Rent at ‘The Grove’ Apartments Will Start at $1,700 Per Month, Including Utilities

By DEBRA MOFFITT
COOPERSTOWN

Eleven new apartments at “The Grove” at Glen Avenue and Grove Street will be ready for their first tenants on September 1, with monthly rents ranging from $1,700.00 to $1,875.00, according to the website for the $5 million project in the village.

As per thegrovecoop.com, all apartments have their own washer/dryer unit and will be assigned one parking space. Monthly rent will include all utilities—heat, A/C, water, sewer, Internet, trash and recycling. Pets are not accepted, no exceptions.

Meanwhile, construction continues on the four studios and seven one-bedroom apartments, part of a project to bring more housing to Cooperstown’s Railroad Avenue Business District. The units range from 475 square feet to 583 square feet of living space.

The Grove received a $1.3 million New York State grant through NY Forward, a program created to improve downtowns in small and rural communities. Creating diverse and affordable housing ranked as a top priority in Cooperstown’s NY Forward Strategic Investment Plan though The Grove is not, strictly speaking, affordable housing, which typically has tiered pricing aligned to local median income.

Interviewed in June, Josh Edmonds of the construction firm Simple Integrity said the state grant funding would help developer ZAED Properties set rents lower than market rate. Edmonds is a partner in ZAED Properties, which built Cooperstown’s Chestnut Crossing apartments that opened in 2023.

In addition to the rental apartments, The Grove includes four new townhomes that will be sold. The two-bedroom units have garages and layouts that enable first-floor living. ZAED has not yet shared the asking price for the townhomes and is accepting names for a waitlist it will share with a realtor, the website says. The homes, to be available by year’s end, will operate under a homeowners’ association.

Like at Chestnut Crossing, Simple Integrity built The Grove complex to meet “Passive House” standards for energy efficiency and air quality, defined as using 90 percent less energy than conventional buildings, according to thegrovecoop.com.

The Grove construction project involved moving a historic property at 36 Grove Street, which will be incorporated into the design about 10 feet from its original spot. A portion of the Grove Street home, known as the Phinney house, dates back to 1873. When Simple Integrity moved the structure in late June, they posted a video on Instagram under the headline “Not something you see every day.”

The village’s NY Forward plan included other projects, among them adding sidewalks near The Grove development as well as pedestrian and ADA improvements to other downtown streets. These include Pioneer Alley, the pedestrian route that leads to the Cooperstown Farmers’ Market and other businesses and shops. In November, the Village of Cooperstown Board of Trustees said it would sign a $220,800.00 project proposal with a company to do the work.