NEW YORK CITY — Queens Development Group, a joint venture between Related Cos. and Sterling Equities, has broken ground on the first phase of a 2,500-unit affordable housing project in the New York City borough of Queens. The project, named Willets Point, will be the city’s largest affordable housing development in 40 years, according to the joint venture. Wells Fargo has arranged a total of $360 million in financing for Phase I of the development, with a $236.5 million construction loan and $123.5 million Low-Income Housing Tax Credit investment. Phase I of the development will feature two mid-rise buildings offering a combined 880 units of affordable housing. Forty percent of units will be reserved for residents earning at or below 60 percent of the area median income, and 15 percent of units will be set aside for tenants that formerly experienced homelessness. Amenities will include a landscaped inner courtyard, laundry facilities, lounge space with access to outdoor terraces, bicycle storage and ground-floor retail space. The development will also include infrastructure investments like new streets, signage, sidewalks, trees, lights, drainage, stormwater management, water hydrants, sewers and utilities. Future components of the development will include a 650-seat standalone public school, New York …
