SILVER CREEK – The transformation of a longtime village eyesore appears to be moving closer.

State Sen. George Borrello announced Friday a $4.6 million grant for an affordable senior housing project at the former high school on Main Street. The award is from the Department of housing and Urban Development (HUD) and the project is only one of 30 nationwide to get the grant. It’s part of HUD’s section 202: Supportive Housing for the Elderly Program. The initiative provides capital advances to private, nonprofit sponsors to finance the development of housing for very low-income elderly residents.

The proposed Silver Creek Senior Apartments project, led by Region 9 UAW Housing Corp., would transform the former school into a 47-unit apartment building for those 55 and over. All units in the complex would serve seniors with incomes at or below 60 percent of the area median income. Fifteen apartments would be set aside for the frail elderly.

“From the start, I saw the potential to transform this former school into critically-needed housing for our area’s seniors, despite the deterioration that has occurred during the 40 years it has stood vacant,” Borrello said. “Ideally situated in a wonderful, walkable community with services nearby, this project would serve a need that has gone unmet for decades and allow many seniors to access supportive housing in their own community, close to family and friends.”

U.S. Rep. Tom Reed, R-Corning, said, “We are proud to have worked with Senator Borrello and local officials to make this important grant a reality. We care about the residents of Silver Creek and are excited about this opportunity for affordable senior housing.”

“Region 9 UAW Housing Corporation is honored to have been awarded HUD funding to provide quality affordable housing to seniors who will reside in the former Silver Creek School,” said Dan Antonellis, president of the Region 9 UAW Housing Corporation. “We are pleased to honor our former board vice president, Tom Fricano, who grew up and raised his family in Silver Creek. Tom was an active community member who made it his mission to bring affordable housing to the Western New York area. We look forward to honoring Tom’s wishes in the community.”

Borrello noted that there are still other benchmarks to be met to bring the project to fruition.

“While the project still has some ground to cover before we have 100 percent certainty it will move forward, this win is an encouraging indication of the strength of Region Nine’s proposal and the need in the community,” he said. “My thanks go out to Region Nine, Oxford Consulting Inc., East Ferry Partners and all the stakeholders we’ve worked with to get to this point. We are all invested in the vision and will keep working to move this forward through the next steps in the process.”

The developer of the project is Region Nine, a non-profit 501 (c) (3) organization that develops affordable housing to meet the needs of low to moderate income seniors, persons with disabilities and families. The organization also owns and manages affordable housing communities throughout New Jersey and Pennsylvania.