City Halts Funds For Astoria Affordable Housing Project: Report

ASTORIA, QUEENS -- The city abruptly halted $43.5 million in public funding for an affordable housing project in Astoria just months after Mayor Bill de Blasio had a public falling out with its developer, Douglas Durst.

The Housing Development Corporation planned to issue bonds to help fund a 163-unit affordable housing building in Hallets Point, Durst's 2.4 million square-foot megacomplex project along the Queens waterfront, but abruptly pulled that money off the table in mid-November, Politico reported.

The abrupt change, just days before the a meeting slated for the bonds' approval, also put on hold Durst's agreement to fix up other public housing in Astoria with needed boiler upgrades.

"Three days prior to HDC board approval for our 100 percent affordable building's bond financing, we were notified that the bonds were no longer available to us," Durst spokesman Jordan Barowitz told Politico. "We have not heard from City Hall since then, and until we do, the future of the project is unknown."

Hallets point, Durst's first major project outside Manhattan, was slated to provide over 2,000 rental apartments - including 480 affordable housing units - in seven new buildings. The city had planned to fund an affordable building to house tenants earning up to 60 percent of the area's medium income.

A city spokeswoman did not offer Politico a clear explanation as to why the tax-exempt bonds were cut and which projects they were reallocated to, only saying they were a limited resource sought after by many.

"There are many deserving affordable housing developments that are ready to go, and we constantly make tough choices to stretch precious resources as we ensure we get the best deals for New Yorkers," HDC spokeswoman Elizabeth Rohlfing told the news outlet.

The move follows a public falling out between Durst and de Blasio that began last September, when the major penned a blog post arguing campaign donors don't get special treatment from City Hall and mentioned Durst - thought not explicitly by name - losing a bid to operate the East River Ferry as an example.

Barowitz responded to the administration with an ominous warning that "winter is coming," a phrase borrowed by HBO's "Game of Thrones."

Neither the city or Barowitz would say whether the feud and loss of funding were related, Politico reported.

Lead photo by Hans Pennink/Associated Press.