Tarrytown resident Sadie McKeown appointed to housing and energy boards

June 22, 2021

By Alexander Roberts—

Governor Andrew Cuomo has appointed Tarrytown resident Sadie McKeown to the boards of the New York State Housing Finance Agency and the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority. Together, these volunteer councils make decisions about how to spend hundreds of millions of dollars on housing and energy projects across the state.

McKeown moved to Tarrytown 27 years ago with her husband and raised their two daughters in the village. She said the appointments were the culmination of two of her passions: affordable housing and energy efficiency. She previously served on a subcommittee of the NYS Legislature’s Climate Action Council.

“I am very happy to be part of the governor’s ambitious climate action plan to make the state carbon neutral by mid-century,” McKeown said.

As part of that effort, Cuomo announced a five-year, $ 33 billion plan, which NYSERDA will help spend $ 28 billion “to develop, sustain and expand carbon-free power generation, build infrastructure such as transmission lines and energy storage that make energy renewable. sustainable energy sources and working with our regional partners to reduce carbon emissions.

The NYS Housing Finance Agency, a public utility, issues taxable and tax-exempt bonds to provide mortgages to developers of affordable multi-family rental housing across the state.

Volunteer of the year

Earlier this year, Tarrytown Mayor Tom Butler presented McKeown with the Tarrytown Volunteer of the Year award for his leadership as chairman of the board of Asbury Terrace, as well as for leading the sale of the project which will lead to its renovation, while ensuring that there will remain affordable housing. , and in the redevelopment of the YMCA in Tarrytown.

McKeown is also chair of the Tarrytown Housing Affordability Task Force, set up by the village council to encourage smart growth (and of which this writer is a member).

When not volunteering, McKeown’s day job is as Executive Vice President and Head of Building Loans and Initiatives for the Community Preservation Corporation. CPC is a non-profit affordable housing finance and community revitalization company.

In this role, she oversees six regional offices of the bank, administering $ 400 million in construction loans each year. But above all, she is proud of her “Access” to banking initiative.

“We started it after George Floyd died in Minneapolis,” McKeown said. “It’s an effort to provide advice and loans to BIPOC developers (blacks, natives and other people of color), giving them the support they need to compete for construction projects. Who else is going to do it? “

McKeown is optimistic about Tarrytown. “I love this community and have seen the village change so positively over the past 27 years, with so many passionate and talented residents who care about the village,” she said.