Here we go with another building project named “Crossing” somewhere in its nomenclature. And like The Crossing in Jamaica, 115 Delancy has a significant affordability component. At 26 stories and with 195 apartments, 115 Delancy Street is part of an enormous development project known as Essex Crossing. Just how affordable is an apartment at 115 Delancy Street?
How is 115 Delancy Street affordable?
This project is affordable because it receives a twenty year 421-a property tax abatement. But not every unit is rent stabilized. Out of 195 apartments, 99 will be rent stabilized, 96 are considered “market rate.” For a few moments, I thought perhaps this building was constructed under the “new” 421-a, aka “Affordable New York” with the use of “market rate” appearing in the regulatory agreement. But construction would need to have started late January 1, 2016, and I think this project slipped in under the old program.
Rent Breakdown
Since this is a 421-a building, 99 apartments will be subject to rent stabilization. With the remaining 95 market rate units, some could be rent stabilized depending on where the rents settle, at least according to the regulatory agreement. Depending on one’s income, rent can be a low as $519 a month (if the renter’s income is less than $20,000, but as high as $3,424, if a family of 3 or more is making over $119,000 a year. Curbed has a good article describing the rental scheme for 115 Delancy Street.
Fun Facts
Although 115 Delancy Street is a rental building, the devil is always in the details. It’s actually a seven unit condominium, split between different entities within the building. One condo is for the “Essex Street Market”, two condos are for the movie theater and retail space, another is for an “urban farm”, one is for 45 income restricted units, another is for the market rate units, and the last is for the 53 apartments set aside for low income tenants. Now, you might be saying, “hey, I thought condos were exempt from rent stabilization!” They are, but the individual apartments would need to be condos and owned outright. Organizing blocks of condos for organizational purposes is another story, and are not exempt from rent regulation.
“Fuck This”
Not everyone is on board with Essex Crossing. The Lower East Side, like much of New York, is seeing a rapid transformation from the city of old to…whatever it’s becoming. It’s easy enough to dismiss this sidewalk poster art as someone who may not know about the affordability components of Essex Crossing as a whole. But affordability is just a small piece of the puzzle. Essex Crossing standing alone may not lead to much gentrification, but Essex Crossing combined with the many other local projects, particularly One Manhattan Square, leaves an uncertain future for the area.
