Another zombie home on the South Shore is being demolished and rebuilt thanks to a Suffolk County housing program called Acquire and Renovate Bank Owned Residences.
The latest blighted house had sat vacant at 23 Furman Avenue, just north of South Country Road, in East Patchogue for 10 years. It was destroyed on Dec. 20.
Over the next year, the property will be remodeled into an energy-efficient home, which will then be sold as affordable housing for qualified first-time homebuyers with an income of 80 percent or under the area’s median.
“Today we kicked off demolition to tear down the past and build for the future,” said Suffolk County executive Steve Bellone at the demolition. “The new zero-energy home will offer advanced levels of energy savings, durability, quality and future performance that stand the test of time and enhance future value.”
Suffolk County Landbank, which buys distressed homes for this program, acquired the home for $75,000 last spring. The Landbank has secured $3.86 million in grant funding for the ARBOR program through the state Attorney General’s office as a result of the National Mortgage Settlement.
Since the program’s inception in 2015, the East Patchogue project marks the 11th rehabilitation by the non-for-profit organization and its redevelopment partners, such as United Way.
“This kind of coordinated effort on blight elimination and ensuring energy efficiency would not have been possible without the leadership of the County Executive and the National Mortgage Settlement funding assistance provided by the New York State Attorney General,” said the Landbank’s chair, Theresa Ward.
The property will also be equipped with an advanced wastewater treatment system in order to significantly reduce the amount of nitrogen released into the drinking water and nearby waterways.
“It’s also helps in our efforts to reclaim our water and combat the nitrogen crisis,” Bellone said.
Homebuyers interested in properties constructed and rehabilitated through this program can visit www.
