Housing Visions presents 26-unit supportive housing plan for 197 State Street; Planning Board sets public hearing and tables application

Housing Visions presented plans Wednesday to demolish the existing building at 197 State Street and build a new four-story, approximately 26,492-square-foot structure with 26 one-bedroom apartments, and the Auburn Planning Board set a public hearing and tabled the application for further review.

Chris Trevisotti, vice president of Housing Visions, said the nonprofit worked with Cayuga County and the City of Auburn on the site and received a Restore New York grant award through Empire State Development (ESD) Round 6 in 2023 for $1.5 million. The development team said they initially pursued rehabilitation using federal and state historic tax credits but the State Historic Preservation Office determined the building had lost the majority of its historic fabric during prior alterations and was not eligible for those credits; Housing Visions then sought permission to demolish.

The project proposes 26 one-bedroom apartments, with 12 set aside as permanent supportive housing: eight units for Cayuga Health Network and four units operated by Housing Visions’ Connect supportive-housing initiative for young adults aging out of foster care. Trevisotti described a proposal that would place property-management and case-management…