Requests for Qualifications Issued September 15 for Innovative Co-Development Partner Team to Propose “Out-of-the-Box” Solutions
The Yonkers Housing Authority (YHA) is seeking a development team to help it launch an ambitious homeownership program that would construct affordable housing in several city neighborhoods.
The housing authority today issued a Request for Qualifications calling on development teams, nonprofit housing organizations, architects, contractors, and financial partners with a successful track record of developing housing to submit proposals. The deadline is October 30.
“This program is designed to provide economic mobility for current residents of the housing authority and others through the transformative power of homeownership,” said Wilson Kimball, President and CEO of the Yonkers Housing Authority for the City of Yonkers. “We hope that this unique partnership uniting the Housing Authority, City of Yonkers, and an innovative private developer will establish a genuine pathway to prosperity. We are looking for development teams that are willing to think outside of the box and come up with creative solutions.’’
In partnership with the City of Yonkers, the housing authority purchased seven parcels of land from the city’s Industrial Development Agency with the goal of building affordable homes.
The dream of homeownership has become more challenging for many Americans to achieve, particularly in the current environment of higher interest rates, stagnating salaries and high housing costs.
“The City of Yonkers has been exceptionally successful at attracting market-rate housing development, and we are equally committed to providing housing at all levels—including to those with modest incomes,” said Yonkers Mayor Mike Spano. “This collaboration reinforces our commitment to ensuring that Yonkers remains a vibrant, inclusive city where everyone has a fair chance to put down roots.”
Lakisha Collins Bellamy, Counsel to the Yonkers Housing Authority who has been spearheading the homeownership program, said, “As a former housing authority resident, I am keenly aware of the critical importance of providing opportunities for upward mobility to those who have been overlooked,” said Collins Bellamy. “This program creates the open doors and solid foundations that hardworking families deserve, ensuring that our residents have an equitable stake in the future of our city.”
Collins Bellamy said while the benefits of homeownership are well documented, the challenges are more acute for low-moderate households and minorities, particularly Black and Hispanics. While great strides have been made to improve homeownership rates for these two groups and low-moderate households in general, there is still a large gap in homeownership rates between minorities and white, non-Hispanic population for a variety of reasons. Homeownership rates for white non-Hispanic households are about 71.7 percent compared with 47 percent for ethnic minorities,[i] according to the Joint Center for Housing Studies (JCHS) of Harvard University.
The RFQ identifies seven properties including two parcels on Herriott Street, three parcels on Byron Avenue, and parcels on Ridgeview Avenue and Ash Street. The development partner team should be capable of planning, financing, designing, constructing, and marketing, high-quality, durable, and energy-efficient homeownership units on these properties controlled or made available by the Authority, according to the RFQ.
Submission Details and Key Dates
- RFQ Availability Online: September 15, 2026, at www.mhacy.org
- Pre-Submittal Zoom Conference: September 30, 2026
- Deadline for Questions: October 7, 2026, at 3:00 PM EST (submitted via email to procurement@mhacy.org)
- Proposal Submission Deadline: October 30, 2026, at 3:00 PM EST
Interested development teams are encouraged to review the full RFQ guidelines and submission requirements available online or through the MHACY pro