Middletown CDA finance committee backs $383,100 rehab bid and recommends city loan for 7 Genung Street

The finance committee of the Middletown Community Development Agency on Aug. 4 recommended awarding a $383,100 contract to Matthew J. Davies to fully rehabilitate 7 Genung Street and recommended borrowing the contract amount from the City of Middletown to fund the work, Chair Johnson said during the meeting.

The recommendation came after a presentation from Ms. Bruni, the agency's executive director, who showed photos of the home’s interior after demolition and outlined the planned work. "We demoed and then it went out for full rehab bid," Bruni said, and added that the agency expects to remain on budget.

The committee, which met first as a four-member finance committee, approved two separate actions: awarding the rehab bid and recommending the city loan that will fund the rehabilitation until the property is sold. Both motions carried unanimously, 4-0.

Bruni told members the three-bedroom, two-bath house had been taken to the studs during the demo authorized earlier this year. The agency recorded demolition costs of about $19,800. An appraisal prepared to the agency’s specifications valued the finished property at $450,000, Bruni said. With construction and soft costs, the agency estimated total outlays around $412,000 and said it expects to market the house for roughly $425,000 when work is complete.

The property’s lot measures about 5,600 square feet, Bruni said, and the rehab will include rebuilding a damaged foundation wall and adding a deck. An inspector prepared an earlier cost estimate that Bruni said was slightly higher than the contractor’s bid; Bruni noted that completing demolition before bidding reduced the risk of unexpected conditions.

Bruni identified one bidder for the project, Matthew J. Davies, whom the agency recommended for the contract. She said any loan from the city would be repaid when the home is sold.

Committee members asked whether prospective buyers — the agency's target market is first-time buyers — could qualify for mortgages in the range required to purchase homes in this price band. Bruni said buyers have access to mortgage buy-downs and down-payment assistance programs through local programs and partners; she mentioned programs that can provide up to $20,000 in assistance. She also noted the agency had other rehabilitation projects underway on Linden Avenue and Washington Street and expected a closing soon on 54 Washington.

In committee, the motion to accept the $383,100 bid was moved by Mr. Massey and seconded by Mr. Green; the motion carried unanimously, 4-0. The subsequent motion recommending the agency borrow $383,100 from the City of Middletown to fund the rehab was moved by Mr. Massey and seconded by Mr. Green; that motion also carried unanimously, 4-0.

At the regular CDA meeting that followed, the board recorded the same approvals and heard Ms. Bruni reiterate the progress on other rehab properties. The board did not set additional conditions on the award or the recommended borrowing; Bruni said she would provide updates as transactions progress.

The agency's actions authorize the award and a recommendation to the City of Middletown for short-term borrowing to complete the rehab; the loan and final sale depend on the usual closing processes and approvals, Bruni said.