"This is still where you want to come, where you want to work," Mayor Bloomberg said.

The $50 million in federal funds will be divided among four developers who have applied for Liberty Bonds - tax-free financing that Gov. Pataki acknowledged yesterday has not provided enough of an incentive to spur the creation of affordable housing in the area around the World Trade Center site.

Participating developers must set aside at least 20% of all new apartments for tenants earning $50,000 to $85,000.

Builders now using Liberty Bonds - created to spark development after the terror attacks - must set aside only 5% of new units for middle-income renters.

Affordable-housing advocates, long critical of Liberty Bond financing, branded yesterday's announcement a stunt.

"They have finally had to acknowledge there are desperate needs in lower Manhattan," said Bettina Damiani, executive director of Good Jobs New York. "But this is a like a drop in a big empty bucket."

Pataki and Bloomberg made the announcement with U.S. Housing and Urban Development Secretary Mel Martinez.

"This program will make it easier for hundreds of hardworking New Yorkers who want to settle downtown to find an affordable place to live, [and] build a bright, stable future for their families," Pataki said.

Originally published on July 22, 2003