Controversial affordable housing project in East Northport gains new developer

The controversial Matinecock Court affordable housing project in East Northport will be built after all — but with revisions that include no rental units, according to the developer.

At a virtual community meeting Tuesday, Levittown-based developer Peter G. Florey said his company would build 146 cooperative units, replacing the proposed mixed-use development of 146 rental units and owner-occupied condominiums for the 14.5-acre property at Pulaski and Elwood roads.

The announcement came just months after the previous developer of the project signaled he would not be going forward with the community that was first proposed in 1978. His company, he said, has had "much success" in a similar co-op community it developed in Melville called Highland Green.

"It’s a much simpler setup and makes it much easier to manage over the long term," said Florey, a principal with D and F Development Group, regarding the change of plans. "We weren’t really thrilled about with the combination of rentals and condos under one legal structure."

A groundbreaking is expected in June 2022 and construction will take about two years to complete, he said. Units will be distributed via a lottery and eligibility will be based on median income, household and unit size.

The East Northport property is owned by Greenlawn-based Housing Help, Inc., whose officials and Mitch Pally, CEO of the Long Island Builders Institute, joined Florey on the call.

The development was the subject of a 2000 federal fair housing settlement between the Town of Huntington and Housing Help, Inc. Because the latest proposal amends that agreement, the town and planning boards must sign off on the changes.

The town board must approve the change from a mix of rental and homeowner units to cooperatives as well as changes in how the development will be taxed.

The project was opposed for decades by the community. The Huntington branch of the NAACP sued the town over violations of the federal Fair Housing Act, saying affordable housing should be made available townwide. The case made it to the U.S. Supreme Court, which upheld a lower-court ruling that the town had violated the Fair Housing Act.

In December, the previous developer Les Bluestone, who had been working in partnership with Greenlawn-based Matinecock Court Housing Development Fund Corp., cited insufficient financial support and cost escalations magnified by the pandemic for not going forward with the project.

Pally said it was one of the most important regional workforce housing projects.

"It's a 100 percent affordable project of which there are not many on Long Island," he said. "It sends a message to everyone that no matter how long it takes, a project is going to be built."