INHS seeks approvals for West State Street senior apartments and daycare; board declares lead agency

Ithaca Neighborhood Housing Services (INHS) presented its West State Street Apartments concept to the Planning and Development Board on April 22, a proposed four-story senior housing project with about 56 units and a ground-floor daycare. Board members voted unanimously to be the lead agency for environmental review.

INHS team members, including project consultants from Fisher Associates and Holt Architects, described a building that meets the street edge and places a limited amount of parking under a portion of the building at the rear. The ground-floor program would include a residential lobby and community room for INHS tenants and a separate three-classroom daycare operator with a small outdoor play area; the team said the two must have distinct entrances for safety and operational reasons.

Project consultants noted a significant site constraint: the site is in a mapped floodplain, which requires residential amenity spaces to be set above the flood elevation. "We are in a floodplain so we're challenged with the First Floor of this building," one presenter said, explaining why the residential entrance and community room will be at an elevated level and why elevator access will be provided to upper floors.

The INHS team said the project would be designed to be highly energy efficient, and they are working with NYSERDA and consultants to pursue aggressive sustainability targets, including a Passive House–level approach if feasible. The applicant said it plans to pursue funding with New York State Homes and Community Renewal (HCR) and that a timely final site plan would support an HCR application window anticipated later in the summer.

Board members raised operational and design questions: member Andy Roman asked whether INHS had considered on-site food/meal services for an older tenant population; the applicant said the community room would include a kitchenette, but full meal-production facilities were not currently proposed. Members also pressed the team on the design of exterior entry ramps versus stairs given mobility needs of an elderly population; staff and the applicant said they were exploring internal-grade solutions and trade-offs between exterior ramps and elevator access given floodplain constraints.

The board declared itself lead agency by unanimous motion (mover Andy Roman; second Elizabeth Godden). The project team asked to maintain a schedule that would support an HCR application later in the year and said they would return with more detailed civil and technical drawings and engagement materials.

Lead agency motion: moved by Andy Roman; seconded by Elizabeth Godden. Outcome: unanimous.

Sources: Presentation by Fisher Associates, Holt Architects and INHS; board discussion and lead-agency vote, April 22, 2025.