The Gateway Lofts project that has been discussed multiple times at multiple different meetings in the city and county in recent week after a few years in limbo when a primary funder left the project. Planning Commission members approved the project during a meeting Tuesday following one more presentation by the Gateway Lofts project team.

Southern Tier Environments for Living is proposing to renovate the Gateway Center, which is the former Chautauqua Hardware factory, at 31 Water St., into a 110 unit, multi-family affordable housing complex, which will be anchored by supportive wrap-around services. Of the 110 units, 56 units will be for individuals with special needs. The multi-million project is a collaboration among Community Helping Hands, the YWCA of Jamestown, and STEL, and has been in the works since 2020. In 2020, the project was expected to cost $42 million. Since then, the project cost has risen to $77 million.

Dianne Konik with the Phillips Lytle law firm, representing Southern Tier Environments For Living, the organization doing the project, began the presentation by saying March 5 was the last time they presented to the commission, and was also the day the zoning variances were approved by the city’s Zoning Board of Appeals as well. Since then, Konik said it was requested that the Planning Commission sees some site plans for storage of snow removal equipment, as well as providing the Lakefront Water Assessment Form.

“In terms of today, we felt like we provided a … wholesome presentation and this is a reactive reuse of the building,” Konik said. “It is a building to provide supportive housing for those with special needs and low income housing. It’s also a $3 million Brownfield Clean Up Project.”

Pictured are members of the team working on the Gateway Lofts project, made up of Dianne Konik, Steven Ald and Amber White? (couldn’t confirm this name) as they present to the city planning commission on the project. Screenshot courtesy of the city of Jamestown’s website

This follows an agreement for the Brownfield Clean Up with the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation. STEL Director of Real Estate Development Steven Ald said the state DEC is known nationwide for being very strict and are often accused of driving manufacturing out of the state, and that while they may be business unfriendly, children are a priority.

“If you are worried about children, the DEC is great,” Ald said. “They may be business unfriendly but children are at the top of their priority list. They are not going to let us put children in this building at any kind of risk. And that’s just the DEC, there’s also involved in this project the New York State Housing and Finance Agency, who have their own environmental standards which are higher than the DEC.”

These extra requirements from this agency also push up the costs of some things for the project.

The building has been tested and evaluated for lead, and Ald said they would not have been accepted into the Brownfield Clean Up Program without the ability to show that they know where the problems in the building are and that they have the budget and ability to fix it.

The commission also briefly talked about the possibility of the building being on the flood plain before approving the site plan for the Gateway Lofts.