Unlocking New Opportunities for Supportive Housing in the Bronx ACMH Bronx Site Acquisition
ACMH provides outreach and engagement, care coordination, peer support, supportive housing, and rehabilitation to adults living with serious mental illness. Through providing access to treatment, employment, and other essential services, ACMH creates individualized plans that address each person’s strengths, needs, and goals. In response to the ongoing homelessness and mental health crisis in New York City, ACMH engaged Denham Wolf to identify and acquire a suitable development site for a new supportive housing facility.
Since 1979, ACMH has been at the forefront of addressing the mental health crisis in New York, providing stable, long-term housing solutions for individuals in need. As demand for supportive housing continues to grow, ACMH sought to develop a new residential facility in the Bronx. Denham Wolf was engaged to assist in the search and acquisition of an optimal site for a ground-up supportive and affordable housing development. ACMH identified key considerations including proximity to public transit, financial feasibility, and funding-related requirements such as unit mix and size.
Over the past several years, Denham Wolf has built a proprietary database of development sites across New York City suitable for supportive housing development. Using this market knowledge, Denham Wolf conducted a comprehensive review, including a due diligence process to evaluate the condition and feasibility of potential development sites.
Ultimately, the team identified a 16,000-square-foot property in the Morris Heights neighborhood of the Bronx with 100,000 square feet of buildable area. Recent neighborhood rezoning had shifted the site designation from commercial and industrial use to residential, creating new opportunities for housing development.
Leveraging our deep understanding of ACMH’s acquisition strategy and its funders’ underwriting requirements, Denham Wolf successfully bridged differences between buyer and seller throughout negotiations. This included translating complex approval and financing processes into a milestone-based timeline that addressed concerns around transaction risk. Denham Wolf structured and negotiated the acquisition of the site, while supporting ACMH throughout the closing process.
Today, construction is underway on the 14-story mixed-use building, including 175 residential units. Since completing this transaction, Denham Wolf has continued its partnership with ACMH, securing two additional development sites in the Bronx and Queens. Together, these projects will expand access to supportive housing, expert care, and life-changing services for some of New York City’s most vulnerable community members.
"Denham Wolf has been a critical partner to ACMH, helping us identify and acquire right-sized development sites for three affordable and supportive housing projects in NYC over a three-year period. ACMH is committed to the mental and physical well-being of vulnerable New Yorkers--core to our mission is developing supportive housing for adults with mental illness. Denham Wolf took the time to understand our unique requirements, matched them to their proprietary database of development sites, developed a transaction structure that worked for all parties, and supported us throughout the negotiation and due diligence process to ensure a successful closing. In my 30 years at ACMH, I have not encountered another firm that demonstrates the same level of attention to detail and understanding of our specific needs as a nonprofit organization."
- Dan Johansson, EVP and CEO, ACMH
“We are proud to have partnered with ACMH on this important initiative. The successful acquisition of multiple sites across the city advances ACMH's mission by providing stable housing and opportunity for vulnerable New Yorkers—demonstrating the power of real estate to drive meaningful social impact.”
—Christopher D. Turner, MRICS, Principal | Managing Director of Transaction Services at Denham Wolf
