Run-Down Harlem Apartments To Be Renovated, Sold As $2,500 Co-Ops

HARLEM, NY — Three run-down West Harlem buildings are set to be renovated and converted to affordable co-op apartments under a deal with the city, according to organizers.

LISC NYC, a community development nonprofit, closed late last month on a $12.5 million construction financing deal that enables them to take over the city-owned buildings at 505, 523 and 527 West 134th St.

Once the century-old buildings are rehabilitated, the buildings and their 70 combined apartments will be transferred to newly created, tenant-controlled HDFC co-operatives.

The 43 existing tenants will then have the ability to purchase their apartments for $2,500 each, while vacant units will be sold through the city's housing lottery to buyers making 90 percent of the area median income — or about $75,240 for a single person.

Work will begin this spring, according to organizers. Tenants will remain in their homes while construction is being done.

The deal was made possible by city's Affordable Housing Neighborhood Cooperative Program, which enlists developers to renovate distressed, city-owned multi-family buildings with the goal of turning them into affordable HDFC co-ops. Through the program, the city's housing agency is providing $17 million toward the renovations.

Previous buildings renovated through the program include nearby 508 West 134th St. and a handful of others — though the effort has stalled, with hundreds of apartments sitting in limbo.

In this case, the project sponsor is ELH Mgmt. LLC, a Brooklyn-based property manager.

"We’re pleased to be able to embark on this project that will transform century-old buildings into modern, fully renovated homes, bringing new life and activity to W. 134th Street, improving the quality of life of existing residents, and creating deeply affordable homeownership opportunities for dozens of hardworking families in Harlem," said ELH President Larry Hirschfield in a statement.

The building at 523 West 124th St. sits right next door to the Space of Grace Community Garden, a treasured green space that is set to be displaced for a separate residential project. Advocates for the garden briefly pursued a plan to try to relocate it to one of the city-owned properties, to no avail.