GENESEO— The Geneseo Town board plans to hear from CDS Monarch at their next meeting in regards to a new subsidized housing project on Volunteer Road.
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This project was first brought before the town board two years ago and was endorsed by the board at the time, and was initially pitched as single bedroom housing for veterans.
“I think one of the reasons that we endorsed the project to begin with is that it was for a very specific group of veterans,” said Geneseo Town Supervisor William Wadsworth. “Specifically women who had suffered some kind of abuse that were going to be in a partial care situation.”
After submitting the application for approval, CDS Monarch’s target residents became much less specific, now including all veterans as well as seniors. CDS Monarch also changed the plans for the project to include more two bedroom units after getting the town’s endorsement. The company responded to the town, saying that they could not be as restrictive about their residents as they had initially planned, but Wadsworth felt that the project was, “a sort of bait and switch.”
Additionally CDS Monarch may have more difficulty convincing the town that Geneseo needs more subsidized housing. Council Member Matthew Griffo, who was member of the board when the project was pitched two years ago, was quite vocal about his opinion on the issue.
“I don’t remember endorsing the project on Volunteer Road, but I will say that I am adamantly opposed to any more subsidized housing in the town or village of Geneseo,” said Griffo. “We have at least six projects already in our area that, for lack of a better term, negatively affect our community.”
Griffo pointed out issues relating to healthcare, law enforcement, traffic, and the use of county resources that he believes will only become more problematic with the addition of a new housing project.
CDS Monarch has been scheduled for the July 12 meeting agenda where they will be seeking a letter of support for the project, as well as potentially seeking a Payment In Lieu Of Taxes (PILOT) agreement.