Chin, Seniors Back Affordable Housing Plan In Soho

SOHO, NY — Council Member Margaret Chin and other housing advocates rallied on Tuesday to support a plan to build a new affordable housing complex in Soho.

Chin, who represents the neighborhood in City Council, has long supported a plan that would convert the Elizabeth Street Garden into a 121-unit housing complex for low- and fixed-income seniors, while maintaining a part of the property as a public garden.

The plan has been a controversial one in the neighborhood since 2015, when a city agency identified the garden, a city-owned plot, as one that could be converted into affordable housing. Advocates of the garden there say that the green space, located between Elizabeth and Mott streets near Prince Street, is a rarity in the Soho and Little Italy neighborhoods, and to shrink it would deprive the community of a beloved public space.

"I stand with residents in support of a real chance for seniors in our community to age in the very neighborhood they have fought for and helped build," Chin, a Democrat, said. "For our most vulnerable seniors — especially LGBT — this plan is a game-changer."

The housing project, known as "Haven Green," would have 121 housing units, and would also be home to offices for SAGE, the organization dedicated to supporting LGBT older adults and seniors, and Habitat for Humanity's New York City offices. Last week, the city released details about the plan, which would be developed by Penrose Properties, Habitat for Humanity New York City and RiseBoro Community Partnerships if approved.

In Haven Green, 37 of the units would be reserved for formerly homeless seniors, according to the current plan.

Chin and her allies posited the Haven Green plan as a compromise: In addition to the housing complex, the development would include more than 7,600 square feet of green space for a public garden, plus additional green space on the roof of the building.

Amid a citywide affordable housing crisis, seniors have been hit particularly hard. Advocates with the nonprofit LiveOn NY estimate that more than 200,000 seniors are on waitlist for affordable housing in New York City. Advocates note that LGBTQ seniors might need additional support as they age because they might not have children or spouses.

Chin's rally comes just one day after an opposing rally organized by pro-garden supporters. On Monday, dozens of people from the area joined multiple elected officials to demand that the Elizabeth Street Garden be preserved in its entirety and that the city look to an alternate location on Hudson Street to build a senior housing project. Democratic elected officials including Tish James, the city's public advocate, and Scott Stringer, the city's comptroller, both joined protestors on Monday to demand the garden be maintained.

The park's advocates say that the empty land located near Hudson and Clarkson streets in Greenwich Village would provide more units of affordable housing while preserving the entire garden.

Chin said on Tuesday that the property on Hudson Street is outside of her district, but that she supports its conversion to affordable housing as well as the planned development on Elizabeth Street.

"Because of the need for affordable housing and senior housing, we should be able to build on every site," Chin said.

Chin suggested that the Hudson Street property could be similarly converted to provide affordable housing and green space.

The Haven Green development is still a long way off from breaking ground. The project must be approved by the city's Uniform Land Use Review Procedure, or ULURP, which requires multiple governing bodies to review it. Mayor Bill de Blasio has already committed his support to the proposal.

Opponents of the Haven Green plan have promised to continue protesting it.

Image credit: Courtesy of NYC Housing Preservation and Development