Monday, January 20, 2025
BOSFA Properties, a developer based in Lawrence, is planning to transform the flood-damaged and long-vacant Moxey Rigby public housing complex in Freeport into a new 200-unit apartment complex called the Gardens at Buffalo.
The original Moxey Rigby complex, at 80-84 Albany Ave. and 17-33 Buffalo Ave., completed in 1958 and named for the first African-American judge ever elected in Nassau County, was a cornerstone of the community for over 50 years. It was rendered uninhabitable by Superstorm Sandy in 2012, and its residents were relocated to “the New Moxey Rigby,” at 195 E. Merrick Road. The Gardens at Buffalo will rise on the site of the original complex.
“The village put out a request for proposals about two years ago for the development of what is known as the old Moxey Rigby property,” Village Attorney Howard Colton explained. “We had two individuals, Bartone Properties and BOSFA — they both responded to the request and they both made presentations to the board of trustees. And based upon the presentations … BOSFA was selected.”
The developer purchased the property for $17.5 million in 2023.
“They’re in the process of developing 200 units at the site,” Colton said of BOSFA. “One hundred and fifty will be workforce housing, another 25 units, roughly, will be dedicated for seniors, and the other 25 will be dedicated for veterans.” There will be a mix of studio, one-, two- and three-bedroom rental units, and either 20 or 40 units will be designated for individuals earning no more than 50 or 60 percent of Nassau County’s median income.
The project has an expected completion date of July 2026.
Colton also stressed the importance of the project for Freeport’s future. “This is a multi-generational building, which will have our children in it, our seniors and our veterans, keeping them on Long Island,” he said.
BOSFA has received zoning and site plan approval, and hopes to make use of as much of the existing structure as possible, with redesigned living spaces within. There are also plans for a new parking garage.
The development is economically significant for the village, Colton added, close to major roads, public transportation and local amenities.
“We’ve entered into a community agreement, or services agreement, with BOFSA, and they will be paying their full share of taxes,” he said.
While the developer has applied to the Town of Hempstead Industrial Development Agency for a payment in lieu of taxes agreement, “that’s only for their school tax, Nassau County and town tax, and not the village …,” Colton said. “We have entered into a separate agreement with them that they will pay their correct and full share of the village tax.”
“I love Freeport,” Danny Goldstein, founder and managing partner of BOFSA Properties, told the Herald when asked about the attractiveness of the property for development. “I love the area.”
“(It) gave an opportunity for us to take something, I would say, old and make something new out of it, something even beautiful,” Goldstein added. “I’ve always believed that the tenants or people have a right to live in a beautiful area, beautiful apartments. And, you know, we want to build something that will be very memorable for Freeport.”
He said he was excited about the property’s future as multi-generational housing. “It becomes like a community,” Goldstein said. “Not just like an old-age home where you have seniors. So I believe in the long term. The future is multi-generational, because you want to be in the same building where not only your family is, where your grandparents are, and you have your children living in there.
“You want to be in a community where it’s not just, during working hours everyone’s gone. Here you have people there during the day … It’s a live community.”
BOFSA expects to spend roughly $80 million on construction, for which it is seeking investors for tax-exempt bond financing. Colton and Goldstein expressed confidence in the company’s ability to finance the project, explaining that using bonds instead of a mortgage for a project of this size is common.
“I am looking forward to the development of this property in the near future,” said Mayor Kennedy about the project. “and anticipate substantial tax revenue for Freeport.”
