affordable units and the second building's eight affordable units.

The applicants’ names are randomized and placed on a waiting list in a ranked order via lottery. The building owner then verifies eligibility for those ranked higher before approving an applicant for a lease.

The affordable units — which are in high demand — will be available to households with incomes at or below 80% of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development area median income for Long Island, according to the lottery application. 

As of June 29, the Long Island Housing Partnership had received more than 500 lottery applications for the 18 apartments, according to James Britz, the nonprofit's executive vice president. He said it would take about a month to pick the winners.

“From the time Westbury started in 2019 with their new zoning laws, to us standing here today about to open a building, it’s a very exciting time,” Anthony Bartone, managing partner of project developer Terwilliger & Bartone, said last week.

Westbury Mayor Peter Cavallaro said requiring affordable housing and the inclusion of a program to benefit eligible veterans is an important component of implementing the applicable zoning laws.

“All of Long Island and our region in general has a housing deficit and an affordable housing deficit. Westbury is no different,” he added in a statement.

But the mayor also highlighted the village as a viable location for transit-oriented housing that can "help contribute to a solution."

For more information on the lottery application process, visit lihp.org.