UPDATED, 4:10 p.m., Jan. 10: Affordable housing developer MDG Design + Construction scooped up a 99-year ground lease for a 25-building, city-owned complex in Far Rockaway for $109 million, according to property records filed with the city Tuesday.
The buildings collectively have 1,395 rental apartments. The complex at 430 Beach 54th Street has 582 units across 10 buildings, while the one at 439 Beach 54th Street has 813 units across 15 buildings.
The developer also secured $384.8 million in loans from the New York State Housing Finance Agency, documents show.
MDG, led by Michael Rooney, has “created or preserved” 14,300 affordable housing units across the city, according to the website. In the 2013, the company was accused of cheating workers out of wages on a $60 million federal housing project on the Lower East Side. The same year, the New York City Housing Authority tapped the company to repair 874 of its apartments. Emails released last year show the MDG retained James Capalino, the lobbyist connected to the Rivington House scandal.
In a statement, NYCHA said the lease means the buildings at Ocean Bay Houses will receive extensive renovations and repairs.